This study investigates the familiarity with and application of Dynamic Assessment (DA) among Speech and Language Pathologists (SLPs) in Sweden, focusing on its use in diagnosing language disorders in children. Using a mixed-methods approach, survey data were collected from 565 SLPs, revealing that 72% were familiar with DA. However, a significant…

The broad autism phenotype (BAP) is a set of characteristics often observed in typically developing people with a genetic load for autism, such as parents of autistic children. The Broad Autism Phenotypic Questionnaire (BAPQ) is a 36-item questionnaire developed to identify the BAP in first-degree relatives of autistic people. We translated the…

Some Swedish schools do not identify and support students with reading difficulties efficiently enough during the first years at school. A longitudinal design was used to examine a multitiered RtI-model for identifying and supporting students at risk of reading difficulties in a Swedish school context. The results demonstrated that the RtI-model…

Autistic children have the right to be included in early childhood educational (ECE) settings. Motivated by the need for knowledge of how such education can be developed, this study examined the perspectives of ECE staff (i.e. teachers, child carers, and principals) on interprofessional collaboration regarding identifying and working with autistic…

The prevalence of autism/autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has been increasing across the world. Previous studies in Norway reported, that the prevalence rate for 0-10-year-old children is 1 in 166, and in the case of 11-year-old children it is 1 in 125. Moreover, another nationwide study discovered that 1 in 192 males and 1 in 695 females between…

The demands on mathematical problem-solving have increased in almost all school systems internationally and may constitute a barrier for children with special educational needs (SEN). This study explored the role of fluid reasoning (FR), working memory (WM) and complex executive function of planning (EF) in children (N = 62) referred for…

Background: Parents often recognize problems in their child's development earlier than health professionals do and there is new emphasis on the importance of involving parents in the diagnostic process. In Gothenburg, Sweden, over 100 children were identified as having an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in 2009-11 through a general population…

With the increasing focus on inclusion, special needs educators (SNEs) are now expected to share responsibility for pupils with teacher colleagues and to lead school development, but it is a challenge to enact this role in schools. The aim of the study was to explore how professional roles of Swedish SNEs are enacted in local school contexts. From…

In this study, we explore what happens to young people labelled as having attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) after they have been excluded from mainstream class and placed in a special class. More specifically, we focus on how a specific disability identity is locally accomplished and ascribed to a girl placed in an ADHD class…

The aim was to evaluate conceptual scoring of lexical organization in bilingual children with language impairment (BLI) and to compare BLI performance with monolingual children with language impairment (MLI). Word associations were assessed in 15 BLI and 9 MLI children. BLI were assessed in Arabic and Swedish, MLI in Swedish only. A number of…

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is more common than previously believed. ASD is increasingly diagnosed at very young ages. We report estimated ASD prevalence rates from a population study of 2-year-old children conducted in 2010 in Gothenburg, Sweden. Screening for ASD had been introduced at all child health centers at child age 21/2 years. All…

The current paper reports on the outcome of an ongoing action research project at a school for higher-functioning students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in Sweden. The overall aim of the study was to develop and evaluate a questionnaire that captures social and individual aspects of classroom learning suitable for use with students with ASD.…

One important goal of Swedish educational policies is to integrate all pupils within regular education, irrespective of disability or difficulties in school, and to adjust education to individual needs. The aim of this paper was to explore how schools "socially construct", i.e. identify and support, pupils with special educational needs.…

At the initiative of the Government of the People's Republic of China, a letter of intent concerning a joint undertaking for studying children with intellectual disability in China was formulated together with the Swedish Government's Ministry of Social Affairs in the early 1990s. The Swedish Board of Health and Welfare invited Uppsala University…

The aim of this study was to acquire in-depth understanding of parental experiences and encounters with the school system relative to having a child with dyslexia or experiencing difficulties with reading and writing (dyslectic difficulties). Mothers of seven children who attended lower or upper secondary school were interviewed. The interviews…