Victoria Simms
Nature and origins of mathematics difficulties in very preterm children: a different etiology than developmental dyscalculia
Simms, Victoria; Gilmore, Camilla; Cragg, Lucy; Clayton, Sarah; Marlow, Neil; Johnson, Samantha
Authors
Camilla Gilmore
LUCY CRAGG lucy.cragg@nottingham.ac.uk
Professor of Developmental Psychology
Sarah Clayton
Neil Marlow
Samantha Johnson
Abstract
Background:
Children born very preterm ([under] 32 wk) are at high risk for mathematics learning difficulties that are out of proportion to other academic and cognitive deficits. However, the etiology of mathematics difficulties in very preterm children is unknown. We sought to identify the nature and origins of preterm children’s mathematics difficulties.
Methods:
One hundred and fifteen very preterm children aged 8–10 y were assessed in school with a control group of 77 term-born classmates. Achievement in mathematics, working memory, visuospatial processing, inhibition, and processing speed were assessed using standardized tests. Numerical representations and specific mathematics skills were assessed using experimental tests.
Results:
Very preterm children had significantly poorer mathematics achievement, working memory, and visuospatial skills than term-born controls. Although preterm children had poorer performance in specific mathematics skills, there was no evidence of imprecise numerical representations. Difficulties in mathematics were associated with deficits in visuospatial processing and working memory.
Conclusion:
Mathematics difficulties in very preterm children are associated with deficits in working memory and visuospatial processing not numerical representations. Thus, very preterm children’s mathematics difficulties are different in nature from those of children with developmental dyscalculia. Interventions targeting general cognitive problems, rather than numerical representations, may improve very preterm children's mathematics achievement.
Citation
Simms, V., Gilmore, C., Cragg, L., Clayton, S., Marlow, N., & Johnson, S. (2015). Nature and origins of mathematics difficulties in very preterm children: a different etiology than developmental dyscalculia. Pediatric Research, 77, 389-395. https://doi.org/10.1038/pr.2014.184
Journal Article Type | Article |
---|---|
Acceptance Date | Aug 15, 2014 |
Online Publication Date | Nov 19, 2014 |
Publication Date | 2015-02 |
Deposit Date | Jan 16, 2018 |
Publicly Available Date | Oct 22, 2020 |
Journal | Pediatric Research |
Print ISSN | 0031-3998 |
Electronic ISSN | 1530-0447 |
Publisher | Nature Publishing Group |
Peer Reviewed | Peer Reviewed |
Volume | 77 |
Pages | 389-395 |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1038/pr.2014.184 |
Public URL | http://www.nature.com/pr/journal/v77/n2/abs/pr2014184a.html |
Publisher URL | https://www.nature.com/articles/pr2014184 |
Files
Simms_PedRes_2015_AAM
(577 Kb)
PDF
You might also like
Inattention in very preterm children: implications for screening and detection
(2014)
Journal Article
The development of stimulus and response interference control in mid-childhood
(2015)
Journal Article
When is working memory important for arithmetic?: the impact of strategy and age
(2017)
Journal Article
Downloadable Citations
About Repository@Nottingham
Administrator e-mail: discovery-access-systems@nottingham.ac.uk
This application uses the following open-source libraries:
SheetJS Community Edition
Apache License Version 2.0 (http://www.apache.org/licenses/)
PDF.js
Apache License Version 2.0 (http://www.apache.org/licenses/)
Font Awesome
SIL OFL 1.1 (http://scripts.sil.org/OFL)
MIT License (http://opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.html)
CC BY 3.0 ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/)
Powered by Worktribe © 2024
Advanced Search