VARIABLES RELATED TO MATHEMATICS ACHIEVEMENT AMONG BLACK-STUDENTS

The mathematics achievement and attitudes of Black fourth- and eighth- grade students were the focus of a recent study. The effects of gender , economic status, self-concept, and learning style on achievement wer e examined, along with differences between the grade levels on each va riable. Results obtained from testing the 251 Black students in the sa mple indicated that they were from economically stressed families and generally possessed negative attitudes toward mathematics. Predictive equations were developed for the mathematics achievement of both fourt h- and eighth-grade Black students. Among fourth graders, mathematics attitude and economic status contributed significantly to the predicti on of achievement. For eighth graders, the predictors were learning st yle and gender.