Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD)

Also known as the “Clumsy Child” syndrome, or to confuse matters more, “Developmental Dyspraxia”. The prevalence of DCD has been estimated to exist in about 6% for children between the ages of 5-11 years.

DCD is an overall motor in-coordination where children have difficulty organising their bodies in space and appear awkward and clumsy. Children with DCD often go undetected as their difficulties are perceived to be a result of a lack of practice or the belief that these children will ‘grow out of it’. For example, children who are late to walk, who frequently fall, who cannot kick a ball, or have tedious or untidy handwriting may have DCD.

What Are the Causes?

There is no known cause but several lines of evidence suggest a connection to immaturities of the central nervous system.

Psycho-Social / Emotional Systems

Many parents mistakenly believe that the root cause of their child’s underperformance is due to ‘laziness’, ‘disinterestedness’, or a lack of ‘motivation’ or ‘confidence’. While interest, motivation and self-esteem are vital for success in any activity, often it is the weakness or failure in one or more of the other learning systems that contribute to such negative attitudes in the first place.

What about Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)?

Many of us may have come across the more commonly known "Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)". Autism is usually described as a 'Spectrum Disorder' ranging in severity from mild to severe. While ASD has broad similarities to the three common learning disorders mentioned here, it is a distinctly different condition.

Children with ASD have a marked impairment in the development of their interaction with the environment, language, speech, verbal and non-verbal expression, social interaction and imagination abilities. These can be detected as early as when they are three years old and early-intervention is helpful. The autistic child will require a specialized educational programme along with support services.

LD and ASD are broad definitions that cover a range of possible causes, symptoms, treatments and outcomes. Both have neurobiological and genetic roots but with specific interventions, children can overcome their disorders and be successful in learning. Both ASD and LD require a qualified professional for a formal diagnosis.

In Singapore, centres that specialise in helping children with ASD include the Rainbow Centre (at Margaret Drive and Balestier Road) and the Autism Resource Centre (at Ang Mo Kio).

Attention Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder (ADD/ADHD)

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is characterised by two different sets of symptoms – inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity. Although these problems usually occur together, one may be present without the other to qualify for a diagnosis.

Inattention may not be obvious until a child enters the challenging primary school environment.

ADHD, which is the most commonly diagnosed behavioural disorder of childhood, occurs in 3 to 5 percent of school-age children. Boys are about 4 to 6 times more likely than girls to be found with ADD/ADHD.

What Are the Causes?

The exact cause of ADHD is unknown. Neurotransmitter deficits such as reduced dopamine in the brain, genetics, and prenatal complications have however been suggested as possible causes.

Children with ADD/ADHD will exhibit many of these signs:

Auditory Processing Disorder (APD)

APD results in difficulty in discriminating, understanding, and attending to auditory information. This does not mean that the child has a hearing problem. In fact, the child with APD often has normal hearing. The ear receives auditory signals, but it is the brain that fails to process these signals. The part of the brain that is not able to process or decode what is being heard forms part of the auditory nervous system.

Our auditory nervous system is responsible for our ability to turn to the direction of a sound, our ability to discriminate sounds so that when a child hears “dog”, he can tell it is made up of the sounds, “d”, “o” and “g”, even if he is not able to explain this.

More than just being a receptor of signals, the auditory nervous system processes and interprets auditory information, allowing the child to recognise different intonation patterns to understand when ‘mummy’ is asking a question, is making a statement, or is just plain angry. While it may seem unrelated, auditory processing forms the foundation for language development and phonological awareness in reading and comprehension.

What Are the Causes?

There is no known cause as yet. Scientists still do not know enough about how the brain works in relation to hearing, interpreting auditory information, attention and memory.