Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 4, 2026

Multimedia Battery for Assessment of Cognitive and Basic Skills in Mathematics BM-PROMA
Published on: August 28, 2021
Growth in Math Computation among Monolingual and English Language Learners:Does the Executive System have a Role?
H Lee Swanson1,2, Jennifer Kong2,3, Stefania D Petcu4
1Educational Psychology, University of California-Riverside, Riverside, CA, USA.
Abstract:
This cohort-sequential study explored the components of working memory that underlie math calculation in elementary school children who are monolingual (English) or English language learners (ELLs) whose first language is Spanish. To this end, children (N = 789) in grades 1, 2, and 3 at wave 1 were administered a battery of math, vocabulary, reading and cognitive (short-term memory [STM], working memory [WM], rapid naming, and inhibition) measures. The battery of tests was administered again one year and two years later to the same participants. Three important findings emerged. First, along with naming speed, the results suggest that growth in the executive component of WM was significantly related to growth in calculation performance. Second, performance on measures of reading, fluid intelligence, naming speed and executive processes in wave 1 were significantly related to wave 3 math calculation performance. Finally, the full latent growth model showed that monolingual and ELL children were statistically comparable in computation at wave 3. Thus, strong support was found for the notion that the executive component of WM was related to math computation but weak support for the notion ELL children experienced a math achievement gap.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Language and Cognition
Information Processing Approach
Language Development
The critical period for language acquisition suggests that the ability to acquire language is at its peak early in life. As people age, this proficiency decreases. Language development begins very...
Higher Mental Functions of the Brain: Language
Language formation and comprehension take place in the dominant hemisphere. The dominant hemisphere is responsible for understanding the meaning of spoken, written, or sign language, as well as the ability to communicate. For most people, the left hemisphere is the dominant one. The right hemisphere, then, gives tone and emotional context to the...
Components of Language
Language
Corballis and Suddendorf (2007) and Tomasello and Rakoczy (2003) highlight the role of language in...

