The Prevalence of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Its Impact on a Child's Classroom Performance: A Case Study of a Rural South African School.

Melissa Lubbe,Corné Van Walbeek,Nicole Vellios

doi:10.3390/ijerph14080896

Abstract

Alcohol consumption is high among farm labourers in the Western and Northern Cape of South Africa. Excessive alcohol consumption during pregnancy is common, resulting in a high prevalence of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) among children. FAS causes intellectual and behavioural problems, which create considerable obstacles to a child’s education. The aim of this study is to provide a prevalence estimate of FAS in a rural school and to examine the effects of FAS on learners’ educational outcomes. The study was conducted at a farm school near Clanwilliam in the Western Cape of South Africa. The sample comprises 166 learners from Grades 1 to 4. Educational outcomes include class scores (Afrikaans home language and mathematics), reading ability, and classroom behaviour. A physician diagnosed FAS using a three-stage process. We find FAS prevalence of 127 per 1000 (12.7%). Children with FAS score significantly lower (at the 10% level) for home language and behaviour than children who do not have FAS. Large-scale interventions in rural areas of the Western and Northern Cape that specifically target females of child-bearing age, as well as children with FAS, are necessary.

Highlights

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is a birth defect caused by mothers drinking alcohol whilst pregnant
Mothers in South Africa often consume alcohol during pregnancy, a phenomenon frequently attributed to the “dop system” of the Western and Northern Cape where wages of farm workers were supplemented with alcohol [3]
A local physician tested 166 learners for FAS using three rounds of investigation: the initial screening phase resulted in 52 learners (31.3% of the full sample) as possibly having FAS, the examination round further reduced the number of learners to 31 (18.7% of the full sample), and the final round of reviewing hospital records resulted in a final diagnosis of FAS in 21 learners or

Summary

Introduction

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is a birth defect caused by mothers drinking alcohol whilst pregnant. The continuum of effects of prenatal alcohol exposure is referred to as Fetal Alcohol. Spectrum Disorder (FASD), which encompasses FAS (most severe), Partial FAS (PFAS), Alcohol-related. Neurodevelopmental Disorder (ARND) and Alcohol-related Birth Defects (ARBD) [1]. The effects on the Central Nervous System (CNS) caused by the syndrome, which include developmental delays, hyperactivity, attention deficits, learning disabilities, intellectual deficits, and sometimes seizures, complicate the educational experience of a child [2]. The name “dop” originates from the Afrikaans word for a tot of alcohol. The “dop” or “tot” system originated in the 1700s when European settlers colonised fertile land in

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