Effect of prematurity and low birth weight in visual abilities and school performance.
Preterm or low-birth-weight kids often have hidden visual and visual-motor gaps that drag down reading and math—screen early.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Doctors tested 120 six- to eight-year-olds. Half were born early or very small. Half were born on time at normal weight.
Each child took quick tests of visual perception, visual-motor copying, reading, and math. The team then compared the two groups.
What they found
Preterm and low-weight kids scored lower on every visual task. Their average visual-motor score sat at the 30th percentile. The control group sat at the 60th.
Lower visual scores went hand in hand with lower math and reading grades. The link stayed strong even after the team removed IQ from the numbers.
How this fits with other research
Dionne et al. (2024) saw the same pattern in kids with Developmental Coordination Disorder. Visual-motor and perceptual gaps explained one-third of math failure. Together the two papers show that different risk groups—preemies and DCD—reach school failure through shared visual roads.
Kanevski et al. (2023) looked at kids with ADHD plus movement problems. These children also had weak visual-spatial working memory, yet their math scores were normal. That finding seems to clash with Allen et al. (2016). The difference is measurement: Margarita counted only working-memory digits, not visual copying. Kids may prop math up with strong verbal tricks when copying is spared.
Maehler et al. (2016) add another brick. They showed that pure working-memory scores predict school failure no matter the child’s IQ. T et al. now widen the lens: visual and visual-motor skills give a second, separate warning flag.
Why it matters
If you serve a child born early or underweight, add a five-minute visual-motor screener such as the Beery VMI. Low scores signal a need for classroom accommodations like larger print, slant boards, or direct perceptual training. Catch the gap early and you protect both reading and math before failure shows on report cards.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Prematurity and low birth weight are known risk factors for cognitive and developmental impairments, and school failure. Visual perceptual and visual motor skills seem to be among the most affected cognitive domains in these children. AIMS: To assess the influence of prematurity and low birth weight in visual cognitive skills and school performance. METHODS: We performed a prospective cohort study, which included 80 boys and girls in an age range from 5 to 13. Subjects were grouped by gestational age at birth (preterm, <37 weeks; term, 37-42 weeks) and birth weight (small for gestational age (SGA), <10th centile; appropriate weight for gestational age (AGA), ≥10th centile). Each child underwent full ophthalmologic assessment and standardized testing of visual cognitive abilities (Test of Visual Perceptual Skills and Test of Visual Analysis Skills). Parents completed a questionnaire on school performance in children. RESULTS: Figure-ground skill and visual motor integration were significantly decreased in the preterm birth group, compared with term control subjects (figure-ground: 45.7 vs 66.5, p=0.012; visual motor integration, TVAS: (9.9 vs 11.8, p=0.018), while outcomes of visual memory (29.0 vs 47.7, p=0.012), form constancy (33.3 vs 52.8, p=0.019), figure-ground (37.4 vs 65.6, p=0.001), and visual closure (43.7 vs 62.6 p=0.016) testing were lower in the SGA (vs AGA) group. Visual cognitive difficulties corresponded with worse performance in mathematics (r=0.414, p=0.004) and reading (r=0.343, p=0.018). CONCLUSION: Specific patterns of visual perceptual and visual motor deficits are displayed by children born preterm or SGA, which hinder mathematics and reading performance.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2016 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2016.10.002