Pupils’Assessment: Strengths and Difficulties

This assessment tool may be used by teachers and parents/carers, especially for children with emotional  learning problems. It may help  to discover where the difficulty may lie. Questions are grouped by colour, depending on the area of difficulty. (Based on the Leicester City questionnaire.)

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Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire

 

For each item, please mark the box for Not True, Somewhat True or Certainly True.  Please answer all questions even if you are not absolutely certain or the item seems daft.  Please give your answers on the basis of the child’s behaviour over the last 6 months.

 

 

		Not True	Somewhat True	Certainly True
1	Considerate of other people’s feelings	0	1	2
2	Restless, overactive, cannot stay still for long	0	1	2
3	Often complains of headaches, stomach-aches or sickness	0	1	2
4	Shares readily with other children	0	1	2
5	Often has temper tantrums or hot tempers	0	1	2
6	Rather solitary, tends to play alone	0	1	2
7	Generally obedient, usually does what adults request	2	1	0
8	Many worries, often seems worried	0	1	2
9	Helpful if someone is hurt, upset or feeling ill	0	1	2
10	Constantly fighting or squirming	0	1	2
11	Has at least one good friend	2	1	0
12	Often fights with other children or bullies them	0	1	2
13	Often unhappy, down-hearted or tearful	0	1	2
14	Generally liked by other children	2	1	0
15	Easily distracted, concentration wanders	0	1	2
16	Nervous or clingy in new situations, easily loses confidence	0	1	2
17	Kind to younger children	0	1	2
18	Often lies or cheats	0	1	2
19	Picked on or bullied by other children	0	1	2
20	Often volunteers to help others (parents, teachers, peers)	0	1	2
21	Thinks things out before acting	2	1	0
22	Steals from home, school or elsewhere	0	1	2
23	Gets on better with adults than with other children	0	1	2
24	Many fears, easily scared	0	1	2
25	Sees tasks through to the end, good attention span	2	1	0

 

 

 

Parent / Teacher / Other (please specify): …………………………

Scoring the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire

 

Emotional Symptoms Scale

		Score
3	Often complains of headaches, stomach-aches or sickness
8	Many worries, often seems worried
13	Often unhappy, down-hearted or tearful
16	Nervous or clingy in new situations, easily loses confidence
24	Many fears, easily scared

 

Conduct Problems Scale

		Score
5	Often has temper tantrums or hot tempers
7	Generally obedient, usually does what adults request
12	Often fights with other children or bullies them
18	Often lies or cheats
22	Steals from home, school or elsewhere

 

Hyperactivity Scale

		Score
2	Restless, overactive, cannot stay still for long
10	Constantly fighting or squirming
15	Easily distracted, concentration wanders
21	Thinks things out before acting
25	Sees tasks through to the end, good attention span

 

Peer Problems Scale

		Score
6	Rather solitary, tends to play alone
11	Has at least one good friend
14	Generally liked by other children
19	Picked on or bullied by other children
23	Gets on better with adults than with other children

 

Prosocial Scale

		Score
1	Considerate of other people’s feelings
4	Shares readily with other children
9	Helpful if someone is hurt, upset or feeling ill
17	Kind to younger children
20	Often volunteers to help others (parents, teachers, peers)

 

TOTAL SCORE

	Score
Emotional Symptoms Scale
Conduct Problems Scale
Hyperactivity Score
Peer Problems Score
Prosocial Behaviour Score
TOTAL DIFFICULTIES SCORE

Interpreting Symptom Scores and Defining “Caseness” from Symptom Scores

 

Teacher Completed Questionnaire:

	Normal	Borderline	Irregular
Total Difficulties Score	0 - 11	12 - 15	16 - 40
Emotional Symptoms Score	0 - 4	5	6 - 10
Conduct Problems Score	0 - 2	3	4 - 10
Hyperactivity Score	0 - 5	6	7 - 10
Peer Problems Score	0 - 3	4	5 - 10
Prosocial Behaviour Score	6 - 10	5	0 - 4

 

Parent Completed Questionnaire:

	Normal	Borderline	Irregular
Total Difficulties Score	0 - 13	14 - 16	17 - 40
Emotional Symptoms Score	0 - 3	4	5 - 10
Conduct Problems Score	0 - 2	3	4 - 10
Hyperactivity Score	0 - 5	6	7 - 10
Peer Problems Score	0 - 2	3	4 - 10
Prosocial Behaviour Score	6 - 10	5	0 - 4