The Relationship between the WJ-R Gf-Gc Cognitive Clusters and Mathematics Achievement across the Life-Span

Abstract

The relationship between the Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Battery-Revised (WJ-R) cognitive clusters (Long-Term Retrieval, Short-Term Memory, Visual Processing, Auditory Processing, Processing Speed, Comprehension-Knowledge, Fluid Reasoning) and mathematics achievement measures (WJ-R Basic Mathematics Skills and Mathematics Reasoning clusters) was investigated in the WJ-R standardization sample. Multiple regression analysis with the WJ-R cognitive clusters as predictors and the mathematics achievement measures as criteria at 21 different age groups revealed significant relationships among three of the seven cognitive clusters and mathematics achievement at various ages. The degree of relationship between the cognitive clusters and mathematics achievement changed as a function of age. The results have implications for using standardized measures of cognitive abilities to explain problems of mathematics achievement.