Dyscalculia and reasonable adjustments

[MarmeeMarch4]

My daughter was diagnosed with dyscalculia in 2022, at the very end of year 4. She is now in year 6 and passed all areas of the Kent Test except - surprise surprise - maths. Her Ed Psych report shows above average cognitive ability in all areas, and a specific problem with number (not shape, geometry, logic etc, which are all in the same range as her other abilities).

Going forward, for any appeal we may or may not lodge on her behalf to a grammar school, but also for SATS and general secondary school education, we know that there are particular adjustments that would enable her to access higher level maths questions. These are: a number line, a times table square, and a calculator that shows workings. If she had those, which would take away the problem of working memory which is a central feature of the condition, she is perfectly capable of understanding the calculations and the logic of any given maths problem. But these are not allowed in the UK (they are in parts of the US and in some other European countries).

I know some of you will say 'she just needs to learn her times tables' etc, 'and if she can't she just isn't good at maths'. But actually, without these things, she can't even try the higher level questions or begin to think about more complex reasoning. With them, she is capable of so much more. It's like she's just stuck behind this stupid barrier, which is actually meaningless (it is perfectly possible, even in a career that involves complex maths, to use a calculator and/or have a times table square on your desk - these are very low level skills to do with memory rather than actual maths. She understands the principles, but struggles to retain number facts). It feels to me as if understanding and resources for dyslexia are so much better than for dyscalculia, which is so poorly understood by the education system. And it also feels like this is a barrier to children actually being able to access large parts of the maths curriculum because of some needless ideological bullshit about calculators and dumbing down, or the current government's obsession with rote learning. Has anybody been in this position, and has anybody found a way around it?

I know that in the SATS, and even at GCSE, none of these accommodations are allowed as it is felt they would unfairly advantage children with dyscalculia. But I also feel like it is just straight up disability discrimination. I'm just looking for a sense of whether there are other people out there dealing with a similar issue, really ... as well as any potential solutions people might have.

Sorry for the essay, and TIA for any constructive advice!

If WM is the main issue rather than number sense (I think that what you said) are you working on ways to improve her WM and strategies within maths to help her have less to remember?

Can I ask, was she premature? (Not relevant to your question, but I’m interested as I often find children with dyscalculia were)

Have you asked the school to raise these issues with JCQ?

I think you need to plan for the future. In an actual exam, the things you are asking for would not be allowed. In the same way a child with dyslexia isn’t allowed a dictionary. I think there needs to be a balance between support in lessons and preparation for the future. Any access arrangements have to level the playing field, not give an advantage. Good luck, the school sounds great and hope secondary are equally supportive.

Hi, bit weird as the thread is almost two years old now!

I wasn't 'stressing her' about her weaknesses for goodness' sake. She's not on this thread, and has had maths anxiety since the minute she went to school - we've done nothing but focus on her strengths, but of course she has to keep going to maths lessons until she is 16. I am aware that in an exam the things I'm asking for would not be allowed, but she was at that point years away from exams and needed to actually learn to do the maths first (and in other exam systems they are allowed - our system is antiquated on this as so many other things).

She didn't get the appeal to secondary and has gone to a local secondary modern. As it turns out, they have excellent SEN support so she is doing well and we have a lot of plans in place, and while maths will always be a struggle, she is discovering the ways she learns best.

@MarmeeMarch4 As a side comment, DD used the first 5 mins or so of her GCSE maths non calculator paper to write out a times tables grid. We considered this time well spent as she could then refer to it throughout the rest of the exam.

I am delighted that your daughter is doing well.

As a maths teacher, though, I do personally disagree that the way we teach and examine maths in England is antiquated. I think it is the result of a gigantic compromise, but I think our current GCSE system, with two calculator papers and a non-calculator paper is actually a good system and I think our A-level maths system is really excellent.

I am interested in what you mean by “the way she learns best”. What specifically do you mean hear? I am a maths teacher so interested in this.

I mean that dyscalculia is so little understood.

I mean as I said upthread that for kids with dyscalculia, calculators are one reasonable adjustment that would allow them to tackle more difficult maths without getting stuck at the first hurdle. Other educational systems recognise this.

She needs lots of manipulatives and visual representations, the same problem taught from multiple angles - slowly - until she grasps it, repetition repetition repetition of the basics and no zooming off into more complex examples, a calculator for basic arithmetic, and real life practice. The most important thing is that she isn’t made to feel stupid or slow, despite learning maths differently to other kids. It is so easy for this to knock the confidence of kids who are trying their best - but of course they need some number literacy in life, and one of the diagnostic criteria for dyscalculia is that numerical ability is out of step with the child’s ability in areas, so most kids have lots of capabilities that could help them tackle these difficulties. But the anxiety that builds up around maths can be debilitating and affect those areas too if teachers don’t know about it. Small group teaching for kids with dyscalculia - which my daughter now receives at her school twice a week - makes a huge difference.

Humans (and many? animals) have an innate sense of number. It’s something we are born with. There was a really interesting documentary on how many animals have the same, even sea creatures - for example they can tell what is the biggest group out of a group of two different sizes. Because of this we are able to estimate number without counting, particularly for smaller numbers. I think it was under 7 we were most accurate at if I recall correctly, and this number was the same in the animal kingdom. We don’t need to be taught this, it’s hard wired in. They showed that very annals babies could do it. It was amazing! Anyway just my musings, but when I found out about this I suspected that this innate sense of number is what is “missing” in a child with dyscalculia.

In fact, there are studies that show that this innate sense of number is in fact missing in a child with dyscalculia!!!
So glad to hear the update on your DD (even if it's 2 years later).
I also want to add for all the doubters on the thread. My dd has now graduated from University despite her dyscalculia (and dyslexia) and is working at a job where she has to purchase/supply catering/food/decorations for a 1000 people and celebrities a day in a high pressure, fast moving environment. She does this with huge spreadsheets, long lists and multiple orders to multiple venues with such efficiency that her boss keeps trying to get her to do more events. DD still can't add 5 and 7 in her head and misspells 3 letter words and the name of the city that she's currently been flown to, but that doesn't stop her from being really good at her job because she was given accommodations in school and learned how to work around her learning differences and have confidence in her math abilities.