Does Parents' Evaluation of Developmental Status at School Entry Predict Language, Achievement, and Quality of Life 2 Years Later?

Objective.—We studied the accuracy of the Parents' Evaluation of Developmental Status (PEDS) at school entry in predicting academic, language, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) outcomes 2 years later.

Design/Method.—Prospective population study in elementary schools in Melbourne, Australia. Base Population. A total of 1591 school entry children who participated in a separate cross-sectional study. Cases. One hundred seventy-three children randomly selected from those with significant parental developmental concerns. Controls. One hundred twenty-nine children without significant parental development concerns. Predictors (1997). Parents completed all 10 PEDS items; teachers completed 5 PEDS items. Outcomes (1999). The PEDS and the Child Health Questionnaire (parents) and the Comprehensive Inventory of Basic Skills–Revised and the Renfrew Action Picture Test of language (children). Odds ratios (ORs) were calculated for low outcome scores, defined as >1.0 standard deviation below the mean or <16th centile.

Results.—At outcome, case parents reported more “significant” concerns on the PEDS than did control parents (65% vs 26%, OR 5.3), but mean language and academic scores were only slightly lower for case children. Parent-reported self-help and school skills concerns predicted low language (ORs 2.1–2.8) and academic (ORs 1.3–6.6) scores. Teacher concerns about early school skills predicted low academic scores (ORs 3.7–4.7). However, sensitivity and specificity values were modest. Baseline developmental concerns predicted poor scores on a number of domains of HRQoL 2 years later.

Conclusions.—Although individual developmental concerns at school entry variably predict later academic and language scores, sensitivity and specificity values would not support use of the PEDS as a stand-alone screen to detect later problems.

KEY WORDS:  academic problems , cohort study , developmental concerns , early identification , language delay