Students' skills in mathematical word problems and their reading comprehension level: Basis for intervention program (June 2023)

This study aims to investigate the relationship between reading comprehension and solving mathematical word problems. Mathematics can be enjoyable yet challenging for many students. Solving word problems is a common struggle. To solve these problems, students must have strong reading comprehension skills to fully understand the mathematical information presented in text form. The researchers were motivated to conduct the study to ascertain the level of the students' reading comprehension and its impact on their performance in problem-solving.
The researchers used a quantitative method in the study. The respondents were Grade 11 Senior High School students in Don Manuel Rivera Memorial Integrated National School, Pila, Laguna. The researchers calculated the sample size using Slovin's Formula which has a 5% margin of error. As a result, the researchers obtained a sample size of 118 Grade 11 students from HUMSS and STEM strand. The researchers used an adapted test questionnaire from the Project Reach Program of DepEd to measure the reading comprehension level of the respondents. On the other hand, the researchers created test questions to measure the skills of the students in solving mathematical word problems.
After the data was collected, tallied, and analyzed, results revealed a significant correlation between students' reading comprehension and problem-solving skills at Don Manuel Rivera Memorial Integrated National High School. The majority of the respondents were categorized as "instructional" and "beginner," with a mean of 18.88 and 10.48. Pearson r correlation analysis revealed that pupils’ reading comprehension level is significantly correlated with their problem-solving skills. It means that students who belong to the independent level tend to have higher proficiency in solving mathematical word problems.
The researchers created an intervention program in order to improve students' reading comprehension level and problem-solving skills. The researchers came up with the "CompreMath" intervention program. The "CompreMath" intervention program provides a rationale for integrating reading comprehension strategies into mathematics instruction, enabling students to develop a deeper understanding of mathematical concepts, enhance their problem-solving abilities, and make meaningful connections between mathematics and the real world.