Are learning disabled children more impulsive?: A comparison of learning disabled and normal-achieving children on Kagan's matching familiar figures test

The study compared the performance of 100 learning disabled and 100 normal-achieving third- and fourth-grade children on Kagan's Matching Familiar Figures Test (MFF) to determine group differences along the impulsivity-reflection dimension. No significant group differences were found on MFF response latency scores; however, children in the learning disabled group made significantly more errors than did the normal achievement group on the MFF. A double-median split procedure for the MFF response latency and error scores of the total sample of 200 children was performed to classify the children by cognitive style along the impulsivity-reflection dimension (i.e., impulsive, fast-accurate, slow-inaccurate, reflective). No significant group differences in the distribution and frequency of cognitive styles were noted. The overall results suggest that learning disabled children are not more impulsive but rather use poor strategic behavior in processing information. Implications for diagnosis and remediation are discussed.     

Non-disabled children’s ideas about disability and disabled people

This article discusses findings from an Economic and Social Research Council-funded study exploring non-disabled children’s ideas about disability. This represents the first in-depth sociological investigation of children’s ideas about disabled people as members of wider society. Data are presented from focus group discussions with children aged 6–7 and 10–11. The article draws upon William H. Sewell Jr’s theorizing of structure and agency and, in particular, employs his concept of ‘cultural schemas’. The article explores non-disabled children’s enactment of various cultural schemas relating to disability and argues that although they are capable of questioning, even transforming, schemas, they are primarily engaged in enacting a series of ‘hegemonic’ schemas that maintain their privileged position as non-disabled people. The article concludes by urging schools and educationalists to do more to encourage non-disabled children to think differently and positively about disabled people.     

Parental satisfaction with disabled children’s school inclusion in Italy

The principal aim of the present study is to examine the level of parental satisfaction with inclusive education for their children with disability attending Italian schools of any grade level. The survey involved 285 parents of pupils randomly selected from the population of students with disability certificates. On average, parents expressed a high level of satisfaction. Four principal components of parental satisfaction were extracted from the item scores of the questionnaire: inclusive educational practices; environment and special equipment; classmates’ and families’ acceptance; integration between education and rehabilitation activities. Various correlations were found between these aspects and both child-related and context-related variables. In particular, children’s emotional regulation abilities evaluated by teachers are involved in various dimensions of the parents’ satisfaction. On the other hand, satisfaction with the integration between the educational and rehabilitation activities showed a significant negative correlation with the fathers’ and mothers’ educational level. Lastly, parental satisfaction towards classmates’ and families’ acceptance appears to be the most critical aspect and tends to decrease in relation to school level, while it is positively linked with the number of hours the support teacher spends in class. Taken together, these results stimulate useful considerations to promote better practices in inclusive education.     

‘Challenging disabling attitudes,building an inclusive society’: considering the role of education in encouraging non‐disabled children to develop positive attitudes towards disabled people

In the United Kingdom, the introduction of the Disability Equality Duty 2006 has provided a new window of opportunity to promote the idea that education has a role to play in changing non‐disabled children/young people’s attitudes towards disabled people. This article explores the issues raised by the application of the Disability Equality Duty to English schools. The remainder of the article then seeks to ‘map the territory’ for future research into the role that education might play in challenging disabling attitudes and building an inclusive society.     

Phonological awareness and reading speed deficits in reading disabled Greek‐speaking children

There is evidence that phonological awareness skills secure decoding ability and that phonological deficits underlie failure to acquire adequate word recognition. Slow word‐reading rate may be an additional defining characteristic of reading disability. The present study aimed to investigate whether: (1) reading disabled (RD) Greek‐speaking children showed reading accuracy and reading speed deficits relative to chronological age‐matched controls (CAC) and reading age‐matched controls (RAC); (2) they showed phonological deficits relative to the two control groups who do not present reading difficulties; and (3) they showed reading comprehension deficits over and above any word reading deficits.

Results suggested that the reading accuracy of the RD group was predictably weaker than that of the CAC group but equivalent to that of the RAC group. However, the reading speed of the RD group was significantly slower than the RAC group, who showed the same single word reading speed as the CAC group.

Slow and laboured decoding was found to compromise the reading comprehension of the RD group, whose listening comprehension performance was as good as the two other groups. The RD children performed poorly on phonological awareness tasks and naming speed. Naming speed was not an independent core feature of reading difficulties in the Greek language but was associated with a general phonological deficit.

It is recommended that diagnostic assessments for children with reading difficulties in Greek should include phonological awareness, single word reading and pseudoword reading tasks that measure both accuracy and speed.     

Face‐to‐face with children

This paper investigates the motivational power of children to change teachers' beliefs about teaching. Weekly and summary reflections written by 18 preservice teachers served as data sources. Preservice teachers were learning from the children what they expect their teachers to know, to do, and to be, and in consequence of the face‐to‐face encounters with children, teachers were likely to establish and change their beliefs about children and how to teach. Teacher educators may encourage this learning by asking preservice teachers, during and after their work in classrooms, to respond to the questions: ‘As I related to the children, what did they require from me?’, and ‘How did I respond to these demands?’. The work of Emmanuel Levinas on the relationship in the face‐to‐face encounter between people provided an interpretive framework for evaluating responses to these questions.     

Restavèk children in context: Wellbeing compared to other Haitian children

In Haiti, large numbers of vulnerable children and the country's particular historical context has led to a unique phenomenon known as the “restavèk” system. An estimated 300,000 Haitian children are restavèks, living as unpaid domestic servants. Child-welfare advocates describe the restavèk system as modern slavery, but researchers and advocates lack information about restavèk children's circumstances, particularly vis-à-vis other children in Haiti. In a cross-sectional analysis of a nationally representative sample, we evaluated differences in well-being (school attendance, work responsibilities, physical abuse, and hunger) between restavèk children and: (a) all non-restavèk children; and (b) the poorest quintile of non-restavèk children. As compared to all Haitian children and the poorest Haitian children, restavèk children have statistically significantly lower school attendance rates and more labor responsibilities. However, restavèk children experience statistically significantly less physical abuse and less hunger than non-restavèk Haitian children. The restavèk system remains active in Haiti because poor families lack basic resources to support their children, and restavèk children are at risk for mistreatment due to their vulnerable social status. The surprising finding that restavèk children are better off in some respects than their non-restavèk peers highlights the desperate poverty in Haiti and suggests that structural changes for poverty reduction will be required before the restavèk system will end.     

AreYoung children susceptible to the false-memory illusion?

False memories have typically been found to be more common during early childhood than during later childhood or adulthood. However, fuzzy-trace theory makes the counterintuitive prediction that some powerful forms of adult false memory will be greatly attenuated in early childhood, an important example being the Deese/Roediger/McDermott (DRM) illusion. Three developmental studies of this illusion (N = 282) found that (1) it was at near-floor levels in young children, (2) it was still below adult levels by early adolescence, and (3) the low levels of the illusion in young children may be due to failure to "get the gist" of DRM materials.     

Supporting children’s transition to school age care

While a great deal of research has focused on children’s experiences as they start school, less attention has been directed to their experiences—and those of their families and educators—as they start school age care. This paper draws from a recent research project investigating practices that promote positive transitions to school and school age care. Data were generated through questionnaires, document analysis, visits to sites and conversations with a wide range of participants. In this paper, data related to school age care are reported. The results emphasise the importance of communication in the development of strong positive relationships among all those involved in transition. The practices identified as effective reflect the principles of My Time, Our Place: Framework for School Age Care in Australia, and are aligned with the Transition to School: Position Statement, which focuses on the opportunities, expectations, aspirations and entitlements for all during educational transitions. Drawing on these practices, possibilities for enhanced professional practice are explored.     

Contributions of morphological skill to children’s essay writing

Morphological skills have previously been found to reliably predict reading skill, including word reading, vocabulary, and comprehension. However, less is known about how morphological skills might contribute to writing skill, aside from its well-documented role in the development of spelling. This correlational study examines whether morphological skill, as measured by a sentence generation task tapping both derivational morphology and meta-syntactic skills, predicts performance on a standardized essay writing task for fifth- and eighth-grade U.S. students (N = 233), after controlling for grade level, comprehension, and writing fluency. Multilevel analyses indicated that morphological skill and writing fluency were each uniquely predictive of essay quality, and this finding was consistent regardless of whether accurate spelling was required in the morphological task. Our results suggest that morphological skills play an important role in writing, as has been previously documented in reading and spelling.     

Including disabled children at school: is it really as simple as ‘a,c, d’?

This paper presents and discusses a social justice strategy that may progress inclusion in schools. The framework for this strategy is grounded in the theoretical discussions by Nancy Fraser and Trevor Gale about distributive, redistributive, and recognitive models of social justice. None of these theoretical frameworks, however, in themselves, offer a clear way forward for marginalised and misrecognised groups, such as disabled children, who need both educational resources and recognition in inclusive classrooms. The authors propose, however, that the work of Fraser and Gale combines into a social justice strategy, which consists of three elements (agency, competency, and diversity, or ‘a, c, d’) that can lead to inclusion. When disabled children are provided with the opportunity to exercise their agency, demonstrate their competence, and transform and affirm notions of diversity, then inclusion is more likely to occur in the classroom. Data from two research projects are presented using this framework to illustrate this argument, and the proposed ‘a, c, d’ social justice strategy towards inclusion.     

Development and change in disabled children’s social participation assessed by parents in Norwegian daycare centres: 1999–2009

The aim of this paper is to explore if there is any alteration in social participation with peers assessed by parents amongst children with disabilities from 1999 to 2009 and discuss the results in light of the developments in disability policies during the last decades, and internal developments in education/welfare policies regarding children under compulsory school age. We address changes in levels of social participation of children with disabilities in daycare centres and examine changes in mechanisms leading to social participation with peers from 1999 to 2009. The analysis is based on cross-sectional data of two representative samples of disabled children 10?years apart. The main finding of this study is that disabled children have increased their social participation with peers in the period from 1999 to 2009. Gender, age and being in a segregated daycare setting, all had a significant impact on social participation with peers in 1999, but had lost their significance in 2009. The current study found that Norwegian daycare centres still have to be considered as social integrating institutions, even though in the period from 1999 to 2009, they have changed from being a care- and family-supportive service to become a pedagogical service preparing children for school.     

Introducing Forum Theatre to elicit and advocate children’s views

Eliciting and advocating the voice of the child remains at the heart of international political agenda and also remains a central role for educational psychologists (EPs). Previous research indicates that EPs tend to use language-based methods for eliciting and advocating views of children. However, these approaches are often limited. Taking a case study approach this paper aims to explain how the use of Forum Theatre offers EPs a legitimate way of eliciting and advocating the views of children. The study worked with seven Year Six children to create a Forum Theatre Performance which was performed in front of the whole school (spect-actors). Focus groups were held with teachers (n = 3) and children (n = 6) from within the school. This study uses a semantic deductive thematic analysis to explain underlying emancipatory processes within the context of a small rural primary school. The results of this study support previous literature demonstrating that Forum Theatre has a wealth of emancipatory processes which might optimise the approach being used to elicit and advocate for the voice of the child. Practical applications and limitations are discussed with some suggestions for further research.     

Moral disengagement and children’s propensity to tell coached lies

This study investigated the relationship between children’s proneness to endorse moral disengagement mechanisms and their anticipated antisocial lie telling. Participants were 107 predominantly white Australian children in Grade 1 (27 boys, 27 girls; M_age = 6.69 years) and Grade 4 (24 boys, 29 girls; M_age = 9.69 years). Children completed a lie-telling moral disengagement scale and two vignettes. In the first vignette, a child character witnessed a transgression and was coached to say that they did not see the transgression occur (lie type: false denial). In the second vignette, a child character did not witness a transgression and was coached to say that they saw a transgression (lie type: false allegation). In accordance with social cognitive theory predictions, greater proneness to using moral disengagement mechanisms was associated with children’s anticipated lie telling for both false allegations and false denials. These findings highlight the important role of moral disengagement in children’s lie telling.     

Teaching children with dyslexia to spell in a reading-writers’ workshop

To identify effective treatment for both the spelling and word decoding problems in dyslexia, 24 students with dyslexia in grades 4 to 9 were randomly assigned to treatments A (n?=?12) or B (n?=?12) in an after-school reading-writers’ workshop at the university (thirty 1-h sessions twice a week over 5 months). First, both groups received step 1 treatment of grapheme–phoneme correspondences (gpc) for oral reading. At step 2, treatment A received gpc training for both oral reading and spelling, and treatment B received gpc training for oral reading and phonological awareness. At step 3, treatment A received orthographic spelling strategy and rapid accelerated reading program (RAP) training, and treatment B continued step 2 training. At step 4, treatment A received morphological strategies and RAP training, and treatment B received orthographic spelling strategy training. Each treatment also had the same integrated reading–writing activities, which many school assignments require. Both groups improved significantly in automatic letter writing, spelling real words, compositional fluency, and oral reading (decoding) rate. Treatment A significantly outperformed treatment B in decoding rate after step 3 orthographic training, which in turn uniquely predicted spelling real words. Letter processing rate increased during step 3 RAP training and correlated significantly with two silent reading fluency measures. Adding orthographic strategies with “working memory in mind” to phonics helps students with dyslexia spell and read English words.     

What is science in preschool and what do teachers have to know to empower children?

In this article we problematize the purpose of teaching science in preschool and the competences preschool teachers need in order to conduct science activities in the classroom. The empirical data were collected through an action research project with five preschool and primary school teachers (K-6). In the first section of this paper we use one situation, a floating–sinking experiment, as an illustration of how two different epistemological perspectives generate different foci on which kind of science teaching competences can be fruitful in preschool settings. In the first perspective, the central goal of science teaching is the development of the children’s conceptual understanding. With this perspective, we found that the science activities with children were unsuccessful, because their thoughts about concepts did not develop as expected, the situation even enhanced a “misconception” concerning density. Moreover, the teacher was unsuccessful in supporting the children’s conceptual learning. The second perspective uses a feminist approach that scrutinizes science, where we investigate if the floating–sinking activity contributes to a feeling of participation in a scientific context for the children and if so how the teacher promotes this inclusion. This second perspective showed that the children’s scientific proficiency benefited from the situation; they had a positive experience with density which was reinforced by the teacher. The children discovered that they had power over their own learning by using an experimental approach. On the basis of these findings, we conclude that there are competences other than subject matter knowledge that are also important when preschool teachers engage children in scientific activities. Through process-oriented work with the teacher group, we identified four concrete skills: paying attention to and using children’s previous experiences; capturing unexpected things that happen at the moment they occur; asking questions that challenge the children and that stimulate further investigation; creating a situated presence, that is, “remaining” in the situation and listening to the children and their explanations. We discuss possible ways to move preschool teachers away from their feelings of inadequacy and poor self-confidence in teaching science by reinforcing this kind of pedagogical content knowledge.     

The decision to send local children to international schools in Hong Kong: local parents’ perspectives

This article reports the findings of a qualitative study that investigates why some local Hong Kong parents decide to give up local education and send their children to international schools in Hong Kong. Data were gathered from 25 parents across eight selected school sites grouped as four cases based on the continental origins of those international schools. Data were analyzed by applying the inductive data analysis model of Miles and Huberman (Qualitative data analysis: an expanded sourcebook. Sage, London 1994). Ten propositions were developed within four emergent fields. The propositions developed led to recommendations for practice and for future studies, which may have the potential to influence changes to education policy to better meet the needs of local Hong Kong students.