Parents' school-related concerns and perceived strengths in youth with spina bifida.
Adrien M Winning, Monique Ridosh, Elicia Wartman and 5 others
PMID 35043413WHAT IT FOUND
Parents of children with spina bifida reported school concerns despite no significant differences in their child's measured academic outcomes.
Many children with reported concerns lacked formal testing or accommodations. Parents also identified strengths like persistence and self-advocacy.
Key findings
01Parents reported concerns about academic performance, cognitive abilities, lack of support, missed school, and disengagement.
02No significant differences were found in academic variables between children whose parents had concerns and those whose parents did not.
03A majority of children whose parents reported academic or cognitive concerns had not received neuropsychological evaluations or accommodations.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
Small sample size (30 families). Only English-speaking families were included. Parents' reports of concerns did not align with significant differences in measured academic outcomes, suggesting some parents may miss signs of struggle or that standard measures do not capture functional difficulties. Cross-sectional data from a longitudinal study, limiting causal inferences.
Declared interests
Funded by the National Institute of Nursing Research and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. No other conflicts declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that a parent's lack of reported concern means the child is academically successful. The study found no significant differences in measured outcomes between concerned and unconcerned parents, and some children with concerns lacked formal support. Standardized tests may not capture the functional school difficulties parents observe.