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In how many ways is the approximate number system associated with exact calculation?
Pedro Pinheiro-Chagas1, Guilherme Wood2, André Knops3
1Cognitive Neuroimaging Unit, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM) U992, Gif/Yvette, France; NeuroSpin Center, Institute of BioImaging Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique (CEA), Gif/Yvette, France; Developmental Neuropsychology Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
Plos One
|November 20, 2014
Summary
The approximate number system (ANS) is linked to math skills. Non-symbolic estimation and addition, key ANS components, significantly impact exact calculation abilities in children.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Developmental Psychology
- Educational Psychology
Background:
- The approximate number system (ANS) is crucial for mathematical achievement.
- Understanding the interplay between different ANS measures and exact calculation is limited.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate the relationship between three ANS acuity measures (non-symbolic comparison, estimation, addition) and exact calculation.
- Examine ANS trajectories and contributions to calculation in children with and without mathematical difficulties (MD).
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional study design.
- Assessed ANS acuity using non-symbolic comparison, estimation, and addition tasks.
- Included children with MD and typically achieving (TA) controls from Years 1-6.
Main Results:
- MD group showed ANS impairments compared to TA peers.
- ANS acuity correlated with age in TA children, but not non-symbolic comparison in MD children.
- Non-symbolic estimation and addition partially and fully mediated the effect of non-symbolic comparison on exact calculation, respectively.
Conclusions:
- ANS impairments are evident in children with MD.
- Non-symbolic estimation and addition are critical pathways through which non-symbolic comparison influences exact calculation abilities.
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