The Relationship between Writing and Reading Skills with the Development of Higher Mental Functions in Primary School Children with Dysgraphia

Abstract

Difficulties in children’s acquisition of reading and writing skills, and, consequently, difficulties in mastering the general educational curriculum and personal development, are explained by the immaturity of various higher mental functions. This topic has been insufficiently studied, and the proposed study can contribute to a deeper understanding of speech disorders in children (dysgraphia, dyslexia, etc.) and the possibilities for their correction. The aim of the study was to identify and describe the relationship between basic learning skills (writing, reading and their impairment in the form of dysgraphia) and higher mental functions in primary school children aged 7-11 years who experience difficulties in mastering the curriculum. Participants included 51 children (14 girls and 37 boys) based at the Luria Research Center for Child Neuropsychology and the school’s speech therapy group. The diagnostic methods of A. R. Luria, adapted for children of primary school age (J. M. Gozman, A. Yu. Potanina, A. E. Soboleva), as well as the method of comprehensive assessment of oral and written speech (R. I. Lalaeva and L. V. Venediktova) were used. The study revealed a link between writing skills and memory (auditory-verbal and motor), mental functioning (orientation, general level) and visual gnosis; reading skills and intelligence (understanding the meaning of story pictures, counting, solving mathematical and logical problems), motor memory, phonemic hearing, and dynamic praxis. Furthermore, academic skills are associated with the general level of speech, memory, and intelligence development. Based on the obtained results, it is postulated that children acquire academic skills simultaneously, but unevenly, and that they are closely linked to the development of higher mental functions; when developing programs to correct difficulties in learning to write and read, it is necessary to implement a comprehensive approach focused on targeted interventions in individual mental areas indirectly related to academic skills: memory and speech development, improvement of motor skills, and training in mathematical problem-solving, logic, and counting. This work contributes to an understanding of patterns in overcoming difficulties in acquiring basic cognitive skills and helps identify potential compensatory mechanisms that can assist specialists organize corrections for primary school children. Dysgraphia can be eliminated through the timely identification of writing and reading disorders in primary school children and comprehensive interventions that incorporate a neuropsychological approach. Further research can be aimed at identifying significant links between reading and writing skills and attention, gnosis, between writing skills and motor activity, intelligence.