Constructing and Norming Diagnostic Battery Tests of Verbal and Non-Verbal Learning Disabilities for Students in Arabic Schools

The purpose of this study is to construct and evaluate diagnostic battery tests of verbal and non-verbal learning disabilities for students in the Arabic schools. 612 students were in the 3rd, 4th and 5th grades of primary school were involved, mostly from Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Their ages ranged from 7.94-10.98 with mean age = 9.62 and SD = ±0.93. The Diagnostic Battery Tests (DBT) of VLD and NVLD for the primary school students was developed in accordance with the Arabic environment. The Battery includes seven subtests divided into two fields; the verbal learning disabilities and the non-verbal learning disabilities. The tests are developed in accordance with the ages of students and their academic grades. With the help of results, it has been found that DBT of VLD and NVLD have shown good reliability and validity indictors. Additionally, DBT showed the ability to distinguish between neurotypical students and those with learning difficulties. With increasing grades from three to five, the increase in performance level, decrease in performance time and standard deviations were noticeable, which can be attributed to the improvement in learning, experience, maturity and cognitive growth level with the progress of grades.