Avaliação assistida informatizada: indicadores do potencial cognitivo de crianças com deficiência

Abstract

The identification and assessment of children with atypical development constitute a very important process to support the strategies of education aimed at promoting the potential of learning. The interest regarding the prognosis of children with disability has been stimulating the development of new technologies and researches with regard to assessment, prevention and intervention. In this context, it is important to check with appropriate instruments indicators linguistic, cognitive and behavioral, in order to delineate goals from what they can learn. This way, this study aims to verify whether computerized dynamic assessment is a modality of diagnosis more prescribing of the cognitive development than the traditional tests in the application on children with disability. In assisted mode should help the examiner to conduct the child to a better level of cognitive performance. Participated in this study 10 children who attend an institution of clinical care, in health, for children with disabilities in the Grande Vitória. In traditional tests were used the Columbia Mental Maturity Scale Computed (CMMScomp) and the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVTcomp) with computerized system. Were applied three assessment assisted towards the skills of classification and analogical reasoning: Object Exclusion, Exclusion of geometric figures and Game Analogy of Figures, in the computerized software SINDAPSI. We also used the protocols of record affective-motivational factors and cognitive operations made during the task. In assessing the behavior, the Child Behavior Checklist - CBCL was completed by mothers. The documental data and instruments were subjected to descriptive statistical analysis, to verify the performance of the children in the two methods of assessment (psychometric and dynamic). In the psychometrics tests 64% of the children scored “below average” in PPVTcomp, and 55% “below average” in Colúmbiacomp. With regard to the cognitive performance in the Exclusion of Evidence Objects 55% of the children were assessed as “non maintainer”, in the Exclusion of Evidence in Geometric Figures computed 55% as “high-score” and in the Game Analogies of Figures 45% like “winner”. The sample showed levels of difficulty in the realization of the tests such in the psychometric modality as in the dynamic assessment. However, the performance in the dynamic tests was relatively better attended, showing that the group has benefited from the mediation, implemented in the phase of assistance, to improve cognitive skills. Furthermore, the computerized presentation of the tests offered a tool for motivating performance and persistence in tasks.