Resonance Scanning and Analysis of the Electroencephalogram in Determining the Maturity of Cortical Rhythms in Younger Schoolchildren

The possibility of assessing the activity levels of resonance and adaptive mechanisms as well as mechanisms of neuroplasticity in schoolchildren aged 7 to 8 years by resonance scanning and electroencephalogram analysis was experimentally tested. Each schoolchild was assessed for the electroencephalogram reactions of rhythm assimilation (resonance at the stimulation frequency) and rhythm multiplication (resonance at multiple frequencies), as well as the formation and stability of the alpha range of the electroencephalogram under rhythmic photostimulation with a frequency increasing from 4 to 15 Hz. The index of maturity of cortical rhythmics as an individual sum of these features was proposed. It was found that there was a close relationship between the cortical rhythm maturity index and the level of the Toulouse–Piéron test, which evaluated the cognitive and executive functions of a child. These indicators significantly differed from the control in groups of schoolchildren showing deviations from the norm and signs of school maladaptation. The data obtained indicate that the cortical rhythm maturity index can serve as a marker of a child’s readiness to study at school.