Potential for England’s statutory school entry assessment to identify special educational needs and reveal structural inequalities: a population-based study

Abstract

ObjectiveTo investigate at a population level whether England’s universal assessment of ‘school readiness’ is associated with later identification of special educational needs (SEN). Also, whether ethnic differences exist in SEN identification (white British versus ethnic minority) and whether this varies as a function of school readiness.MethodAnalysis included 53 229 individuals aged 5–12 years from the Connected Bradford Database (2012/2013–2019/2020). Logistic regression analyses examined: (1) whether reaching a ‘good level of development’ on England’s ‘school readiness’ assessment was associated with later SEN identification; and (2) whether interactions exist between school readiness and ethnicity.Results32 515 of 53 229 children reached a good level of development, of which 3036 (9.3%) were identified as having SEN. In contrast, 10 171 of 20 714 (49.1%) of children who did not reach a good level of development were later identified as having SEN. Children not reaching a good level of development had increased odds of being later identified as having SEN after controlling for covariates (OR: 8.50, 95% CI: 8.10 to 8.91). In children who did not reach a good level of development, white British children had higher odds of being identified as having SEN compared with ethnic minority peers (OR: 1.22, 95% CI: 1.11 to 1.34). No ethnic differences of having SEN were observed in children reaching a good level of development (OR: 1.04, 95% CI: 0.93 to 1.16).ConclusionsSchool readiness assessments are associated with later SEN identification. Structural inequalities may exist in SEN identification in children not entering formal education ‘school ready’. Such assessments could facilitate earlier identification of SEN and reduce structural inequalities in its identification.

An assessment of the teacher completed ‘Early Years Foundation Stage Profile’ as a routine measure of child developmental health

“…Children with 'English as an Additional Language' (EAL) status have been found to have lower proportions of GLD achievement in comparison to native English-speaking children (26), and children born later in the academic year are much less likely to achieve a GLD (27)(28)(29). Additionally, children achieving the GLD have higher odds of performing at expected levels on later academic assessments at age 7 (30), and lower odds of later being identified as having Special Educational Needs (SEN) (31).…”

“…Since it is assumed that measures administered at the start of school provide an understanding into children's future attainment, predictive validity is crucial (4). Whilst the predictive validity of the EYFSP GLD has been investigated (30,31), the predictive validity of the total score for academic outcomes has not been investigated. We investigate whether the EYFSP total score is predictive of children's later academic outcomes at age 10-11 years, and investigate whether specific EYFSP subscales (relating to communication and socioemotional wellbeing), are predictive of children's behavioural, social, and emotional difficulties.…”

“…We therefore recommend that researchers use the EYFSP total score instead of the GLD, if it suits their study purpose. For teachers, the GLD is a useful metric for identification of children who may later be diagnosed with special educational needs (31), however, teachers may wish to also examine a child's EYFSP total score to gain a more nuanced understanding of a pupils' development. Though, it is important to note that the EYFSP total score should be used with some caution when making inferences about 'average' ability children (those with total scores between approximately 15 and 18).…”

The relationship between ‘school readiness’ and later persistent absenteeism

“…In 2013, changes were made to the EYFS framework. We therefore focused our analyses on the post-2013 EYFSP to ensure the data were comparable (see Wood et al for further details [33]).…”

“…Previous research suggests that such assessments can indicate later ‘vulnerability’. For example, school readiness assessments have been used to identify children at risk of autism [ 32 ] and special educational needs (SEN) more generally [ 27 , 33 ].…”