The interplay between ego-resiliency, math anxiety and working memory in math achievement.

Previous research has suggested that math anxiety may contribute to poor math performance by interfering with working memory. However, only a limited number of studies investigated the mediating role of working memory in the math anxiety-math performance link in school-aged children. Unlike math anxiety, ego-resiliency is a personality resource that promotes the management of challenges and has been positively associated with math performance and negatively with anxiety. Nevertheless, there is still limited understanding regarding the specific role of ego-resiliency in math learning and how it relates to math anxiety. This study aimed to investigate conjunctly the interplay between primary school children's ego-resiliency, math anxiety, working memory, and performance on two different math tasks (i.e., arithmetic task and word problem-solving task), after controlling for general anxiety and age. The study involved 185 Italian children from grades 3 to 5. Serial multi-mediational analyses revealed that: (1) ego-resiliency has a positive indirect effect on math achievement through two paths - math anxiety, and math anxiety and working memory; (2) the study replicated previous findings showing that working memory partially mediated the relationship between math anxiety and math performance; (3) similar patterns of results were found for both math skills. The study identifies ego-resiliency as a possible protective factor in the development of math anxiety and suggests that ego-resiliency could be worth considering when designing interventions aimed at reducing negative emotions towards mathematics.

The relationship between math anxiety and math performance: The moderating role of visuospatial working memory.

According to the processing efficiency theory (PET), math anxiety would interfere with working memory resources, negatively affecting mathematical abilities. To date, few studies have explored how the interaction between math anxiety and working memory would affect different types of math tasks, especially in primary school children. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore whether the interplay between math anxiety and working memory would influence performance in numerical operations (i.e., math fluency task) and mathematical reasoning (i.e., math reasoning task) in a group of primary school children (N = 202). Results showed that visuospatial working memory appeared to moderate the relationship between math anxiety and math performance when the math fluency task was considered, indicating that participants with higher levels of working memory were more negatively affected by math anxiety. No interaction effect was found for the math reasoning task in which students' scores were explained only by visuospatial working memory. The findings suggest that math anxiety and visuospatial working memory interact to influence performance in the math fluency task and that this effect may vary depending on the strategies used to complete the task. On the other hand, results on the math reasoning task showed that visuospatial working memory continues to have a positive effect on the math performance independently of math anxiety. The implications in the educational setting are discussed, pointing to the importance of monitoring and intervention studies on affective factors.

The role of working memory updating, inhibition, fluid intelligence, and reading comprehension in explaining differences between consistent and inconsistent arithmetic word-problem-solving performance.

Children's performance in arithmetic word problems (AWPs) predicts their academic success and their future employment and earnings in adulthood. Understanding the nature and difficulties of interpreting and solving AWPs is important for theoretical, educational, and social reasons. We investigated the relation between primary school children's performance in different types of AWPs and their basic cognitive abilities (reading comprehension, fluid intelligence, inhibition, and updating processes). The study involved 182 fourth- and fifth-graders. Participants were administered an AWP-solving task and other tasks assessing fluid intelligence, reading comprehension, inhibition, and updating. The AWP-solving task included comparison problems incorporating either the adverb more than or the adverb less than, which demand consistent or inconsistent operations of addition or subtraction. The results showed that consistent problems were easier than inconsistent problems. Efficiency in solving inconsistent problems is related to inhibition and updating. Moreover, our results seem to indicate that the consistency effect is related to updating processes' efficiency. Path analyses showed that reading comprehension was the most important predictor of AWP-solving accuracy. Moreover, both executive functions-updating and inhibition-had a distinct and significant effect on AWP accuracy. Fluid intelligence had both direct and indirect effects, mediated by reading comprehension, on the overall measure of AWP performance. These domain-general factors are important factors in explaining children's performance in solving consistent and inconsistent AWPs.

The contributions of working memory domains and processes to early mathematical knowledge between preschool and first grade.

Working Memory (WM) plays a crucial role in supporting children's mathematical learning. However, there is no consensus on the relative contributions of different WM domains (i.e., verbal, visuo-spatial, and numerical-verbal) and processes (i.e., low-control and high-control) to mathematical performance, specifically before and after the onset of formal education. This cross-sectional study examined the relations between WM domains and processes and early mathematical knowledge, comparing a group of children in the second year of preschool (N = 66) to a group of first graders (N = 110). Results of multigroup path analysis showed that whereas visuo-spatial low-control WM significantly predicted early mathematical knowledge only among preschoolers, verbal low-control WM was a significant predictor only among first graders. Instead, the contribution of visuo-spatial high-control WM emerged as significant for both age groups, as well as that of numerical-verbal WM, although the latter to a greater extent among preschoolers. These findings provide new insights into the WM domains and processes most involved in early mathematical knowledge at different developmental stages, with potential implications for the implementation of age-appropriate training interventions targeting specific WM skills before and after the onset of formal education.

Math anxiety and math achievement: The effects of emotional and math strategy training.

Math anxiety (MA) is a specific feeling of tension generated by the manipulation of numerical stimuli in daily life and academic situations (Richardson & Suinn, 1972). This condition has significant repercussions on the individual's life at personal, social, and economic level. Literature on the topic of MA alleviation, however, is still scarce. This study aims at contributing to this field by addressing MA prevention in school-age children. We have developed two different training methods administered to two groups of fourth graders: (a) MA training focusing on identifying and copying with MA-related feelings (N = 76); and (b) Math strategy training focusing on supplementary exercises to enhance calculation strategies (N = 76). We also carried out a Control training involving a range of activities, such as reading comic strips, describing characters in the story, and combining text and images to obtain an original narrative text (N = 72). We evaluated the differential effects of these training methods on MA, general anxiety, and math achievement before and after the training. Results indicate that MA training contributes to a decrease in MA level, although it does not appear to affect math achievement; Math strategy training, on the other hand, results in far transfer on a reduction of MA level as well as near transfer on the improvement of math achievement. Data are discussed in terms of specific mechanisms underlying each type of training method, and with specific focus on the evaluation of educational and developmental opportunities linked to MA prevention and improvement of math abilities in school-age children.

Evaluation and training of Executive Functions in genocide survivors. The case of Yazidi children.

Executive Functions (EFs) development is critically affected by stress and trauma, as well as the socioeconomic context in which children grow up (Welsh, Nix, Blair, Bierman, & Nelson, 2010, Journal of Educational Psychology, 102, 43-53). Research in this field is surprisingly lacking in relation to war contexts. This study represents a first attempt at addressing this topic by evaluating EFs in Yazidi children. The Yazidi community is an ethnic and religious minority living in Iraq. From August 2014 onwards, the Yazidi community has been the target of several atrocities perpetrated by ISIS and described as genocide by the international community at large. The University of Trieste, thanks to a program financed by the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region, developed a study aimed at (a) evaluating hot and cool EFs in children living in a war context and (b) developing a specific training method to enhance hot and cool EFs in Yazidi children of preschool age (N = 53). Data related to this group of children were compared with a sample of typically developing Italian children randomly assigned to either an EFs training group (N = 55) or a passive control group (N = 51). Results indicate different baselines in EFs in Yazidi and Italian samples and a significant effect of the program on both trained groups, especially in tasks measuring hot EFs. Data are discussed in terms of hot and cool EFs in children growing in adverse environments, as well as the evaluation of educational and developmental opportunities to prevent children who survived genocide from becoming a 'lost generation'. A video abstract of this article can be viewed at https://youtu.be/7t_08TbxR_8.

How is anxiety related to math performance in young students? A longitudinal study of Grade 2 to Grade 3 children.

Both general and math-specific anxiety are related to proficiency in mathematics. However, it is not clear when math anxiety arises in young children, nor how it relates to early math performance. This study therefore investigated the early association between math anxiety and math performance in Grades 2 and 3, by accounting for general anxiety and by further inspecting the prevalent directionality of the anxiety-performance link. Results revealed that this link was significant in Grade 3, with a prevalent direction from math anxiety to performance, rather than the reverse. Longitudinal analyses also showed an indirect effect of math anxiety in Grade 2 on subsequent math performance in Grade 3. Overall, these findings highlight the importance of monitoring anxiety from the early stages of schooling in order to promote proficient academic performance.

Early numerical abilities and cognitive skills in kindergarten children.

In this study, a unitary path analysis model was developed to investigate the relationship between cognitive variables (derived from published studies) and early numerical abilities in children attending the last year of kindergarten. We tested 100 children starting their last year of kindergarten on the following cognitive abilities: intelligence, phonological abilities, counting, verbal and visuospatial short-term memory and working memory, processing speed, and early numerical abilities. The same children were tested again on early numerical abilities at the end of the same year. The children's early numerical abilities at the beginning of the final year of kindergarten were found to be directly related to their verbal intelligence, phonological abilities, processing speed, and working memory and to be indirectly related to their nonverbal intelligence. Early numerical abilities at the end of the same year are directly related not only to early numerical abilities assessed at the beginning of the year but also to working memory and phonological abilities as well as have an indirect relationship with verbal and nonverbal intelligence. Overall, our results showed that both general and specific abilities are related to early mathematic learning in kindergarten-age children.

The contribution of general cognitive abilities and approximate number system to early mathematics.

BACKGROUND: Math learning is a complex process that entails a wide range of cognitive abilities to be fulfilled. There is sufficient evidence that both general and specific cognitive skills assume a fundamental role, despite the absence of shared consensus about the relative extent of their involvement. Moreover, regarding general abilities, there is no agreement about the recruitment of the different memory components or of intelligence. In relation to specific factors, great debate subsists regarding the role of the approximate number system (ANS). AIMS: Starting from these considerations, we wanted to conduct a wide assessment of memory components and ANS, by controlling for the effects associated with intelligence and also exploring possible relationships between all precursors. SAMPLE AND METHOD: To achieve this purpose, a sample of 157 children was tested at both beginning and end of their Grade 1. Both general (memory and intelligence) and specific (ANS) precursors were evaluated by a wide battery of tests and put in relation to concurrent and subsequent math skills. Memory was explored in passive and active aspects involving both verbal and visuo-spatial components. RESULTS: Path analysis results demonstrated that memory, and especially the more active processes, and intelligence were the strongest precursors in both assessment times. ANS had a milder role which lost significance by the end of the school year. Memory and ANS seemed to influence early mathematics almost independently. CONCLUSION: Both general and specific precursors seemed to have a crucial role in early math competences, despite the lower involvement of ANS.

The impact of math anxiety and self-efficacy in middle school STEM choices: A 3-year longitudinal study.

INTRODUCTION: In today's world, which is progressively oriented towards science and technology and facing a growing demand for skilled professionals, it becomes essential to identify the factors that encourage individuals to pursue careers in STEM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). Previous research has shown that affective-motivational factors, math performance and gender influence STEM occupational and academic choices in adulthood. However, few studies examined how these factors may influence STEM choices as early as middle school. This study aims to assess how math anxiety, math self-efficacy, math performance and gender influence STEM school choices during middle school. METHODS: We longitudinally assessed a group of 109 students (Year 6) over three school years, with measurements taken on three different occasions. RESULTS: Findings indicated that individuals who made an STEM school choice experienced lower math anxiety, higher self-efficacy and math performance and were predominantly male. Furthermore, the results indicated that both math anxiety in Year 7 and self-efficacy in Year 6 made the most substantial unique contributions to the STEM school choice. CONCLUSION: Math anxiety and math self-efficacy seem to be both crucial in influencing middle school students' STEM choices, offering new perspectives for early interventions aimed at promoting more informed school choices.

Academic Achievement and Satisfaction Among University Students With Specific Learning Disabilities: The Roles of Soft Skills and Study-Related Factors.

Understanding the individual qualities sustaining students with and without specific learning disabilities (SLDs) is key to supporting their academic achievement and well-being. In this study, we investigated the differences between students with and without SLDs in terms of intraindividual factors (soft skills and study-related factors), academic and nonacademic outcomes (achievement, academic and life satisfaction), and the relationships between such intraindividual factors and the three outcomes. A total of 318 students (79 males; Mage = 22.7; SD = 3.56; age range = 19-45 years; 147 with SLDs) completed self-reported questionnaires and a measure of fluid intelligence. The results showed that students with SLDs reported higher creativity but lower academic self-efficacy, study resilience, and academic achievement, with small-to-medium effect sizes. In both groups, achievement significantly positively related to academic self-efficacy and negatively to creativity. Life satisfaction was positively related to study resilience; and academic satisfaction was related to critical thinking, curiosity, and academic self-efficacy. Nurturing such intraindividual factors can benefit students with and without SLDs.

Distance learning environment: perspective of Italian primary and secondary teachers during COVID-19 pandemic.

School closures because of the COVID-19 emergency forced a rapid transition to distance learning worldwide. In this study, we investigated teachers' experiences with distance learning during the first Italian lockdown. A sample of 270 primary and secondary teachers answered a semi-structured questionnaire administered between April and May 2020. Didactic modalities, students' and teachers' difficulties with distance learning, and teachers' feelings during school closure were investigated through open-ended questions. Content analysis indicated that most teachers adopted both synchronous and asynchronous modalities, which resembled the traditional classroom learning environment. Moreover, technological weaknesses (lack of proper digital equipment and poor digital skills) and lack of interactions appeared to be the main threats to the quality of distance learning. The implementation of distance learning in primary schools emerged as more challenging than in secondary education. Furthermore, most teachers experienced negative feelings during online teaching. However, 13% of the sample reported a sense of resilience and opportunity. Particularly, older teachers reported more resilience compared with younger teachers, indicating the importance of experience in managing stressful teaching events. Overall, findings suggest that-in this novel educational environment-teachers' role has changed significantly, placing strong emphasis on the ability to encourage communication, discussion, and contact with students. Future work should focus on how information and communications technology could sustain meaningful interactions between students and teachers, especially in primary education.

Domain-specific and domain-general precursors of mathematical achievement: a longitudinal study from kindergarten to first grade.

BACKGROUND: Many contributing factors, both domain specific and domain general, influence children's performance in school achievement. AIMS: This research aims to verify the importance of kindergarten measures of cognitive abilities and numerical competence in the role of predicting mathematical school achievement at the end of first grade. SAMPLE AND METHODS: A total of 70 children (38 females and 32 males) took part in the study. We tested the children at the beginning of their last year of kindergarten (time 1) on the following cognitive abilities: IQ, phonology, counting skills, verbal short-term memory, visuo-spatial short-term memory, working memory, and processing speed. Then, we tested the same children at end of their last year of kindergarten (time 2) on a measure of numerical competence and at the end of their first year of primary school (time 3) on a test of math achievement. RESULTS: Path analysis models revealed the direct influence of working memory and processing speed on predicting numerical competence in pre-schoolers and the influence of processing speed and verbal IQ on predicting math achievement in first graders. Moreover, this study found a direct link between numerical competence and math achievement. CONCLUSIONS: Both domain-specific and domain-general factors contribute to determining math achievement at the end of first grade.

The interplay between math anxiety and working memory on math performance: a longitudinal study.

Mathematical skills are essential to mastering everyday activities, making professional choices, and exercising citizenship in a numerate society. There is extensive evidence of the relationship between math anxiety (MA) and working memory (WM) influencing math attainment. Studies have mainly considered adult samples, however, leaving primary school children almost unexplored. This study is a first attempt to examine how the complex interplay between MA and WM affects math achievement from a developmental perspective. A total of 148 third graders were assessed with WM, general anxiety (GA), MA, and math tasks. Anxiety and WM were assessed at the beginning of the school year when children started attending grade 3, while math achievement was tested twice at the start of grades 3 and 4. The findings seem to confirm that GA has both a direct and an indirect effect (mediated by WM) on math performance in third and fourth graders. MA has a direct effect on math performance in grade 4, but only an indirect effect in grade 3, suggesting MA has a developmental trajectory, becoming stronger over time. The implications in the educational setting are discussed, pointing to the importance of a combined intervention on MA and WM.

Executive functions, math anxiety and math performance in middle school students.

Previous studies mainly investigated working memory (WM) and math anxiety (MA) leaving almost unexplored other aspects of executive functions (EFs) in middle school period. Filling the gap in the literature, the aims of this study were: (1) to better examine the relationship between MA and math performance, (2) to better examine the relationship between EFs and math performance and (3) to investigate the interplay between EFs and MA on math performances. This study confirmed a significant and negative relationship between MA and math performance, indicates a significant and positive relationship between visuospatial WM and math performance, shifting and math performance and highlight a scarcely investigated indirect influence of MA through the measure of shifting on math performance. Our findings shed further light on the mediating role of EFs between MA and math performance and underline some future perspectives.

Numerical Training Videos and Early Numerical Achievement: A Study on 3-Year-Old Preschoolers.

Early numerical abilities predict later math achievement and could be improved in children by using various training methods. As the literature on the use of training videos to develop numerical abilities is still surprisingly scant, the aim of the present study was to test the efficacy of a numerical training video on the development of counting and number line knowledge in 3-year-old preschoolers. Far transfer effects to cardinality and working memory were also examined. The study involved 86 children randomly assigned to two intervention groups: a numerical training group exposed to videos on counting and number lines; and a control group exposed to videos on colors and animal names in a foreign language. After the video training, there was an improvement in the numerical training group's counting skills, but not in their number line knowledge, and this improvement persisted six months later. The numerical training group also showed a far-transfer enhancement of cardinality six months after the intervention. Based on our results, numerical training videos could be effective in helping to enhance early numeracy skills in very young preschoolers.

With a little help from our pediatrician: An intervention to promote mathematics-related home activities through regular well-child visits.

Introduction: Children's involvement in mathematics-related activities in the home environment is associated with the development of their early numeracy over the preschool years. Intervention studies to promote parents' awareness and provision of mathematics-related home activities are however scant. In this study we developed and tested the effectiveness of a non-intensive intervention program delivered by community pediatricians to promote mathematics-related activities in the home environment. Methods: Parents of 204 Italian children were invited to report on the frequency of mathematics-related home activities when children attended the first preschool year (3 years, 8 months of age on average) and, subsequently, the third preschool year (5 years, 6 months of age on average). At both waves, children were also assessed on their early numeracy. In occasion of the routine well-child visit at age 5, parents who were randomly allocated to the intervention condition (vs. a business-as-usual control condition) received guidance on age-appropriate home mathematics-related practices to sustain children's numerical development. Results: Results revealed that parents in the intervention group improved their provision of home mathematics-related activities at the post-intervention assessment (relative to baseline) to a greater extent than parents in the control condition. No effect was observed on children's early numeracy. Discussion: Overall, results are promising in suggesting that community pediatricians may be a resource to promote home mathematics-related activities though non-intensive low-cost interventions.

Inhibitory Abilities in Individuals with Down Syndrome: Investigation of Interference Suppression Using an Adapted Version of Navon Task.

Only a few studies have investigated inhibitory sub-components in individuals with Down syndrome (DS). This study investigates interference suppression, through global-local processes, in 50 people with DS matched for mental age (MA) with 63 typically developing children (MA = 23.6 and 6.8 years respectively). We adapted and administered a non-verbal Navon-shape task with high-familiarity symbols. For both groups, results showed equal performance on global vs. local items in the congruent condition, whereas significantly better performance on global conditions when faced with incongruent items. A greater impairment in incongruent responses emerged for both groups and more so for individuals with DS.

Meta-analysis on inhibition from childhood to young adulthood in people with Down syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Few studies have investigated inhibition in people with Down syndrome (DS), indicating contradictory results. AIM: This meta-analysis investigated if people with DS show more severe difficulties on inhibition, compared to typically developing (TD) children matched on a measure of mental age (MA). METHODS AND PROCEDURES: Literature search included studies conducted before March 2019, combining the following keywords: "Down syndrome" with "Inhibition", "Interference control", "Effortful control", "Impulsivity", "Self-regulation", and "Executive functions". Descriptive information was coded, according to inclusions criteria. Meta-analysis of standardized differences between DS and TD groups' means was performed. Relevant moderators were also considered. OUTCOMES AND RESULTS: Eight studies were included in the meta-analysis, including 161 people with DS and 160 TD children. The results indicated that people with DS showed significantly lower inhibition abilities when they are matched on MA with TD children, instead no significant differences emerged when this matching was not provided. A high heterogeneity across studies was estimated. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: This meta-analysis indicates that people with DS show, on average, an inhibition deficit compared to TD matched children, albeit not a severe one. These results suggest the importance of investigating in depth inhibition processes in people with DS from childhood to young adulthood.

Inhibitory Dimensions and Delay of Gratification: A Comparative Study on Individuals with Down Syndrome and Typically Developing Children.

While previous research on inhibition in people with Down syndrome (DS) reported contradictory results, with no explicit theoretical model, on the other hand, a more homogeneous impaired profile on the delay of gratification skills emerged. The main goal of the present study was to investigate response inhibition, interference suppression, and delay of gratification in 51 individuals with DS matched for a measure of mental age (MA) with 71 typically developing (TD) children. Moreover, we cross-sectionally explored the strengths and weaknesses of these components in children and adolescents vs. adults with DS with the same MA. A battery of laboratory tasks tapping on inhibitory sub-components and delay of gratification was administrated. Results indicated that individuals with DS showed an overall worse performance compared to TD children on response inhibition and delay of gratification, while no differences emerged between the two samples on the interference suppression. Additionally, our results suggested that older individuals with DS outperformed the younger ones both in response inhibition and in the delay of gratification, whereas the interference suppression still remains impaired in adulthood. This study highlights the importance of evaluating inhibitory sub-components considering both MA and chronological age in order to promote more effective and evidence-based training for this population.