THE ABACUS: A SCIENTIFICALLY-PROVEN LEARNING TOOL

Multiple studies show that abacus training enhances working memory, visualization skills, and mental math abilities in children. A 2013 study compared Chinese and Taiwanese children who had received mental abacus instruction to those who had not. The abacus students showed markedly better performance on math tasks and tests of working memory.
Researchers posit that abacus training strengthens the brain’s visuospatial working memory. As students practice moving the beads and visualizing calculations, the neural pathways for this type of information processing are strengthened. This results in enhanced memory, concentration, and ability to compute math visually.