Integrated STEM-based mathematical problem-solving skills of students: The role of prior mathematical knowledge and text comprehension skills
Amalina I.K. Vidákovich T. Akhmetova A. Brečka P.
September 2026Elsevier Ltd
Thinking Skills and Creativity
2026#61
Success in mathematical problem-solving integrating Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) depends on students’ knowledge of mathematical concepts and their understanding of task situations. However, the influence of these skills may vary depending on item difficulty and students’ levels of prior mathematical knowledge and text comprehension skills. This study aims to investigate the characteristics of integrated STEM-based mathematical problem-solving items and explore how differences in students’ prior mathematical knowledge, text comprehension skills, and item difficulty levels relate to their performance on such tasks. A total of 1067 Indonesian middle school students participated in this study through tests. Data were analyzed using Rasch analysis, one-way ANOVA, and multiple linear regression. The results revealed that items involving complex language and mathematics concept, particularly those requiring applications, were categorized as difficult. Additionally, students with high or very high levels of both prior mathematical knowledge and text comprehension skills were more impacted by their text comprehension skills when solving problems of varying difficulty. In contrast, students with lower levels of prior mathematical knowledge relied more on their mathematical knowledge in solving those problems. These results have implications for designing interventions and tasks that consider about problem characteristics, students ability levels, and the differential impact of these abilities on problem-solving performance. Copyright
Item difficulty , Mathematical problem-solving , Prior mathematical knowledge , STEM , Text comprehension skills
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University of Szeged, Doctoral School of Education, Hungary
Azerbaijan State University of Economics, Center of Educational Technologies, Azerbaijan
University of Szeged, Institute of Education, Hungary
Pavlodar Pedagogical University named after Alkey Margulan, Kazakhstan
Constantine the Philosopher University in Nitra, Department of Technology and Information Technologies, Slovakia
University of Szeged
Azerbaijan State University of Economics
University of Szeged
Pavlodar Pedagogical University named after Alkey Margulan
Constantine the Philosopher University in Nitra
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Книга Публикация научной статьи Волощук 2026 Book Publication of a scientific article 2026