The second deficit: An investigation of the independence of phonological and naming-speed deficits in developmental dyslexia

An increasing body of dyslexia researchdemonstrates, in addition to phonologicaldeficits, a second core deficit in theprocesses underlying naming speed. Thehypothesized independence of phonologicalawareness and naming-speed variables inpredicting variance in three aspects of readingperformance was studied in a group of 144severely-impaired readers in Grades 2 and 3. Stepwise regression analyses were conducted onthese variables, controlling for the effects ofSES, age, and IQ. Results indicated thatphonological measures contribute more of thevariance to those aspects of reading skill thatinvolve decoding or word attack skills;naming-speed measures contribute more to skillsinvolved in word identification. Subtypeclassification findings were equally supportiveof the independence of the two deficits: 19%of the sample had single phonological deficits;15% had single naming-speed deficits; 60% had double-deficits; and 6% could not be classified. The implications of these findingsfor diagnosis and intervention are discussed.     

Impact of New Information Technologies on Teachers and Students

This paper summarises findings from several commissioned studies, doctoral dissertations, and federally-funded technology in education projects coordinated by the authors in conjunction with international colleagues over the past five years. It features evidence regarding the impact of information technologies on teacher training and student achievement, and spotlights trans-national trend analysis through common instrumentation as the technique believed to be the most promising research avenue for the future.     

Developmental Dyscalculia and Down Syndrome: Indicative Evidence

ABSTRACT

This study investigated the hypothesis that developmental dyscalculia is part of the behavioural phenotype of Down syndrome. One hundred and fifty-one individuals with Down syndrome across three age groups contributed data. These age groups were: 6–8 years (n = 41); 13–15 years (n = 70); and 20–22 years (n = 40). Data were collected using the Stanford-Binet (Fourth Edition) and age equivalent scores on the Pattern Analysis and Quantitative subscales were used in the analyses. A repeated measure ANOVA showed a significant difference between performances on the two subtests with an interaction with age group. While performance on Pattern Analysis was better than on Quantitative for all groups the difference was most marked for the oldest group. Approximately 66% of the participants had a higher age equivalent score on the Pattern Analysis subscale than on the Quantitative subscale. It appears to be plausible that developmental dyscalculia contributes to the behavioural phenotype of Down syndrome and further investigation of this proposition is warranted.     

Quality of Toddler-Mother Attachment in Children with Down Syndrome: Limits to Interpretation of Strange Situation Behavior

Researchers studying social-emotional development have argued that primary attachment relationships, established by the end of the first year of life, are important organizing factors that influence the trajectory of development throughout childhood. Central to this argument is a dimension of "attachment security," along which attachments differ. For normally developing infants and toddlers, attachment security is assessed using the Ainsworth Strange Situation. However, it is not clear that this procedure is appropriate for evaluating attachment security in atypical populations. In this report, 3 samples of children with Down Syndrome (total N = 138) were assessed using the Strange Situation. The procedures were scored according to traditional protocols. Although the 3 samples differed with respect to chronological and developmental age, they showed basic similarity with respect to attachment variables. However, developmentally younger children were more difficult to classify using the standard scoring rules. Scores and classifications for the sample were compared to scores from a sample of normally developing children tested at about 12 months of age. Significant differences with respect to the distributions of cases to classification categories and with respect to the interactive scale scores suggest that the Strange Situation may be measuring different aspects of behavior for children with Down Syndrome, even when they are tested at similar developmental age levels.     

Inspiring and Training Students for Social Action: Renewing a Needed Tradition

In social work, it is believed that certain knowledge and skills are learned more effectively through experience than through didactic classroom content. Members of the faculty of a school of social work have developed a Social Action Day to reinforce curriculum and translate into practice material about advocacy and ethical responsibilities for social action; show the breadth of social work practice; and enhance the school's sense of community. The authors share their experience to inspire other social work faculty, so that they are better able to foster student interest and passion for political action that may generate social change.     

Teachers’ Perceptions of their Mentoring Role in Three Different Clinical Settings: Student Teaching,Early Field Experiences,and Entry Year Teaching

The purpose of this study was to determine the differences in mentoring across three different clinical settings: student teaching, early field experiences, and entry year teachers. Eighteen teachers with mentoring experience in all three clinical settings were selected and interviewed. The teachers’ expectations for teacher development, mentoring relationships, and mentoring strategies differed across all three clinical settings. In addition, their confidence, their relationship with mentees, and their mentoring strategies were influenced by two features of the clinical setting: (a) the amount of time for mentoring interactions, and (b) the expectations for the mentee. To improve mentoring, the authors recommend (a) lengthening clinical experiences, (b) providing support for creating positive relationships, and (c) providing professional development specific to each of the three clinical settings.     

The use of modern standard and spoken Arabic in mathematics lessons: the case of a diglossic language / El uso del árabe estándar moderno y del árabe hablado en las clases de matemáticas: el caso de una lengua diglósica

Abstract

Researchers have shown an increased interest in the way teachers use their knowledge about language (KAL) to enhance student understanding and learning. This qualitative case study investigated first- and second-grade teachers’ use of KAL in Arabic. We investigated the linguistic transitions from standard Arabic to spoken Arabic made by the teachers during mathematics lessons. The results suggested that Arab-speaking mathematics teachers were aware of the gap between home language (Spoken Arabic) and school language (Modern Standard Arabic) and used linguistic transition as a teaching strategy to develop academic thinking and behaviour among their students. The results suggested that Arab teachers built a non-formal bilingual education programme where the two languages were used to teach mathematics. Despite the requirement to use Modern Standard Arabic, participants bridged the gap between the languages, which suggests an inherent understanding that ‘language and identity are ultimately inseparable’.     

Self‐concept in Arab American adolescents: Implications of social support and experiences in the schools

The purpose of this study was to investigate three domains (Scholastic Competence, Social Acceptance, and Global Self‐Worth) of self‐concept in Arab American adolescents in relation to their school experiences, including discrimination, self‐perceived teacher social support, and self‐perceived classmate social support. Half of the sample either experienced some form of discrimination or knew someone who had. An experience of discrimination was significantly related to students' Scholastic Competence. Self‐perceived classmate support was significantly related to all domains of self‐concept; however, self‐perceived teacher support was not significantly related to any of the self‐concept domains. Implications of these results are discussed, as well as strategies for how to provide positive relationships for Arab American students and their families.     

Evidence of English language proficiency and academic achievement of non-English-speaking background students

The increasing number of international students enrolled in Australian universities over the last decade has met with a corresponding concern that many non-English-speaking background (NESB) students experience considerable difficulty in their courses. Consequently, concerns about admission procedures have been raised regarding how English language proficiency (ELP) is determined for NESB students (both domestic and international). In addition to standardised ELP tests, some universities accept other forms of evidence, such as the completion of English-medium courses. This large-scale quantitative study analysed data on 5675 undergraduate and postgraduate students available from one university's database over a three-year period to ascertain if its ELP requirements were sufficient to ensure the academic progress of adequate numbers of these students. The best evidence for potential academic success was found to be standardised tests while students submitting other forms of ELP evidence tended to have more difficulties.