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Open research questions in Cognitive and developmental aspects of mathematical skills

807 unresolved questions extracted from the limitations and future-work sections of 7,621 Cognitive and developmental aspects of mathematical skills papers in our library. Each links back to the study that raised it.

What the literature leaves open

  • The study identifies a gap in current research on routine development. The gap is related to the characterisation of a pre-ritual phase in routine development.

    From pre-ritual to exploration: young learner’s gestural routine development in manipulative-based number discourse · 2026 · DOI

  • Developing a revised SFONO measure that can assess individual differences in SFONO tendency across diverse situations. Ensuring that the measure is not confounded with the skills needed to perform the tasks. Considering a wider range of task features when measuring spontaneous mathematical focusing tendencies.

    “I need to follow the numbers”—developing and validating a more comprehensive measure of spontaneous focusing on numerical order · 2026 · DOI

  • further research is needed to investigate the relationship between SFONO and other mathematical skills, - future studies could examine the effectiveness of interventions aimed at improving SFONO

    “I need to follow the numbers”—developing and validating a more comprehensive measure of spontaneous focusing on numerical order · 2026 · DOI

  • The paper identifies a gap in the understanding of the role of play in early mathematics education. The study highlights the need for further research on the interactions between children and adults in various educational settings. The paper notes that the concept of play is not well defined in the context of early mathematics education.

    Play-based interactions in early mathematics: what is it all about? · 2026 · DOI

  • The study faced challenges in addressing the diverse needs of students in mixed-ability groups. The use of task labelling can have a negative impact on students' self-efficacy and performance. The study highlights the importance of using the 'difficult' label with caution in lower secondary mathematics education.

    Level-marked tasks in lower secondary mathematics: the effect on girls’ and boys’ self-efficacy and performance · 2026 · DOI

  • Further research should include more tasks and investigate whether task difficulty affects the impact of labels on self-efficacy and performance, - Research should be conducted in other countries to increase generalisability

    Level-marked tasks in lower secondary mathematics: the effect on girls’ and boys’ self-efficacy and performance · 2026 · DOI

  • Investigate the cognitive processes underlying random generation tasks, - examine the role of monitoring in random generation, - explore the applications of the Local Sampling explanation in other domains

    Random generation is what comes to mind in naturalistic settings · 2026 · DOI

  • Limited number of studies available for several moderators - Non-significant findings should be interpreted cautiously and primarily as reflecting insufficient statistical power

    Examining the Relationship Between Mathematics-Specific Language and Mathematical Abilities in Children: a Three-Level Meta-Analysis · 2026 · DOI

  • Explore whether supporting early MS language development is associated with subsequent mathematical growth using longitudinal or experimental designs - Investigate the relationship between MS language and mathematical ability in different age groups and populations

    Examining the Relationship Between Mathematics-Specific Language and Mathematical Abilities in Children: a Three-Level Meta-Analysis · 2026 · DOI

  • Future research should prioritize interpretability alongside feasibility, - Future research should design interventions to maximize theoretical insight, - Future research should consider the role of measurement alignment and ecological context

    Interventions as Probes of Cognitive Architecture: Commentary on Zhang et al. (2026) · 2026 · DOI

  • The field of exercise and cognition has focused on practical questions of efficacy, but has overlooked the potential of interventions to inform more fundamental questions about cognitive organization. There is a need for a more nuanced understanding of the mechanisms underlying the effect of exercise on cognitive function. The paper argues that a perturbation-based framework can be used to address this gap.

    Interventions as Probes of Cognitive Architecture: Commentary on Zhang et al. (2026) · 2026 · DOI

  • One challenge is the heterogeneity of the literature across disciplines, which makes it difficult to identify relevant studies. Another challenge is the need to exclude studies that do not meet the inclusion criteria, such as correlational or predictive studies lacking an experimental task. A third challenge is the need to ensure consistency in the type of evidence included in the review.

    Primary School Learning Topics Involving Inhibitory Control: A Scoping Review · 2026 · DOI

  • The review focused on experimental tasks in which inhibitory control is directly challenged within school learning topics, - Correlational or predictive studies lacking an experimental task were excluded, - The choice of exclusion criteria may narrow the scope

    Primary School Learning Topics Involving Inhibitory Control: A Scoping Review · 2026 · DOI

  • Investigating the long-term effects of the virtual reality program, - Comparing the virtual reality program to other instructional methods, - Examining the effects of the virtual reality program on students without learning disabilities

    The Role of Virtual Reality in Teaching Fractions in Mathematics for Students with Learning Disabilities · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a lack of research on the effectiveness of virtual reality-supported instruction for teaching fractions to students with learning disabilities. Prior studies have shown that students with learning disabilities face significant difficulties in learning fractions, but there is a need for innovative instructional approaches to address these challenges. The study highlights the need for bridging activities to help students transfer their learning from virtual reality environments to real-world contexts.

    The Role of Virtual Reality in Teaching Fractions in Mathematics for Students with Learning Disabilities · 2026 · DOI

  • Investigate the long-term effects of PCs on students' enumeration strategies - Examine the responses of other age groups to PCs - Develop and test new PCs to support students' enumeration strategies

    The Concept of Visuospatial Responsivity in 3D Enumeration Tasks · 2026 · DOI

  • There are no established categories specifically addressing enumeration strategies in tasks using various perceptual clues. Existing categorization of enumeration strategies is primarily based on tasks involving unicolored cubical units.

    The Concept of Visuospatial Responsivity in 3D Enumeration Tasks · 2026 · DOI

  • Prior research has not clarified the relative contributions of multiple word-problem characteristics to problem difficulty. Prior orthogonal design studies have been conducted primarily with adult samples, rather than elementary-school populations. There is a need to examine how word-problem characteristics affect problem difficulty for students with word-problem comprehension and arithmetic difficulties.

    Examining the Impact of Word-Problem Characteristics on Difficulty for Second-Grade Students With Word-Problem Comprehension and Arithmetic Difficulties · 2026 · DOI

  • intervention studies are needed to determine whether fostering validation processes improves first-graders’ conceptual understanding of repeating patterns, - further research should examine the effectiveness of instructional support focused on validation processes

    Solving Repeating-Pattern Tasks in First Grade: an Eye-Tracking Study of Students With and Without Risk of Developing Mathematical Difficulties · 2026 · DOI

  • Previous studies have established process typologies or analyzed differences between groups with stronger and weaker mathematical prerequisites separately. There is a need to compare RMD and non-RMD students and to explicitly analyze how specific processes are associated with higher or lower error rates. The study addresses this gap by examining the differences in error rates, pattern-recognition processes, and process accuracy between first-grade students with and without the risk of developing mathematical difficulties.

    Solving Repeating-Pattern Tasks in First Grade: an Eye-Tracking Study of Students With and Without Risk of Developing Mathematical Difficulties · 2026 · DOI

  • The challenge of adapting a screening instrument for a new cultural context. The need to ensure content validity and semantic-conceptual equivalence. The challenge of evaluating the validity and reliability of MARKO-S BR in the Brazilian context.

    Screening early numerical development in Brazilian children: adaptation and validation of MARKO-S · 2026 · DOI

  • The scarcity of validated early mathematics assessments in non-WEIRD countries, including Brazil. The need for a psychometrically sound, culturally adapted screening instrument for early identification of children at risk for MLD. The lack of evidence on the validity and reliability of MARKO-S in the Brazilian context.

    Screening early numerical development in Brazilian children: adaptation and validation of MARKO-S · 2026 · DOI

  • The influence of alternative fractional orders on the estimated model. The stability of the empirical findings under alternative model specifications. The need to verify that the reported relationships are not driven by a particular specification.

    Capturing learning persistence through fractional dynamic modeling: evidence from secondary school students · 2026 · DOI

  • Conventional educational performance models assume immediate effects. The gradual nature of knowledge acquisition and the lasting impact of educational support are overlooked. There is a need for a model that captures the persistence of learning.

    Capturing learning persistence through fractional dynamic modeling: evidence from secondary school students · 2026 · DOI

  • The cause of individual differences in random generation is not well understood. Most theories postulate monitoring of output and adjustment, but this is not empirically confirmed. There is a need to distinguish between different theoretical explanations of random generation performance.

    Random generation is what comes to mind in naturalistic settings · 2026 · DOI

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807 open questions have been extracted from the limitations and future-work passages of 7,621 Cognitive and developmental aspects of mathematical skills papers in our library. Each one below links back to the study that raised it, so you can read the original claim in context.

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