Hi
My son is 11 and I had him tested for dyslexia at the end of last year as the school psycholgist suggested it after assessing him. On his WISC IV, his full scale IQ was on the 37th percentile which says it falls within the average range. Is this score really low? I read a post here that said their kids IQ was 72 and he was mentally retarded so if this is the same type of score my son must be very mentally retarded? He was tested for dyslexia and found to be 4 years behind on reading and spelling and I believe he is having severe problems with Maths too and all other subjects. Sub tests were done as a couple of scores were non unitary….his comprehension was on the 84th percentile but his matrix reasoning was on the 5th percentile.
For the working memory index his arithmetic was on the 9th percentile and his letter number sequencing on the 37th percentile.
On the Processing Speed Index his coding was on the 16th percentile and his symbol search is on the 37th percentile. Hiss scores on the WIAT II AND WRAT 4 were mostly borderline and low average.
Should my son be in a special school? He is really finding school hard now and has to ask for help from the teacher all the time as he just doesn’t get it. I think it maybe his memory that is causing all the problems, both working and long term. He just can’t remember what he has learnt and he can’t retain the information in working memory to work out instructions or any calculations or data with sequences. He feels he is really stupid and doesn’t get much done in class and feels the teachers are getting fed up with him.
Could he have auditory processing disorder? I am at a loss as to what to do, should I go into school as a parent helper and assist him all the time?
Any advice and suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks
Timtam
Advice - Multiple Learning Disabilities
Hi Timtam and welcome to the forum,
These scores can be very confusing?
But basically how it works?
Is that they start with half the population will score at least 100 on the IQ test.
So that this is the average score.
But 37 percent of people will score 97 on the test.
Which is just 3 points lower.
Though people confuse the percentile with a score, when it is nothing to do with a score. It just tells you that 37 percent of people will score 97.
So that over a third of the population have a score of 97.
So that a score of 97, is very close to average.
But what might be more helpful, is to understand what working memory actually is?
We actually have 3 different types of working memory, which provide different ways of thinking?
Where we have Auditory, Visual and Spatial working memories. That work in combination.
The only score that you gave that related to auditory working memory, was the comprehension. Where he was on the 84th percentile.
His lower scores, are all related to visual and spatial working memory.
Spatial working memory plays an important role in thinking. Where concieve of different sized quantities with spatial working memory.
We learn names for these different sized quantities, which we call numbers.
We manipulate these quantities with spatial w/m, to do what we call math.
But when their is a difficulty with spatial w/m? It can cause a difficulty with concieving of different sized quantities?
So that their is nothing to associate numbers with?
Where counting 1,2,3. Means no more than counting A,B,C.
But another crucial role of spatial w/m, is that we use it to order thoughts in our mind.
So that we can recall a series of directions, and know where we are up to. As we work through them.
Though their is also a question about what he can do with his visual working memory?
Whether he can save a visual image in his memory, and then recall it?
Where this could be related to his spelling difficulties?
So that while you have these test results, they need to be looked deeper into? To really understand what is behind them?
Can you speak with (or meet with) the doctor who did the testing and explain that you need more information regarding the meaning of these scores, and you need specific “diagnosed conclusions” and recommendations for moving forward. It sounds like you were told there high variation, and very strong areas of strength and areas of weakness, but you weren’t told what it meant or how this information could help you, so you need to have another conversation with the doctor. Did the doctor talk to you about an individualized education program?
Anyway, you asked about whether (37% percentile) was like mental retardation (intellectual disability)and an IQ of 72, but the answer to that is, No.
An IQ of 70 is the Second (2%) percentile. The 37% percentile is closer to 95, but that does not tell you the information you really need about learning ability and learning strengths, for example. Or what would make this child less anxious in the context of learning to read? Those are complex questions with complex answers, that you deserve to know the answer to.