What the Science of Learning Teaches Us about Arithmetic Fluency with John Jackson

Good Morning!

This week on Thinking Deeply about Primary Education I’m joined by John Jackson as we explore the 2025 paper ‘What the Science of Learning Teaches Us about Arithmetic Fluency’. We push past the tired debate of concepts or timed practice and get specific about a cycle that builds meaning first, then uses brief, well designed practice to secure retrieval without fragility. If you care about proficiency, not performance theatre, this conversation is for you.

Hope you enjoy.

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YouTube Audio

Visual Summary

Links to Recommendations

What the Science of Learning Teaches Us About Arithmetic Fluency - McNeil, Jordan, Viegut, and Ansari.

Learning and memory under stress: implications for the classroom - Vogel and Schwabe.

Summary of retrieval practice protecting memory under stress - Tufts Now

Benefits of “concreteness fading” for children’s mathematics understanding - Fyfe, McNeil and Borjas

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