Answer: Dyscalculia is a learning disorder resulting in difficulty in understanding concepts in math.
Learning disorders are brain disorders characterized by difficulty with processing some aspect of academic study, such as math, reading comprehension, or writing. Learning disorders are lifelong challenges, and are not necessarily a result of low IQ. The best known learning disability is dyslexia, a difficulty with processing the written word.
Dyscalculia (pronounced “dis-kal-KYU-lee-uh” with the emphasis on the third syllable) is a learning disorder that impairs a person’s mathematical or numerical processing ability. It may be called mathematical learning difficulty, or MLD. It can affect people with a neurotypical range of intelligence. Dyscalculia is common, affecting an estimated 6% of the population. But, it is very difficult to diagnose, meaning this number may be under reported.
What are the symptoms of dyscalculia?
People with dyscalculia begin showing signs in early childhood, although it persists as an adult. One initial difficulty that may help in diagnosis is a challenge in subitizing, which is the process of quickly determining the number of items there are in a clump without counting them individually.
They also have difficulty learning many of the number related tasks in early education, including determining which number is larger, reading analog clocks, or sorting numbers in ascending order. People with dyscalculia also may learn to perform these tasks one day, but have difficulty remembering how to accomplish the task on the next day.
Dyscalculia is often seen in conjunction with other learning disabilities or conditions. For one, the most common condition that is seen alongside dyscalculia is dyslexia, a similar language-related learning disorder (Developmental dyscalculia and basic numerical capacities: a study of 8–9-year-old students). Dyscalculia is often comorbid with ADHD, and one estimate suggests that 11% of patients with dyscalculia also have ADHD.
Although there is not a universally accepted test for dyscalculia, there are diagnostic tools that may help. One is called the Fundamental Calculative Ability Test (or FCAT), which, when given during the first grade, may help predict mathematical achievement. Low scores on the FCAT may suggest dyscalculia.
One reason why the disorder is so difficult to identify is because of its high comorbidity with dyslexia. Many assessments of mathematical ability require reading ability. To overcome this challenge, a group of researchers published a novel test that may be able to separate mathematical from reading ability (Taking Language out of the Equation: The Assessment of Basic Math Competence Without Language)
What is the cause of dyscalculia?
It is currently unclear what causes dyscalculia. It is believed to be a result of some neural circuitry disruption of the intraparietal sulcus (Impaired neural networks for approximate calculation in dyscalculic children: a functional MRI study). Some of the functions of the intraparietal sulcus include helping an organism with perceptual-motor coordination, such as reaching and grasping for an object. One theory suggests that these areas are also important for the internalization of numbers, such as when a person is counting the number of objects around them. Also, the intraparietal sulcus is important for learning sequences of finger movements (Learning of sequences of finger movements and timing: Frontal lobe and action-oriented representation). Because we most often begin learning mathematical skills by using our fingers, abnormal development of this area believed to correlate with difficulty learning mathematical concepts.
There is also reason to believe that dyscalculia is a result of altered circuitry in the frontal lobe. Parts of the frontal lobe are used in behaviors such as the temporary storage of items during short-term memory tasks. Theoretically, these areas may be involved in the storage of a number which may be needed for arithmetic tasks.