How is it assessed?
The occurrence of learning disability in children and young people may be identified by the family or educational/health care professionals.
Severe and profound learning disability is more likely to be identified early in the lives of children and young people due to the global impact on development.
Assessment may be undertaken by a range of professionals and may focus on:
- Underlying cause through a combination of history, examination and special investigations.
- Associated biomedical disorders through a combination of history, examination and special investigations.
- IQ by the use of standardised tests.
- Functional ability through the use of standardised assessment tools, for example the Adaptive Behaviour Scale.
IQ can be assessed from almost any age. The WPPSI (Wechsler Pre-school and Primary Scale of Intelligence) is thought to be a robust measure of intelligence and is used from age 3. Prior to age 3 the Bayley Scales of Infant Development can be used from 1 month to age 2½, which will not give IQ scores per se but will allow the scoring of developmental indexes which are equivalent to IQ’s. The Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children from age 2½ to age 12½ and the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale from age 2 to age 18 are also sometimes used but not as widely as the Bayley and WPPSI. The Bayley scales are used more by educational psychologists than clinical psychologists and provide a General Conceptual Ability score which is slightly different to IQ but an indicator of cognitive function.
After assessment, children with learning disability undergo regular reviews by a range of professionals dependent on individual need. For more information, read about Special Educational Needs. The professionals involved could include teachers, social workers, community paediatricians, learning disability nurses, clinical psychologists and child psychiatrists.
A thorough review should be carried out before the child leaves school and assesses the need for further education, mainstream or supported employment, independent living and the need for specialist physical and psychological health care.
