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'Number Sense' Predicts Math Success: Study

Posted Sep 8, 08 6:09 AM CDT in US,  Science & Health 

(Newser) – The skill of estimating group size at a glance is directly linked to success in higher forms of math like algebra and calculus, reports the Washington Post. A new study found that students with better “number sense”—the ability to quickly and accurately guess numbers in a group—do better at language-based types of math as well.

Scientists were surprised to discover the link, which could help change math education to help students who struggle. "To me, it's mind-blowing," said one researcher. "While both abilities deal with numbers, they deal with numbers in two very different ways. Before this, all indications were they were separate systems." Number sense is a primitive cognitive skill, shared by humans and animals alike.

Source Washington Post

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New research suggests innate number sense is linked with success in higher mathematics.   (Getty Images)
New research suggests innate number sense, the ability to estimate numbers of groups, is linked with success in higher mathematics.   (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
New research suggests innate number sense, the ability to estimate numbers of groups, is linked with success in higher mathematics.   (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
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It's what you and I use when we're getting on a bus and trying to figure out which door to go through. We quickly scan the bus to see if there are more people on the front of the bus or the back of the bus. - research leader Justin Halberda

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Duke University • mathematics • Johns Hopkins University • National Institutes of Health • cognitive science • algebra


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