Abstract

This paper reports on the effectiveness of an intervention designed to improve nursing students' conceptual understanding of decimal numbers. Results of recent intervention studies have indicated some success at improving nursing students' numeracy through practice in applying procedural rules for calculation and working in real or simulated practical contexts. However, in this we identified a fundamental problem: a significant minority of students had an inadequate understanding of decimal numbers. The intervention aimed to improve nursing students' basic understanding of the size of decimal numbers, so that, firstly, calculation rules are more meaningful, and secondly, students can interpret decimal numbers (whether digital output or results of calculations) sensibly. A well-researched, time-efficient diagnostic instrument was used to identify individuals with an inadequate understanding of decimal numbers. We describe a remedial intervention that resulted in significant improvement on a delayed post-intervention test. We conclude that nurse educators should consider diagnosing and, as necessary, plan for remediation of students' foundational understanding of decimal numbers before teaching procedural rules.

Submitted: May 7, 2007 · Accepted: October 10, 2007 · Published: February 28, 2008

Recommended Citation

Pierce, Robyn U.; Steinle, Vicki A.; Stacey, Kaye C.; and Widjaja, Wanty (2008) "Understanding Decimal Numbers: A Foundation for Correct Calculations," International Journal of Nursing Education Scholarship: Vol. 5 : Iss. 1, Article 7.
Available at: http://www.bepress.com/ijnes/vol5/iss1/art7

Related Files

Intervention_071024.doc (200 kB)
Decimals intervention activities
APPENDIX.pdf (72 kB)
Appendix - PDF