Diagnosis of dyscalculia

A distinction must be made between the diagnosis, which recognizes dyscalculia as a partial performance weakness within the meaning of ICD 10, and the other problems in the mathematical field, such as combined disorders of school skills or arithmetic difficulties due to inadequate teaching. Like dyslexia, dyscalculia is classified in ICD 10 (International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th revision) as one of the so-called circumscribed developmental disorders. The problem of dyscalculia lies rather in the fact that the problem cannot be explained either by a lack of intelligence or by inappropriate teaching.

Thus, the difficulty arises to distinguish the appearance from the general problems of learning to calculate. According to ICD 10, the following forms of computational problems must therefore be distinguished from dyscalculia:

  • Dyscalculia as a result of inadequate teaching or as a result of deprivation (= lack of physical and emotional attention).
  • Loss of already acquired arithmetic abilities due to cerebral damage (= “acquired” arithmetic weakness)
  • Dyscalculia due to lack of intelligence (IQ < 70)
  • A dyscalculia (= “secondary” dyscalculia) resulting from organic diseases, mental disorders or disabilities (e.g. sensory impairment).

Standardized test procedures are available for diagnostics, which, however, similar to class tests, only distinguish between correct and incorrect and do not analyze errors as such. Not everyone can perform standardized tests.

However, since one does not want to label a child as “weak in arithmetic” or “not weak in arithmetic”, but rather wants to work specifically on the problems, a meaningful analysis is required. This can only be done by a qualitative error analysis and a qualitative evaluation of the computational techniques. In principle, this requires that the student thinks aloud when solving the problems, i.e. provides information about his calculation methods.

This is the only way to determine subjective (= wrong, awkward) algorithms and to analyze wrong solution paths. Subjective algorithms can also be determined particularly impressively if the subject is asked to solve the problem with the help of materials (learning materials). For example, when acting, it is possible to recognize whether calculations are being made or counted, etc.

In addition, however, further diagnosis must be made continuously during therapy. It is important to analyze the mistakes and question the child’s thought structures. One speaks of a so-called progression diagnostics, which makes it possible to set the right priorities for the therapy and to build on each other – step by step.

As a rule, it is not the student alone who is responsible for the development of a learning difficulty. For this reason, questions about home and school should always be asked as part of a diagnosis. Both school and home have the opportunity to observe the children, which allows indications of difficulties to be observed and addressed at an early stage. Early detection plays a major role in all problems. The earlier problems are recognized and analyzed, the faster assistance in the sense of a meaningful therapy can be approached