The Effect of a Curriculum Based on Dienes’ Theory of Mathematical Learning on Students’ Academic Achievement, Attitudes Toward Mathematics and Arithmetic Skills

Based on the perspective that mathematics is a form of abstraction requiring active physical and mental engagement, this study investigates the impact of an instructional design based on Zoltan Paul Dienes’ Mathematics Learning Theory on sixth-grade students with low mathematics achievement. While literature in Turkey frequently includes game-based activities, research directly centering on Dienes’ dynamic and variability principles remains limited, particularly regarding their simultaneous effect on arithmetic tempo and mathematics attitude during the "Natural Numbers and Integers" unit. Utilizing a Quasi-Experimental Design with Pretest-Posttest Control Groups, the study was conducted during the 2025-2026 academic year with 60 public middle school students divided equally into experimental and control groups. Data gathered through an Academic Achievement Test, an Arithmetic Tempo Test, and a Mathematics Attitude Scale revealed that the Dienes-based model yielded a statistically significant and positive effect on academic success, with the experimental group significantly outperforming the control group (p = .000), demonstrating a high intra-group effect size (η2 = .764). Regarding arithmetic tempo, both groups showed statistically significant improvements in processing speed, yet no significant difference was found between their posttest scores, indicating that the relevant unit naturally enhanced speed in both groups without distinct impact of Dienes' theory in calculation velocity. Conversely, a prominent differentiation emerged in affective outcomes; while the traditional curriculum produced no change in the control group's mathematical attitude, the experimental group exhibited a statistically significant positive shift with a high effect size (η2 = .196). Ultimately, the study concludes that Dienes’ Mathematics Learning Theory serves as a highly effective pedagogical model that simultaneously enhances both cognitive achievement and affective attitudes, experimentally validating the indispensability of concrete representation and progressive abstraction in mathematics education, even though it does not create a selective advantage in purely procedural processing speed.