Examining the Effect of Working Memory Training on Academic Achievement in School Children

INTERVENTION: We complete an examination of computerised working memory training. The study consists of three conditions, or arms: Active (Arm 1), Placebo (Arm 2), Control (Arm 3). Active condition: We used the RM (i.e., school age) version of Cogmed Working Memory Training (Cogmed, 2014). Cogmed RM is a computerised training program, which requires children to complete a number of interactive visuo‐spatial tasks each day. Each game requires the child to hold and manipulate information in working memory. For example, in one of the games, blocks on the screen will momentarily glow, one at a time, in a certain order. The child is required to remember the order, and then select the lit blocks in the reverse order. Trials within the training program are scaffolded to the participant’s ability, matching the difficulty of trials to the child’s ongoing performance. Participants completed the computerised training every school day for five weeks. Each training session took approximately 45 minutes, and was completed in a computer laboratory of the child’s school, under the supervision of a teacher. We attempted to train 4 class teachers in the web‐based Coach training provided by Cogmed, however, two teachers reported that the training was too difficult and did not complete the program. As a result, teachers were trained as training aides by the first author, who also oversaw the technical administration of training. CONDITION: Academic Achievement PRIMARY OUTCOME: Academic Achievement ; Mathematics: Normed score on the Progressive Achievement Test of Mathematics. ; Reading Comprehension: Normed score on the Progressive Achievement Test of Reading. ; SECONDARY OUTCOME: Behaviour difficulties, recorded on the Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) by parents (Parent‐report CBCL) and teachers (Teacher‐report CBCL). INCLUSION CRITERIA: Year 6 or Year 7 student Attending a government primary school Completing schooling in English