Maths

Many dyslexic learners find maths just as challenging as English 

Dyslexia can occur in association with dyscalculia. However, it should not be assumed that all dyslexics have problems with mathematics, although the percentage may be very high, or that all dyscalculics have problems with reading and writing. 

Dyscalculia definition 

Dyscalculia is a specific and persistent difficulty in understanding numbers, which can lead to a diverse range of challenges with mathematics and occurs across all ages and abilities. 

Signs of dyscalculia 

A person with dyscalculia/mathematical learning difficulties may: 

• Have difficulty when counting backward. 

• Have a poor sense of number and estimation. 

• Have difficulty in remembering ‘basic’ facts, despite many hours of practice/rote learning. 

• Have no strategies to compensate for lack of recall, other than to use counting. 

• Have difficulty in understanding place value and the role of zero in the Arabic/Hindu number system. 

• Have no sense of whether any answers that are obtained are right or nearly right. 

• Be slower to perform calculations. (Therefore give fewer examples, rather than more time). 

• Forget mathematical procedures, especially as they become more complex, for example , ‘long’ division.  Addition is often the default operation. The other operations are usually very poorly executed (or avoided altogether). 

• Avoid tasks that are perceived as difficult and likely to result in a wrong answer. 

• Have weak mental arithmetic skills. 

• Have high levels of mathematics anxiety. 

Diagnosis 

Dyscalculia is difficult to identify via a single diagnostic test. Diagnosis and assessment should use a range of measures, a test protocol, to identify which factors are creating problems for the learner. Although online tests can be of help, understanding the difficulties will be better achieved by an individual person-to-person diagnostic, clinical interview.