Investigating mathematics writing performance of Chinese middle school students

Previous research has emphasized the crucial role of mastering mathematics content in developing mathematics writing (MW) skills. However, there is limited empirical evidence to explore the relationship between improved mathematics content knowledge and MW performance. This study aims to investigate how students enhanced mathematical understanding is reflected in their ability to communicate mathematical reasoning effectively. The study analyzed data from a sample of 145 seventh-grade students. The findings reveal that, despite possessing more advanced mathematics content knowledge than primary school students, middle school students continue to encounter significant challenges in MW. Specifically, students demonstrated stronger organizational skills in general writing compared to MW. In MW, key limitations included a restricted mathematics vocabulary, frequent grammatical errors, and an overemphasis on procedural knowledge at the expense of conceptual understanding. These results suggest a significant gap in students' ability to clearly and effectively express mathematical reasoning, highlighting the need for targeted instructional strategies to support the development of MW skills.