Information from birth certificates as a risk index for educational handicap

Information from birth certificates (including race, birth order and weight, and maternal age and education) was used to develop a set of classification equations to predict the educational status of first-grade children. The equations were developed with one-half of the sample and then applied to the other half in a replication test. The equations accurately identified approximately 80 percent of the children who scored 1 standard deviation or more below the mean on both a measure of intellectual competence and a measure of adaptive behavior. The usefulness of birth certificates as a first-line screening method was discussed.