ABSTRACT
Individual differences in working memory capacity appear to have important consequences for children’s ability to acquire knowledge and new skills. Verbal working memory skills are effective predictors of performance in many complex cognitive activities including reading (de Jong, 1998; Swanson, 1994), mathematics (Bull & Scerif, 2001; Mayringer & Wimmer, 2000; Siegel & Ryan, 1989), and language comprehension (Nation, Adams, BowyerCrane, & Snowling, 1999; Seigneuric, Ehrlich, Oakhill & Yuill, 2000), as well as attainments in National Curriculum assessments of English and mathematics (Alloway, Gathercole, Willis & Adams, 2005; Gathercole, Pickering, Knight, & Stegmann, 2004). In particular, marked defi cits of verbal working memory correspond with the severity of learning diffi culty experienced by a child (Alloway et al., 2005b; Pickering & Gathercole, 2004). Recent research has also established that poor verbal working memory skills, but not general
intelligence or verbal short-term memory, are uniquely linked with both reading and mathematical abilities (Cain, Oakhill, & Bryant, 2004; Gathercole et al., 2006; Siegel, 1988). This asymmetry of associations provides a strong basis for identifying working memory as a specifi c and signifi - cant contributor to general learning diffi culties. The purpose of this chapter is to characterize the short-term and working memory impairments associated with a range of prevalent developmental disorders found in mainstream education. To this end, children with Specifi c Language Impairment (SLI), Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD), Attention Defi cit and Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD), and Asperger Syndrome (AS) were assessed on their memory skills using the Automated Working Memory Assessment (AWMA; Alloway, 2007a), a computerized test battery. The AWMA provides multiple assessments of verbal and visuo-spatial aspects of short-term memory and working memory. The tasks incorporated into the computerized battery were selected on the basis of providing reliable and valid assessments of verbal and visuo-spatial short-term and working memory in the relevant research literature. In line with this substantial body of prior evidence, verbal and visuo-spatial working memory were measured using tasks involving simultaneous storage and processing of information, whereas tasks involving only the storage of information were used to measure verbal and visuo-spatial short-term memory. Of specifi c interest is to understand whether children with different developmental needs exhibit memory profi les unique to their disability. For example, do children with language impairments struggle more with verbal memory tasks, while children with motor diffi culties exhibit defi cits in visuo-spatial tasks? In children with attentional problems, current evidence regarding their memory profi le is mixed. However, we might expect that memory tasks that require additional cognitive resources would be diffi cult for them. Finally, in children broadly identifi ed as having social impairments, Asperger Syndrome, what would their working memory profi le be like?
