Topic:
What can I do if my child has normal IQ, but falling behind in academic?
Date:
March 21, 2021 (Sunday), 2:00 p.m.
Speaker:
Consultant psychologist, Ms. Lee Li Li

Does having a normal IQ, guarantees my child to not have neurodevelopment disorder?

Neurodevelopment disorders refer to developmental deficits that produce impairments of academic, occupational and social functioning with onset in the developmental period, such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)/ attention deficit disorder (ADD), specific learning disorders, global developmental delay (GDD), intellectual disability (ID), communication disorder, motor disorders, etc. In addition to children with GDD and ID, children who face other neurodevelopmental disorders may have an average or even higher average IQ. Despite parents have tried their best to help the child in their academic, the child may still be unable to keep up in learning. At this moment, we shall examine whether the child is having other problems that are hindering them to progress. For example, children with Irlen Syndrome see distortions on printed page, causing difficulties in reading and recognizing characters, and gradually develops a situation in which the child feels exhausted or even resists learning.

Generally, if a child is unable to keep up with their academic performance, a clinical psychologist will first conduct a comprehensive screening, including IQ tests (mainly to investigate the child's language/communication ability, reasoning, memory, attention, and processing speed), adaptive skills assessment, psychological and behavior assessment, Irlen Syndrome test, etc. to explore the root cause of learning problems. In the real world, children may face learning difficulties at young age but those learning problems have not been discovered and dealt with in time could lead to other problems (such as family/social, physical, psychological, and environmental factors) and gradually accumulate to major issues. Therefore, it is crucial to identify the problem and use the right approach that saves effort and lead to better results.

Ways to motivate our children

The child needs motivation and self-confidence to re-embark their learning journey after the problems are identified and solved. Parents can start with any activities that the child is best in to cultivate their motivation and self-confidence, and then use these attained skills onto their studies. Adolescence phase is when teenager shapes their behavior and connects with their society. If parents could guide the child to relate the knowledge to its practicality and relevance with their daily life, only then the child will be motivated and has the self-confidence to thrive.

Be your child's life coach, build up their self-motivation

Goals-setting are important, but having mutual consensus between is essential too. Parents can guide children by following the SMART framework to set their learning goals or completing other daily life activities. Under the right guidance and modeling, children can learn effective methods to move forward to their goals. At the same time, parents should train children's living abilities but not purely discipline; providing guidance and advice can help children to make decisions but avoid arbitrary and rejection. In such a way, children have the opportunity to meet the outside world.

Please feel free to click the link below to watch the full presentation.


Note: The above content was transcript from our March 21st, 2021 "DreamicEdu ZOOM Sharing Session: What can I do if my child has normal IQ, but falling behind in academics?" Kindly contact our office if you would like to learn more or seek consultation. Thank you.