Letter Processing and the Formation of Memory Representations in Children with Naming Speed Deficits

The ability to recognize letter patterns within words as a single unit is important for fluent reading. This skill is based on previously established memory representations of common letter patterns. The ability to form these memory representations may be impaired in some poor readers, particularly readers with naming speed deficits (NSD). This study explored factors that influence letter processing and the subsequent formation of memory representations of letter strings in children with and without a NSD. Children were presented with a letter string, followed by a probe unit that was either a single letter, a two-letter cluster, or a repetition of the whole string. Children indicated whether or not the probe had been present in the preceding string. Two factors were manipulated: (a) amount of time to process the initial letter string, and (b) level of orthographic structure present in the letter string. Results indicated that overall, children with NSD performed less accurately than children without NSD. However, children with NSD showed no differential benefit in performance as a result of longer time to process a letter string. In addition, all readers were able to make use of the orthographic structure in a letter string to aid performance. Implications of results for establishing memory representations of letter strings are discussed.     

The Processing of Inflectional Morphology: A Comparison of Children with and without Dyslexia

Children aged 11–12 years with a diagnosis of dyslexia (DR) were compared to chronological and reading-age matched poor readers (PR), and two normal reader groups, age-matched (CA) and spelling and reading-age matched (SA–RA), on their processing of inflectional morphology. In comparison to SA–RAs and PRs, the DRs made more spelling errors on regular past tense verb endings relative to irregular past tense verbs and non-verbs. In reading, the DRs took longer than the other groups to make decisions in the written but not oral condition of a tense judgement task. In addition, they were less affected than the PR and SA–RA groups by case altered disruption to the morpheme boundary of inflected verbs. The findings suggest dyslexic children do not show deficits in morphological processing in spoken language, but they are slower at reading and less accurate at spelling regularly inflected verbs compared with normally developing younger children. This difference could plausibly be accommodated within the Phonological Deficit Hypothesis of dyslexia.     

Modifications of Recognition Memory Processes in Preterm Children: An Event‐Related Potential Study

Prematurity may cause hippocampal compromise. Therefore, hippocampus‐dependent memory processes (recollection‐based retrieval) may be more impaired than hippocampus‐independent processes (familiarity‐based retrieval). The memory of 18 children born preterm with reduced hippocampal volumes, without neonatal complications (weeks of gestation < 34, weight < 1,600 g), and 15 controls (8–10 years) was tested using an item recognition task. While groups were equal in memory performance, dissociation was found: The event‐related potential (ERP) correlate of familiarity was intact in the preterm group, whereas the correlate of recollection was attenuated. A follow‐up experiment ruled out that this was due to general cognitive deficits. Furthermore, gestational age correlated with the ERP index of recollection. Thus, recognition memory in preterm children may be characterized by a compensation of attenuated recollection by familiarity.     

Language and Memory Development in Children with Down Syndrome at Mainstream Schools and Special Schools: A comparison

Increasingly, children with Down syndrome are receiving their education in mainstream schools but little research has investigated whether these placements may influence language and memory development. The present study compared 22 children with Down syndrome in mainstream school placements matched for chronological age with 22 children attending special schools in a different LEA where mainstream placements were rare. The children were assessed to obtain measures of the following language and memory abilities: receptive vocabulary; grammar comprehension; sentence repetition; digit span; face recognition; and memory for hand movements. Children in mainstream placements achieved significantly higher scores for vocabulary, grammar and digit span measures, but not for non-language based memory measures. More importantly, even after controlling for age and receptive vocabulary, grammar understanding and digit spans were significantly greater for the mainstream children.     

Memory and Speed: Their Role in the Relation of Infant Information Processing to Later IQ

This study examined the extent to which memory and processing speed accounted for relations we had found earlier between infant information processing and childhood IQ. The measures of speed and memory were obtained when the children were 11 years of age using paper-and-pencil tasks and an extensive battery of computer-administered tasks. The relations of 7 month visual recognition memory and 1 years cross-modal transfer to 11 years IQ were both substantially reduced with statistical control of factors dericed from these measures. These results suggest that speed and memory underlie some of the infant-childhood continuities in cognition. Path and stuctural equation modeling indicated that the significant pathways from 7 month visual recognition memory to 11 year IQ were nboth directr and indirect, the indirect paths going through memory and speed.     

Preterm Children at Early Adolescence and Continuity and Discontinuity in Maternal Responsiveness from Infancy

Patterns in mother-child interaction from infancy to age 12 were investigated in a prospective, longitudinal study of 44 English-speaking mothers and their preterm children. Maternal responsiveness was assessed by home observations during infancy and the Family Interaction Q-Sort at age 12, derived from 2 structured laboratory situations requiring cooperation of mother and child. A cluster of maternal behaviors of critical control toward the toddler was assessed at age 2 years. Children of mothers who were consistently more responsive during both infancy and early adolescence, as well as children whose mothers became more responsive by age 12, achieved higher IQ and arithmetic scores, had more positive self-esteem, and their teachers reported fewer behavioral and emotional problems than children of mothers who were consistently less responsive both during infancy and at age 12. Continuity in parenting behaviors was related to control and criticism beginning in the toddler period and not to degree of responsiveness to the infant.     

Academic Outcomes for Children Born Preterm: A Summary and Call for Research

The developmental outcomes for children born preterm have been examined by many, with results unequivocally indicating that children born preterm tend to have poorer cognitive outcomes and more developmental difficulties. Less attention has been paid to academic outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to review the academic skills assessment of children born preterm, examine the methodologies used to ascertain skill deficits, and identify essential directions for future research. Overwhelmingly the results of studies of academic skills indicate that children born preterm function lower than their full term peers. The methodological flaws with existing studies that impede broad conclusions about specific skill deficits will be discussed. It is critical that future research examine the academic skill deficits contributing to disability status so that effective early intervention strategies may be developed and implemented.     

Educational Needs of School-Aged Children Born Very and Extremely Preterm: A Review

Recent decades have witnessed dramatically improved survival rates for infants born prematurely, especially those born very and extremely preterm. Follow-up studies concerned with long-term neurodevelopmental outcomes for children born preterm indicate that these children are at high risk for a range of cognitive, learning, neuromotor, and behavioral difficulties. However, to date, most of the existing literature has tended to focus on the medical and developmental impact of preterm birth, with little consideration given to the educational implications. Addressing this research gap is important since cognitive and educational difficulties represent the most commonly occurring cluster of adverse outcomes affecting children born very or extremely preterm, with up to two thirds likely to require educational assistance during their school years. The goal of this review is to provide an overview of existing research findings relating to the educational needs of school-age preterm children. Methodological issues that need to be addressed in future outcome research relating to the developmental and educational needs of very preterm children are also highlighted. Finally, implications of existing findings for educational psychologists, counselors, teachers, and teacher educators are discussed in terms of the roles of society, education systems, schools, and teachers.     

学习困难儿童同时性加工特点研究

学习困难儿童同时性加工水平低下;性别对同时性加工任务没有显著影响;综合学业成就与同时性加工效率呈显著正相关.分析发现注意的缺陷和计划性的不足可能使学习困难儿童无法将自身的三个动态联系的机能系统有效地协调起来,无法根据经验作出正确的反应;而教育缺陷的积累可能也是导致其同时性加工水平低下的原因之一.     

Children’s Memory: A Primer for Understanding Behavior

This paper provides the opportunity to understand children’s behavior from a memory viewpoint. For the last three decades, cognitive developmentalists have been asking the question, “what develops in children’s memory?” Four answers to this question are presented, complete with explanations, examples, and possible applications where appropriate. The purpose of the paper is to provide early childhood educators and other practitioners who work with children a different lens through which to view children’s behavior. The memory view is compatible with current best practices in early childhood education, and may provide practitioners an additional viewpoint from which to draw when implementing developmentally appropriate practice.     

Educational Planning and Social Responsibility: Eleven Years of Mega Planning at the Sonora Institute of Technology (ITSON)

ABSTRACT The Instituto Tecnológico de Sonora (ITSON), a public and autonomous university in Cuidad Obregon, Sonora in Mexico has, since its inception, maintained a commitment to society and public service. To transform this commitment into valued results, it has used Mega Planning as its framework over the last eleven years. This article illustrates the impact an educational institution can have through a strategic planning and implementation approach that is focused on measurable objectives, the appropriate processes and activities, and the required resources for the development of its region (i.e., students and their environment). The article will begin with a brief background of the institution, its strategic approach, the subsequent curriculum and organization reform, and finally four key strategic programs that have had a positive social impact in the region: The Integrated Community Development Program; ITSON‐Consulting; Masters in Agribusiness; and the Software Factory.     

A Global Developmental Trend in Cognitive Processing Speed

Children respond more slowly than young adults on a variety of information-processing tasks. The global trend hypothesis posits that processing speed changes as a function of age, and that all component processes change at the same rate. A unique prediction of this hypothesis is that the overall response latencies of children of a particular age should be predictable from the latencies of young adults performing the same tasks--without regard to the specific componential makeup of the task. The current effort tested this prediction by examining the performance of 4 age groups (10-, 12-, 15-, and 19-year-olds) on 4 different tasks (choice reaction time, letter matching, mental rotation, and abstract matching). An analysis that simultaneously examined performance on all 4 tasks provided strong support for the global trend hypothesis. By plotting each child group's performance on all 4 tasks as a function of the young adult group's performance in the corresponding task conditions, precise linear functions were revealed: 10-year-olds were approximately 1.8 times slower than young adults on all tasks, and 12-year-olds were approximately 1.5 times slower, whereas 15-year-olds appeared to process information as fast as young adults.     

阅读障碍儿童视觉长时记忆特点研究

本研究采用on-line的实验方法,以再认作为记忆任务,比较了阅读障碍儿童和正常儿童在间隔10分钟和一天时对简单材料和复杂材料的视觉长时记忆能力。结果表明:(1)在间隔10分钟时,无论是简单还是复杂的视觉材料,阅读障碍儿童与正常儿童再认能力都不存在显著差异。(2)当间隔一天时,阅读障碍儿童对简单材料的长时记忆能力不落后,而在复杂的视觉材料上,阅读障碍儿童的长时记忆成绩显著落后于正常儿童。     

Remembering Activities Performed Versus Imagined: A Comparison of Children with Mental Retardation and Children with Normal Intelligence

CHILDREN with mental retardation and children with normal intelligence were asked to perform a series of tasks or to only imagine performing them. They were then asked to remember which tasks had been performed and which had been imagined at an immediate interview and after an eight week delay. There were no overall differences between the two groups in the number of correct responses. However, all children gave more correct responses to specific probes than to open‐ended probes and remembered activities performed better than those imagined. Performance was more accurate for both groups at the immediate interview than at the delayed interview. Responses to questions about activities neither performed nor imagined were good for both groups of children to the initial questions but decreased significantly in response to a follow‐up probe. Accuracy of responses to these misleading questions decreased over the eight week delay.     

4-11岁自闭症谱系障碍儿童面孔加工的时程分析

为了考察自闭症谱系障碍儿童面孔加工的时间进程特点,运用眼动追踪技术,记录24名4-11岁ASD儿童、21名6-11岁聋哑儿童、32名6-11岁正常儿童观看人类面孔时的加工过程.结果显示,ASD儿童、聋哑儿童觉察面孔的时间明显长于正常儿童,ASD组、聋哑组对面孔的注视时间、观看时间总量和各时程上都明显少于正常儿童,但注意时间分配趋势、加工模式并无差异,表明ASD儿童面孔加工模式与正常儿童无异,但存在数量和次数的不足.     

艾宾浩斯与巴特菜特记忆研究之比较

记忆研究先驱艾宾浩斯和巴特菜特都处在联想主义盛行的时代。艾氏接受联想主义，而巴氏反对之。通过比较发现：（1）虽然基本观点不同，但由于强调的侧重点不同，巴氏并没有推翻艾氏的观点。研究都属于长时记忆，且主要是显性记忆。艾氏强调的是保持的量，而巴氏强调的是保持的质。（2）观点各异主要源于实验方法的不同，艾氏使用的是无意义节和节省测量法，而巴氏使用的是接近日常生活情境的有意义材料。（3）对内隐记忆都有所提及，艾氏提出了有效的测量方法--节省法；巴氏对记忆的社会决定作用进行了研究。简言之，开辟了两条记忆研究的道路。     

学习不良者的工作记忆特点

有关学习不良者的工作记忆特点的研究表明,阅读不良者与数学学习不良者都存在语音回路功能缺陷(如语音表征的效率低)以及中央执行器功能缺陷(如对注意控制的能力不足) ,即学习不良与工作记忆缺陷密切相关。今后的研究应进一步探明学习不良者工作记忆缺陷的深层原因。     

艾宾浩斯与巴特莱特记忆研究之比较

记忆研究先驱艾宾浩斯和巴特莱特都处在联想主义盛行的时代。艾氏接受联想主义，而巴氏反对之。通过比较发现：（１）虽然基本观点不同，但由于强调的侧重点不同，巴氏并没有推翻艾氏的观点。研究都属于长时记忆，且主要是显性记忆。艾氏强调的是保持的量，而巴氏强调的是保持的质。（２）观点各异主要源于实验方法的不同，艾氏使用的是无意义音节和节省测量法，而巴氏使用的是接近日常生活情境的有意义材料。（３）对内隐记忆都有所提及，艾氏提出了有效的测量方法──节省法；巴氏对记忆的社会决定作用进行了研究。简言之，开辟了两条记忆研究的道路。     

A Cognitive-Developmental Approach to Racial Stereotyping and Reconstructive Memory in Euro-American Children

To examine the role of cognitive skill and racial stereotyping in Euro-American children's processing of race-related information, 75 Euro-American children, aged 4–9 years, were asked to recall stories that were either consistent with or inconsistent with cultural racial stereotypes. In 6 trait stories, a Euro-American main character encounters both a Euro-American and an African American child. A negative trait is attributed to either the African American (stereotypic story) or the Euro-American child (counterstereotypic story). In 6 social relationship stories, main characters interact with neighbors, friends, or married couples, portrayed either intraracially (stereotypic) or interracially (counterstereotypic). Individual difference measures were used to assess subjects' racial stereotyping and their classification skill (ability to sort stimuli along multiple dimensions). As predicted, lower degrees of racial stereotyping and the ability to classify persons along multiple dimensions were associated with better memory for counterstereotypic stories. Implications for intervention programs aimed at reducing racial stereotyping are discussed.     

Verbal Short-Term Memory Span in Speech-Disordered Children: Implications for Articulatory Coding in Short-Term Memory

One influential explanation of the development of verbal short-term memory in children argues that short-term memory capacity is a direct function of speech rate. This theory predicts that children with pathologically slow speech will show reduced verbal short-term memory capacity and will show less evidence of speech-base coding on verbal memory tasks. To test this prediction, verbal short-term memory span was assessed using a task that did not require a verbal response in 37 speech-disordered children and 37 age- and sex-matched controls (age range 4-15 years). The speech-disordered group had a significantly lower short-term memory capacity, a smaller word length effect, and reduced speech-motor activity during rehearsal periods. Covariance analyses revealed that these differences were not a function of general intellectual or motor speed differences between the groups, and that speech rate as a covariate abolished group differences in short-term memory. These results suggest that speech rate may be a causal determinant of verbal short-term memory capacity.