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One important factor that hampers children's learning of mathematics is math anxiety (MA). Still, the mechanisms by which MA affects performance remain debated. The current study investigated the relationship between MA, basic number processing abilities (i.e., cardinality and ordinality processing), and executive functions in school children enrolled in grades 4–7 (N = 127). Children were divided into a high math anxiety group (N = 29) and a low math anxiety group (N = 31) based on the lowest quartile and the highest quartile. Using a series of analyses of variances, we find that highly math-anxious students do not perform worse on cardinality processing tasks (i.e., digit comparison and non-symbolic number sense), but that they perform worse on numerical and non-numerical ordinality processing tasks. We demonstrate that children with high MA show poorer performance on a specific aspect of executive functions—shifting ability. Our models indicate that shifting ability is tied to performance on both the numerical and non-numerical ordinality processing tasks. A central factor seems to be the involvement of executive processes during ordinality judgements, and executive functions may constitute the driving force behind these delays in numerical competence in math-anxious children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Children's experience of disability-related stigmatization is a central social justice issue across cultures. Yet children's voices are rarely heard by policy makers, and available programs for children with disabilities typically lack input from children's own experiences. This paper presents a cross-cultural case study of how three children with disabilities in Japan and the U.S. responded to stigmatization from their "typically-developing" peers. We choose these cases for in-depth examination to contextualize and deepen our understanding of themes identified from our larger, ethnographic study. Similar to the participants in our larger study, these elementary school-aged children experienced disability-related stigmatization, including teasing and bullying. They actively responded to reduce their immediate exposure to stigmatization. Some of these responses, however, created additional challenges. For example, children's physical fighting in response to teasing resulted in punitive discipline in the U.S. Children's avoidance of peers undermined academic achievement and psychosocial development, especially in Japan where peer groups are central contexts for education. Furthermore, children's responses to stigmatization often concealed their peer struggles or were misunderstood by educators, which delayed their access to appropriate support. We discuss social work implications for child-centered programs of support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Learning in a virtual environment has been found to foster students' affective responses, indicating the importance of exploring the factors which affect students' learning when engaged in a virtual game. This study aimed to explore the relationships among students' epistemic curiosity, situational interest, and learning engagement in an exploratory 3D virtual game environment. A virtual game was designed for elementary school students to learn concepts of evaporation and condensation in real-life situations. Data were collected using questionnaires from a total of 121 sixth-grade elementary school students, and were analyzed using partial least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The reliability and validity of the instruments employed in this study were verified. The structural relationships showed that I-type epistemic curiosity showed a stronger influence on the design of the virtual game environment compared to D-type epistemic curiosity. Challenge was found to be negatively predicted by I-type epistemic curiosity, but positively predicted by D-type epistemic curiosity. Instant enjoyment was also found to play a significant mediating role between I-type epistemic curiosity and emotional engagement. It is suggested that future research should consider providing students with interesting contexts and challenging tasks as a critical approach to designing virtual game learning environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have long been associated with attention-deficit/hyperactive disorder (ADHD) diagnoses in children; but the data used is now over 6 years old (from 2017 to 2018). Understanding the current landscape of their prevalence and association is needed to capture evolving social, environmental, and economic conditions, and ensure interventions remain relevant to addressing current childhood trauma. Objective: This study provides an updated analysis of the association between ACEs and ADHD using post-acute-COVID-19 pandemic data. Participants and Setting: This cross-sectional study of 10,518 children aged 5 to 17 years old derived data from the 2021 to 2022 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). Methods: Differences in the prevalence of number (0, 1–3, or 4+) and type of ACEs by ADHD diagnosis were evaluated using Rao-Scott chi-square tests and multivariable logistic regression. All analyses incorporate complex survey weights. Results: In 2021 to 2022, 2,457 (23.3%) of children experienced ACEs and 1,115 (9.9%) had an ADHD diagnosis. Children with ADHD were more likely to experience every type of ACE and were more likely to have 1 to 3 or 4+ ACEs than children without ADHD. Children with 4+ ACEs had higher odds of having an ADHD diagnosis (aOR: 3.44, 95% CI [2.64, 4.49]) than children without ACEs. Male children, children with fair or poor health, and children living in rural counties were more likely to have an ADHD diagnosis, while children of color and uninsured children were less likely. We found the odds ratio of ADHD diagnosis for children with four or more ACEs, compared to those without ACEs, slightly lower than found in Brown et al., 2017's estimate of 3.97 (CI [3.29, 4.80]). These results suggest a consistent association between ACEs and ADHD when comparing pre-COVID data to our post-acute-COVID results. Conclusions: These findings highlight the need for clinicians to consider traumatic stress in ADHD screening. Policymakers and early childhood organizations should encourage early screening and intervention for ACEs to reduce the impacts of ADHD diagnoses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shared reading is a powerful literacy intervention for the development of early communication and literacy skills. For students with extensive support needs who are beginning communicators, shared reading has the potential to support the development of initiation and expressive symbolic communication skills. This descriptive, multicase, mixed methods study investigated changes in teacher shared reading practices and perspectives, as well as the communication skills of students with extensive support needs associated with completing professional development focused on a responsive and interactive approach to shared reading. The sample included four classroom teachers and 13 students with extensive support needs in one rural U.S. public elementary school. Teachers increased their use of targeted interactive shared reading practices from 50% to 90%. Students increased the number of expressive communication skills they exhibited (p =.031, r =.60), as well as the highest level of their symbolic communication (z = 2.16, p =.031, r =.60). Thematic analysis of teacher interviews identified shifts in their perceptions of their role, expectations, and ability to support student communication development during shared reading, which converged with the changes noted from fall to spring during observations of teacher practice and students' communication skills during shared reading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study analyses teachers' knowledge about child maltreatment in the family and explores their professional background in dealing with this problem. 227 pre-school and primary teachers from Andalusia (Spain) participated in the study. The majority of the teachers had never reported a case of child maltreatment during their professional background. These situations were experienced by the teachers with high levels of emotional impact, and both they and their schools showed high levels of involvement in cases identified. Three teacher profiles were identified, the group of trained teachers being the most capable of identifying more complex signs of child maltreatment, followed by those with more years of seniority. The process of detection and reporting of child maltreatment in the school setting is complex, and a wide range of elements need to be analysed conjointly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High competence in fundamental motor skills (FMS) and adequate physical fitness (PF) levels are a solid foundation for acquiring an active and healthy lifestyle during childhood and adolescence. In this cross-sectional study, we aimed to compare gender and age groups and identify correlations between FMS and PF in young elementary school students. We used a structured questionnaire to gather sociodemographic information from parents, and we characterized the children's economic profile with the Brazil Social Economic Status Criterion. We collected FMS data using the Furtado-Gallagher Children Observational Movement Pattern Assessment System (FG-COMPASS), and we used the Brazil Sports Project Battery Test to measure PF levels. Statistical analyses involved descriptive data and inferential tests to determine group differences in FMS and PF levels. Hierarchical regression helped identify the associations between FMS and PF, as controlled by sociodemographic factors. Participants were 720 students (and parents) of both genders (383 girls, 337 boys; M age = 8.8, SD = 1.52 years) from grades 1 to 5 in an elementary school in a municipality in the western region of the Paraná state in Brazil. The results showed significant differences in children's motor skills and PF based on gender and age. The hierarchical regression model showed different combinations of flexibility, abdominal resistance, upper limb strength, agility, speed, and lower limb strength, which explained 33.7% of the variability in the global FMS index, 41% of the variability in manipulative skills, and 12.7% of the variability in locomotor skills. In addition, there was a positive association between FMS and PF related to neuromuscular development for both sexes, regardless of age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a need to better understand the agentic choices that students make to communicate meaning through their multimodal compositions. Utilizing a case study approach, this article examines the composing of two first-grade students and discusses how these students utilized multimodal composing techniques from structured writing units during an "open unit" where students were given wider parameters for making intentional decisions with their compositions. Analysis of students' compositions revealed that students chose to use and design composing techniques from the previous focal units in their compositions. Findings suggest that focal writing units, followed by open composing, allows students to have more agency as writers to make creative intertextual connections as they design techniques from available designs they've learned in order to serve their own compositional needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article utilizes Black girlhood as a framework in a critical multimodal qualitative inquiry to explore the complexities of representations of Black girls' hair, in picturebooks. Using a data corpus of 55 picturebooks published between 2010–2020, the authors analyzed the multimodal messages embedded in the initial introductions of Black girl protagonists. The findings suggest that contemporary children's literature represents a broad array of Black girls' hair, even when the central message is not about hair, denoting the importance of this cultural representation in assertions of identity. Findings suggest that the theme of elevation was demonstrated across the corpus, and was further expressed in the subthemes of; (1) salience of hair, (2) physical elevation of hair, and (3) importance of hair. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the vital roles of matter in the emerging sexual cultures of elementary school children. Based on a case study of a seven-year-old girl, it draws from ethnographic research on the gendered and sexual power relations of students in Northern Finland. Inspired by feminist, new materialist theories, the analysis indicates how everyday objects may be seen as co-constituting heterosexual femininity by attaching even young girls to teenage cultures and emphasizing femininity and distancing them from childhood and masculinity. This article shows, furthermore, how materiality acts in generating "cross-pulls" that may evoke popularity and admiration, but also cause restrictions to the agency of girls in the ambiguous entanglements of child sexual cultures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teachers of students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) often struggle with simultaneously meeting students' writing and behavioral needs. Building on existing Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) literature, this study investigated the collateral effects of SRSD with social skills prompts on the writing outcomes and problem behavior of students with EBD. In a multiple probe across participants design study, we taught three upper elementary students with EBD opinion writing using the SRSD instructional framework. Outcome measures included the number of genre elements in participants' written products, the length (i.e., total words written) and quality of written products, and the level of problem behaviors during 20-min observational sessions. Generalization measure involved the use of video prompts to determine the effects of SRSD on students' overall writing outcomes. Post-SRSD data showed clear increases in the number of genre elements and length of written products for all participants. Additional holistic scoring revealed moderate improvements in the overall quality of written products across participants. Results on students' problem behavior reduction were inconclusive. Implications for practice and suggestions for future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reading disorders, including reading comprehension disorders, are among the most common referrals for evaluation in schools. If that evaluation involves individually administered tests of reading, the examiner is faced with selecting at least one reading comprehension subtest that is inherently associated with specific task demands, such as a cloze procedure or a story retell procedure. This study explored the correlates of performance of these two types of reading comprehension measures in lower grades (i.e., grades 1–5) and upper grades (i.e., grades 6–12). Results revealed a moderate correlation between these two tasks and evidence that students with reading disorders may perform poorer on cloze reading comprehension measures than story retell measures in both grade groupings. Regression analyses revealed that variance in each reading comprehension task is associated with a unique grouping of predictor variables that are associated with the Big Five of Reading and short-term/working memory. Discussion focuses on the implications of these findings for the evaluation of students with suspected disabilities and research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Witchcraft has been described as knowledge that resists knowledge. Drawing on our field research on witchcraft, alienation, and violence in Mali and southern Cameroon as well as with migrants coming from sub-Saharan Africa, we consider two main issues. The first concerns the epistemic challenge of 'witchcraft' and its satellite notions (mystical weapons, animal metamorphosis, fetish and so forth). We analyse this 'challenge' beyond the problems of translation, both as a particular expression of African perspectivism and an unending struggle concerning epistemic sovereignty. The second issue directly originates from our field research. Prudently, we will try to give a new lease of life to an ethnographic material, studied 20 years ago. We would turn back to some drawings made by students at the primary school of Mbom (Sangmelina, southern Cameroon), and explore the power of what we provisionally define as 'visual utterances'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The circumstances and nature of concussions among youth who play tackle, flag, or touch football are not well understood. This study used data from Utah's Student Injury Reporting System (SIRS) to explore suspected concussions among K-12 students sustained during participation in football-related activities (tackle, flag, or touch football). Descriptive statistics and chi-square analyses showed that 54.7% of suspected concussions due to football-related activity were among elementary and middle school and 41.3% were among high school students. Most suspected concussions resulted from being struck by or against something (81.9%) and occurred during school-sanctioned games and practices (37.9%), lunch, lunch recess, and recess (34.8%), or physical education class (22.7%). The type of school activity and context for suspected concussions varied by school level. School nurses and others in Utah may use study findings to customize concussion prevention efforts by school level and activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study analyses the dynamics of the construction of agency and identity in one boy and one girl during the transitional period between primary and secondary school and the time when they embark on adolescence in a school in Colombia. Drawing from the principles of Grounded Theory, interviews and observations were conducted. The analysis applied a thematic and microgenetic analysis to identify issues in tension, functions, directions of change and dynamics of reflexivity and agency. The results showed a transformation of meanings and positionings in reflexivity on belonging to or being part of a social group at school, which mobilized the development of agency for both identifying and differentiating oneself. The agency<>reflexivity dynamics were articulated in identity construction processes in the midst of the challenges of school transitions and development. We discuss the findings and their implications in terms of changes and transformations to construct maps of agency development, as well as the possible discussions around the traditional Kantian educational models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the heterogeneous nature of teachers' perceptions of distinct leadership practices and explored the predictors of teacher- and school-level leadership typologies on teacher self-efficacy and commitment by using a multilevel latent profile mediation analysis of a dataset of 890 teachers from K-12 schools in Turkey. The results revealed three distinct leadership profiles (limiting, transitioning, and integrating) at the teacher level and two profiles (transitioned and integrated) at the school level, providing evidence that integrating teachers and integrated school profiles were associated with greater teacher self-efficacy and commitment. Additionally, both levels of integrated leadership profiles were indirectly related to teacher commitment through teacher self-efficacy vis-a-vis other profile groups. The study concluded that different leadership styles are related and that the impact of leadership on teachers is maximized when multiple leadership types are integrated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Utilizing the post-migration ecological lens and the synthesized model of culturally relevant leadership formed by the authors, we aim to compare and analyze the policy outlines and school leadership responses to refugee education in Turkey and Germany; as the two main hosts of the largest number of refugees. Through comparative phenomenology, we draw on the semi-structured interviews, observations, and document analysis of policy papers in each context. Although both states employ an open-door policy, their educational policies show stark contrasts. The German schools benefit from the systematic guidance whilst in Turkey they find their ways through rule of thumb with colleagual collaboration within and across schools. We reckon this study would provide a space for collaboration and benchmarking between different contexts as well as illuminate on the policy-making processes, school-level practices, and research in this area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2003, the 'education reform for knowledge economy' policy introduced the notion of distributed leadership into Jordanian public schools. Policy development, delivery and professional learning were funded and undertaken with assistance from international partners alongside the Jordanian Ministry of Education. The policy is now substantive. Distributed leadership's implicit western values of greater democracy, trust, empowerment and shared leadership responsibilities were delivered into a schooling system where traditional leadership roles and expectations derived from sheikhocratic customs are the norms. This article interrogates the paradox of distributed leadership in the context of time-honoured sheikhocratic practices from the perceptions and experiences of public school principals. Since perceptions about policy and implicit policy values are culturally mediated, it examines how the principles underpinning distributed leadership are interpreted through the lens of the Jordanian local culture as it is experienced in schools. The findings of this grounded theory study highlight incompatibilities between principals' understandings of distributed leadership and those implicit in western cultures. This imported policy reform program filtered through host culture judgments produced different policy outcomes than those anticipated by policymakers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the increasing number of studies on educational leadership during COVID-19, little attention has been paid to the intersections of different educational experiences and perspectives of school leaders, students, and their families that occur both inside and outside of schools. Drawing on eight case studies of public primary schools in Hong Kong, this article explores the challenges and strategies of online learning with a focus on effective leadership practices for supporting economically disadvantaged students during COVID-19. To incorporate the perspectives of multiple stakeholders, a series of questionnaires were distributed to principals (n = 8), teachers (n = 150), parents (n = 775), lower primary students (n = 855), and upper primary students (n = 850) and interviews were conducted with principals (n = 8), teachers (n = 37), parents (n = 32), and students (n = 62). Findings indicated that school leaders and teacher teams demonstrated strategic leadership practices prioritising and responding to the needs and constraints of economically disadvantaged students and their families. The present study draws attention to leadership encouraging collaboration among schools, families, and the wider community, which has become necessary during the shift to online learning during COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital technology creates new opportunities to design multisensory learning experiences. Evidence suggests that digital innovation can greatly benefit health education, including nutrition programs. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the education sector, forcing schools to modify standard practices from exclusively in-person delivery to online or blended learning. Digitalized curriculums became particularly useful as an Emergency Remote Teaching tool. This article focuses on developing and implementing a multimedia, multisensory, and scalable Hip-Hop Healthy Eating and Living in Schools (H.E.A.L.S.) Nutrition–Math Curriculum (NMC). NMC comprises 20 lessons—music-based multimedia resources used in the classroom or at home. Fourteen lessons represent self-directed online modules (asynchronous learning) hosted on a Learning Management System (LMS) called "Gooru." The remaining six lessons are teacher-facilitated (in person or using Zoom) review sessions (synchronous learning). The article discusses (1) the development of NMC through the lens of the Multisensory Multilevel Health Education Model (MMHEM), (2) the high acceptability of NMC evaluated using a mixed-methods design among minoritized fifth-grade students attending an after-school program, and (3) the students' completion and mastery rates of the NMC modules based on LMS data. Multimedia nutrition education programs integrated with common core curriculum content, such as NMC, may be a promising avenue for disseminating health education to minoritized children living in New York City and similar high fast-food density cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two hundred ninety-eight primary teachers (88% female) from across all Australian states and territories reported on the frequency with which they implemented instructional adaptations for struggling writers in their classrooms. They also rated their preparation and self-efficacy for teaching writing. The majority of participating teachers indicated they provided additional instruction on spelling, capitalization and punctuation, and sentence construction at least once a week or more often. Teachers further reported implementing additional minilessons and reteaching strategies and skills, as well as extra instruction on grammar, handwriting, text structure, revising, and planning on a monthly basis or more often. The majority of teachers reported never or only once a year using adaptations to support digital writing. The frequency with which teachers provided extra instruction on spelling, handwriting, text structure, revising, and computer use differed by grade. Only teachers' perceived efficacy to teach writing made a unique and statistically significant contribution to predicting the use of instructional adaptations for writing and adaptations to support digital writing after controlling for teacher and classroom variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated relationships among home reading practices, shared book reading (SBR) behaviors, and child literacy outcomes in young children with cochlear implants in Baltimore, Maryland. Parents (N =18) completed a home reading questionnaire and recorded themselves reading books with their children at home. Shared book reading sessions were coded for interactive reading behaviors. Children's early language skills and literacy skills were also assessed. We explored variability in these behaviors with regard to demographic characteristics and type of book; these exploratory analyses revealed that parents used more literacy teaching techniques when reading the wordless picture book and that parent interaction and engagement and literacy teaching techniques were more frequent with younger children than with older children. While many families frequently used interactive reading behaviors, our analysis did not find significant relationships between the parent behaviors and children's literacy scores. However, there was an interaction between the amount of reading and cochlear implant experience such that more cochlear implant experience was associated with better reading outcomes only for the group of children who received more reading time. In a sample of young children with cochlear implants, reading time, cochlear implant experience, and child language skills were better predictors of reading outcomes than parents' frequency of SBR behaviors alone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Generally, most children became vulnerable to potential learning loss during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, empirical evidence on households as vulnerability factor to children's potential learning loss in Ghana does not exist to guide policy decisions and scholarly discourse. Through a national household survey underpinned by a disaster risk reduction framework, this paper examines the vulnerability of Ghanaian school children to perceived learning loss during the COVID-9 pandemic school closures. The findings of this study indicate that household efforts to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on the risk of potential learning loss among school children varied disproportionately across wealth quintiles and geographic locations. It is, however, revealing that about 29% of households in the richest wealth quintiles did not take deliberate actions to mitigate the risk of potential learning loss among their children. Against these revealing findings, we conclude that households' decisions to support their children's learning during the pandemic-induced school closures may not be based on economic reasons alone. Consistent with this finding, we recommend the exploration of additional factors and dynamics of understanding potential and perceived learning outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Children with ADHD often experience functional impairments across various aspects of daily life. This study addresses the dearth of longitudinal research on functional impairment trajectories from preschool to school age in children with symptoms of ADHD and comorbid disorders. Methods: We investigated the extent to which functional impairments were associated with ADHD symptoms, along with behavioral and anxiety symptoms, from age 3.5 to 8 years. Utilizing parent- and teacher-reported data, we analyzed associations between global impairment, and dimension scores (e.g., family; child quality of life (QoL); learning; play/leisure activities; and friends) and symptoms at ages 3.5 and 8 years (n = 783). Results: The mean parent global impairment score increased from 0.31 (standard deviation (SD) = 0.40) to 0.83 (SD = 0.63) from 3.5 to 8 years, while the teacher impairment scores slightly decreased. Specific parent impairment dimension scores, particularly QoL, learning, and friends, significantly increased. Preschool ADHD and comorbid behavioral symptoms reported by parents weakly predicted impairment at 8 years. By age 8 years, impairment and symptoms exhibited moderate to strong correlations for all impairment dimensions. Parents reported greater child impairment during school age across settings compared to preschool, while teachers' impairment profiles remained consistent across ages. Conclusions: These findings suggest that parents perceive impairment as more pronounced at age 8 years and more strongly associated with symptoms of both ADHD and comorbid disorders than at age 3.5 years. Notably, for teachers, a robust correlation between inattention symptoms and learning impairment was observed, with substantially higher impairment scores reported for boys compared to girls. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mathematics is crucial in science, technology, and engineering career paths for all individuals, including Students with Visual Impairments. This study examined teachers' perceptions of experiences and challenges that primary and secondary school Students with Visual Impairments faced concerning the learning of mathematics in Botswana. A descriptive survey research design was used in this study and data was collected from 84 participants. Mann Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used to determine differences in teachers' perceptions by position and school type respectively. Moreover, content analysis was used to summarize responses to open-ended questions. Teachers perceived that Students with Visual Impairments experienced barriers in key areas such as concept development and problem-solving, braille literacy, resources and support, instructions and modifications, and attitudes and the learning environment. Significant differences were noted among teachers' perceptions based on whether they taught at a primary or secondary school. It is recommended that mathematics interventions for SWVIs should include creating a supportive learning environment, as well as collaboration within schools, between schools, and with external entities. Plain Language Summary: Teachers' views of challenges linked to mathematics that students with visual problems face in schools Mathematics is an important subject that helps individuals to successfully undertake careers in science, technology, and engineering. This subject is equally important for individuals who are unable to see well despite the use of eyeglasses. The reason for carrying out this investigation was to learn about teachers' experiences in schools including challenges that students with visual problems encountered in primary and secondary schools in Botswana concerning the learning of mathematics. This investigation further established if the views of primary teachers and secondary teachers and those of special education teachers and other teachers differed concerning challenges of students in mathematics. A questionnaire with closed and open-ended questions was used to gather information from teachers. A total of 84 teachers shared their views. Teachers indicated that students with visual problems struggled with learning and understanding concepts, failed to solve mathematics questions, and had difficulty reading and writing braille. Teachers further noted that there was a shortage of resources in schools and lack of support, proper teaching methods, negative attitudes toward mathematics, and learning environments that are not conducive. It was also noted that the views of primary teachers and secondary teachers differed. However, it is worth noting that only teachers shared their views in this investigation and no student did so. Given the results of the investigation, strategies in mathematics regarding students with visual problems should include creating a supportive learning environment, as well as working together of all school staff and other stakeholders for the benefit of students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The present study aimed to investigate the prevalence and impact of primary headache among students aged 8–12 years in the city of Douala (Cameroon). Methods: From January to May 2022, a cross-sectional study was conducted in 52 primary schools randomly selected from five districts in the city of Douala. The study population consisted of primary school students in level III classes. The diagnosis of primary headache was made according to the International Classification of Headache Disorders, 3rd ed (ICHD-3) criteria and the paediatric version of the HARDSHIP questionnaire was used for recruitment. Results: In total, 2056 students participated of whom 55.9% (n = 1149) were female, with a median age of 11 years. The prevalence of headache in the last 12 months was 85.7% (n = 1762), that of migraine was 26.1% (n = 536) and that of tension-type headache (TTH) was 15.1% (n = 311). Regarding the impact of primary headaches, 176 (32.8%) migraineurs reported absenteeism from school compared to 70 (22.5%) students with TTH (p = 0.03) and 309 (57.6%) migraineurs had a break in their activities compared to 147 (47.3%) students with TTH (p < 0.01). Conclusions: Primary headaches are common among students aged 8–12 years in the city of Douala. They are responsible for a considerable impact on children and their family, particularly for migraineurs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study examined whether the extent to which students perceived their teachers provided positive support influenced associations between teachers' emotional intelligence and social emotional learning (SEL) beliefs and multiple dimensions of students' other-oriented cognitions (i.e., perspective taking empathetic concern, and prosocial motivations and goals). Forty-three fifth-grade and sixth-grade teachers from 12 Greek elementary schools and 353 students (192 boys) were participants. The majority of students were White and of Greek nationality. Teachers' emotional intelligence was associated positively with students' empathic concern and prosocial goals. However, the association between teachers' emotional intelligence was related negatively to students' perspective taking skills, but only when students reported receiving less positive support from their teachers. Conversely, when students reported high levels of positive teacher support, teachers' comfort with SEL teaching practices was related positively to students' prosocial goals. Findings also highlighted differences in Greek teachers' emotional intelligence and comfort with and commitment to SEL teaching practices as compared to those reported in other countries. Additionally, girls rated themselves as higher in empathetic concern than did boys. Implications for teacher training and professional development that support teachers and students' SEL are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anxiety and depression are among the most common mental health concerns in youth, with rates of these internalizing problems continuing to rise. Universal school-based interventions have shown promising results in improving poor mental health outcomes; however, more research is needed across different cultural contexts. This study is part of an ongoing evaluation of A Lust for Life Schools Programme, a universal process-based cognitive behavioral therapy intervention for Irish primary school children. This study investigated the efficacy of the program through a cluster randomized controlled trial. Nine schools were randomly allocated to the intervention or control groups. Four hundred and seventy participants completed measures at three timepoints (baseline, post-intervention, and 6-week follow-up) assessing internalizing problems, anxiety, and depressive symptoms (primary outcomes) and avoidance, problem-solving, seeking social support, academic self-efficacy, social self-efficacy, and emotional self-efficacy (secondary outcomes). Although participants reported that they were mostly satisfied with the intervention, results revealed that the intervention did not have a significant effect on the outcome variables compared to the control group. Implications of the findings and recommendations for future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study's purpose was to examine the effects of the concrete-representational-abstract integrated (CRA-I) sequence on the performance of students who struggled with rational number concepts. Three students in southeastern U.S. fifth grade class participated in the study. The CRA-I intervention was grounded in the principles of explicit instruction and showed rational number concepts related to fractions and decimals using fraction blocks, number lines, base 10 blocks, and coins. Students learned about unit fractions, fraction magnitude, fraction equivalence, addition of fractions with unlike denominators, equivalent decimals, and notation of fractions as decimals. The researchers used a multiple probe across behaviors design and demonstrated a functional relation between CRA-I and three behaviors: decreased fraction estimation error, accuracy in adding fractions with unlike denominators, and accuracy writing fractions as decimals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We used triannual reading curriculum-based measurement of oral reading fluency data from 11,834 U.S. students in Grades 2 and 3 enrolled in an evidence-based Tier 2 reading intervention program (Reading Corps) to investigate the extent to which family involvement in the intervention might buffer against a negative effect of lower intervention dosage. The relation between family involvement in Reading Corps and growth in oral reading fluency was stronger when students spent fewer hours in tutoring, suggesting that family involvement in tiered reading intervention can compensate for receiving less intervention dosage. There was noticeable variation in this effect across tutors, suggestive of tutor-level heterogeneity of this relation. The relation between sending family engagement materials to families and the materials that are returned to tutors also substantially varied across tutors. We discuss findings in terms practical significance for school-based academic intervention systems. We highlight limitations and opportunities for future directions as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acadience Reading Diagnostic: Comprehension, Fluency, and Oral Language Assessment (CFOL) is an individually administered diagnostic assessment published by Acadience Learning for students in kindergarten through sixth grades. The measure purportedly provides diagnostic information in story coherence/text structure, listening and reading comprehension, vocabulary and oral language, and fluency with expository and narrative texts. The skills assessed with the CFOL are designed to provide information about skills related to students' comprehension difficulties so educators can better target comprehension interventions to support students' specific learning needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Child and family routines were significantly disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic stay-at-home orders, leaving individuals isolated from school, work, and peer networks. This work examines how social support from family/friends and systems was connected to associations between parental stress and child behavior problems. Data was collected between January and March of 2021 from 195 parents of children in elementary school who were primarily in remote learning due to the pandemic. Hierarchical linear regression models indicated that younger child age and child gender were associated with parental stress in step 1; only child age remained significant when child behavior problems were added. Support from family, but not external systems, attenuated associations between child characteristics and behavior on parental stress, though child behavior problems remained consistent with parental stress even when support was present. Exploring parental stressors and investing in support networks may protect children and families from immediate and ongoing challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Professional development can assist individuals in learning a variety of new skills and refining their teaching practice. The purpose of this study was to explore the effectiveness of asynchronous online courses designed to assist individuals in building their Nemeth Code within Unified English Braille (UEB) Contexts skills and strategies for teaching the code to prekindergarten through eighth-grade students. Methods: Four teachers of students with visual impairments designed five asynchronous online courses. The courses provided multiple opportunities for participants to actively complete course content as well as learn about strategies and resources for teaching the Nemeth Code within UEB Contexts to children and youths. Each course included an initial survey, pretest, seven self-paced lessons, and posttest. Participants were also invited to complete a follow-up survey. Results: Between spring 2020 and spring 2023, 452 participants completed between 1 and 5 of the courses for a total of 620 courses completed. Almost all completers (n = 598) scored higher on the posttest. Of the 227 individuals who completed the follow-up survey, 223 reported that what they learned in the course had positively impacted how they support or will support students who read braille in their math classes. Discussion: Effective professional development goes beyond learning. When individuals actively consume content and reflect upon their learning, their professional practice is transformed. Implications for Practitioners: Well-designed asynchronous instructional modules allow professionals to increase their knowledge and skills. Opportunities to practice skills and check one's work, access to instructional videos, and the availability of downloadable slides and resources are helpful to professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although existing research describes how teacher candidates (TCs) have incorporated translanguaging pedagogies through practice-based assignments, little research closely examines how TCs engage in discursive shifts, or moment-to-moment linguistic decisions, in translanguaging pedagogies during literacy instruction in their field placement internships. Drawing on a larger study that utilized practitioner inquiry with an ethnographic approach, we analyzed TCs' literacy instruction for their discursive shifts in which TCs and elementary students 1) engaged in translanguaging 2) spoke about named languages 3) attempted to draw upon multilingual students' cultural and linguistic knowledges. Our analyses of TCs' discursive shifts during translanguaging read-alouds showed that TCs employed more or less effective and affirming discursive shifts to position multilingual students as linguistic experts. TCs also employed certain discursive shifts that gave multilingual students more opportunities to share cultural and linguistic knowledge unknown to the TCs and peers than others. Lastly, TCs engaged in discursive shifts that provided multilingual students space to advocate for their linguistic, cultural and textual rights. We conclude by discussing the findings and sharing implications on developing effective and affirming uses of translanguaging pedagogies in literacy instruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Opportunities for professional development (PD) are the key for teachers to improve their skills in a variety of areas and situations, including, but not limited to, technology in the classroom, positive behavior management strategies, effective collaboration, and making instructional accommodations for students with disabilities. These areas of PD are especially important for special education teachers. However, opportunities to access PD may vary greatly, especially for special educators who work in rural locations. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to survey special education teachers serving rural or non-rural (i.e., suburban or urban) communities in the U.S. state of Nebraska about their unique PD experiences. Results indicated that special educators in rural areas often use their regional service agency to access PD opportunities and perceive those experiences positively. Suggestions for improving PD include providing relevant content during training and allocating resources to increase PD attendance. Recommendations for improvements are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Informed by the social ecological model, which asserts that health behaviors and beliefs are the result of multiple levels of influence, we examined factors related to parents' support for in-school COVID-19 mitigation strategies. Using data from a survey of 567 parents/caregivers of public elementary and middle school students in eight Maryland counties, we employed regression models to examine relationships between parent-, child-, family-, school-, and community-level factors and acceptability of mitigation strategies. Acceptance of COVID-19 mitigation strategies was positively correlated with child- and family-level factors, including child racial identity (parents of Black children were more accepting than those of White children, odds ratio [ OR ]: 2.5, 95% confidence interval [CI] = [1.5, 4.1]), parent receipt of the COVID-19 vaccine (OR : 2.4, 95% CI = [1.5, 3.7]), and parent Democrat or Independent political affiliation (compared with Republican affiliation, OR : 4.2, 95% CI = [2.6, 6.7]; OR : 2.2, 95%CI = [1.3, 3.8], respectively). Acceptance was also positively associated with parents' perceptions of their school's mitigation approach, including higher school mitigation score, indicating more intensive mitigation policies (OR : 1.1, 95% CI = [1.0, 1.1]), better school communication about COVID-19 (OR : 1.7, 95% CI = [1.4, 1.9]) and better school capacity to address COVID-19 (OR : 1.9, 95% CI = [1.5, 2.4]). Community-level factors were not associated with acceptance. Child- and parent-level factors identified suggest potential groups for messaging regarding mitigation strategies. School-level factors may play an important role in parents' acceptance of in-school mitigation strategies. Schools' capacity to address public health threats may offer an underappreciated and modifiable setting for disseminating and reinforcing public health guidance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the current study, investigators examined the effects of an instructional reading package consisting of shared reading and systematic instruction (e.g., task analysis, system of least prompts, visual supports, and native language support) in a small group setting on percentage of correct consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) words for three elementary participants with extensive support needs who also were multilingual learners. A multiple probe design across word sets with replication across participants resulted in a functional relation between the percentage of correct CVC words acquired and the instructional package. In addition, there were positive changes in exploratory (secondary) dependent variables that included components of reading (i.e., phonemic awareness, fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and generalization) as demonstrated through pre-posttest assessments. Social validity measures for parents, students, and paraprofessionals also revealed positive pre-post changes. Limitations and future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Functional communication training (FCT) provides an efficient means for reducing a variety of challenging behaviors while increasing social communication. After establishing a functional communication response (FCR), interventionists may need to design a program to thin the schedule of reinforcement to provide more durable effects and maintenance in the natural environment. Hanley et al. provided one means for thinning schedules that involved the systematic introduction of extinction (or denial trials) following a process of delaying reinforcement. This study evaluates a southeastern U.S. classroom application of this thinning process with three elementary age students who engaged in a variety of aggression, self-injury, disruption, and crying. The results indicate positive effects of the FCT program with systematic introduction of denial trials once the participants demonstrated proficiency with the FCR. In addition, data for two participants show prolonged effects post-intervention. Results are discussed in terms of extending Hanley et al. and how these procedures can be used within typical school-based settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the prevalence of, and relationship between, bullying and malocclusion in schoolchildren aged 10–14 years in the South East of the UK. Design: Cross-sectional cohort study. Setting: Sixteen primary and secondary schools in South East of the UK. Participants: Schoolchildren aged 10–14 years who were consented to participate. Methods: The prevalence and nature of bullying were measured using a questionnaire. Traits of malocclusion and the need for orthodontic treatment were assessed by clinical examination and determined by the Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN) Dental Health (DHC) and Aesthetic components (AC). Results: Complete data were collected for 698 participants. The number defined as being bullied was 68 (9.7%). There was no difference in the prevalence of bullying between gender, ethnicity or age. Higher rates of bullying were reported in mixed sex schools (P = 0.03). Participants with an increased overjet (P = 0.02) and/or a greater need for treatment, as measured by IOTN DHC (P = 0.01) and AC (P = 0.01), reported higher rates of bullying. While there was no difference in the overall prevalence of bullying between genders, boys were more likely than girls to experience physical bullying (P <0.001) and being called names (P = 0.03) Conclusion: A significant relationship was evident between being bullied and certain traits of malocclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To evaluate the prevalence of bullying among schoolchildren and to study the correlation between bullying and a specific type of malocclusion, self-esteem, oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL), the need for orthodontic treatment and socioeconomic status. Design: A cross-sectional study. Setting: Low, middle and high socioeconomic group schools in the same educational district in Cairo, Egypt. Participants: A total of 324 Egyptian schoolchildren aged 11–14 years. Methods: Validated questionnaires were used to assess self-reported bullying frequency and intensity, self-esteem and OHRQoL. The Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN) was used to assess the orthodontic treatment need and the participants' occlusion was classified according to the British Standard Incisors (BSI) classification. Results: Bullying was found to be prevalent in 61.7% of the sample. Regression analysis revealed that participants with a Class II division 1 incisor relationship had the highest odds ratio (OR) for predicting bullying (OR = 1.86, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.38–2.15). Being bullied was significantly associated with lower self-esteem (OR = 0.47, 95% CI = 0.13–0.78), worse OHRQoL (OR = 2.73, 95% CI = 1.95–3.15) and a high need for orthodontic treatment, as determined by the IOTN Dental Health Component score (OR = 1.33, 95% CI = 1.05–1.95) and IOTN Aesthetic Component score (OR = 1.52, 95% CI = 1.12–1.88). Moreover, participants in high and middle socioeconomic groups had a lower OR for predicting bullying than those in the low socioeconomic group (OR = 0.27, 95% CI = 0.13–0.54). Conclusion: The bullying prevalence among Egyptian schoolchildren aged 11–14 years was very high. The prevalence of bullying was higher in schoolchildren with higher orthodontic treatment need and Class II division 1 incisor relationship. Bullying was correlated to poor self-esteem as well as poor OHRQoL. In addition, low socioeconomic status was found to be a potential predictor for bullying. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This integrative literature review examined how assistive technology (AT) can help students with visual impairment (VI) in middle primary and secondary schools (aged 11–18 years) engage in learning Mathematics. To collate the relevant findings across studies, an integrative literature review approach was employed and supported by an evidence-based synthesis method. Automatic search phrases were used to find research articles related to the topic in the Google Scholar, Web of Science, Scopus, and Springer Link databases. A total of 628 articles were identified during the initial search of which only 11 were included after putting them under rigorous selection criteria. In addition, a mixed-method appraisal technique (MMAT) was used to examine the methodological quality of the papers that were included. The synthesis result came up with three overarching themes: the availability of AT to support learning mathematics, the usability of AT in mathematics classes, and the role of AT in the inclusion of visually impaired students. The findings based on the results of the 11 academic articles published from 2007 to 2021 revealed that effective engagement of students with VIs in Mathematics instruction is achieved by providing students with VI equitable access to the swiftly evolving AT, addressing issues related to affordability, testing the usability and appropriateness of existing AT and enhancing accessibility of AT for all by breaking the social stigma against students with VI in using AT. It is concluded that easily affordable and accessible assistive technologies with multiple non-visual display formats that enable students with VI to access mathematical symbols, notations, expressions, and tactual contents should be in place to actively engage students with VI in learning mathematics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A simple parent request unveiled a startling revelation: The principal of Bridgforth Elementary School segregated students by race. Her attempt to establish a culturally responsive framework was met with an Office of Civil Rights (OCR) complaint of racial discrimination. This case will examine the principal's rationale for creating the framework, the parental complaint, the school community response, and two evidence-based options for increasing student outcomes for African American students and other ethnic minorities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, Generalized Additive Models (GAMs) have been successfully employed on numerous occasions to obtain vital data-driven insights. In this article we further substantiate the success story of GAMs, demonstrating their flexibility by focusing on three relevant pandemic-related issues. First, we examine the interdepency among infections in different age groups, concentrating on school children. In this context, we derive the setting under which parameter estimates are independent of the (unknown) case-detection ratio, which plays an important role in COVID-19 surveillance data. Second, we model the incidence of hospitalizations, for which data is only available with a temporal delay. We illustrate how correcting for this reporting delay through a nowcasting procedure can be naturally incorporated into the GAM framework as an offset term. Third, we propose a multinomial model for the weekly occupancy of intensive care units (ICU), where we distinguish between the number of COVID-19 patients, other patients and vacant beds. With these three examples, we aim to showcase the practical and 'off-the-shelf' applicability of GAMs to gain new insights from real-world data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whole number computations are a critical skill that serves as a foundation upon which higher-order concepts in mathematics are taught to children. To facilitate their instruction, educators often use multiple representations to support a child's cognition. Representations with physical manipulatives are widely studied through a graduated instructional sequence featuring concrete, representational, and abstract stages of learning. In contrast, research on representational sequences featuring virtual manipulatives is less robust. Thus, this study evaluated an instructional strategy with virtual manipulatives, static representational drawings, and abstract algorithms to teach multiplication to three U.S. elementary students with mathematics difficulty. A functional relation was established via a single-subject multiple probe design between the treatment and students' accuracy performance. Baseline-corrected Tau estimates confirmed a medium effect size for all three students, while student performance on measures assessing the number of errors committed and the duration of sessions also returned favorable findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Student's motivation towards physical education (PE) classes is a key factor for increasing physical activity (PA) levels in children. In order to increase motivation in PE, new teaching techniques are needed, such as gamification. This study examines the potential influence of gamification in PE classes on motivation-related variables such as basic psychological needs (BPNs) and positive behaviours in primary school students, considering the perceptions of students and teachers. A total of nine teachers and 506 primary students participated in this study: 250 from a gamified group and 256 from a control group. The students filled in the BPNs in the Classroom Scale in order to measure three BPNs (autonomy, competence and relatedness). In addition, the perceptions, feelings, and behaviours of the students and teachers were analysed and classified through drawings, teacher's diaries, and focus groups. An improvement in the three BPNs, namely autonomy (p < 0.001), competence (p < 0.001) and relatedness (p < 0.001), was observed for the gamified group compared to the control group. The qualitative findings showed a perceived increase in student motivation, participation, and cooperation behaviours. Students also reported values such as respect, and rejection of contempt and harassment. In short, gamification was associated with an increase in all BPNs and positive behaviours in primary school students in gamified PE classes compared to non-gamified classes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study investigated how autistic traits modulate peer interactions using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) hyperscanning. Across three experiments, we tested the effect of copresence, joint activity, and a tangible goal during cooperative interactions on interbrain coherence (IBC) in school-aged children between 9 and 11 years old. Twenty-three dyads of children watched a video alone or together in Experiment 1, engaged in joint or self-paced book reading in Experiment 2, and pretended to play a Jenga game or played for real in Experiment 3. We found that all three formats of social interactions increased IBC in the frontotemporoparietal networks, which have been reported to support social interaction. Further, our results revealed the shared and unique interbrain connections that were predictive of the lower and higher parent-reported autism-spectrum quotient scores, which indicated child autistic traits. Results from a convergence of three experiments provide the first evidence to date that IBC is modulated by child autistic traits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Childhood wellbeing is essential for positive outcomes in adulthood, as is academic attainment. Schools play a pivotal role in laying the foundations for children to live well. However, research investigating the relationship between wellbeing and attainment has relied on conceptualisations of wellbeing that are too broad (i.e. overall and domain-general wellbeing) or samples spanning large age ranges (thereby overlooking developmental differences). Additionally, the role of mindset, a potentially co-occurring psychological state of both wellbeing and attainment, has been neglected. This study therefore investigated the wellbeing-attainment relationship in 942 children aged 9–11 (447 male, M age = 10.5; 495 female, M age = 10.6) across 17 schools in England (UK). Structural equation models distinguished between overall wellbeing, life satisfaction, and eudaimonia, examining associations of each with children's attainment on standardised tests, accounting for mindsets, achievement goals, and sociodemographic factors. Results indicated lower life satisfaction was significantly associated with higher attainment on average, and in English and Mathematics, while eudaimonia was not significantly related to attainment. Overall wellbeing was negatively associated with Mathematics attainment only. A growth mindset was positively associated, while a fixed mindset was negatively associated, with wellbeing. In turn, a growth mindset was significantly positively associated, while a fixed mindset was negatively associated, with attainment. Implications for policy and practice are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paraprofessionals play a significant role in the education system. However, they often need more training on specific instructional strategies to use with the students they work with. In this study, we trained two paraprofessionals working in a self-contained U.S. elementary classroom for students with high-intensity behavioral support needs. Each paraprofessional used constant time delay to support students' learning to read grade-level sight and science words. Paraprofessionals also gathered maintenance and generalization sessions data using individualized social stories created by the classroom teacher. Not only did the four student participants meet mastery of their personalized word sets but paraprofessionals also implemented all phases with high fidelity. We discuss limitations, implications for practice, and recommendations for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to examine the relation between teachers' reports of classroom adversity, a measure of classroom hardship, and student problem behavior in a sample of students with or at risk of emotional/behavioral disorders. We also examined the extent to which this relation varied as a function of multiple domains of classroom quality. A series of multiple regression models, adjusting for the nesting of students within classrooms, were conducted. Models revealed a significant effect of the interaction between classroom adversity and classroom emotional support on teachers' reports of student problem behaviors. This effect indicated that in low-adversity classrooms, teachers differed in their reports of students' problem behaviors depending on their level of emotional support. In high-adversity classrooms, however, teachers' reports of students' problem behaviors were relatively similar regardless of their level of emotional support. Findings suggest classroom adversity is likely an important contextual factor to consider when examining student outcomes and that teacher emotional support may mitigate the influence of classroom adversity. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of this work for research and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Gamification research and practice have gained popularity, but there is a lack of experimental and field evidence regarding the effectiveness of specific design elements and their use contexts especially in developing countries. Aim: This research aimed to measure the effect of gamifying digital learning environments and compare the effects of badges and leaderboards on the development of cognitive and achievement motivation of elementary school students. Method: A gamified environment focused on the circulatory system and employing interactive storytelling was developed. It was tested through an in-field experiment at an elementary school in Egypt. The research sample was of 30 students in the 5th grade, divided into two equal experimental groups (badges - leaderboard). Results: The results indicated an increase in cognitive and achievement motivation among students in both experimental groups. However, there were no significant differences in the effects of badges and leaderboards on the cognitive and achievement motivations of the participants in the two experimental groups. Conclusions: These findings suggest that the effects of gamification are more likely due to the holistic design and novelty, rather than the specific use of a specific game element. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]