Sensory Processing on Executive Functions in Primary School Girls with Dyslexia

Dyslexia is among the main factors a low academic achievement in primary school students, and 80% of learning disorders are related to reading disorder. A person with such a disorder, in spite of benefiting from conventional education, sufficient intelligence, and socioeconomic facilities, experiences difficulty in reading. Considering the recent high incidence of dyslexia in children in Iran as well as the defects in their sensory processing, interventions based on sensory processing useful for other children with special needs are also effective for students with dyslexia. Thus, the current study aimed at investigating the effect of sensory processing training on executive functions among primary school girls with dyslexia.

The study sample consisted of 30 students with dyslexia referring to the Learning Disabilities Treatment Centers in Isfahan City, Iran in the academic year of 2018. The study subjects were selected through convenience sampling method; then, they were randomly assigned into two groups of 15, including the experimental and control groups. The total number of sessions was decided to be 10, each lasted for 60 minutes and applied twice a week. The program was designed to enhance the sensory processing of students with dyslexia and consisted of 4 distinct units each for activating various aspects of sensory processing, as follows: 1. sensuality (sand play, dough play, ball game, massage); 2. Muscular strength and tolerance (throwing balls, throwing rings, jumping and sitting); 3. Attention and accuracy (puzzle game, housebuilding, the identification of differences and similarities, target searching images), and 4. Gentle moves (puzzle game, pattern practice, house–building, coloring, dancing). The experimental group received 10 on–hour sessions of sensory processing instruction individually, while the control group received no interventions. The research tool was the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (Parent Form), completed by the studentschr('39') parents in the pretest and posttest stages, and the Wechsler Intelligence Test. In this study, the results of the studentschr('39') executive functions were completely confidential and there was no compulsion for their attendance. At the end of the research, therapeutic intervention was provided to the control group. The obtained data were analyzed by SPSS using the Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) and Multivariate Analysis of Covariance (MANCOVA) to compare the executive functions in the study groups.

The statistical results indicated that the mean scores of subscales of executive functions in the experimental group was higher than those of the control group in all subscales. The Kolmogorov–Smirnov test result revealed that they were not significant. Therefore, the data had a normal distribution. Additionally, Levenechr('39')s test results suggested that all subscales of executive functions were not significant. Thus, equality of variances was established. The statistical results revealed a significant difference between the experimental and control groups regarding the general scores of executive functions and the scores of executive function dimensions (response inhibition, working memory, emotional control, attention, task initiation, planning, prioritization, organizing, time management, goal–orientedness, flexibility, metacognition) (p<0.001).

The sensory processing method significantly impacted the abilities of the executive functions of the experimental group and increased their score in its dimensions (response inhibition, working memory, emotional control, attention, task initiation, planning, prioritization, organizing, time management, goal–orientedness, flexibility, metacognition). Therefore, executive functions with the ability in learning process are of particular importance. These abilities help children to evaluate their performance, remove possible obstacles, and rate their progress. Processing exercises require a child to follow predefined patterns in the game, and in the event of repetition and practice, the content to improve memory scales, especially active memory is provided. Repeating an order in a rhythmic and sensory motion enables children to predict what would happen next; in other words, with the help of active memory and perception, they predict the next components of a move. Sensory processing practices could be used as a way to improve the executive functions of students with dyslexia in schools and health centers.