Correlation Between Executive Function Behaviors and Educational Achievement of Children With Developmental Coordination Disorder

Developmental cordination disorder (DCD) is a serious deficit in development of motor coordination, which affects educational achievements and daily life activities to a considerable extent. The present study aimed to investigate correlations between components of executive function and spelling and math performance of 7 - 11-year-old children with DCD. A descriptive-analytic study was conducted on 53 primary school children with DCD. Persian version of motor observation questionnaire for teachers (PMOQ-T) was used to detect DCD. Executive functions and educational achievements of these children were evaluated using behavior rating inventory of executive function (BRIEF) and a researcher-made test, respectively. Results were analyzed through SPSS software (v. 21) and Pearson correlation coefficient. The findings showed that components of inhibition (r = -0.27, P < 0.05), working memory (r = -0.44, P < 0.01) and organization of material (r = -0.28, P < 0.05) were significantly correlated with the spelling test. And components of inhibition (r = -0.27, P < 0.05), shift (r = -0.38, P < 0. 01), working memory (r = -0.28, P < 0.05), and planning (r = -.29, P<0.05) were correlated with math test. The results may help clinicians for early intervention and focus on related components of executive function to improve the educational performance of DCD children. Knowing that executive function skills are associated with these two achievement domains suggests potentiality of targeted math and spelling interventions for DCD children.