Mathematical language and its relation to numerical performance in linguistically diverse elementary-school children

Recent research has shown that mathematical language is a central predictor of mathematical abilities. Related studies mainly focused on linguistically rather homogenous samples. However, proficiency in the teaching language has been shown to be particularly important in multilingual contexts. In Luxembourg, for example, many student’s home languages differ from the language of math instruction, impacting their school performance. We therefore aimed at exploring the link between (mathematical) language and numerical skills in linguistically diverse elementary-school children. Language skills were assessed through a self-developed receptive vocabulary measure with 18 mathematical and 45 general language items. To assess numerical skills, we devised a total of ten tasks (e.g., transcoding, number comparison). Further measures included demographics (language background, socioeconomic status, age, gender) and rapid automatized naming. Data was collected on 598 third-grade children attending Luxembourgish public schools, whereof 56% did not speak the language of math instruction at home. Regression analyses revealed that mathematical and general language both significantly contributed to numerical performance. Moreover, students who spoke the language of math instruction at home had significantly higher outcomes on all measures compared to their peers. Results of a mediation analysis indicated that mathematical language significantly explained the observed performance gaps, even after controlling for children’s general language abilities. These findings highlight the important contribution of mathematical language skills to numerical performance in elementary-school children with different language backgrounds. Trainings on mathematical language, in addition to general language, may potentially enhance student’s understanding of mathematical instructions and contents, especially in linguistically heterogeneous education contexts.