The Impact of Elementary Mental Computational Skills on Success in School Mathematics

This article examines the relationship between the level of elementary mental computational skills and academic success in school mathematics. The author substantiates the concept of "automatism" as a prerequisite for mastering core mathematical topics. The results of long-term experimental research (starting from 1984) are presented, confirming that skill assessment based on threshold values of operation execution speed and error frequency allows for the prediction of academic success. Tools for diagnosis and skill training are provided in open access.