The home of QuickScan and StudyScan
the original dyslexia screening programme
the original dyslexia screening programme
The StudyScan Suite is modelled on traditional principles of educational assessment and has been developed from research by Dr. Dorota Zdzienski, a specialist in the field of dyslexia.
While providing dyslexia support at Kingston University, Dr. Zdzienski became aware of the need for easily accessed and administered programmes which would simplify the screening and assessment of students.
Primarily what was required was a simple question and answer screening programme to indicate whether a student showed signs of dyslexia and needed learning support. This was followed by cognitive and educational performance tests which would provide a full dyslexia assessment, highlighting learning strengths and weaknesses, followed by a report and analysis of individual needs.
Initially paper based programmes were devised to help students but this was transformed into a computerised test which would produce comprehensive sets of results at a fraction of the cost of other forms of testing.
In 1997, following a five-year period of extensive research and development, the first computerised assessment and screening tool - the StudyScan Suite - was launched.
The StudyScan Suite is the product of many years of development and testing by a team of dyslexia experts, educational psychologists, technical writers and computer specialists. It is the result of extensive research conducted under the auspices of the Universities of Surrey, Kingston, Leicester and Ulster. The programme was piloted with 2,000 adults including over 200 previously diagnosed as being dyslexic.
The StudyScan Suite is is a multifunctioning 'screening' and 'diagnostic' programme that enables the user to identify specific learning difficulties, individual learning styles and attainment levels across a wide range of cognitive and educational disciplines.
The 'screening' element of the programme, QuickScan, identifies whether an individual requires a full dyslexia assessment, as well as providing detailed information on their preferred learning style and areas of educational need, including study skills and English as a second language requirement.
The 'diagnostic' element of the programme, StudyScan, identifies each individual's degree of specific learning difficulty as well as providing a detailed 'cognitive profile'.
The ability of StudyScan to identify specific learning difficulties has shown that by focusing on an individual's preferred learning style you can 'open the door' to more efficient and effective learning, thereby building confidence in personal abilities and encouraging creative study.
The 'cognitive profiles' produced by StatScan have proved to be a valuable tool in enabling educationalists and trainers to devise individually targeted 'programmes' that have helped raise the performance of thousands of adults.
The StudyScan Suite satisfies the requirements of current Disability Discrimination Legislation and is also one of the assessment tools used by the British Dyslexia Association in projects to establish a best practice framework.
To date, the programme has been successfully used by over one million adults and continues to provide users with a reliable, cost effective screening and diagnostic tool.
QuickScan is an easy to use, multi-functional questionnaire that takes 10-20 minutes to complete and accurately identifies specific areas of learning strengths and weaknesses. It is suitable for people over the age of 14.
If necessary, it will recommend a full dyslexia and cognitive profile assessment, such as StudyScan or with an Educational Psychologist/Specialist Tutor.
QuickScan comes as 'text only' and 'Text/Audio' with a printable report and audio visual support. Mouse and keyboard operation are available with both options.
There is automatic tracking of each QuickScan session and individual results are easily transferable to a central database.
Getting the most out of QuickScan Reports
StudyScan is a comprehensive battery of tests proven over many years to diagnose dyslexia and measure levels of attainment across a wide range of educational disciplines and underlying abilities. It is suitable for people over the age of 16.
StudyScan can be completed in 2-4 hours (preferrably over a flexible time scale if required) and on completion, two printable reports are available, see StatScan for further details.
StatScan is the unique analysis and diagnostic programme that interprets the data collected by QuickScan and StudyScan, and provides a detailed breakdown and interpretation of the results.
StatScan generates two detailed reports
The information is displayed as:
Pico Educational Systems Ltd are always striving to improve the StudyScan Suite and we actively encourage client comments about their experience with the programmes.
In response to this feedback, and our own extensive research conducted over the last eighteen months, we have developed the latest QuickScan, version 3.0.
This updated programme is now available and incorporates more student friendly QuickScan Reports. This improves on an element of the programme that has, to date, been seen as somewhat lengthy, especially for anyone with reading difficulties. Existing customers can download the upgrade files from our website.
In addition, we have recently introduced indicators of dyspraxia into QuickScan Screening and the subsequent Student Report:
From a technical point of view, Version 3 no longer requires any local system file permissions and only needs 'modify' rights to its own data folder, making it possible for network administrators to operate the programme with optimum security.
The development of an Internet version of QuickScan. This programme is still being refined and tested, and obviously is only at the prototype stage at the moment but we are very excited about this development, which we feel will greatly increase QuickScan's accessibility and coverage.
Production of a shorter version of the StudyScan assessment. This alternative programme will give the tutor a student's ability level and indicators of dyslexia without the necessity to sit through the whole battery of tests that the current version requires.
Production of a basic needs assessment drawn on from the literacy components of the StudyScan assessment.
Pico’s main customer base is in the UK and Ireland, but we also have clients in Australia, Canada and Europe, and evaluation disks in New Zealand and the United States. As testament to the success of the programme, The StudyScan Suite is now widely used at all levels of education from Schools and Further Education to Higher Education Colleges and Universities.
The increasing success of the ‘Skills for Life’ initiative has seen a rise in the number of independent and publicly funded training providers registered with the DFES - and an unexpected area of potential for the StudyScan Suite. Considerable interest in the programme is being shown here and over the last few years Pico has seen a noticeable rise in sales and evaluation disks requested.
Following participation in the ‘Inclusion in the Mainstream of Learning’ project the Medical School has now been successfully using The StudyScan Suite for three years and remain enthusiastic and positive about the programme which has become an established part of their staff screening procedures.
The programme is in use in the Prison Service both here (HMP’s Buckley Hall and Woodhill) and in Northern Ireland (HMP Hydebank Wood, HMP Maghaberry and HMP Magilligan). Milton Keynes Young Offending Team also purchased the programme in 2005.
The Dyslexia Association have recently extended the licence at HMP Whatton and have received funding for another two licences for HMP Wellingborough and HMP Ranby to further their study into the incidence of dyslexia in the prison population.
They have also just been granted funding by NIACE to use QuickScan as part of a project to screen for dyslexia in young people who are in Work-Based Learning in Nottinghamshire, and further funding from Lincolnshire County Council is allowing them to offer QuickScan dyslexia screening for Lincolnshire adults.
Buckley Hall have been using the programme since 2005 under the Wigan and Leigh College licence (a client since 2003)
HMP Woodhill purchased the programme last year and has already reported on how very impressed they are with the accuracy of the results of screenings carried out during the assessment period.
Wessex Young Offending Team is working with South Central Connexions and the Hampshire Dyslexia Association on a joint literacy improvement project, aimed at keeping young offenders out of Young Offender Institutions and helping them back into work. QuickScan is one of the tools being used to screen for the presence of dyslexia and other learning difficulties.
Links to sites visited during the course of the research programme