College Mathematics Achievement and Logical Reasoning

The Burney logical Reasoning test was administered to 297 college students in a wide range of college mathematics courses. By comparing the mean scores on the Logical Reasoning Test for A, B, C, D, and F students, the analysis of variance showed a significant difference. Further post hoc analysis showed that students who receive lower Logical Reasoning Test scores are more likely to receive lower grades in a wide range of mathematics classes than students who receive A and B grades. A second related question of how much of the variance in students' mathematics grades could be accounted for by their Logical Reasoning Test scores was addressed. Given that grades in mathematics courses are a function of multiple factors, the study confirmed that students' levels of logical reasoning could account for a small but significant 13% of the variance. When students were divided into five clusters based on the level of the mathematics classes, logical reasoning ability predicted course grades in some subsets of mathematics classes more than in others.