Typical Mathematical Education Cannot Predict Non‐Verbal Number Sense

Abstract

Formal education would promote symbolic number processing ability, but the relationship between non‐symbolic number sense and mathematical education remains controversial. The current investigation hypothesized that non‐symbolic number sense is independent from the limited human experience of mathematical education, while symbolic number processing could be influenced by related closely to mathematical education. Experiment 1 compared both non‐symbolic number sense and arithmetic computation of undergraduates majoring in STEM fields and humanities. Experiment 2 compared homologous undergraduates from China and Kyrgyzstan in non‐symbolic number sense and mathematical cognitive processing. Both of two experiments found that mathematical education was significantly associated with symbolic mathematics, but not with non‐symbolic number sense. The results suggest that while mathematical education might improve symbolic mathematics, it does not alter non‐symbolic number sense.