Poor school performance has historically constituted one of most frequent reasons for student referrals to applied psychology centers and, due to the complexity involved, has posed a challenge to academic development and practices in the field of educational and school psychology. Faced with the need to improve customer service and the screening process, this study aimed to examine a total of 1,590 school records registering poor performance for the period of 1996-2009 among patients to the Centre for Applied Psychology of the Federal University of Juiz de For a, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Results revealed a prevalence of boys aged between 9 and 13 and a predominance of referrals from schools located in the city's outskirts. Poor school performance was found to often involve behavioural problems and learning difficulties. The data allowed us to make a critical analysis of poor school performance and other contextual factors, as well as the need for an improvement in the screening process.
Underachievement; Educational psychology; Applied psychology
