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What is dyscalculia?
Definition of dyscalculia
The core feature of dyscalculia is a difficulty with sense of number.
The SpLD Assessment Standards Committee (‘SASC’) defines dyscalculia as:
- A specific and persistent difficulty in understanding numbers which can lead to a diverse range of difficulties with mathematics.
- It will be unexpected in relation to age, level of education and experience and occurs across all ages and abilities.
- Maths difficulties are best thought of as a continuum, not a distinct category, and they have many causal factors.
- Dyscalculia falls at one end of the spectrum and will be distinguishable from other maths issues due to the severity of difficulties with number sense, including subitising (the ability to see and recognise the value of a small number of randomly presented dots), symbolic and non-symbolic magnitude comparison and ordering,
- It can occur singly but often co-occur with other specific learning difficulties, mathematics anxiety and medical conditions’.
For further detail, please refer to: https://www.sasc.org.uk/SASCDocuments/FINAL%20SASC%20Guidance%20on%20assessment%20of%20%20Dyscalculia%20%20November%202019.pdf
What does dyscalculia look like in practice?
Every learner has different strengths and needs and therefore maths difficulties may present in diverse ways.
Other SpLD may impact upon mathematical learning. For example, if a learner struggles with aspects of reading, there may be challenges interpreting reasoning questions, despite a relative strength in arithmetic skills. Difficulties maintaining focus may affect the ability to concentrate when completing repeated calculations. Difficulties when learning maths might also be due to teaching methods, environmental influences or other medical conditions.