Premature children should start school a year late

Experts have claimed children who were born premature should start school a year late to give their brains more time to develop.

 

Researcher Dr David Odd says: ‘It is easy to look at a premature child’s date of birth and think that is how old they are but they are not that old. 

 

‘These children are going to school in some cases a year earlier than they would have done.

 

‘Development doesn’t speed up just because you are born earlier. They still have to go through all the developmental stages.’

 

These warnings come after a study found children born premature were 50% more likely to fail literacy and maths tests given at the end of their second year in school. These children were also more likely to be diagnosed as having dyslexia and other problems that would identify them as having special needs.

 

However researchers believe that rather than this being due to damage caused by an early birth, it’s actually due to the brain needing extra time to develop.