ED2090 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Dyscalculia, Numeracy, Developmental Coordination Disorder
Intervention for Learning Difficulties
Lecture Four - Week Four - Dyscalculia
Overview
• Learning Disabilities – persistent and resistant
• Numeracy
• What is dyscalculia
• Diagnosis
• Red flags
• Prevention
Learning disabilities
• 3 - 5% of our school population
• Normal range of intelligence sometimes gifted or dual exceptional
• Contributing factors that are internal to the child
• Neurological in origin (affecting the brain)
• Heritable (genetic in origin)
• Problems are persistent (lifelong – no cures)
• Resistant to intervention
Numeracy
• The foundation of numeracy is number sense which is an understanding about what numbers represent and
having the ability to use them to solve problems.
• It can also include understanding place value and the ability to approximate and estimate along with comparison
(which one is bigger/small) and equivalence.
• Underpinning numeracy is counting, which requires the understanding of what a number is and how they relate
to each other.
What is dyscalculia
• Dyscalculia is an umbrella term which describes a wide range of difficulties in maths, in particular the acquisition
of arithmetic skills.
• Developmental dyscalculia is referred to maths difficulty present at birth whereas ‘acquired dyscalculia’ can be
caused by accidental brain damage.
• The cause cannot be attributed to intellectual impairment or inadequate schooling and is still present after
intervention (of at least 6 months).
Diagnosis
• Like dyslexia and dysgraphia, dyscalculia comes under the category of specific learning disorder (SLD) with
impairment in mathematics in the DSM-5 and can often be co-morbid with dyslexia and sometimes dyspraxia
(fine motor).
• How can you solve a word problem when you cannot read the question?
• It is rare but with improving tools for assessment and diagnosis there may be an increase in prevalence.
Red flags for teachers (early childhood)
• Not knowing which of two digits is larger, i.e. understanding the meaning of numbers
• Poor fluency in identification of numbers
• Inability to add simple single-digit numbers mentally and
• Limitations in working memory capacity
• Struggles to subitise
Red flags for teachers (early childhood)
• Lacking effective counting strategies:
o Does the student miscount their fingers?
o Do they know they have 5 fingers on one hand and 5 on the other?
o Do they move their fingers but count inaccurately, showing a lack of one-to-one correspondence?
o Do they touch each finger as they count?
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Learning disabilities persistent and resistant: numeracy, what is dyscalculia, diagnosis, red flags, prevention. The foundation of numeracy is number sense which is an understanding about what numbers represent and having the ability to use them to solve problems. The cause cannot be attributed to intellectual impairment or inadequate schooling and is still present after intervention (of at least 6 months). It is rare but with improving tools for assessment and diagnosis there may be an increase in prevalence. Red flags for teachers (early childhood: not knowing which of two digits is larger, i. e. understanding the meaning of numbers, poor fluency in identification of numbers, struggles to subitise. Inability to add simple single-digit numbers mentally and. Lack of understanding of mathematical terms: poor mathematical concept development, confusion over printed symbols and signs, difficulty solving basic maths problems using addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, poor memory of number facts (i. e. times tables)
