KU researchers develop online math tutorials

Researchers at the University of Kansas have developed a set of online math tutorials they will test in schools in Kansas and Singapore, in hopes of developing curriculum that will improve math scores for students across the nation.

Singapore regularly ranks No. 1 in the world for math achievement. Ed Meyen, professor of special education, and Diana Greer, assistant research professor at KU’s Center for Research on Learning, are leading a project that has developed math tutorials that require less reading than traditional models. The online modules will be beneficial to students with cognitive disabilities.

“We try to listen to teachers to find out what they need in their classrooms,” Meyen said. “For the last two or three years they’ve been telling us they need online tutorials with limited reading necessary for students with disabilities. We’re trying to measure math, and what we were measuring was reading.”

The new tutorials, which were recently rolled out in Singapore, will be tested for about six weeks to determine their effectiveness for students with disabilities and what further development may be necessary. In the fall, they will be tested in 60 school districts across Kansas, and if all goes according to plan, will later be made available to schools across the United States.

This story was originally published March 13, 2012 at 5:00 AM with the headline "KU researchers develop online math tutorials."