Gisele Ragusa

How to train your DragonBot: Socially assistive robots for teaching children about nutrition through play

This paper describes an extended (6-session) interaction between an ethnically and geographically diverse group of 26 first-grade children and the DragonBot robot in the context of learning about healthy food choices. We find that children demonstrate a high level of enjoyment when interacting with the robot, and a statistically significant increase in engagement with the system over the duration of the interaction. We also find evidence of relationship-building between the child and robot, and encouraging trends towards child learning. These results are promising for the use of socially assistive robotic technologies for long-term one-on-one educational interventions for younger children.

Innovations in the Use of Interactive Technology to Support Weight Management

New and emerging mobile technologies are providing unprecedented possibilities for understanding and intervening on obesity-related behaviors in real time. However, the mobile health (mHealth) field has yet to catch up with the fast-paced development of technology. Current mHealth efforts in weight management still tend to focus mainly on short message systems (SMS) interventions, rather than taking advantage of real-time sensing to develop just-in-time adaptive interventions (JITAIs). This paper will give an overview of the current technology landscape for sensing and intervening on three behaviors that are central to weight management: diet, physical activity, and sleep. Then five studies that really dig into the possibilities that these new technologies afford will be showcased. We conclude with a discussion of hurdles that mHealth obesity research has yet to overcome and a future-facing discussion.

Teacher Beliefs About Reading Motivation and Their Enactment in Classrooms: The Development of a Survey Questionnaire

This study examined teachers’ beliefs about motivating students to read through the development of a new survey questionnaire. The current investigation reports on initial tests of the scales reliability and validity. The items for this measure were developed from an engagement perspective to reflect the motivational constructs represented in an established measure of student motivation for reading. Tests of internal consistency revealed that teachers’ beliefs about motivating students to read can be reliably measured. In addition, significant relationships were found between teachers’ beliefs about motivating their students to read and their teaching self-efficacy, providing initial evidence of the scales validity.

English Language Learners with Special Needs

This article discusses issues associated with placement and services for English language learners in special education systems and provides recommendations for improved assessment practices and service provisions. These issues represent a range of factors, including inappropriate assessment and psychometric issues, overrepresentation in special education programs, ambiguities in special education categorization, questionable pre-referral intervention practices, inadequate practitioner preparation related to language and cultural factors, and ineffective instructional practices both within and outside of the special education system. Possible solutions discussed include increased attention to culturally and linguistically appropriate approaches, response to intervention practices, and improved teacher qualifications and education.

Month-long, In-home Case Study of a Socially Assistive Robot for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Research in socially assistive robotics (SAR) has shown potential to supplement expensive and sometimes inaccessible therapy for children affected with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, due to practical constraints, most SAR research has been limited to short-term studies in controlled environments. In this report, we present a 30-day, in-home case study of a fully autonomous SAR intervention designed for children with ASD and discuss its insights into the value of personalized, long-term, and situated interaction.

Preliminary Validation of a Parent-Child Relational Framework for Teaching Developmental Assessment to Pediatric Residents

OBJECTIVE A parent-child relational framework was used as a method to train pediatric residents in basic knowledge and observation skills for the assessment of child development. Components of the training framework and its preliminary validation as an alternative to milestone-based approaches are described. METHODS Pediatric residents were trained during a 4-week clinical rotation to use a semistructured interview and observe parent-child behavior during health visits using clinical criteria for historical information and observed behavior that reflect developmental change in the parent-child relationship. Clinical impressions of concern versus no concern for developmental delay were derived from parent-child relational criteria and the physical examination. A chart review yielded 330 preterm infants evaluated using this methodology at 4 and 15 months corrected age who also had standardized developmental testing at 6 and 18 months corrected age. Sensitivities and specificities were computed to examine the validity of the clinical assessment compared with standardized testing. A subset of residents who completed 50 or more assessments during the rotation was timed at the end of 4 weeks. RESULTS Parent-child behavioral markers elicited from the history and/or observed during the health visit correlated highly with standardized developmental assessment. Sensitivities and specificities were 0.72/0.98 and 0.87/0.96 at 4 to 6 and 15 to 18 months, respectively. Residents completed their assessments <1 minute on average if they had completed at least 50 supervised assessments. CONCLUSIONS A parent-child relational framework is a potentially efficient and effective approach to training residents in the clinical knowledge and skills of child development assessment.