Advances in early years screening for dyslexia in the United Kingdom

In this article, we describe two United Kingdom (UK) screening tests for dyslexia: the Dyslexia Early Screening Test (DEST) and the Cognitive Profiling System (CoPS 1), both normed and designed to be administered by teachers to children four years and older. We first outline the political context in the UK, which for the first time, makes the use of such tests viable. We then outline the research programs behind and the components of each test; reliability and validity are also discussed. Information is presented on the tests in use. We conclude that tests such as these have the potential to identify children as at risk before they fail, halting the cycle of emotional and motivational problems traditionally associated with dyslexia. Both tests are appropriate for use in the United States, and initial reactions from the education sector have been favorable.     

Communication Forms as Predictors of Issue Knowledge in Presidential Campaigns: A Meta-Analytic Assessment

Theory and past research argue for the importance of understanding the effect of various campaign communication forms (e.g., newspapers, television news, radio, debates, candidate advertising, and personal discussions) on levels of issue knowledge (IK). This study used a meta-analytic approach to examine how well these forms predict IK. The aggregate analysis indicates that any of these forms can affect IK but that the different forms are not equally successful. Findings also indicate that the level of campaign interest moderates the effect of reading newspapers and watching television news and that those who watch debates in years with incumbents are less likely to learn. In addition, studies of newspapers are less likely to find significant effects in recent years, even though the issue content of newspapers has increased. The findings also suggest that television news is more likely to influence IK when levels of issue content are greater. These data indicate that measures of media use and IK can systematically influence the study results. Several conclusions are drawn from the research in the hopes of moving toward a theoretical model of communication forms and the attainment of IK.     

DIELECTRIC STUDIES OF UREASE AS A FUNCTION OF HYDRATION

The steady-state electrical conductivity,as well as the dielectric propertiesbetween 2×10~(-4)Hz and 100 kHz,and at 1 GHz,are reported for urease compressed powdersamples of low hydration.The results show that the large,low frequency dielectricdispersion,known as α-dispersion,is due to the build-up of a space charge of protons atthe sample-electrode interfaces.A smaller dispersion,appearing at higher frequencies,isconcluded to be associated with hindered motions of the peptide residues in the molecularstructure of urease.The extent of these polypeptide backbone motions is shown to bestrongly depended on the extent of enzyme hydration.This work is contributed to the de-velopment of conductimetric biosensors.     

Motor and coordination difficulties in children with emotional and behavioural difficulties

To date, very few studies have explored the incidence of motor impairment amongst children with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties (social, emotional and mental health (SEMH); formerly SEBD in England). Following research that suggests an increase in motor difficulties in young children and adolescents with SEMH difficulties, this study compares profiles of motor ability using the Movement ABC-2 assessment in children attending a specialist SEMH primary school with a typically developing comparison group and children with a diagnosis of developmental coordination disorder. We report an increased prevalence of borderline or clinically significant motor impairment amongst children with SEMH difficulties compared to the comparison group, with 44% of the SEMH special school sample falling within these ranges. We suggest that bearing in mind the increased likelihood for motor impairment is important in SEMH education, as it has likely impact on classroom functioning and ability and motivation to take part in socially and academically relevant activities.     

Effects of vanadate supplementation on high fat-diet and diabetes-induced metabolic changes in liver

Normal and streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats were fed the control high starch-diet or a high fatdiet supplemented with or without sodium orthovanadate (1.5 mg/g diet) for six weeks. Plasma glucose, insulin and triacylglycerol levels and the activities of hepatic glycogen synthase, phosphorylase, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, malic enzyme, and ATP-citrate lyase were measured in these eight groups of rats. The high fat-diet increased the levels of insulin (P<0.05) and triacylglycerol (P<0.01) in plasma and decreased the activities (P<0.001) of phosphorylase (active from and total) and the lipogenic enzymes. Vanadate supplementation led to significant (P<0.001) decreases in the elevated insulin and triacylglycerol levels whereas the enzyme activities remained unaffected. Diabetes and fat diet in combination caused 3.7-fold increases in plasma glucose and triacylglycerol levels and vanadate decreased them by 58% and 74% respectively. Vanadate improved the activities of hepatic glycogen metabolizing and lipogenic enzymes in diabetic rats when they were fed on control starch-diet but not with high fat-diet. This study shows that vanadate normalizes hyperinsulinemia and hypertriglyceridemia but not the defective hepatic glycogen metabolism in high fat-fed rats.     

Decision-making skills and deliberate practice in elite association football referees

We examined sport expertise as a function of role. In study 1, referees were better than players in a video-based decision-making task. This provides evidence that there are role-specific skills within one domain or sport. In study 2, we examined the training activities that could be influential in the development of skills in sports officials. Elite association football (soccer) referees retrospectively reported time spent in and perceptions of training activities for three periods: their first year of formal refereeing, 1998 (before formal training programmes were available), and the current year (2003). This allowed us to examine an area of skill with a limited culture of practice, where performance simulations with direct feedback are usually not feasible. The results showed that referees specialize early and, as they develop, they engage in greater volumes and types of training. Competitive match refereeing is considered a relevant activity for skill acquisition that does not fit Ericsson and colleagues' (1993) original definition of deliberate practice. Our findings indicate that actual performance is a significant activity for skill acquisition and refinement.     

Evaluation of a technology unit in a girls' primary school

Rapid advances in technology are changing the structure of the workforce. There are elite highly-paid hi-tech occupations and low status poorly-paid jobs. Women are unfortunately more likely to be found in the latter category. To allow them to qualify and compete for the higher-status positions, girls need to participate in the physical sciences and in technology studies. However, they are rarely attracted to them in secondary school, possibly because they are already alienated from them by the time they leave primary school. This paper reports some of the outcomes of a curriculum unit taught in two primary school classes in an independent school for girls. The unit was cross-curricular, involving technology, science and other fields of knowledge; it made extensive use of LEGO Technic materials. The evaluation of the unit, based on observations, a teacher journal and pupil questionnaires, focussed upon the issue of whether it assisted the girls to feel happier about working with unfamiliar technology and feel more capable of doing so. Implications for teaching technology are also discussed. M.Ed. St student, Monash University.Specializations: primary school science and technology for girls. Dr. Paul Gardner, Reader in Education, Monash University, 3168.Specializations: science and technology education, technology teacher education, educational evaluation, measurement of attitudes and interests.     

WHAT GOOD IS GRATITUDE IN YOUTH AND SCHOOLS? A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META‐ANALYSIS OF CORRELATES AND INTERVENTION OUTCOMES

The development of gratitude in youth has received increasing attention during the past several years, and gratitude‐based interventions have often been recommended for use in schools. Yet, the empirical status of the correlates of gratitude and the effects of gratitude‐based interventions on youths’ outcomes remains unclear. The present study addressed this ambiguity by systematically reviewing and meta‐analyzing original empirical journal articles investigating gratitude in youth through September 2014 (N = 20). Findings from the meta‐analysis of correlates indicate small‐to‐moderate convergent and discriminant evidence for gratitude as a subjective well‐being indicator in youth, yet other results indicate that gratitude measures have relatively poor test–retest reliability and/or predictive validity and that they have questionable concurrent validity with other gratitude measures. Moreover, findings from the meta‐analysis of intervention outcomes indicate that gratitude‐based interventions are, as a whole, generally ineffective and that much more intervention research is warranted. Implications of these findings for theory, future research, and the practice of school psychology are discussed.