Recently, the news that the mental health team of Shanghai Children's Medical Center and the School of Psychology of Shanghai Jiao Tong University jointly set up the "Spatial and Mathematical Learning Difficulties Clinic" has sparked heated discussions. It is understood that the clinic will open on October 8 to provide services for students who find it difficult to study mathematics, physics, chemistry, etc.
The reporter inquired through the official appointment and registration channel and saw that the "Space and Mathematics Learning Difficulties Clinic" is a special outpatient clinic, with a registration fee of 316 yuan (for reference), and the first batch of open places will be on October 8, October 15 and October 22 respectively. At present, the source of medical appointments for these three days has been fully booked.
In this regard, some netizens believe that this is the "IQ tax" paid by some parents for educational anxiety. Some netizens also believe that outpatient scientific treatment can effectively solve the difficulties in learning. So, what kind of patients does the "Spatial and Math Learning Difficulties Clinic" see? What is the reason for the popularity of the "Learning Difficulties Clinic"? How can I correctly tell if my child needs medical intervention? In this regard, the reporter interviewed relevant experts.
The three-day medical number source has been fully booked (issued by the Central Broadcasting Network)
"Spatial and Mathematical Learning Difficulties Clinic"
What kind of disease do you see?
According to the "Outpatient Introduction" published by the official account of Shanghai Children's Medical Center's Patient Service, the clinic will serve students who find it difficult to learn the following contents: knowledge related to mathematics, such as geometry, algebra and spatial vectors, especially involving the understanding of graphic-spatial relationships and abstract symbols; In physics, it involves the understanding of complex physical concepts such as space motion, the action of forces, magnetic and electric fields; In chemistry, especially the spatial distribution of chemical molecular structures and reaction processes, it is impossible to establish intuitive imagination; In students with spatial perception, visuospatial impairment, or dyscalculia, significant difficulty in solving geometric problems or tasks involving three-dimensional spatial thinking.
Introduction to the Outpatient Clinic for Learning Difficulties in Space and Mathematics (issued by CNG)
According to the above-mentioned "outpatient presentation", there is a significant association between spatial cognitive ability and mathematical ability, especially when dealing with geometric problems. Children with math learning difficulties often have difficulty understanding the spatial relationships of figures. Neuroimaging studies have shown that students who do poorly on geometric problems have less activity in the parietal region of the brain, which is closely related to spatial processing ability. Difficulties caused by insufficient spatial perception and imagination can affect the learning of arithmetic, geometry, physics and chemistry. Impaired ability can make it difficult for some children to "see" images in their minds, similar to "heart blindness" in psychology. Based on this, the mental health team of Shanghai Children's Medical Center and the School of Psychology of Shanghai Jiao Tong University jointly set up the "Spatial and Mathematical Learning Difficulties Clinic", hoping to accurately assess and solve these problems, help children improve their spatial thinking and imagination skills, and improve learning disabilities. The hospital reminded: "Not limited to children under the age of 18, adults will also have difficulties in spatial imagination. ”
On September 30, the staff of the "special needs clinic" of the child care clinic of Shanghai Children's Medical Center affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine told reporters that recently, many parents have called to inquire about the "spatial and mathematical learning difficulties clinic", and the appointment is very hot. At present, the clinic is not open, and the specific diagnosis and treatment methods and effects need to be asked by professional doctors, because different children will have targeted scientific diagnosis and treatment plans. If parents have any questions, they can come to the consultation on the day of the first consultation.
"Learning Difficulties Clinic"
What is the reason for the popularity?
According to media reports, in recent years, "learning difficulties clinics" have been opened in Beijing, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Hunan, Hubei, Guangdong, Guangxi, Chongqing, Hebei and other places.
Among them, the "Learning Difficulties Clinic" of the Capital Institute of Pediatrics has received more than 8,000 patients every year since its opening in May 2022. The outpatient clinic aims to find out the causes of children's learning difficulties, identify diseases that affect learning performance, and provide comprehensive intervention for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and learning disabilities, such as diagnostic assessment, intervention guidance, parent education and drug treatment.
Wang Lin, executive director of the Health Center of the Children's Hospital Affiliated to the Capital Institute of Pediatrics, said that in a broad sense, learning difficulties refer to the situation in which children cannot complete their studies normally because their learning ability does not meet the normal requirements or cannot keep up with the normal level. In a narrow sense, learning difficulties refer to the fact that some children have difficulties in writing, reading, spelling, math, numeracy, etc., so there may be different types of learning difficulties.
Zhang Lili, deputy chief physician of the Health Center of the Children's Hospital affiliated to the First Children's Institute, said that when patients visit the clinic, doctors usually conduct professional evaluations and physiological examinations to identify the specific causes of math learning difficulties. Most children have a normal level of intelligence, but may have disabilities in one area such as spatial comprehension, logical thinking, and digital information processing. The doctor will give some specific training and intervention methods for the diagnosed problem to avoid further expansion of the gap.
Zhang Lili told reporters that there are many reasons for children's learning difficulties, which may be neurodevelopmental disorders, improper education methods, children's emotional problems, and excessive pressure caused by parents' high expectations.
At the time of the visit, Zhang Lili found that most of the children needed medical treatment, and a small number of children were anxious because of their parents. From the medical situation, ADHD is the main cause of children's learning difficulties.
She said that after the Institute of Pediatrics opened a learning difficulties clinic, it has established cooperative relations with some universities and scientific research institutions, and will cooperate with universities to conduct scientific training in the learning treatment of children such as dysgraphia and dyscalculia.
How can I tell if my child needs medical intervention?
In Zhang Lili's view, unsatisfactory academic performance is not the same as learning difficulties, and parents should have a reasonable expectation of their children's academic performance. She said that on a 100-point scale, some children may have reached 60 or 70 points and have already achieved a passing grade, but some parents think that it can be higher, which itself is related to problems such as learning skills. At the same time, targeted training also requires a long-term, step-by-step process. In the face of the expected results that may not be achieved, parents, children, and schools should look at it rationally to avoid the frustration caused by excessive anxiety.
How can parents tell if a child needs medical intervention? She said that it will take some time to observe whether the child needs to seek medical attention. For example, it has been nearly a semester since the school opened, and the child has adapted to the learning environment, but with the efforts and help of teachers and parents, the child's learning state is still not good, and there is a situation where learning is slow or unable to remember, and learning is obviously difficult, which needs to be paid attention to by parents.
"Two-thirds of children with learning difficulties will be diagnosed with ADHD." Zhang Lili said that children with ADHD often have symptoms such as being confused, inattentive, and easily forgetful, and sometimes children have conflicts with their classmates. Generally speaking, children with ADHD have normal intelligence, and even some children have abnormal intelligence. Parents need to focus on whether their child's attention is affecting their child's normal functioning. If the child has ADHD and normal functioning is not affected, parents do not need to intervene. If the teacher repeatedly reports that the child has attention problems, or if the parent feels very tired during the tutoring of the child, and the whole family status is affected as a result, it is necessary to intervene the child with medication in time.
In Wang Lin's view, in recent years, learning difficulties clinics have been opened in various places, including the Capital Institute of Pediatrics, to conduct scientific analysis of different types of children's learning problems, and solve children's learning problems while also solving parents' problems. She said that every child has talents and potential, and only in a relaxed and happy environment can children truly reach their potential and become the best version of themselves. (CNR)