SeeWord—a personal word processing environment for dyslexic computer users

SeeWord is a highly configurable word processing environment, which assists dyslexic users when producing and reading text. The software was developed using a user-centred development cycle where user feedback contributed to each revision. Evaluations showed that users were able to find individualised combinations of settings using the specialised software, which they used in preference to the black-on-white text that is usually displayed on computer monitors. Three separate prototypes of the software were developed and evaluated. The third prototype was used in an experimental study with 6 dyslexic school pupils. The research showed that 5 out of the 6 dyslexic users aged 14–16 years benefited from the use of specialised software when reading text from a computer screen. Participants were able to read standard texts from a screen significantly more accurately with the aid of SeeWord. All participants reported that they felt they could read text from the screen better using the software. The results suggest that a larger scale evaluation of the software would provide valuable information about problems associated with computer use by people with dyslexia. A further study into the visual processes involved in dyslexia would also be of great value.     

Relations of Children's Effortful Control and Teacher-Child Relationship Quality to School Attitudes in a Low-Income Sample

RESEARCH FINDINGS: The purpose of this study was to examine the relations of children's effortful control and quality of relationships with teachers to school attitudes longitudinally in an ethnically diverse and economically disadvantaged sample. Data were collected as part of a larger intervention project during mid-fall, winter, and late spring (ns = 823, 722, and 758, respectively) for 2 cohorts of 3- to 5-year-olds (collected during 2 different school years). Children's effortful control was assessed in the fall with parents' and teachers' reports and 2 behavioral measures. Teacher-child relationship quality was assessed mid-year with teachers' reports of closeness and conflict. Attitudes toward school were assessed in late spring using teachers' and students' reports of school avoidance and liking. Effortful control, in general, was positively correlated with teacher-child closeness and school liking and negatively correlated with conflict and school avoidance. Using structural equation modeling and controlling for sex and ethnicity, we found that effortful control was positively related to teacher-child relationship quality, which in turn was positively related to school attitudes. Furthermore, the relation of effortful control to school attitudes was mediated by teacher-child relationship quality. PRACTICE OR POLICY: Results provide evidence for the importance of relational processes that take place within the classroom context and have implications for teachers and clinicians working to increase school success in ethnic minority and low-income children.     

Standards-to-Standards Linkage Under Title III: Exploring Common Language Demands in ELD and Science Standards

A great deal of measurement research is currently being utilized to improve instruction at the elementary and secondary levels, but many opportunities for improving utilization are still untapped. The author proposes specific approaches to increased collaboration between researchers and practitioners to meet the burgeoning research needs of the nations' schools and to assist in data-based decision-making efforts. Society's increasing demands for accurate, usable data have contributed to the urgent current need for viable, appropriate research. This need can be met only by reseachers and practitioners working together to provide answers to critical educational questions.     

Building a Successful Adult Life: Findings From Youth-Directed Research

Abstract

Although transition outcomes for youth with disabilities have shown some improvement and transition support practices have been identified, many young people continue to face transition barriers that preclude their full participation in key adult life activities. While research efforts have largely been professionally driven, there is emerging literature suggesting that the use of participatory, empowerment methodologies may bolster the identification of appropriate research methods and useful solutions to problems, as well as promoting the application of findings to accomplishing practice and policy improvements. The purpose of this study was to use a youth-directed, participatory action methodology to investigate youths' perceptions of the value of transition promotion experiences identified as effective by professionals, and to examine the level at which youth with disabilities participate in those experiences. A survey was developed and administered to 202 young people with disabilities by leaders from the National Youth Leadership Network. Findings indicated that youth generally endorse the importance of validated transition promotion practices; however, they reported having limited opportunity to participate in them. Implications related to the use of participatory action methodologies and needed practice and policy improvements are discussed.     

Annotated Bibliography

This short bibliography is not supposed to be a comprehensive survey of all that has been written about gender and science. Its much more modest aim is to mention a few of the many books that have been published on this subject in recent years, and to give some indication of their contents. By doing this I hope to provide readers with a starting point from which to pursue an interest in any particular aspect of the subject.     

Credentialism,adults and part-time higher education in the United Kingdom: an account of rising take up and some implications for policy

This paper focuses on, and helps to explain, the growing importance of higher level qualifications for adults in the UK. It highlights statistical trends in their take up of qualifications, particularly, as the result of taking part-time courses in higher education. Recent figures indicate that most part-time students at undergraduate level fund their own tuition fees: I interpret this finding as an indicator of individual demand. The article goes on to draw on a qualitative study of mature students to identify some of the issues which lie behind the statistics. I suggest that insights into the rising take up of HE can be gained from considering the backgrounds and perspectives of mature students themselves, their changing relationship to qualifying and how their return-to-study decisions relate to the contemporary socio-economic context. The paper concludes by reminding policy makers of the challenge of widening access to HE for disadvantaged groups and briefly focuses on the potential of the new foundation degree to address this issue.     

Parental experiences of support for pupils with dyslexia: ignoring the effect on parents

This article reports on research that was carried out with parents in order to understand the education system in England from their viewpoint through in‐depth, semi‐structured interviews with seven parents, who were largely sourced through a local dyslexia specialist tutor. The data were analysed by using cross‐sectional analysis in order to consider the participants' choice of words and their comparative responses to questions. The interviews probed parents for information on their experience from the initial point of concern about the child's difficulties with words, through to assessment and concerns for the future. The findings suggest that, while we live in an age of purported inclusion and equality, there are still children who experience exclusion and prejudice in education. Their experience does not match the ideal and, as a result, their parents are suffering too. The findings help to support recent research and could encourage continued improvements in the education system.