[Prediction of learning disability at school by means of SOPESS].
OBJECTIVE
The responsibilities of public health authorities include early detection of risks for healthy development at school. Reading /writing disorder and math disorder are among the most common developmental disorders in childhood.


METHODS
The present study conveys information about the prevalence of specific developmental disorders of scholastic skills (N=372) and assesses the prognostic validity of the social-paediatric screening of developmental status for school entry (SOPESS), the relevant criteria being DERET 1-2+, DEMAT 1+, and ELFE 1-6.


RESULTS
The prevalence of specific developmental disorders of scholastic skills ranges from 1.1% for dyscalculia to 3.0% for dyslexia. Adequate correlations of r= -0.42(DERET 1-2+; DEMAT 1+) and r= -0.43 (ELFE 1-6) as well as substantial negative predictive values (0.80-0.93) suggest an acceptable screening performance.


CONCLUSIONS
Children without clinical findings in SOPESS do not display any learning disabilities at onset of the 2nd grade while children marked at risk by SOPESS seem to benefit from concurrent intervention (e.g., language promotion programmes): such disabilities emerge in only half of these children.
Zentrum für Klinische Psychologie und Rehabilitation der Universität Bremen, Germany. daseking@uni-bremen.de
M
M
Daseking
F
F
Petermann
K
K
Simon
H-C
HC
Waldmann
D001077:Aptitude Tests / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D060705:Dyscalculia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D004410:Dyslexia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D042241:Early Diagnosis; D018479:Early Intervention, Educational; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D007859:Learning Disabilities / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012572:School Health Services