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Cross-sectional study demonstrates high fraction ordering error rates in at-risk fourth graders, indicating whole-number bias stems from weak magnitude estimation.
The three purposes of this study were to (a) describe fraction ordering errors among at-risk fourth grade students, (b) assess the effect of part-whole understanding and accuracy of fraction magnitude estimation on the probability of committing errors, and (c) examine the effect of students' ability to explain comparing problems on the probability of committing errors. Students ( N = 227) completed a nine-item ordering test. A high proportion (81%) of problems were completed incorrectly. Most (65%) errors were due to students misapplying whole number logic to fractions. Fraction-magnitude estimation skill, but not part-whole understanding, significantly predicted the probability of committing this type of error. Implications for practice are discussed.
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Malone et al. (2016) studied this question.
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