EMS 792x Literature
Review Presentation
By: Doug McBroom
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Students struggle with basic computational skills
in classrooms, making it more difficult for
students to learn new and more complex topics
(Ashcraft, 2007; Woodward, 2006). If there is a
correlation between students’ mathematical
automaticity and learning new mathematical
topics, then it is imperative for educators to
research this correlation and to reinforce the
concept of automaticity in the classroom.
The period of sensorimotor intelligence from birth
to age 2.
 The period of preparation and of organization of
concrete operations of categories, relations and
numbers from age 2 to age 11, which is further
subdivided into the preoperational stage from ages
2-7 and the concrete stage from ages 7-11.
 The period of formal operations from ages 11 to 14.
 Although Piaget based his three periods on age
levels, understanding of concepts builds on previous
learning (Piaget, 1973).
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New or “novel” behaviors require attention
and flexible thinking so are dependent of the
cerebral cortex. Automatic behaviors do not
need these, so do not primarily need the
cortex, but are transferred to the subcortical
levels of the brain (Ashby, 2007).
Automaticity is performance of a skill
without conscious control or minimal
awareness (Axtell, 2009).
 Working memory is the capacity to store
and maneuver information for short
periods of time; information made
available to the mind as needed to carry
out a mental task or to solve a problem
(Tronsky & Royer, 2002).
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Fluency is conceptualized as responding both accurately
and quickly to a selected stimulus (Axtell, 2009).
Retrieval is the process of obtaining memory
information from wherever it has been stored
(Saunders, 2007).
Recall is to remember or to recollect (The American
Heritage Medical Dictionary, 2007).
Anxiety is a state of apprehension and fear resulting
from the anticipation of a threatening event or situation
(The American Heritage Science Dictionary, 2005).
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Automaticity development through practice
(Britt, 1982; Kroesbergen, 2002).
Automaticity development through timed
drill and practice (Woodward, 2006) .
Computerized drill and practice developing
automaticity and student attitude (Watkins,
1989).
Memory and Anxiety (Prevatt, 2010).
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Research has indicated that increased
mathematics automaticity correlates to
improved student performance in
mathematics.
Effect of improved automaticity and student
performance (Pegg, 2005; Cumming, 1999;
Mason, 2006).
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Research indicates that there is some
correlation between mathematics
automaticity and computerized practice.
Computerized practice and improved
automaticity (Judd, 1970; Watkins, 1989;
Whitman, 1998; Parkhurst, 2005;
Christensen, 2009).
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Research indicates there is a correlation
between working memory and automaticity
(Tronsky, 2005; Swanson, 2007; Savage,
2005).
Working memory and mathematics
performance (Swanson, 2008; Zheng, 2011;
Ashcraft, 2007).
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Research into various methods of increasing
automaticity with students.
Student centered activities (Drawbert, 2010).
Copy, cover, and compare (Becker 2009).
Taped Problems (Cressey, 2008).
Detect, Practice, and Repair (Poncy, 2010).
Fluency (Ramos-Christian, 2008; Axtell,
2009).
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Research indicates a correlation between
mathematics automaticity and reduced math
anxiety (Beilock, 2007; Prevatt, 2010;
Ashcraft, 2007).
Developing automaticity with technology
(Whitman, 1998).
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Improving student automaticity in
mathematics and learning new math
concepts.
Future research should include methods of
developing automaticity, automaticity and
gender, ethnicity, etc., math concepts where
automaticity is most beneficial, longitudinal
studies, and early grades automaticity versus
middle grades automaticity.