Improvement of Word Problem Solving and Basic Mathematics Competencies in Students with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Mathematical Learning Difficulties

Problem solving represents a salient deficit in students with mathematical learning difficulties (MLD) primarily caused by difficulties with informal and formal mathematical competencies. This study proposes a computerized intervention tool, the integrated dynamic representation (IDR), for enhancing the early learning of basic mathematical competencies and word problem solving skills. The goal was to compare and contrast the effects of IDR on the acquisition of informal and formal mathematical competencies in students with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and MLD. Participants were 216 students (6–9 years), who were classified into three groups: ADHD (n = 72), MLD (n = 82), ADHD and MLD (n = 62). They completed the Test of Early Mathematics Ability (Third Edition). The results showed that all three diagnosed groups improved significantly postintervention in all mathematical competencies, with the MLD‐only group benefiting the most at posttest.     

Assessing the special education professional development needs of northern Malawian schoolteachers

This research examines special needs education professional development needs among both general and special education schoolteachers in northern Malawi. A semi‐structured questionnaire with open and close‐ended questions was used for the research. Quantitative and thematic analyses were conducted to determine the extent to which teachers believe that students with disabilities should be educated together with students without disabilities, the importance of professional development for teaching students with disabilities, prioritised professional development needs regarding special education knowledge, and self‐identified needs for successful special education classrooms. Results indicate that teachers are generally in favour of inclusive practices and identify a high need for special education professional development. Participants identified training and resources to teach students with visual impairments or auditory impairments as a high priority. Participants noted a need for improved infrastructure, more educational materials, and recognition by the government for work in special education.     

Towards a Transformative Epistemology of Technology Education

Technology Education offers an authentic and invaluable range of skills, knowledge, capabilities, contexts and ways of thinking for learners in the 21^st century. However, it is recognised that it occupies a comparatively less defined and more fragile curricular position than associated, but longer established, subjects such as Mathematics and Science. While recognising that no single factor lies behind such a condition, this paper draws upon thinking in the philosophy of technology, technology education and the ontology of artefacts to argue that transformation may be considered as an epistemic source for technology in a similar way to ‘proof’ within Mathematics and ‘interpretation’ within Science. Encapsulating technology's intimate relationship with materials, it is ultimately argued that the transformation of a technical artefact from an ill‐defined into a well‐defined ontological state constitutes a prime source of technological knowledge for pupils. Moreover, it provides an alternative route into further consideration about the nature of the domain, epistemology and curricular identity of the subject.     

Environmental Education as a Lived‐Body Practice? A Contemplative Pedagogy Perspective

Environmental education usually appeals to the students’ knowledge and rational understanding. Even though this is needed, there is a neglected aspect of learning ecologically fruitful action; that of the lived‐body. This paper introduces the lived‐body as an important site for learning ecological action. An argument is made for the need of a biophilia revolution, in which refined experience of the body and enhanced capabilities for sensing are seen as important ways of complementing the more common, knowledge‐based environmental education. Alienation from the physical environment is seen as one key element in producing environmental devastation. Consequently, human alienation from nature is seen as closely related to alienation from one's body. It is claimed that through overcoming the (Cartesian) dualist alienation of human consciousness from its lived body, we can decrease the alienation of human beings from their environment. Methods of contemplative pedagogy are introduced for addressing alienation. By getting in touch with the tangible lived‐body in yoga or mindfulness meditation we reconnect to the material world of nature. Contemplative pedagogy cultivates the body and its senses for learning intrinsic valuation and caring for the environment. Lived‐body experience is challenging to conceptualise; we use Maurice Merleau‐Ponty's concept of the flesh in our attempt to do so. Finally, this paper suggests some contemplative practices of the lived‐body for environmental education. Experiencing the flesh of oneself and the world as one and the same is an environmentally conducive experience that gives value and meaning to the flourishing of all life, human and non‐human.     

Applying Tablet‐Based Performance Support Application for Technicians’ Training at the Israeli Air Force: A Case Study

Performance support systems are mechanisms enabling users) productivity while reducing training expenses as support is being delivered in real time, often eliminating the need for costly pre‐performance training. Mobile technologies have created new opportunities for improved performance support systems, especially for tasks performed outside the offi ce. This article describes the fi rst mobile learning and performance support initiative taken by the Israeli Air Force. The project included the development and eff ectiveness pilot study of a learning and performance support application delivered via tablet to helicopter engine technicians. The application provided support videos and illustrations of maintenance routines, thereby enabling learning and practicing at the same time. Pilot study results show high performance levels of application users compared to those applying traditional methods. Results also show that self‐effi cacy levels were not aff ected by the successful performance achieved when using the mobile performance support application. Plans to expand mobile support use are also described.     

Impact of Sensory Processing on School Performance Outcomes in High Functioning Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Difficulty processing sensory information may impede progress in school for students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We explore the relationship between sensory processing and school performance in 26 high‐functioning youths with ASD and 26 controls (age 8–14) using measures of sensory, social, cognitive, and academic functioning. In the ASD group, bivariate Pearson correlations indicated a significant positive relationship between intelligence quotient (IQ) and the School Competence Scale (SCS) of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), and a significant negative relationship between Dunn's Sensory Processing Framework and SCS scores. Final hierarchical multiple linear regression model accounting for SCS scores in ASD included IQ, ADHD symptoms, and sensory features. An interaction between increased sensory sensitivity with reduced sensory avoidance behaviors explained the greatest amount of variance in SCS, meaning school performance is lowest for children with greater hypersensitivity and fewer avoidance behaviors. Results indicate a strong impact of sensory processing on school performance in ASD.     

Associations Between Child Disabilities and Caregiver Discipline and Violence in Low‐ and Middle‐Income Countries

Using nationally representative samples of 45,964 two‐ to nine‐year‐old children and their primary caregivers in 17 developing countries, this study examined the relations between children's cognitive, language, sensory, and motor disabilities and caregivers' use of discipline and violence. Primary caregivers reported on their child's disabilities and whether they or anyone in their household had used nonviolent discipline, psychological aggression, and physical violence toward the target child and believed that using corporal punishment is necessary. Logistic regression analyses supported the hypothesis that children with disabilities are treated more harshly than children without disabilities. The findings suggest that policies and interventions are needed to work toward the United Nations' goals of ensuring that children with disabilities are protected from abuse and violence.     

Scientific communication – on the brink of the next evolution?

Key points

• Publishing is fixated on the format of the scholarly article, and this is stifling innovation.
• Content should be presented in a way that adapts dynamically to the reader's needs.
• A lot of interdisciplinary research is needed to transform reading, writing, and publishing processes.

     

All About Whom? Stock Photos,Interactive Narratives and How News About Governmental Surveillance Is Visualized

A two-stage analysis examined visuals in news related to governmental surveillance, finding that just as surveillance has shifted from visual evidence to dataveillance, journalism is shifting its notion of visual evidence from photojournalism to journalistic data representations. First, a card sort analysis of news visuals was conducted on two news sites before and after Edward Snowden's document leak in June 2013. The news images remained relatively consistent, relying heavily on accessible official and stock photography sources. Second, a review of The Guardian's contemporaneous “NSA Files: Decoded” multimedia package found personalized, data-rich visual storytelling techniques. Between the two approaches is a vast difference in how surveillance is represented and made accessible, with implications for the visual coverage of other challenging news topics.