Post by misty on Jan 7, 2007 0:28:12 GMT -5
This letter is allowed to be printed & shared so I will just post the pertinant parts!
Is dyscalculia widely understood?
All mathematics teachers have encountered children with mathematics learning difficulties and mathematics anxiety. Most of these teachers have some awareness of the nature of learning disabilities/problems in mathematics. However, few teachers are aware of the causes of these problems - learning disabilities, mathematics anxiety, and dyscalculia. In fact, very few of them are able to recognize and deal with the problems of dyscalculics.
American Academies of Neurology and Paediatrics have identified dyscalculia as one of the neurological conditions with a cluster of syndromes associated with it. Similarly, in 2001, as part of the national Numeracy Strategy, the government published guidance for teachers to help them support dyscalculic pupils. Dyscalculia is likely to be a more familiar condition to people who specialize in learning difficulties such as special needs coordinators and educational psychologists. In the U.S., many school psychologists, neurologists and neuro-psychologists have begun to diagnose this as a condition.
Dealing with dyscalculia?
Dyscalculia is a special need, and requires diagnosis, support and special methods of teaching. The support should give the learners an understanding of their condition, and equip them with coping and learning strategies that they can use in the classroom and in their day-to-day encounters with quantity and space. Since this is a heterogeneous group no general or single intervention can be recommended.
3. What forms of instruction are most effective?
Dyscalculic learners lack an intuitive grasp of numbers and have problems learning number facts and procedures by the usual methods of teaching. Even when these learners produce a correct answer or use a correct method, they may do so mechanically and without confidence; they are anxious about it.
One objective of remedial instruction should be to improve learners' self-esteem by giving them real-life exposure to mathematics as a part of everyday life: ingredients needed in baking a cake, checking the change after purchasing something, or making estimations.
The milestone concepts for learning mathematics are: understanding number, place value, fractions, integers, spatial sense and variability. Because a person's mathematics difficulties generally originate from some dysfunction in one of these milestone concepts, one should begin instruction in these areas systematically.
Individuals with dyscalculia need help in organizing and processing information related to quantity and space. Since mathematics is a form of language, one should spend time on its vocabulary, syntax and translation - from mathematics to English and from English to mathematics.
These individuals can benefit from tutoring that can accomplish three objectives. First, to help them make-up the missing arithmetic concepts. Second, to help them connect these to their current mathematical needs. And, third, to help them develop the prerequisite skills for mathematics learning.
Is a dyslexic individual likely to be dyscalculic?
A link between dyslexia and dyscalculia hasn't been proved. The International Dyslexia Association has suggested that 60% of dyslexics have some difficulty with numbers or number relationships. Of the 40% of dyslexics who don't have mathematics difficulties, about 11% excelled in mathematics. The remaining 29% have the same mathematical abilities as those who don't have learning difficulties.
Since some of the same prerequisite skills are involved in both language acquisition and mathematics - at least in the early learning levels - coincidence of dyslexia and dyscalculia is not uncommon. Our observations show that about 40% of dyslexics also exhibit some symptoms of dyscalculia. However, the group of dyscalculic children/adults, like the group of dyslexics, is not a homogeneous one. Most people with dyscalculia don't necessarily suffer from any other learning difficulty. Indeed, they may well excel in non-mathematical areas.
Charlie Girl
That's a really good article.
Its amazing how many teachers never question whether a child who is failing would be able to learn if it was presented differently. I love that this gives very specific advice!
Is dyscalculia widely understood?
All mathematics teachers have encountered children with mathematics learning difficulties and mathematics anxiety. Most of these teachers have some awareness of the nature of learning disabilities/problems in mathematics. However, few teachers are aware of the causes of these problems - learning disabilities, mathematics anxiety, and dyscalculia. In fact, very few of them are able to recognize and deal with the problems of dyscalculics.
American Academies of Neurology and Paediatrics have identified dyscalculia as one of the neurological conditions with a cluster of syndromes associated with it. Similarly, in 2001, as part of the national Numeracy Strategy, the government published guidance for teachers to help them support dyscalculic pupils. Dyscalculia is likely to be a more familiar condition to people who specialize in learning difficulties such as special needs coordinators and educational psychologists. In the U.S., many school psychologists, neurologists and neuro-psychologists have begun to diagnose this as a condition.
Dealing with dyscalculia?
Dyscalculia is a special need, and requires diagnosis, support and special methods of teaching. The support should give the learners an understanding of their condition, and equip them with coping and learning strategies that they can use in the classroom and in their day-to-day encounters with quantity and space. Since this is a heterogeneous group no general or single intervention can be recommended.
3. What forms of instruction are most effective?
Dyscalculic learners lack an intuitive grasp of numbers and have problems learning number facts and procedures by the usual methods of teaching. Even when these learners produce a correct answer or use a correct method, they may do so mechanically and without confidence; they are anxious about it.
One objective of remedial instruction should be to improve learners' self-esteem by giving them real-life exposure to mathematics as a part of everyday life: ingredients needed in baking a cake, checking the change after purchasing something, or making estimations.
The milestone concepts for learning mathematics are: understanding number, place value, fractions, integers, spatial sense and variability. Because a person's mathematics difficulties generally originate from some dysfunction in one of these milestone concepts, one should begin instruction in these areas systematically.
Individuals with dyscalculia need help in organizing and processing information related to quantity and space. Since mathematics is a form of language, one should spend time on its vocabulary, syntax and translation - from mathematics to English and from English to mathematics.
These individuals can benefit from tutoring that can accomplish three objectives. First, to help them make-up the missing arithmetic concepts. Second, to help them connect these to their current mathematical needs. And, third, to help them develop the prerequisite skills for mathematics learning.
Is a dyslexic individual likely to be dyscalculic?
A link between dyslexia and dyscalculia hasn't been proved. The International Dyslexia Association has suggested that 60% of dyslexics have some difficulty with numbers or number relationships. Of the 40% of dyslexics who don't have mathematics difficulties, about 11% excelled in mathematics. The remaining 29% have the same mathematical abilities as those who don't have learning difficulties.
Since some of the same prerequisite skills are involved in both language acquisition and mathematics - at least in the early learning levels - coincidence of dyslexia and dyscalculia is not uncommon. Our observations show that about 40% of dyslexics also exhibit some symptoms of dyscalculia. However, the group of dyscalculic children/adults, like the group of dyslexics, is not a homogeneous one. Most people with dyscalculia don't necessarily suffer from any other learning difficulty. Indeed, they may well excel in non-mathematical areas.
Charlie Girl
That's a really good article.
Its amazing how many teachers never question whether a child who is failing would be able to learn if it was presented differently. I love that this gives very specific advice!
