HERBIE1 Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 Fascinating stuff. I've never heard of this before. I've always had issues with math as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CBEMT Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 (edited) The most frustrating part in junior high was that when I actuall KNEW how to do the problem, I'd transpose the number between scrap paper and answer sheet. I'd fail tests by flipping 56 and 65, etc. I don't do it that much anymore but back then it was the bane of my existence. At home doing homework, I couldn't remember how the teacher described how to work the problem, and my notes looked like what was in the book, so no help there. I couldn't remember phone numbers long enough to get to the phone. I had no prayer of learning a musical instrument, and in freshman year high school Spanish, the only tests I passed were the midterm and the final. I somehow managed to keep my head above water by getting lucky on some of the daily quizzes, as the material was what we learned yesterday as opposed to a test covering everything that month. My grandfather loved to play cribbage, and wanted me to learn it from he and my uncle, to pass it on to the next generation. Yeah right. To this day I don't understand poker. Blackjack isn't as hard but I still have to think about it for a minute. My fiance has to figure out restaurant tips for me. Umpiring a little league game one time as a favor, which I'd never done before, I was almost lynched because I lost count of balls and strikes. In 6th grade I was finally diagnosed by the city school department (parochial schools were HORRIBLE with this stuff) and an Individual Education Plan was formulated which the school and my teachers had to abide by. A rep from the city, my parents, and my math teacher had to meet at least once each year to go over it. The city paid for a tutor for a short time as part of the IEP, but the city tutor sucked and my parents shelled out for help from my cousin's math teacher from their school. She got me through high school, no doubt about it. Edited July 7, 2009 by CBEMT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eydawn Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 You guys are *so* not alone. Welcome to the world of what I jokingly called "numeric dyslexia" until I figured out it had a real name. Transpositions are something I've always been HORRIBLE with, especially if there's a decimal somewhere in the number... I would solve chemistry problems completely correctly, but transpose digits multiple times throughout the multi-step solving process and come up with the wrong numeric answer. I switch digits on phone numbers. I have to write things down regarding dates and times, or I forget them. I can't visualize theoretical structures (like isomers in O-chem or forces in physics problems) to save my life. Failed Calculus (granted, it was only my sophomore year of high school) with a 37%. I was tested for dyscalculia in college, and did come up with that diagnosis, but it's never really been officially used for me in any capacity, as I am a decent enough test-taker to not really require extra time or anything like that. To deal with this, I've basically had to train myself to cross-check multiple times with any given set of digits (as that seemed to be the worst of it for me) and have now gotten to the point where I transpose or have errors much less frequently than I used to. Awareness and accepting that it is something for you to work around are the two biggest steps in adapting to having dyscalculia- once you quit denying it and heighten your awareness, you can train yourself to compensate. It seems to have worked for me, as I showed ABOVE average results on my dispatch testing with regard to digits and audio-visual recall of alphanumeric sequences... it's because I've had to force myself to be so careful. I catch mistakes AS they happen now. Of course, when I get to nursing school (which I'm writing my essay for right now) I'm going to have people cross-check my drug calculations until I'm sure that I can do them adequately, and then I'm STILL going to have people cross check them. Hang in there! If you think you've got it, definitely get tested for it. Accommodations for it in school are nothing to be ashamed of, and you may gain access to resources to help you overcome your issues with it!! Good luck!! Wendy CO EMT-B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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