Analysis of the application of a self-report questionnaire in the school context

Abstract

There is a significant association between Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD) and school performance. The inclusion of questionnaires in hearing screening procedures has been recommended due to the possibility of providing information about communication deficits and their impacts on daily life. The aim of this study will be to analyze the performance of students and teachers in a self-report auditory processing questionnaire, in order to correlate their findings with the result of the diagnostic evaluation and to establish cutoff points of higher sensitivity and specificity for the risk and the occurrence of CAPD. The students will be divided into two groups, based on the evaluation of the school performance reported by the teacher: Group 1 - students with good school performance and no hearing complaints and Group 2 - students with school difficulties. The research encompasses two steps. Stage 1 consists on auditory screening at school, composed by imitanciometry and self-report questionnaire. Stage 2 consists on basic audiological evaluation and behavioral evaluation of central auditory processing (CAP). The children who complete both steps will have the same instrument sent to the teacher, but with questions directed to this professional. Finally, the cutoff points of greater balance between sensitivity and specificity of the questionnaires will be established, considering the risk for the occurrence of CAPD and, subsequently, these will be correlated with the results of the Behavioral Assessment. Results may contribute to a better understanding about the sensitivity of the application of these instruments in screening and suggest which is the most sensitive questionnaire for use in health actions in the school environment. (AU)