Math Learning Disorder, also known as dyscalculia, is a specific learning disability that affects an individual’s ability to understand number-related concepts, perform accurate mathematical calculations, reason through math problems, and master other fundamental math skills.1 Sometimes referred to as “number dyslexia” or “math dyslexia,” dyscalculia can significantly impact academic performance and daily life.
It’s noteworthy that dyscalculia is observed in approximately 11 percent of children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).2 Furthermore, other learning disorders such as dyslexia and dysgraphia frequently co-occur with ADHD, affecting as many as 45 percent of children with ADHD.3
Decoding Dyscalculia: An Overview
Individuals with math learning disorder face challenges across all mathematical domains. These difficulties are not attributed to inadequate education, intellectual disabilities, or other cognitive conditions. This learning disorder complicates routine activities that involve mathematical thinking, such as managing time, handling money, and performing mental calculations.
Glynis Hannell, a family psychologist and author of Dyscalculia: Action Plans for Successful Learning in Mathematics (#CommissionsEarned), highlights the struggles faced by those with dyscalculia. “Students and adults with dyscalculia find math puzzling, frustrating, and difficult to learn,” she explains. “Their brains require more specialized teaching methods, targeted learning experiences, and increased practice to develop the necessary neural pathways for mathematical understanding.”
Dyscalculia often occurs alongside dyslexia, a learning disability in reading, with approximately half of children with dyscalculia also exhibiting dyslexia.4 While prevalence rates vary, it is estimated that dyscalculia affects between 3 to 6 percent of the school-age population.5
[Take the Dyscalculia Symptom Test for Children] [Think You Have Dyscalculia? Take This Screener for Dyscalculia in Adults]
Recognizing the Symptoms of Math Learning Disorder
What are the telltale signs of a math learning disorder? Symptoms and indicators of dyscalculia include6 7:
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Difficulties with Number Sense and Quantity:
- Struggling to connect numerals to their corresponding quantities (e.g., understanding that the number 2 represents two objects).
- Challenges in counting, both forwards and backwards.
- Difficulty comparing the magnitude of two numbers or amounts.
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Subitizing Challenges:
- Trouble instantly recognizing the number of items in a small group without counting.
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Math Fact Retrieval Issues:
- Difficulty memorizing and recalling basic math facts, such as multiplication tables.
-
Symbol and Quantity Association Problems:
- Struggle to link numerical symbols (+, -, x, ÷) to their mathematical meanings and operations.
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Mental Math and Problem-Solving Deficits:
- Significant difficulties performing calculations mentally and solving word problems.
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Money and Estimation Difficulties:
- Trouble understanding the value of money and making accurate estimations of quantities.
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Time-Telling Challenges:
- Difficulty reading and interpreting time on an analog clock.
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Visual-Spatial Orientation Deficits:
- Poor sense of visual and spatial organization.
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Directional Confusion:
- Difficulty distinguishing between left and right.
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Pattern and Sequencing Struggles:
- Challenges in recognizing patterns and sequencing numbers.
While finger-counting is sometimes associated with math learning disorders, it is not a definitive symptom on its own. However, persistent finger-counting, particularly for simple and frequently practiced calculations, may suggest an underlying issue.
Similarly, making occasional calculation errors is not necessarily indicative of dyscalculia. The presence of dyscalculia is determined by the variety, persistence, and frequency of mathematical difficulties.
[Watch: Early Warning Signs of Dyscalculia]
Unraveling the Causes of Dyscalculia
When discussing math learning disorder, we typically refer to developmental dyscalculia – difficulties in acquiring and applying basic mathematical skills. The precise causes of developmental dyscalculia remain unclear. However, research suggests potential links to brain development differences and genetic factors, as the condition tends to be more prevalent in families with a history of learning disabilities.8
In contrast, acquired dyscalculia, also known as acalculia, refers to the loss of previously acquired mathematical skills due to neurological events such as brain injury or other cognitive impairments.9
Diagnosing Math Learning Disorder
Dyscalculia is classified under “specific learning disorder” (SLD) in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5th Edition (DSM-5).10 To receive an SLD diagnosis, including math learning disorder, an individual must meet the following criteria:
- Presence of Specific Learning Difficulties: Individuals must exhibit at least one of six identified symptoms related to challenges in learning and utilizing academic skills. Difficulties in grasping number sense and mathematical reasoning are among these listed symptoms.
- Academic Skill Deficit: The affected math skills must be significantly below what is expected for the individual’s age, leading to difficulties in academic, occupational, or everyday life.
- Onset During School Years: The learning difficulties must have emerged during the school years, even if they only become pronounced in adulthood.
- Exclusion of Other Factors: Other potential causes and contributing factors, such as intellectual disabilities, neurological disorders, psychosocial adversity, and inadequate instruction, must be ruled out.
Individuals whose learning difficulties are primarily concentrated in mathematics may receive a diagnosis of “SLD with impairment in mathematics,” which is the DSM-5 subtype equivalent to dyscalculia or math learning disorder.
Diagnostic evaluations for dyscalculia are typically conducted by school psychologists and neuropsychologists. Child psychiatrists and school health professionals may also participate in the evaluation process. Adults who suspect they have dyscalculia can seek referral to a neuropsychologist through their primary care physician.
There is no single, definitive test for diagnosing dyscalculia. Clinicians assess for the disorder by reviewing academic records, standardized test performance, gathering family history, and examining how the individual’s difficulties manifest in academic, professional, and daily settings. They may also administer diagnostic assessments that evaluate strengths and weaknesses in fundamental math skills. Commonly used assessment tools for dyscalculia include the PAL-II Diagnostic Assessment (DA), the KeyMath-3 DA, and the WIATT-III.
Treatment Strategies and Classroom Accommodations for Math Learning Disorder
Like other learning disabilities, there is no cure for math learning disorder, and medication is not a treatment option. By the time most individuals are diagnosed, they often have gaps in their foundational math knowledge. Therefore, the primary goals of intervention are to address these gaps and equip individuals with coping strategies that can be used throughout their lives. This is typically achieved through specialized instruction, classroom accommodations, and other targeted interventions.
Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), students with dyscalculia are entitled to receive special services in the educational setting. Classroom accommodations for math learning disorder may include11:
- Extended time for completing assignments and tests.
- Permission to use calculators and other assistive technologies.
- Modification of task difficulty to match the student’s learning level.
- Breaking down complex problems into smaller, more manageable steps.
- Utilizing visual aids, such as posters, to reinforce basic math concepts.
- Providing individualized tutoring to strengthen core, foundational math skills.
- Offering supplementary learning resources through:
- Interactive, computer-based lessons.
- Hands-on, project-based learning activities.
If left unaddressed, dyscalculia can persist into adulthood, potentially hindering success in higher education and the workplace.12 However, adults with dyscalculia are entitled to reasonable accommodations in the workplace under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). They can also proactively improve their math skills independently or with guidance from a qualified educational psychologist. Even modest improvements in math proficiency can have a significant positive impact on daily functioning and overall quality of life.
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Math Learning Disorder: Key Takeaways
| Comorbidity with ADHD | · Approximately 11 percent of children with ADHD also have dyscalculia. |
|---|---|
| Common Symptoms | · Slow development of counting and math problem-solving skills. · Difficulty understanding positive and negative values. · Trouble recalling number sequences. · Difficulty performing calculations. · Problems with time concepts. · Poor sense of direction. · Difficulty with mental math. |
| Professional Guidance | Evaluation should be conducted by a school psychologist or special education professional. School-based support can be provided by special education professionals and/or the classroom teacher. |
| Treatment and Intervention | · There is no medication for learning disabilities. · Students may qualify for an IEP to receive specialized educational services, including math support. |
| Helpful Resources | · LDAAmerica.org · NCLD.org · LDOnline.org · WrightsLaw.com · The Misunderstood Child, Fourth Edition: Understanding and Coping with Your Child’s Learning Disabilities (#CommissionsEarned) by Daniel Ansari, Ph.D. |
Taking Action for Math Learning Disorder
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Article Sources
1 American Psychiatric Association. (2018, November). What is Specific Learning Disorder? https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/specific-learning-disorder/what-is-specific-learning-disorder
2 Soares, N., & Patel, D. R. (2015). Dyscalculia. International Journal of Child and Adolescent Health. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2015-29454-003
3 DuPaul, G. J., Gormley, M. J., & Laracy, S. D. (2013). Comorbidity of LD and ADHD: implications of DSM-5 for assessment and treatment. Journal of learning disabilities, 46(1), 43–51. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022219412464351
4 Morsanyi, K., van Bers, B., McCormack, T., & McGourty, J. (2018). The prevalence of specific learning disorder in mathematics and comorbidity with other developmental disorders in primary school-age children. British journal of psychology (London, England : 1953), 109(4), 917–940. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjop.12322
5 Shalev, R.S., Auerbach, J., Manor, O. et al. Developmental dyscalculia: prevalence and prognosis. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry 9, S58–S64 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1007/s007870070009
6 Haberstroh, S., & Schulte-Körne, G. (2019). The Diagnosis and Treatment of Dyscalculia. Deutsches Arzteblatt international, 116(7), 107–114. https://doi.org/10.3238/arztebl.2019.0107
7 Bird, Ronit. (2017). The Dyscalculia Toolkit. Sage Publications.
8 Szűcs, D., Goswami, U. (2013). Developmental dyscalculia: Fresh perspectives. Trends in Neuroscience and Education, 2(2),33-37. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tine.2013.06.004
9 Ardila, A., & Rosselli, M. (2019). Cognitive Rehabilitation of Acquired Calculation Disturbances. Behavioural neurology, 2019, 3151092. https://doi.org/10.1155/2019/3151092
10 American Psychiatric Association (2014). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. DSM-V. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Publishing
11 N, Soares., Evans, T., & Patel, D. R. (2018). Specific learning disability in mathematics: a comprehensive review. Translational pediatrics, 7(1), 48–62. https://doi.org/10.21037/tp.2017.08.03
12 Kaufmann, L., & von Aster, M. (2012). The diagnosis and management of dyscalculia. Deutsches Arzteblatt international, 109(45), 767–778. https://doi.org/10.3238/arztebl.2012.0767
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