Alison Alborz

Predicting the persistence of severe self-injurious behavior

Information was collected on 95 people with mental retardation who had been identified seven years previously as showing severe self-injurious behavior. At follow up 71% of participants were still showing self-injurious behavior of a severity which presented a management problem for care staff. The occurrence of specific topographies of self-injury was extremely stable among the group showing persistent self-injury. Finally, self-injury status at follow-up was predicted with 76% accuracy by a logistic regression model containing three variables: site of injury (higher persistence being shown by people exhibiting head directed self-injury); reported (greater) stability of self-injury when first identified; and (younger) age.

Academic attainments of children with Down's syndrome: A longitudinal study

BACKGROUND Studies of the academic progress of schoolchildren with Downs syndrome have given only limited indication of attainments at different ages. Such normative data, it is argued, could guide professionals and parents in respect to reasonable expectations and typical achievement. AIMS The aim of the paper is to provide a descriptive account of levels and range of academic attainments reached by a representative sample of children with Downs syndrome over time. SAMPLE Data relate to 106 children from three studies with the same cohort of families. Mean age was 9.1 years at the first study (1986), 13.7 at the second (1991), and 21.1 at the third (2000). Mean IQ was 40.29. METHODS The Academic Attainments Index (AAI) covers reading, writing and numeracy, and was designed for teacher completion. In order to compare attainments to wider norms, scores were compiled by age group, and related to age-specific National Curriculum attainment levels, which are similar to US school grades. RESULTS AAI scores were obtained for 102 individuals in 1986, 101 in 1991 and 79 in 2000. Comparisons across age groups indicate that higher scores were achieved by each successive age group up to age 20, and that this pattern held for both more and less able children. Once adjusted for differences in IQ scores between age groups, however, there was some evidence of a levelling off towards the end of the school career. By school-leaving age, the more able children reached at least some National Curriculum Key Stage 2 targets in reading and writing, and some Key Stage 3 targets in number work. CONCLUSION Results provide a detailed picture of attainments across ability and age

Staff stressors and staff outcomes in services for adults with intellectual disabilities: the Staff Stressor Questionnaire.

This paper reports on the development, psychometric properties, and validity of a self-report measure designed to assess potential stressors among staff in services for people with intellectual disabilities, the 33-item Staff Stressor Questionnaire (SSQ). A questionnaire including the SSQ and scales measuring staff outcomes was administered to 512 staff across seven services for people with intellectual disabilities. The SSQ was factor analyzed to produce seven subscales reflecting different potential stressors for staff: user challenging behavior; poor user skills; lack of staff support; lack of resources; low-status job; bureaucracy; and work-home conflict. The SSQ subscales showed adequate internal reliability in terms of Cronbachs alpha and mean inter-item correlations. Associations between SSQ subscale scores and different staff groups, and patterns of associations between SSQ subscales and a range of staff outcomes, provided evidence suggestive of the face-, construct-, and criterion-related validity of the questionnaire. The SSQ shows promise as a measure for assessing potential stressors for staff in services for people with intellectual disabilities. Further studies to examine the reliability, validity, and utility of the SSQ are recommended.

The impact of teaching assistants on improving pupils’ academic achievement in mainstream schools: a review of the literature

This paper discusses key findings from one aspect of a systematic review of the literature carried out by the Inclusion Review Group at Manchester University, on behalf of the Evidence for Policy and Practice Information (EPPI) Centre. The specific focus of this element of the review was on the impact of teaching assistants (TAs) (or their equivalent) on improving pupils’ academic achievement that had been measured in some way before and after a period of intervention/support from a TA. The synthesis of findings from the review indicates that the academic achievements of primary aged pupils with identified difficulties in learning, typically in literacy, improve significantly following a period of targeted intervention from TAs. However findings from studies, where support is of a more general nature and not directed at pupils with identified difficulties, are more equivocal suggesting that the presence of TAs in mainstream classes may not have a positive impact on the achievements of all pupils. These findings have major implications for the ongoing training, management, support and deployment of TAs in mainstream schools.

Predictors of academic attainments of young people with Down's syndrome

BACKGROUND Earlier studies of young people with Downs syndrome have investigated a relatively limited range of variables which may influence their academic attainment. The relative strength of such influences and how they may vary during the school career, has also been under-researched. AIMS The aim of the paper is to identify the contemporary and antecedent predictors of the level of academic attainment achieved by a representative sample of young people with Downs syndrome. Sample The paper reports data from three studies of 71 young people with Downs syndrome and their families. Mean IQ at the time of the first study (t1) was 40.4. Mean chronological age was 9 years at t1, 14 at t2, and 21 at t3, when all the young people had left school. METHODS The outcome measure was the 58-item Academic Attainments Index (AAI), comprising three sub-scales covering reading, writing and numeracy. Predictors of the outcome were derived from questionnaires and interviews from tutors, mothers and fathers. A path analysis approach was used to investigate the pattern of predictors of the outcome over the three studies. RESULTS Factors predicting greater progress in this measure between t2 and t3 were lower chronological age and attendance at mainstream school. Progress from t1 to t2 was also associated with attendance at mainstream school, as well as with higher t1 mental age, mothers practical coping style and higher child attentiveness. Background factors predicting higher t1 AAI scores were higher mental age, attendance at mainstream school and fathers internal locus of control. The path analysis model predicted 48% of the variance in t3 outcome scores. Severity of intellectual impairment was by far the most significant predictor. CONCLUSION Limitations to the study include evidence of attrition bias towards more able children, and the need to obtain the t3 outcome measure from tutors for some young people and parents for others. Parents may have over-estimated abilities. Results are broadly in agreement with other studies, and confirm the pattern reported earlier with this group. Mainstream school attendance had a modest beneficial effect on AAI scores throughout the school career of the children, independently of level of intellectual disability. Identification of predictors of attainment levels and of improvement over time may help parents, teachers and other professionals involved with families of children and young people with Downs syndrome optimise the attainment of such skills.

Greek mainstream secondary school teachers’ perceptions of inclusive education and of having pupils with complex learning disabilities in the classroom/school

The purpose of this study was to examine Greek mainstream secondary school teachers’ perceptions of inclusive education and of having pupils with complex learning disabilities (cLD) in the classroom or school. Participants included 138 Greek mainstream secondary school teachers working in inclusive state schools in northern Greece. Findings indicated that 47.5% of the participants were against the inclusion of all pupils with special educational needs (SEN) in mainstream secondary schools. Three variables were found to be associated with teachers’ attitudes about the inclusion of pupils with cLD: age, years of teaching experience and SEN training. Overall, it is suggested that training, as well as perceived competence and sense of support, were important in influencing teachers’ attitudes about including pupils with cLD in mainstream classrooms. It is proposed that the recent implementation of inclusive education in Greece and the prevailing rudimentary conditions for its implementation might also have had an impact on teachers’ attitudes.

Establishing the foundations for an inclusive education system in Iraq: reflection on findings from a nationwide survey

This paper reports a national study on the prevalence of childhood disability designed to inform initiatives promoting improved school attendance by children with disabilities in Iraq. The study was commissioned by UNICEF, coordinated by the Council for Assisting Refugee Academics, and designed by academics in the UK in consultation with Iraqi academics and professionals. The mixed methods study included a major household survey, semi-structured interviews, and focus groups across four of Iraqs 18 governorates (Erbil, Baghdad, Najaf and Basra). An initial scoping study collected background data through interviews, site-visits and document analysis, establishing the context and informing the design of the main study. In this paper, we provide an overview of the educational context in Iraq, data on school attendance and disability among children aged 6–18 years, and the perspectives and vision for education in Iraq verbalised by key stakeholders. This research provides insights into current patterns of school attendance, and considers some of the implications for inclusive education in Iraq. We conclude by discussing the potential for implementation of Iraqi policy initiatives to impact on the rights of disabled people within education and wider social provision.

Environmental characteristics and prevalence of birth defects among children in post-war Iraq: implications for policies on rebuilding the Iraqi education system

This article explores the relationship between the prevalence of ‘birth defects’ and environmental characteristics, and considers implications for targeting resources to establish the educational inclusion of children affected. A household survey in four governorates across Iraq in 2010, conducted under the auspices of CARA, achieved interviews with 6032 households and collected data on more than 10,000 children and young people. Analyses suggested an association between reported presence of potential sources of contamination in local environments from human and domestic waste, and to some extent from naturally occurring contaminants and the detritus of warfare, with higher numbers of resident children having ‘birth defects’. Children living in Basra were found to be most significantly impacted. This finding adds to a growing literature on associations between potential sources of environmental contaminants and impact on the health of children living in affected localities.