An evaluation of the “FRIENDS for Life” programme among children presenting with autism spectrum disorder

“FRIENDS for Life” is a cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) programme which aims to reduce anxiety and promote resilience among children. This study evaluated the “FRIENDS for Life” (FRIENDS) programme used as an intervention for seven children between the ages of 10 and 11 presenting with high functioning autism spectrum disorder (HFA) who attend mainstream schooling. The study adopts a mixed methodology, explanatory research design, which included pre- and post-quantitative anxiety scales, parental interviews completed post-intervention, narrative observation of FRIENDS sessions and a post-intervention children’s evaluation questionnaire. Quantitative findings from this study suggest that participation in the “FRIENDS” programme does not reduce anxiety levels to promote resilience. Such results are discussed with regard to the utility of using standardised self-report measures among children with HFA. Despite this, qualitative information indicates that “FRIENDS” can be made accessible for children with HFA. Recommendations and implications for future research and FRIENDS implementations are outlined.     

To tell a story,to write it: developmental patterns of narrative skills from preschool to first grade

In this 1-year longitudinal study, the authors explored the development of narrative skills between the oral and written form. The authors aimed to assess the predictive power of textual narrative competence on early narrative text writing skills taking into account the impact of spelling ability. Eighty children (M age?=?5.3 years, age range?=?4.9–5.7 years; SD?=?0.29) were followed longitudinally until entering the first grade of primary school. During kindergarten, they were tested with an oral story production task and in first grade with a written story production task. Narratives were evaluated in terms of structure, cohesion and consistency. In the first grade, children were also submitted to a dictation task to evaluate their spelling competence. Repeated measures ANOVAs were performed in order to examine narrative competence development, also considering gender differences, and regression analyses were implemented to evaluate the predictive capability of textual abilities expressed by oral narratives on textual abilities expressed by writing. The results showed some significant differences when scores in kindergarten were compared to scores in primary school. Moreover, the ability to tell well-structured, cohesive and consistent stories predicts the ability to write stories with the same qualities in the sample of participants without spelling difficulty. Instead, the predictive link is not apparent considering those children with difficulties in orthographic ability. This research allows us to reflect about how the medium of writing might interfere, on the basis of the level of mastery, with the opportunity to express narrative skills in the transition from the oral to written code. The central role of writing instrument functionality opens the way to practical implications.     

Vocabulary,metacognitive knowledge and task orientation as predictors of narrative picture book comprehension: from preschool to grade 3

This is a study of early picture book comprehension, its determinants and later development through primary school. More specifically, picture book comprehension was analyzed longitudinally from age 5 to age 9, delineating the unique contributions of vocabulary, metacognitive knowledge and task orientation to the initial level as well as to the growth of comprehension. A total of 90 Finnish-speaking children participated in the study. The children’s narrative picture book comprehension was assessed at age 5, age 6 and age 9. Vocabulary, metacognitive knowledge and task orientation were evaluated at age 5. Latent growth curve modeling showed a pattern of decreasing achievement gaps in narrative picture book comprehension. Vocabulary and metacognitive knowledge uniquely contributed to the concurrent level of narrative picture book comprehension. The results further showed that metacognitive knowledge and task orientation were positive and statistically significant predictors of the growth of picture book comprehension over and above the initial level of narrative picture book comprehension. These findings add to our knowledge about the development of inter-individual differences in narrative picture book comprehension and the roles of vocabulary, metacognitive knowledge and task orientation in it. They also suggest a novel way to assess the narrative comprehension potential among students with compromised working memory or decoding ability.

     

Long-term predictors of narrative skill in children with early bilateral cochlear implants

Narratives require the integration of many different linguistic skills and can be used as an ecologically valid measure of child language development. This study investigated the narrative skills of 18 six- to seven-year-old prelingually deaf children who received simultaneous bilateral cochlear implants (CI) between 5 and 18 months of age. No significant differences were found on any of the narrative measures between this group and a matched group of normal-hearing children. Measures taken of the children at 3, 6, 9, 12, 24, 36 and 48 months post-implantation, and measures from their parents were examined as possible predictors of narrative skills 72 months post-implantation. Child auditory skills, expressive language and receptive language were significant predictors of later narrative skills. A greater use of auditory-verbal language relative to visually supported language by parents and educators was associated with increased language complexity in child narratives. These results strongly suggest that early bilateral CI is associated with improved language outcomes for children with severe congenital hearing loss.     

Developing higher-order reading skills in mainstream primary schools: A metacognitive and self-regulatory approach

The ability to read relies upon not just decoding, but also comprehending text. Being a good comprehender requires strategic reading and implies the use of comprehension strategies. Research indicates that readers who are taught several reading comprehension strategies have better reading skills than those only taught a single strategy. One multiple strategy reading comprehension intervention was evaluated using a mixed-model quasi-experimental design. Intervention and control conditions groups were assessed at pre- and post-test points with standardised reading comprehension abilities, measured as the primary outcome measure. Implementation science principles were observed and evaluated. The schools all served areas of low socio-economic status. 74 pupils (aged 9–10) in five classes in four primary-level mainstream schools in a Scottish local authority were recruited as participants. Training was provided to participating schools by the first author and the programme was delivered in four sessions of 45 minutes per week for 8 weeks. An ANCOVA revealed a statistically significant effect of condition. Statistically significant scores were also evident in the secondary outcome measures of decoding of target word skills, children’s self-reports of their reading strategy use and recreational reading frequency. Implementation tools indicated that the intervention was acceptable and feasible to implement. Implications of introducing this multiple strategy reading comprehension programme and of the evaluation of implementation are discussed.     

Intervention in fluency problems in pupils with Specific Language Impairment (SLI) / Intervención en problemas de fluidez en alumnado con Trastorno Específico del Lenguaje (TEL)

The aim of this research has been to prove the efficacy of an intervention programme on the problems of phonetic and semantic fluency and mazes in narrative discourse in children with Specific Language Impairment (SLI). The sample consisted of 34 children diagnosed with SLI and 34 children with normal language development. For the selection of the sample, the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals (CELF-3), Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, Hearing Association and the Visual Association subtests of the Illinois Test of Psycholinguistic Abilities (ITPA), and the Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test (KBIT) were used. Performance in phonemes (F, A & S), semantic fluency (animals) and the appearance of mazes or repairs in a narrative task were also evaluated. The intervention programme consisted of 72 sessions of 15 minutes each, using phonetic and semantic fluency activities with phonetic and semantic clues. Differences between groups were statistically significant in repetitions and false connectors.     

The evaluation of a ten‐week programme in Cyprus to integrate children with multiple disabilities and visual impairments into a mainstream primary school

A basic need for a child is to belong to a group ( Maslow, 1970 ). Groups help children: to develop relationships and to foster individual mental health ( Johnson and Johnson, 1989 ); and disabled and non‐disabled children, when given assistance, can develop relationships with each other ( Sideris, 1998 ). But there are very few opportunities in Cyprus for children with multiple disabilities and visual impairment to learn alongside mainstream school children. A ten‐week pilot programme was developed and implemented in a Cypriot mainstream and specialist school to examine whether interaction between children with multiple disabilities and visual impairment and mainstream school children can be achieved through the co‐education of the two groups. Three primary school children with multiple disabilities and visual impairment from a specialist school and 15 children with no disabilities who attended a neighbouring mainstream primary school took part in this programme. Central to the programme was the principle that every child has the right to participate in common learning and playing ( Feuser, 1982 ). This paper reports those key findings from the evaluation of the programme from the perspective of the children that took part in it. We show that, even over a short period of time, co‐education can be achieved and be of benefit to both groups.     

Drama: narrative pedagogy and socially challenged children

Melanie Peter, Senior Lecturer in Education and Early Childhood at Anglia Ruskin University, argues that the ability to engage in narrative stems from early interactive play formats and is essential for perceiving patterns and sequences in life – the fabric of social understanding. Developing themes set out in her earlier work, this article presents a rationale and developmental model for drama as narrative pedagogy. Whether narrative impairment is a cause or consequence of their difficulties, hard-to-reach or socially challenged children – exemplified by those with autism – characteristically show a limited spontaneous play repertoire, which necessarily hampers their development. However, through a play-tutoring approach in drama, especially by the teacher-in-role, significant gains may be noted. Melanie Peter uses case studies to illustrate an emerging triad of competencies that contribute to enhancing social understanding: more effective communication, greater sensitivity in interaction and creative problem-solving. The generative pedagogical dimensions support a developmental framework for using drama to explore cultural values and issues embedded in stories, towards greater narrative identity and more effective participation in a social world.     

Using interactive nonfiction narrative to enhance competence in the informed consent process with 3-year-old children

ABSTRACT

Ensuring young children’s competence to participate meaningfully in the informed consent process is a troublesome ethical issue. Evolving recognition of the influence of context and relationship, researcher perspective, and researcher responsibility to provide adequate support has advanced understanding of how this might be achieved. Here, we report the findings of the pilot trial of a new approach that used an ‘interactive nonfiction narrative’ to enhance young children’s capacity to provide meaningful informed consent. This innovative approach employs (re)telling strategies and technology (interactive) to convey factual information about the research (nonfiction) via a story (narrative) to promote participant understanding. Case studies of two 3-year-old boys and their mothers captured participants’ understanding of the informing and consent process. Data collection in the child’s home took place over 11 weeks and included conversations with children and semi-structured interviews with parents on three occasions, together with videos of children interacting with the informing story. We found that children understood many of the key concepts, including the research problem and how they could ‘help’ (participate). Children also understood that they could cease their participation, with one boy exercising his right to opt out towards the end of the study.     

An investigation into an interaction programme for children on the autism spectrum: outcomes for children,perceptions of schools and a model for training

The objective of this study was to investigate a system of training designed by a Local Education Authority support service to promote interactive skill building with children on the autism spectrum. Using a case study approach, the study focused thematically upon outcomes for children, perceptions of schools regarding impact of the training programme and key features of the system of delivering training. Five schools (four primary mainstream and on primary special) which had completed training during a one‐year period participated in the research. Data was gathered using multi‐methods including questionnaires, semi‐structured interviews and document scrutiny. Findings indicate a number of positive outcomes for children, including enhanced communication skills and the development of friendships with peers. The model of training was perceived to be effective by all participants, with a focus upon increased staff confidence in order to become trainer of other members of staff. The training model comprises a number of features essential to effectiveness, including the development of partnerships between all stakeholders. The model of training is seen as a system through which continuation of interaction techniques in schools is promoted, initially with input from a local authority specialist, and with the aims of independent continuation of the programme and practices. This case study reflects the ability of support services to identify innovative ways of providing services, underpinned by the notion of promoting inclusive practices: this holistic package of support could serve as a model for other types of interventions with children with a range of needs. Conclusions indicate that involvement of children as active participants at the inception of the programme should be considered: further research ought also to include the voices of children in order to seek insights into the perceptions of the programme.     

The effects of speech and language therapy intervention on children with pragmatic language impairments in mainstream school

In this article, Catherine Adams, clinical senior lecturer in speech and language therapy at the University of Manchester, and Julian Lloyd, senior lecturer in psychology at Newman College, Birmingham, describe the implementation and effects of an intensive programme of speech and language therapy for children who have pragmatic language impairment (PLI) attending mainstream education in the north west of England. An intervention which focused on aspects of pragmatic language such as conversation, inference and narrative was developed. Six children who have PLI (mean age=7;10 years), all with a Statement of special educational needs, participated in a single case study series in which they each received 20 sessions of the speech and language therapy programme in their own school. Guidance and specific training was provided for learning support assistants and classroom teachers. Despite showing heterogeneity in their initial profiles of impairment, progress in conversation skills was seen in all six children and some significant changes in language test performance were found. These findings suggest that intensive speech and language therapy intervention has the potential to produce generalis-able gains in language and communication skills in children who have PLI and indicate appropriate outcome measures for future effectiveness studies.     

The challenges of small-scale evaluation in a foreign country: reflections on practice

This paper is a reflection on practice. It begins by briefly describing an evaluation of an externally-funded education programme in Kosovo (a new country in south-east Europe). The programme was managed by Save the Children in Kosovo and aimed to develop and promote models of inclusive education through three strands of activity. The first of these provided a bi-lingual multicultural learning environment for children of 3–5 years; the second was designed to integrate children with special educational needs and disabilities into mainstream education; and the third was concerned to support the inclusion of Roma/Ashkali/Egyptian children in primary schooling. The three strands of the programme were piloted in selected schools in different municipalities throughout the country for between 1 year and 3 years. The client (Save the Children in Kosovo) commissioned an independent evaluation to assist with decision-making at a time of transition for the programme. The author (who was the evaluator) discusses how she attempted to address the methodological challenges often typical of this kind of work: a small budget, a compressed time-frame, a complex and volatile socio-political climate and, last but not least, a contractual requirement to produce authoritative recommendations for action. She goes on to reflect on how and why various unplanned events and encounters that occurred outwith the parameters of the evaluation made a significant contribution to its outcomes. The author invites comments from other evaluators about their experiences in similar situations.     

The influence of diglossia in Arabic on narrative ability: evidence from analysis of the linguistic and narrative structure of discourse among pre-school children

The aim of the present study is to examine the influence of diglossia on linguistic and narrative structures in Arab kindergarten children by testing performance in production and comprehension. The 30 children who participated in our study were asked to retell one narrative text that was read aloud to them in Literary Arabic and another narrative text that was retold to them in Spoken Arabic. Then they were given a comprehension test that included questions pertaining to each of the two stories. In addition, two questionnaires were filled in by their parents, for collecting personal data and evaluating the level of the children’s exposure to Literary Arabic at home. The findings show a significant advantage in the retold spoken text over the retold literary text and in understanding the narrative-discourse. In addition, the findings show that the linguistic gap between Literary and Spoken Arabic seems to impact the level of mastery over linguistic structures in both forms of Arabic. Both of these findings indicate that, despite the fact that the exposure to Literary Arabic at a young age is informal and indirect, pre-school children are able to use linguistic structures from the literary language and to comprehend narrative texts. These results, with a particular emphasis on spoken and literary linguistic knowledge in pre-school children, are discussed herein in light of previous behavioral findings and models of development of narrative abilities in the Arabic language.     

Psychological causation and goal-based episodes: Low-income children's emerging narrative skills

This study examined the association between an understanding of psychological causation and the ability of young children to produce goal-based episodes in narratives. Participants were white, pre-kindergarten and kindergarten children living in a low income neighborhood in an industrial city in Appalachia (n = 34). They were asked to “read” Mercer Mayer's A Boy, A Dog, and A Frog to a researcher, and the resulting narrative was examined for use of psychological causation and number of goal-based episodes. Overall 68% of the children used psychological causation and 71% of the participants produced at least one goal-based episode. Use of psychological causation was related to age, and was a stronger predictor of producing goal-based episodes than was either age, or overall language ability. Further research is called for.     

The use of narrative to promote primary school children's understanding of evolution

This study explores learning about evolution when information is presented in either a narrative or an expository text (ET). Narratives engage the imagination, and consequently may allow children to overcome conceptual constraints that make evolution difficult to comprehend. Participants were 16 Year One, 21 Year Two and 25 Year Three pupils from a British primary school. Expository and narrative texts about evolution were read with children before assessing participants' understanding. Those reading the narrative showed a greater understanding of the book's contents about evolution than those reading the ET. Implications for using the imagination and narrative in the science classroom are discussed.     

Evidence for the effectiveness of visual supports in helping children with disabilities access the mainstream primary school curriculum

Removing barriers to learning for children with mild to moderate disabilities in mainstream primary classrooms calls for creative approaches that exploit the cognitive and sensory strengths of each child. Although their efficacy has not been fully explored, pictorial, symbolic and written supports are often used with the intention of helping children access the curriculum by reducing anxiety, confusion and memory limitations both at school and at home. This paper reports a qualitative study carried out in New Zealand, which designed, delivered and evaluated a coordinated home and school visual supports programme for 23 children with moderate special education needs aged between 5 years and 7 months and 11 years and 10 months. Interview and questionnaire feedback from parents, teachers and the children themselves suggests the visual supports reduced anxiety and frustration, provided structured reminders of tasks and equipment needed, and permitted greater involvement in home and classroom routines. They also suggested a positive impact on distractibility, task completion, classroom independence and perseverance. It is suggested that while the visual supports were helpful, the attention to the child's needs across contexts contributed importantly to the success of the programme. Directions for further research are outlined.     

A scalable tool for assessing children's language abilities within a narrative context: The NAP (Narrative Assessment Protocol)

Analysis of children's spoken narratives represents a potentially informative approach to language assessment within early childhood settings. Yet, narrative assessment is not readily amenable to at-scale use given the time needed to collect, transcribe, and analyze a child's narrative sample and the lack of consensus regarding what aspects of narrative expression ought to be examined (e.g., language form, language content). The purpose of this study was to describe a direct assessment of children's language abilities within a narrative context, the Narrative Assessment Protocol (NAP), which examines five aspects of language: sentence structure, phrase structure, modifiers, nouns, and verbs. In this study, we present findings regarding internal consistency, test–retest reliability, construct validity, and the concurrent and predictive validity of the NAP. NAP scores from 262 3–5-year-old children participating in preschool programs were assessed for these purposes. Findings indicated that the NAP exhibits reasonable psychometric properties across the areas addressed, to include significant concurrent and predictive relations with a norm-referenced measure of general language ability. Although more research is needed, preliminary findings indicate that the NAP provides professionals with a valid and informative assessment approach for examining children's language skills within a narrative context; such information may be useful for establishing and monitoring children's language growth within preschool programs or language interventions.     

Learning while playing: Children's Forest School experiences in the UK

Children's outdoor play is declining, despite clear links between play, learning and development. Alternative learning initiatives which provide children with a diversity of play opportunities, including the chance to play outdoors, are therefore needed. One such programme, Forest School, is increasing in popularity in the UK and internationally, yet little is understood about its impact on children's learning, or how alternative approaches are informing learning in mainstream settings. This novel study examined primary school children's experiences of engaging in a Forest School programme in relation to this intersection between formal and informal approaches to learning. It explored how children interpret their experiences when faced with a fusion of learning environments and critically evaluates the benefits children realise, when asked to reflect on their learning engagement in both classroom and outdoor settings. Interviews were conducted with 33 children from two mainstream primary schools in England who had recently completed a 6-week Forest School programme. A rigorous phenomenological thematic analysis revealed three inter-related themes: a break from routine; learning through play; collaboration and teamwork. The findings suggest that the blending of Forest School with mainstream settings contributes to children's social, cognitive, emotional and physical skill development through experiential learning using play. These findings are significant because they not only emphasise the values of social constructivist play-pedagogy which underpin Forest School practice, but also highlight the need for primary schools to consider learning outside of the classroom as an effective pedagogy.     

The benefits and challenges of the integrated programme for children with disabilities in mainstream kindergarten-cum-child care centres in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region: implications for social change

Initially developed from policies implemented under British rule, the integrated programme for children with disabilities has not been widely publicised in the context of early childhood education in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). Local communities have responded differently to the integrated programme implemented in mainstream kindergarten-cum-child care centres (Kg-cum-CCCs), which serve children from 2 to 6 years old. This study focuses on the perceived benefits and challenges of the integrated programme implemented in mainstream Kg-cum-CCCs. Thirty stakeholders (18 school personnel and 12 parents of children with and without disabilities) from six integrated Kg-cum-CCCs took part in a series of semi-structured in-depth interviews, providing a comprehensive database for this study. The data were analysed with reference to previous studies on the integrated programme for children with disabilities in the context of the current educational experience in the HKSAR. The findings indicate that the stakeholders believe that the integrated programme can benefit children with and without disabilities, but that it can also cause challenges for these children. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.