Journal of Education and Practice www.iiste.org ISSN 2222-1735 (Paper) ISSN 2222-288X (Online) Vol.4, No.17, 2013 54 Modelling the Relationship between Mathematical Reasoning Ability and Mathematics Attainment Benson Adesina Adegoke Institute of Education, University of Ibadan E-mail: doctoradegoke@yahoo.com Abstract In this article, the author seeks to explain the indicators of mathematical reasoning ability and examines the relationship, using structural regression modeling technique, between mathematical reasoning ability and students’ attainment in mathematics. The sample consisted of 240 Senior Secondary School One Students (Age 14-16 years) who were randomly selected from four senior secondary schools in Isokan and Irewole Local Government Areas of Osun State, Nigeria. A 24-item Mathematics Reasoning Ability Test (MRAT) and a 36-item Attainment in Mathematics Test (AMT) were constructed to explain the indicators of mathematical reasoning ability and to assess how far these indicators enter into success in school mathematics work. Students’ scores in MRAT and AMT were analysed by using maximum likelihood estimates of LISREL version 8.88. Results from the structural regression model showed that four fundamental notions (viz: class, variable, order and classification) were measures of mathematical reasoning ability and two, success in mathematics reasoning ability reliably predicted success in mathematics attainment. These findings suggest the need for mathematics teachers to mount intervention programmes that will help students develop and improve their mathematical reasoning ability and ultimately improve their attainment in mathematics. Keywords: Mathematical reasoning ability; Attainment in Mathematics; Mathematics learning in Nigeria; Structural regression modeling 1. Introduction Mathematics is an excellent vehicle for the development and improvement of a person’s intellectual competence in logical reasoning, spatial visualization, analysis and abstract thought. Students develop numeracy, reasoning, thinking skills, and problem solving skills through the learning and application of mathematics. These are valued not only in science and technology, but also in everyday living and in the workplace. The development of a highly skilled scientifically- and technologically `based manpower requires a strong grounding in mathematics. The Federal Government of Nigeria realizes that she needs citizens who can demonstrate adequate knowledge of Mathematics in order for the country to cope with increasing complex nature of economic activities in the world of today. This perhaps suggests why mathematics is made a compulsory subject for all students at the secondary school level in Nigeria. This is reflected in the Nigerian National Policy on Education (Federal Government of Nigeria, [FGN], 2004). No doubt, an emphasis on functional mathematics education will ensure that Nigeria has an increasingly competitive workforce to meet the challenges of the 21st century. However, despite the importance of mathematics, secondary school students’ level of achievement, continued to be low (Uwudiae, 2012). On the average, between 2009 and 2012, less than 50% of the students who sat for Mathematics in the Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (SSSCE) conducted by West African Examination Council (WAEC) and National Examination Council (NECO) obtained a minimum of credit pass in Mathematics. The poor trend in achievement in mathematics among secondary school students continues to attract attention from the major stakeholders (parents, researchers, teachers, and examining bodies) in education in Nigeria (Uwadiae, 2012). In their effort to improve students’ level of achievement in mathematics, researchers (Adegoke, 2011; Awofala, Awoyemi, Fatade, & Nneji, 2012) have made several suggestions. Among such suggestions include the adoption of integrative teaching method, counseling strategies and use of indigenous language in the teaching of mathematics (Adegoke, 2011). Despite all these suggestions, little or no improvement has been observed. In the on-going search for ways of improving success in mathematics, a look at the influence of mathematical reasoning ability on students’ achievement success in mathematics may suggest intervention programmes that may be embarked upon by mathematics teachers. In fact, some studies such as Choudhury and Das, 2012; Heng – Yuku and Sullivan (2000) and Nunes, Byrant, Barnes, and Sylva (2012) have suggested that there is a link between mathematical reasoning ability and attainment in mathematics. Specifically Nunes, Byrant, Barnes, and Sylva (2012) in their study found out that mathematical reasoning ability reliably predicted students’ achievement in mathematics. Similarly, Choudhury and Das, 2012 in their study in Malaysia found out that geometrical ability (ability to reason with spatial figures) was a good predictor of students’ achievement in mathematics. Results of these studies have suggested the need for changes in the curriculum of mathematics.