ENHANCING THE PROBLEM-SOLVING ABILITY OF STUDENTS THROUGH THE IMPROVEMENT OF THEIR NUMERICAL FLUENCY

Abstract

The study was centered on enhancing students’ problem solving ability using the instructional strategy
with numerical fluency activities namely math cards, manipulatives, and puzzles. The subjects of the
study involved two selected Grade 7 sections with 28 students each, forming the control and
experimental groups. This was conducted from February 20 to March 31, 2017 at Jose J. Mariano
Memorial High School during the academic year 2016-2017
This study was conducted to determine how the students’ problem solving ability be enhanced through
the improvement of numerical fluency. Specifically, it described the problem solving ability of the
students before and after the implementation of the two instructional strategies. Moreover, it also
answered the questions if there are significant differences in the level of problem solving ability of the
students based on the pre-test and post-test results of the two groups.
The study adopted the qualitative-quantitative methods of research and used the quasi-experimental
method of study. The instruments used to collect data were the: (1) test of numerical fluency and
problem solving ability (pre-test and post-test) consisted of 30 items multiple choice questions, (2) Talk-
Aloud Test was utilized for the qualitative aspect of the study, (3) STAR observation technique was used
to ensure proper implementation of experiment, and (4) rubrics were used to evaluate students’ output.
The data of the study were treated using descriptive and inferential statistics. Mean and mean
percentage were used to describe the numerical fluency and problem solving ability of the students
before and after the treatment. The t-test was utilized to determine the significance of the mean difference between the post-test results of the control and experimental groups. Furthermore, it was
also used to determine the significance between the mean differences of the pre-test and post-test
results of the both groups.
The results of the study showed that instructional strategy with numerical fluency activities has
significant impact on students’ problem solving ability since the experimental group improved from
beginning to approaching proficiency level. Although both methods showed significant differences on
students’ mathematical performance after exposure to the assigned strategy, findings revealed that
instructional strategy with numerical fluency is better than the traditional method of teaching number
problems.
In light of the findings of the study, the researcher recommends utilizing instructional strategy with
numerical fluency activities as supplemental strategy in teaching problem solving topics. It may be
adopted to address the deteriorating performance of students in Mathematics. Similar topics can be
conducted using other approaches and topics.