Investigation of the relationship between number sense skills, algebraic reasoning skills and mathematics achievement of 7th and 8th grade secondary school students

This study aims to examine the relationship between number sense skills, algebraic reasoning abilities and mathematics achievement of secondary school students. In this context, the Number Sense Test (SDT) and the Algebraic Reasoning Assessment Tool (CMDA) were applied to a total of 195 students studying in the 7th and 8th grades of secondary school in Bolu, to better understand the relationship between the three variables, which are the main objectives of the research, and to evaluate secondary school mathematics education. The aim is to obtain an important data set and find out whether there are significant relationships. In this research, the analysis of the data obtained using CMDA and SDT data collection tools was carried out with the descriptive analysis method. Data obtained from SDT were evaluated by coding 1 for a correct answer and 0 for an incorrect answer. The lowest score obtained from SDT is 0 and the highest score is 50. The relationship between students' number sense and algebraic reasoning was examined with the Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient Technique. Descriptive statistics were used to answer the first two questions of the research, and correlation analysis was used to answer the third question. Hierarchical regression analysis was conducted to find an answer to the fourth question, which is the last question of the research. In the study, it was found that the number sense skills and algebraic reasoning skills of eighth and seventh grade students were significant predictors. When algebraic reasoning skills were examined, it was seen that students received the highest average scores in the functional thinking sub-dimension, but the lowest average scores in the proving and generalization sub-dimensions. It has been determined that students with low tendency to use number sense skills generally turn to rule-based strategies and reach solutions by trial and error method. The results may offer important insights for policymakers, educators, and researchers in the field of secondary school mathematics teaching and learning.