Two University of Iowa faculty members have won funding from the National Institutes of Health to study why some prematurely born children struggle with math and how early support could improve their math learning and problem-solving skills. 

Ece Demir-Lira, assistant professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, is the study’s lead investigator. She will partner with Isaac Petersen, associate professor in the department and a co-investigator on the project. 

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, preterm births represent about 10% of births worldwide, meaning that, on average, any classroom could have one to three children born prematurely, Demir-Lira says. Although many children born prematurely experience challenges with mathematics, others do not. Specialists often prioritize language and reading development with prematurely born children, but their math skills are frequently more delayed. Research has shown that that delay can be crucial in how they perform academically, and as adults, how they fare in such areas as income level attained, health, and well-being, according to Demir-Lira. 

The researchers will follow 240 children from the beginning of preschool to the end of first grade. They say that this time period is crucial because it’s when children are first exposed to formal math concepts, such as numbers, and it’s the point at which differences in math abilities can originate. 

The researchers will examine the children’s verbal skills, behavior, and home environments – including the way parents talk about numbers or provide math-related activities. Researchers also will use functional near-infrared spectroscopy — a technique that places sensors on the scalp to monitor brain activity — to learn which areas of the brain are being activated when working on math problems.  

Demir-Lira hopes the findings could lead to individualized support for math-struggling children and introduce early-math learning programs for families.  

“The goal is to expand Iowa’s world-leading work in preterm birth to this important school transition and to integrate environmental and neuroimaging factors, so we can better understand math development and figure out which kids need what kind of support before they fall behind,” Demir-Lira says. 

The five-year award from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development is for $1.7 million.