Fourth-Grade Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Exceptional Students' Concepts of Number Line

Abstract

This study examined the understanding of number line concepts by 4th grade culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students with disabilities who were in bilingual special education classes. Performance levels and strategies used by CLD students with disabilities (n = 30), students with learning disabilities (SLD, n = 23), and general education students (SGE, n = 21), were examined on number line based on word problems. CLD students with disabilities demonstrated difficulty due to several factors beyond lack of language competence, including failure to apply number line to the problems and limited range of strategies. Students with disabilities were less likely to attempt mental computation or guessing, and more likely to make paper and pencil computational errors than students in general education.