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Terhi Vessonen earned her PhD in Education from the University of Helsinki, Finland. Her research focuses on the learning and development of mathematical skills, with particular emphasis on word problem solving, fractions, and early numeracy. She investigates how learner characteristics, task features, and educational interventions shape mathematical skill development, and how valid and reliable assessment tools can be designed to capture these processes. The overarching goal for Terhi’s research is to advance evidence-based practices that support students' learning of mathematics.

Methodologically, Terhi specializes in quantitative research, including structural equation modelling, meta-analysis, and psychometric validation, using R, Mplus, and SPSS. Her teaching experience includes undergraduate and graduate-level courses on quantitative research methods, mathematical learning difficulties, and educational assessment and interventions.

Terhi is currently working as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Scalability, Capacity, and Learning Engagement for Fraction Face-Off (SCALE) project (PI: Dr. Leanne Ketterlin Geller), funded by the U.S. Department of Education. She also serves as Associate Editor for Review of Education and as Junior Coordinator for the European Association for Research in Learning and Instruction (EARLI) SIG 15 (Special Educational Needs), contributing actively to international research collaboration and community building.

Publications

Vessonen, T. (2025). Mathematical word problem-solving skills among elementary schoolers: A meta-analytic approach to understanding related individual, task, and educational interventions’ characteristics. Dissertationes Universitatis Helsingiensis, 268/2025. (Doctoral dissertation).

Aunio, P., De Smedt, B, Vessonen, T. & Korhonen, J. (2025). Early numeracy in 3- to 4-year-old children: The role of family variables, child’s gender, and language skills. Journal of Research in Childhood Education.

Vessonen, T., Hellstrand, H., Kurkela, M., Aunio, P. & Laine, A. (2025). The effectiveness of mathematical word problem-solving interventions among elementary schoolers: A systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal of Educational Research, 132, 102642.

Vessonen, T., Dahlberg, M., Hellstrand, H., Widlund, A., Söderberg, P., Korhonen, J., Aunio, P. & Laine, A. (2025). Individual characteristics associated with elementary school children’s mathematical word problem-solving skills: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Review of Education, 13(1), 1–39.

Vessonen, T., Dahlberg, M., Hellstrand, H., Widlund, A., Korhonen, J., Aunio, P. & Laine, A. (2024). Task characteristics associated with mathematical word problem-solving performance among elementary school-aged children: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Educational Psychology Review, 36, 117.

Vessonen, T., Hellstrand, H., Aunio, P. & Laine, A. (2023). Individual differences in mathematical problem-solving skills among 3- to 5-year-old preschoolers. International Journal of Early Childhood.

Vessonen, T., Widlund, A., Hakkarainen, A. & Aunio, P. (2023). Validating the early numeracy teacher rating scale for preschoolers (TRS–EN). European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 1–20.

Vessonen, T., Hakkarainen, A., Väisänen, E., Laine, A., Aunio, P., & Gagnon, J. C. (2021). Differential effects of virtual and concrete manipulatives in a fraction intervention on fourth and fifth grade students’ fraction skills. Investigations in Mathematics Learning, 13(4), 323–337.