Toward a resolution of inconsistencies in the phonological deficit theory of reading disorders: phonological reading difficulties are more severe in high-IQ poor readers

This study examined whether high- and low-IQ poor readers differed in patterns of reading performance. Ten-year-old poor readers with IQ scores of 110 and higher showed difficulty in taking a phonological approach to reading, failing to show an advantage in reading high-frequency regular versus irregular words and showing impaired nonword reading accuracy for their reading age. However, poor readers with IQ scores of 90 and below showed a more phonological approach to reading, with better reading of regular than irregular words of both high and low frequency, and with nonword reading skills slower than, but as accurate as, those of reading-age controls. We concluded that the high-IQ poor readers experienced difficulty in taking a phonological approach to reading, whereas the low-IQ poor readers had much less marked phonological problems, supporting Stanovich's phonological-core variable-difference model.     

Homicides in Higher Education: Some Reflections on the Moral Mission of the University

This essay on the ethical mission of the university explores extremes of anti-social behavior, visiting numerous crime scenes before concluding that contemporary higher education has lost the capacity—and even the language—for taking character development seriously. In his attempt to determine whether coincidently traditional-liberationist-diversiphilic-apathetic colleges can morally improve their charges, Peter Wood collects a wrenching compendium of violent academic mayhem.

Skirting the Sketch: An Analysis of Sketch Inhibition within Contemporary Design Higher Education

Sketch inhibition is regularly alluded to by educators within design higher education and one with increasingly marked effects on industry. Over the past thirty years, students have been observed to engage less with the manual processes of design development process in favour of other activities perceived as more attractive, to the detriment of their development as effective designers. This article offers an evaluation of literature which supports the importance of sketching to the design process across a variety of disciplines, its anatomy and functions and demonstrates its role in cognitive support, as a language, a means of reflection, communication and storage of information and the micro‐processes it embodies. Initial findings regarding the symptoms of sketch inhibition are presented: from avoidance of studio sessions and minimal design development, to an overreliance on digital tools. It considers causes, ranging from lacking skill‐sets, psycho‐social, to technological, and although further investigation is recommended to establish depth and enable development of an appropriate pedagogical framework for its management within HE, various methods are offered at this stage for use by educators: these include fine art exercises, a rigorous pursuit of quantity and even paper type.     

The directional links between students’ academic motivation and social integration during the first year of higher education

European Journal of Psychology of Education - Previous theoretical research proposed a link between students’ academic motivation and students’ experiences of social integration, but...     

Coronavirus disease(COVID-19):The need to maintain regular physical activity while taking precautions

The on-going Coronavirus disease(COVID-19)outbreak in China has become the world's leading health headline and is causing major panic and public concerns.On January 30,2020,the World Health Organization(WHO)declared that the new coronavirus outbreak is a public health emergency of international concern.1 The virus has already had a direct impact on more than 10 million people in the city of Wuhan and has reached other parts of China as well,posing a health threat of unknown magnitude globally.As of February 8,2020,WHO reported 34,886 confirmed cases of COVID-19 globally,with 34,589 of them occurring in China(including 6101 severe cases and 723 deaths).A total of 288 other confirmed cases(with 1 death)have been reported in 24 countries,including Japan,Australia,Germany,and United States.2 However,these daily estimates are expected to rise even higher as reports from health authorities in China3 are gathered and near real-time updates of the Johns Hopkins virus dashboard are made 4 The outbreak has caused governments in various countries to take swift and protective measures.In China,these included putting cities on lockdown,5 implementing travel wamings/bans and cancellations,6 extending national holidays,and closing schools and postponing classes7.     

The relationship between adaptive behavior and intelligence for special needs students

This study employed the technique of factor analysis to study the relationship between social system adaptive behavior, as measured by the Adaptive Behavior Inventory for Children, and intelligence, as measured by the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised, in a sample of 100 special needs students, ages 6–11. The results clearly supported the existence of two distinct factors among the WISC-R and ABIC subscales, with each factor composed primarily of either intelligence or adaptive behavior subscales. Thus, the data supported the discriminant validity of the two measures. Implications for the evaluation of special needs students are discussed.