Esperanza Marchena

Longitudinal Study of Low and High Achievers in Early Mathematics

BACKGROUND Longitudinal studies allow us to identify, which specific maths skills are weak in young children, and whether there is a continuing weakness in these areas throughout their school years. AIMS This 2-year study investigated whether certain socio-demographic variables affect early mathematical competency in children aged 5-7 years. SAMPLE A randomly selected sample of 127 students (64 female; 63 male) participated. At the start of the study, the students were approximately 5 years old (M= 5.2; SD= 0.28; range = 4.5-5.8). METHOD The students were assessed using the Early Numeracy Test and then allocated to a high (n= 26), middle (n= 76), or low (n= 25) achievers group. The same children were assessed again with the Early Numeracy Test at 6 and 7 years old, respectively. Eight socio-demographic characteristics were also evaluated: family model, education of the parent(s), job of the parent(s), number of family members, birth order, number of computers at home, frequency of teacher visits, and hours watching television. RESULTS Early Numeracy Test scores were more consistent for the high-achievers group than for the low-achievers group. Approximately 5.5% of low achievers obtained low scores throughout the study. A link between specific socio-demographic characteristics and early achievement in mathematics was only found for number of computers at home. CONCLUSIONS The level of mathematical ability among students aged 5-7 years remains relatively stable regardless of the initial level of achievement. However, early screening for mathematics learning disabilities could be useful in helping low-achieving students overcome learning obstacles.

Improving attention behaviour in primary and secondary school children with a Computer Assisted Instruction procedure

Attention disorders are one of the major sources of poor school performance. This research project was designed to examine whether a Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI) approach would be successful in achieving higher rates of attention. In order to increase attention behaviour during school time, psychologically‐designed software was developed. The software, called “How to improve your mental skills,” consists of three games based on multimedia perception tasks. First, 155 elementary school children with an average age of 12.4 years, from Cadiz (Spain) School District, were evaluated with two attention tests, the Perception Differences Test (PDT), and the subtest Spatial of Primary Mental Aptitude (S‐PMA). Students were divided and balanced into one experimental and two control groups, according to their scores on the PDT. Then, 10 training sessions, of 25 minutes each, with the software “How to improve your mental skills”, were administered to the experimental group. Children from control group 1 played...

Acquisition of Basic Concepts by Children with Intellectual Disabilities Using a Computer-Assisted Learning Approach

Computer-assisted learning can be an efficient learning-teaching procedure. Although there is an extensive educational software tradition for this approach, few have better performance than standard drill-and-practice methods. In this work, the specific software “Lets Play With …” was designed to teach concepts of colours, shapes, and body position to children with intellectual disabilities. The software structure follows the Gagné instructional design and applied behaviour analysis. The program was carried out with 39 boys and 21 girls who were special education students in the Cadiz School District. Statistically significant differences were found between groups taught with and without the software.

Stimulus Control with Computer Assisted Learning

Computer Assisted Learning (CAL) has been shown to be an efficient learning-teaching procedure. Although there is an extensive educational software tradition using CAL approaches, few of them have demonstrated a better student performance than standard drill and practice methods. The purpose of this study was (a) to evaluate the effectiveness of the “Lets Play With...” software program, and (b) to evaluate the effectiveness of a prompt (i.e. a blinking object) used in the program. The educational software “Lets Play With...” was designed to teach basic concepts involving shapes and body positions to preschool students. The software structure follows a behavioral design and uses a stimulus control procedure. The study was carried out with 64 preschool students in the Cadiz (Spain) School District. Statistically significant differences were found between the experimental group and a control group.

Functional analysis of challenging behavior in people with severe intellectual disabilities.

Challenging behaviors exhibited by individuals with developmental disabilities often hinder the acquisition of academic, social, and life skills. Functional analysis has been useful for assessing challenging behavior in various settings. The purpose of this study was to implement an operant methodology for recognizing the functional properties of challenging behavior in people with intellectual disabilities. Four adults diagnosed with profound intellectual disability received assessment under several experimental conditions using a functional analysis methodology: social attention as positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement such as the termination of demands, positive tangible reinforcements, absence of social contingencies, and escape from noisy stimuli. Results showed that different types of reinforcement or avoiding contingencies affected the rate of aggression, self-injury, disruption, stereotypy, or socially offensive behaviors, and functional analysis may potentially be a viable alternative for identifying challenging behaviors.

The Psychology of Hatred

Hatred is a deep and emotional extreme dislike. The objects of such hatred can vary extensively. Hatred is often associated with disposition towards hostility against the objects of hatred. And can drive oneself to extreme behaviors such as violence, murder, and war. In childhood and adolescence the attitudes of intolerance - impregnated with hatred - are formed, and these are extremely difficult to eradicate later. This paper goes through psychological perspective of hate and the different roles of cognition in hatred and violence. Then the duplex theory of hatred is presented considering some approaches to the origin of violent behaviors. Taking into consideration that complex problems do not respond to simple solutions, a potential alternative based on family and school education plays a major role. Learning conflict resolution based on negotiation and compromise seems essential, in addition to adopting intellectually and morally combative atti- tudes against violence.

POSITIVE BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTION IN CHILDREN WHO WERE WARDS OF THE COURT ATTENDING A MAINSTREAM SCHOOL

This report looked at the effects of treatment using contingency contracts and token economy procedures in three children, two 14 yr. and one 8 yr., who were wards of the court and attending a mainstream school. Students presented problems of adaptation to school, such as making constant noises with the mouth, hands, or pencil on the desk; frequently emitted raucous cries in the classroom; destruction of school resource materials; verbal aggression to classmates and teachers; verbal rejection of all academic work, refusing to do it, making negative comments prior to starting any school activity, in addition to lack of motivation for undertaking school activities. A 4-mo. individual treatment using contingency contracts and token economy behavioral procedures was implemented, with several follow-up sessions. The results indicated an adaptation of behavior to the school environment, confirmed by teachers, significantly reducing the incidence of insults, the destruction of school materials, and indolence during class sessions. These students are at high risk for social exclusion. Interventions have potential social importance in possible prevention of adult criminality, increasing academic achievement, and decreasing social exclusion.