Calculated Minds

Goodbye to 2025 and may you join me in pushing the maths envelope in 2026.
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Thanks for the new views. 🌷 If you are considering our services following a concerning school maths report, we welcome your enquiry and sharing of your child's or teen's situation. Please call 0468 91 88 15 or email [email protected] with your best contact number and we can start planning for discovery and progress for your child or teen in 2026. There are good paths forward. ✅

I often work with students who have less than ideal memory and/or cognitive abilities. A recent study in Norway and Sweden showed that there are "Increasing Numbers of Children Aged 5-19 Years with Memory Problems in Sweden and Norway" (name of study, published 21 October 2025). I would argue the same trend has been occurring here in Australia, but with little or no media attention or regulatory address.

Conclusion of this study: "The increase is most dramatic during recent years. One etiological factor may be the increasing exposure to microwave RF radiation, that in several human and animal laboratory studies has been associated with impairment of memory and cognitive functions. Certainly these trends are of major concern. The public and the public health institutions should pay attention to this emerging health issue and implement protective measures."

The full journal article is online.

Increasing Numbers of Children Aged 5-19 Years with Memory Problems in Sweden and Norway Increasing Numbers of Children Aged 5-19 Years with Memory Problems in Sweden and Norway. PubMed, SCI, Scopus, ESCI, PMC indexed

For all those with exams coming up...

Brain Hack: 6 secrets to learning faster, backed by neuroscience | Lila Landowski | TEDxHobart Sharing the secrets to productive learning, backed by neuroscience. Dr Lila Landowski explains the methods which can be used to allow us to learn faster. Dr...

My best wishes to all the students doing their HSC maths exams tomorrow... and especially to Eva! + x – ÷ % 🍀

And that's a wrap for Term 3! The biggest term is ahead of us with End of Year exams for high school students and the HSC on 22 October. The time to brush up on your teenager's numeracy gaps is sooner rather than later.

EOY Exams 2025 IT'S SHOW TIME!!!

Good idea!!

On Friday 12 September, Yoto the screen-free audio player for kids, is inviting families to take part in the Big Switch Off: a day where we boldly put our screens aside for 24 hours, reset our habits and rediscover the joy of play.

Did you know that Australian parents spend close to 4 hours a day on their screens, outside of work? Over the course of a lifetime, that adds up to 14 years of screen time 😮📺⌛

And their kids aren’t far behind. Aussie children spend an average of 2.5 hours a day on screens, which means that by the age of 18, they will have spent almost 2 years glued to their devices 😵‍💫📱📅

Take the pledge at the link below via Yoto Space, and join thousands of families across the country who will be taking part in this rewarding day of connection and automatically enter to win a prize bundle..
https://yoto.space/big-switch-off

Only two Fridays left for your child's free trial of Maths Xpress! Chop Chop!

Today I designed a Mathematical Memory Card Game to help a student with memory and focus difficulties.
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When Artificial Intelligence clashes with learning

With the rise in use of artificial intelligence (AI) and the ease of asking a computer for the answers, it might seem that all maths students’ Christmases have come at once! 😂
Using the AI program to eliminate the working out encourages students not to think for themselves and not to engage in the process of numeric problems. Wholeheartedly trusting the computer to tell them all the answers is fraught with issues, not the least of which is the weakening of the student’s cognitive functions. What happens if Chat GPT gets it wrong? What happens if Siri didn’t hear the question properly? What happens if the internet is disconnected when they were counting on it?

“Oh no! (Gasp) You mean, I actually have to think?!!”

When it comes to learning maths, understanding the process of how to get the answers is really important. Without that understanding, the student will likely accept any answer with little or no capacity to assess whether that answer is reasonable or not. I don’t recommend the use of AI to avoid thinking. AI won’t foster a “calculated mind”—it will foster a “copy and paste” mind. If your child finds it very uncomfortable to think numerically, perhaps consider if there is some cognitive issue going on, that needs to be explored by a health professional. 🤔

Happy Hour is here in Term 3! Calculated Minds is offering affordable and communal maths homework help for high school students in Term 3 on Friday afternoons. For details and to request a booking form, go to https://calculatedminds.com.au/happy-hour.html
Photo by Stephane Lizotte on iStock Photos.

Maths Xpress is coming to town! Short and punchy numeracy drills in a circuit class for 8–12 year-olds. Choo Choo! Chop Chop! Early bird offer ends 30 July 2025.

Maths Xpress Photo by Alistair on Unsplash ​