Longitudinal mediators of achievement in mathematics and reading in typical and atypical development

Abstract

Longitudinal studies of neurodevelopmental disorders that are diagnosed at or before birth and which are associated with specific learning difficulties at school-age provide one method for investigating developmental precursors of later-emerging academic disabilities. Spina bifida myelomeningocele (SBM) is a neurodevelopmental disorder associated with particular problems in mathematics, in contrast to well-developed word reading. Children with SBM (n = 30) and typically developing children (n = 35) were used to determine whether cognitive abilities measured at 36 and 60 months of age mediated the effect of group on mathematical and reading achievement outcomes at 8.5 and 9.5 years of age. A series of multiple mediator models showed that: visual-spatial working memory at 36 months and phonological awareness at 60 months partially mediated the effect of group on math calculations; phonological awareness partially mediated the effect of group on small addition and subtraction problems on a test of math fluency; and visual-spatial working memory mediated the effect of group on a test of math problem solving. Groups did not differ on word reading, and phonological awareness was the only mediator for reading fluency and reading comprehension. The findings are discussed with reference to theories of mathematical development and disability and with respect to both common and differing cognitive correlates of math and reading.

Creativity as predictor of mathematical abilities in fourth graders in addition to number sense and working memory

“…Kroesbergen & Van Dijk, 2015;Toll et al, 2016). Of course, there are other domain general factors that influence mathematics, such as processing speed (e.g., Peterson et al, 2017;Willcutt et al, 2013), phonological skills (e.g., Barnes et al, 2014;Slot, Van Viersen, De Bree, & Kroesbergen, 2016), or other executive functions as inhibition and shifting (Friso- Van den Bos et al, 2013;. It is not yet clear how these variables are related to creativity, and further research could take these into account to get a more comprehensive understanding of the underlying factors of mathematics.…”

“…Working memory is a domain-general predictor, not only in mathematical development but also in other academic areas. Although several other cognitive factors have been related to math, such as processing speed (e.g., Peterson et al, 2017;Willcutt et al, 2013), or phonological skills (e.g., Barnes et al, 2014;Slot, Van Viersen, De Bree, & Kroesbergen, 2016), working memory and number sense together explain a substantial part of the variance in mathematics (e.g., 48-50% in Kroesbergen & Van Dijk, 2015; 24-28% in Toll, Kroesbergen, & Van Luit, 2016). These two factors are not only related to mathematics in typically developing (TD) children, but they have also repeatedly been found to explain differences between children with mathematical learning disabilities (MLD) and TD children (e.g., Geary, Hoard, Byrd-Craven, Nugent, & Numtee, 2007;Mazzocco, Feigenson, & Halberda, 2011;Mussolin, Mejias, & Noël, 2010;Piazza et al, 2010; Raghubar, jnc.psychopen.eu | 2363-8761 Barnes, & Hecht, 2010Schuchardt, Maehler, & Hasselhorn, 2008).…”

Rethinking Sound : Computer-assisted reading intervention with a phonics approach for deaf and hard of hearing children using cochlear implants or hearing aids

“…Further division of visuo-spatial working memory is made into the visual cache that stores information about visual form and colour, and the inner scribe, which is essentially an analogue to the articulatory rehearsal process in the phonological loop (Eysenck & Keane, 2005). Visuospatial WM is important in reading development, particularly in fluent reading at later reading acquisition stages (Tobia & Marzocchi, 2014) and in arithmetic's (Barnes, Raghubar, English et al, 2014). In the present thesis, visual and spatial aspects of visuo-spatial WM are not treated as separate skills.…”

An approach to the developmental and cognitive profile of the child with spina bifida

“…Individuals with visual spatial weaknesses may experience further difficulties in reading, including skipping lines and reversing or misreading letters or numbers. [10,11] …”

“…They tend to display poor ability to apply information to situations different from the original learning situation. [6,10,11] For example, children with SBM may correctly recite the 12 × table. However, if asked for 12 × 8, they may start at 12 × 1, progressing in a sequential order to arrive at the answer for 12 × 8.…”