Children are being misdiagnosed with special educational needs (SEN) due to pressure from pushy parents, new research suggests.

According to teachers, some parents want their children to be labelled as having learning difficulties such as dyslexia or attention deficit disorder (ADD), even if they do not have them, so that they receive more help and attention in the classroom and during exams.

As a result, pupils with genuine needs are being overlooked, the researchers for the GL Assessment report found.

More than 1.2 million children in England were classed as SEN last year – down from more than 1.3 million in 2015.

But a YouGov survey of more than 800 teachers and school leaders suggests the true proportion could be lower, as it is thought a high number of these children are being incorrectly labelled.

More than half (57 per cent) of teachers polled claimed there is a misdiagnosis among pupils, with a similar proportion of the belief pressure from parents has led to some school pupils being categorised as SEN unnecessarily.

Nearly two-thirds (64 per cent) thought some parents who have a child with a learning issue that could be addressed by a teacher are too quick to want a medical or psychological explanation.

And just over a third (38 per cent) agreed that some parents who push for their child to be recognised as having SEN do it to help them gain a competitive edge in tests and exams.

Children with disabilities or special educational needs can apply for adjustments to help them in exams, such as extra time to complete a paper.

Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Show all 20 1 /20 Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Singapore Singapore was the top performing country across all three subjects (maths, science and reading) in the 2015 PISA tables. The small Asian country is renowned for its high academic standards and produces excellent results, particularly in mathematics. Pupils here learn maths by what is known as the “mastery method,” which teaches children how to solve problems as a class and errs away from more traditional recitations of formulae. Singapore selects its teachers from the top 5 per cent of graduates, and teachers are very highly regarded as societal influencers. Getty Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Japan Japanese schools came in 2nd for Science, 5th in the world for maths and 8th for reading skills. Japan has one of the best-education populations, with zero illiteracy recorded and strong emphasis on arithmetic and geography. While children around the world typically learn between 26 and 33 letters of the alphabet, Japanese pupils will know 1,006 kanji characters by the time they leave primary school. Getty Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Estonia Dubbed the “new Finland” by some, Estonia has risen rapidly towards the top of the Pisa rankings despite being one of the world’s youngest countries. Estonia spends around 4 per cent of GDP on education. Getty Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Taipei Taiwan has been known as a centre for technical excellence for decades and its students perform consistently well in technology, maths and sciences. Education is compulsory from age six, and some 95 per cent of all students continue their education after age 15. Getty Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Finland Children in Finland don’t start school under age seven, yet consistently produce some of the best results in the world. The country’s education system has a somewhat alternative approach to that of most OECD countries, placing emphasis on playtime and creative learning. Pupils don’t sit tests until they reach 16. Getty Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Macau Most schools in Macau are private or subsidized. There are only a handful of government or state schools, which tend to teach in Portuguese or have a strong emphasis on pupils learning the language. The majority of schools are also selective grammar schools which focus heavily on languages, mathematics and sciences over vocational subjects. Getty Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Hong Kong A former UK colony, Hong Kong education has been closely modelled on the British system in the past,. Education is free and compulsory in primary and junior secondary schools. Independent schools follow the International Baccalaureate, UK or US curricula. The territory participates separately from China (Shanghai, Beijing, Jiangsu, Guangdong) in the Pisa league tables. Rex Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education South Korea South Korea has long been one of the world’s top academic achievers, but at the price of very long school days for students. Many start school by 8am, and carry on until late at night at private study clubs. Getty Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education New Zealand While the New Zealand school curriculum is not dissimilar to the UK’s, children here are not required to start school until age six. The country also has eight state-funded universities offering degrees in a range of subjects. Getty Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education China Getty Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Slovenia Slovenia scored highly in this year’s maths and science results. Basic education for children ages six to 15 is compulsory and free for children in Slovenia. International citizens are taught the Slovenian language at the beginning of school. Rex Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Australia Australian Pisa candidates came in 14th place for Science, 15th place for reading and 23rd place for Maths – slipping down in the ranks on previous years. Australia has the third highest number of international students in the world behind the UK and US, despite having a much lower population overall. The school system is split mainly into government state-funded schools, Catholic faith schools and independent fee-paying schools. Getty Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education United Kingdom The UK jumped to 15th place for science in this year’s Pisa tables, up from 21st in 2012. According to the report, teachers in the UK are among the youngest across all developed countries. The total amount spent on British education exceeds that of most other participating countries – and critics argue the education system should provide better results because of this. Getty Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Germany Schooling in Germany is governed by individual states, which each have their own education departments and policies. Normally, children begin primary school at age six but secondary school options vary widely. Germany increased its expenditure on educational institutions from primary to post-secondary non-tertiary levels, despite declining enrolments, and teachers have competitive salaries compared to others as a result. Getty Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Netherlands Dutch children were found to be the happiest in the world in a 2013 Unicef study. Schools typically don't give much homework until secondary level and students report little pressure and stress. Rex Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Switzerland Just five per cent of children attend private schools in Switzerland. Lessons are taught in different languages depending on the region of Switzerland, with German, French or Italian the most common languages of instruction. From secondary onwards students are separated by ability. Rex Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Ireland The majority of secondary schools in Ireland are privately owned and managed but state-funded, but there are also state comprehensives and vocational schools. The country performed especially well in Pisa reading tests - coming in fifth place globally. Rex Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Belgium Belgian schools came in 15th place for science in this year’s Pisa table. Schools here are free, and regulated and financed by three separate communities – Flemish, French and German-speaking. Boys in Belgium perform significantly better than girls in school according the latest OECD reports. Rex Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Vietnam Education in Vietnam is state run system of public and private schools. The country took part in the Pisa tests for the first time in 2012 and scored higher in reading, maths and science than the UK and US. This is believed to be partly a result of high spending levels on education and hardworking culture instilled in children from a young age. Getty Pisa rankings 2015: The best countries in the world for education Canada Education is compulsory up the age of 16 in most Canadian provinces, apart from Manitoba, Ontario and New Brunswick where pupils must stay on until 18 or when high school diploma is achieved. The education system varies between French and English-speaking provinces. Rex

Guidance published by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) states that an exam candidate with ADD “has persistent difficulty concentrating and poor working memory”.

As a result, it suggests: “Supervised rest breaks and the use of a prompter, who may need to physically show him where on a page he had been working in order to restart his work, would be reasonable adjustments.”

According to the guidance, a child with dyslexia could need a coloured overlay, a word processor and 25 per cent extra time in exams.

The majority of respondents to the survey (72 per cent) said they believed some parents who want their child to be recognised with SEN genuinely believe their son or daughter has a problem, even if there is little evidence to support it.

And three in five (61 per cent) said they worry that some genuine SEN children do not get as much help as they need as resources are being diverted to those who do not really need it.

Lorraine Petersen, a special needs expert and former chief executive of National Association of Special Educational Needs, said she was not surprised by the findings.

“Most parents will work on the assumption that the quicker you assess why a child is having difficulties and give him or her a label, the faster you can get extra support,” she explained.

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“There may also be a sense of relief that comes with being able to ‘blame’ a diagnosed disorder. Parents may think people will be a lot less judgmental of a child’s behaviour – and their parenting skills – if they know the child has a label.”

Some parents, she pointed out, had the opposite problem and were in complete denial about the support their children needed and resisted having them on a SEN register.

But at the other extreme were parents who were looking for a label even though their child may not require one. “They feel a label will give the child and perhaps the family additional support that they may not get without it; access to benefits, for instance, or support with exams or a place in a specialist setting,” she said.

A study carried out last year found approximately two children in every Year 1 class will experience language disorder, or autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) severe enough to hinder their academic progress.

Department for Education data also suggests that many fewer than this are identified by schools as having difficulties, leading experts to estimate at least half of children with language difficulties miss out on the support needed.

Miranda Cooper, a former SEN teacher and education consultant for SEN Consultancy, said she had mixed feelings on the survey’s findings.

“A lot of the people I work with have really had to fight to get everything that their child needs,” she said.

“On the other hand, some parents with more able children might feel they are not getting what they need from school, and it might be the only way that school’s going to give them the attention that they need is by diagnosis.

“Even if there’s maybe not something actually wrong with them, a diagnosis fits them into a box which means they can get that extra help.”

“Parents are naturally going to want to do everything they possibly can to help their son or daughter do well.”

Greg Watson, chief executive of GL Assessment, added: “Few things are more difficult for a teacher to deal with than a frustrated parent who cannot understand why their child is not doing as well at school as the parent feels they should.

“Parents naturally want to know why. But the fact is that a lot of issues children present are best addressed in the classroom, not in the clinic, they don’t necessarily need a label and their condition may even be temporary.