10.02.2026
Targeted promotion of mathematical structuring competences: Study shows the effectiveness of a short online intervention
How can mathematical talent be fostered early and in a targeted way? An intervention study conducted by researchers from the University of Tübingen and the Hector Institute for Empirical Educational Research provides new empirical insights. In a randomized controlled field trial, the researchers showed that a specially developed online intervention significantly improves the mathematical structuring competence of high-achieving primary school students.
The study was conducted by Judith Havemann (University of Tübingen), Ann-Kathrin Jaggy, Katrin Kunz, Ulrich Trautwein (Hector Research Institute of Education Sciences and Psychology), and Walther Paravicini. It was recently published in the journal Learning and Instruction. The researchers examined a one-week intervention for mathematically talented students in grades 2 to 5, who took part in a digital holiday course as part of the Hector Children’s Academy program.
The intervention focused on promoting so-called mathematical structuring competence (MSC). That is the ability to recognize, apply, and independently develop mathematical patterns and structures. The training concept combined inquiry-based learning with demanding, structurally rich pattern tasks and relied on cooperative learning formats.
The results show clear effects: students in the intervention group developed significantly higher structuring competences than those in the comparison group, who participated in a course on computational thinking. Notably, all participants benefited equally, regardless of gender, grade level, prior knowledge, or fluid intelligence. In contrast, no immediate effects were found on calculation performance or motivational characteristics.
“The study showed that talented students’ MSC can be promoted by combining inquiry-based learning with mathematically rich pattern tasks,” the authors conclude. Since structuring competences are considered a central core of mathematical talent in many theoretical models, the study provides important impulses for the further development of enrichment programs at the primary school level.
The study closes an important research gap, as there have so far been very few experimental studies on the promotion of mathematical talent beyond the preschool age. At the same time, it shows how research-based interventions can be successfully implemented within extracurricular programs. In the long term, the findings are intended to contribute to the further development of support concepts and to make them applicable to regular classroom instruction as well.
Publication
Havemann, J., Jaggy, A.-K., Kunz, K., Trautwein, U., & Paravicini, W. (2026). Efficacy of a mathematical structuring competence intervention for talented students: A randomized controlled field trial. Learning and Instruction, 102, 102295. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2025.102295
Media Contakt
Philipp Sigle
presse@lead.uni-tuebingen.de
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