An international perspective of early number sense: Identifying components predictive of difficulties in early mathematics achievement

Abstract

From preschool to high school, number sense is included as an important outcome in mathematics syllabi. It is a term associated with the development of concepts and skills in mathematics and as such appears frequently in the teaching literature. However number sense is a term yet to be operationally defined. The present study used a modified Delphi procedure to determine the level of agreement amongst six early mathematics experts from Britain, Europe and the United States, with respect to a variety of components of early number sense. The results of this study are discussed in relation to a similar Australasian study and the emerging literature on early number sense assessment. This study revealed some components of number sense worthy of further investigation in relation to early mathematical achievement but also confirmed a lack of consensus on what exactly constitutes early number sense.