Investigating Divided Attention during Mathematics Instruction: A Case Study with 8th Grade Students

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the divided attention situations of 8th grade students and to reveal how this cognitive skill influences their learning processes. The participants consisted of four students (two girls, two boys) from a public middle school, selected through criterion sampling based on their mathematics exam scores. The study was conducted within a qualitative case study design. Data were collected through classroom observations, semi-structured interviews, and assessment forms administered during a five-week instructional process.

Findings showed that high-achieving students tended to exhibit strong selective attention by focusing mainly on lesson-related stimuli and filtering out irrelevant information. In contrast, students with relatively lower achievement demonstrated higher levels of divided attention, responding to both lesson-related and unrelated stimuli, but with weaker selective attention. These results indicate that while divided attention may enable students to process multiple inputs simultaneously, insufficient filtering mechanisms can reduce academic efficiency.

The study highlights the importance of balancing divided and selective attention in instructional settings. For teachers, designing learning environments with structured, cognitively simplified, and engaging materials can help optimize students’ attention management. Furthermore, supporting students with attention-focused activities may contribute to more effective learning outcomes.