Persistent math difficulties in some children stem not only from a poor grasp of numbers but also from distinctive patterns of brain activity when they choose and switch between ways of solving problems. That is the conclusion of neuroscientists at Stanford University led by Oliver Lasnick and Vinod Menon, who published their findings in the journal JNeurosci, infohub.kz reports.
According to the science portal ScienceDaily, the researchers found that children with dyscalculia switch computational approaches more slowly and adapt less well as problems grow harder. The study showed that these children display particular patterns of brain activity and are worse at finding efficient calculation methods as tasks become more complex.
The experiment involved 68 children aged 8 to 10. The researchers observed how the schoolchildren handled arithmetic tasks — for example, whether they counted one number at a time or relied on known mathematical patterns — and compared this with measures of their brain activity. They found that children with dyscalculia spent more time switching between different solution methods, responded more weakly to changes in task difficulty and, unlike their peers, did not improve their ability to choose the optimal strategy over time.
An analysis of neuroimaging data revealed clear differences in the brain systems responsible for executive functions — attention, working memory and cognitive flexibility. Based on activity in these areas, the scientists were even able to predict how well a child could calculate and switch approaches to solving problems.
As Oliver Lasnick noted, dyscalculia is not reducible to a single universal error but reflects individual combinations of cognitive and neural traits, and understanding these will help educators support struggling students more precisely.