Search

This contribution intends to explore the use of the interview-conversation as a tool within a project designed to combat summer learning loss. The project, “Arcipelago Educativo Estate,” was coordinated on a national level by Save the Children and structured in a 12-week training program involving more than 500 children and teenagers from 11 Italian cities over the summer of 2021. The goal of the research is to exemplify the dual function of the interview-conversation; didactical as a learning support for the program participants and evaluative as an instrument to analyze the learning achieved by the participants. This qualitative study involved the conducting 112 interview-conversations, 56 with female participants and 56 with male participants, between June and October of 2021. The data collected was subsequently subjected to thematic analysis. The results reveal the didactic versatility of the interview-conversation both as a tool for the assessment of learning and as a means to support the self-assessments made by the participants. The learnings most often perceived by the participants concern the sphere of social and relational skills and the sense of self-efficacy.

In situations of juvenile delinquency, abuse, or neglect, determination of child custody relies on interviews with parents. This study aims to examine the effects of the interviewer's empathy on parents' anxiety, and to explore how parents experience these situations. A measure of anxiety was applied to 41 parents under evaluation for child custody before and after the assessment interview. Professionals' empathy was rated by both parents and professionals after each appointment. Parents participated in semistructured interviews. Data were analyzed through statistical and content analyses. The decrease in anxiety was significantly greater for parents who perceived professionals as "perfect" than for parents who perceived professionals as "less than perfect" in empathy. Parents' and professionals' empathy scores correlated positively, but the association between professionals' self-rated empathy and parents' anxiety was nonsignificant. Reactions to the justice system's intervention emerging in the semistructured interviews were "unjustifiable intrusion," "disconcerting information," and "reality confirmation." Each associated differently with parents' expectations for the assessment interview (respectively, that the process be over quickly, that it be over successfully, and that help start quickly). Our results support the important effects, from parents' perspectives, of empathy in assessment interviews in the context of juvenile criminology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a simulation-based environmental learning support system, based on Kinect sensors, which is currently under development. Our system animates paleontological animals and their habitats on a display in synchronization with learners' actions, immersing learners in a real-life paleontological environment. We evaluated the system by recording real-time measurements of learners' movements, and controlled the animation based on sensor output. Participants were subsequently interviewed to assess their sense of immersion. The system was found to provide a nearreal experience of a defunct environment and the results confirmed that learners felt a sense of immersion and experienced an enhanced interest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we outline the benefits to teachers' expertise of the use of research-based, one-to-one assessment interviews in mathematics. Drawing upon our research and professional development work with teachers and students in primary and middle years in Australia and the research of others, we argue that the use of the interviews builds teacher expertise through enhancing teachers' knowledge of individual and group understanding of mathematics, and also provides an understanding of typical learning paths in various mathematical domains. The use of such interviews also provides a model for teachers' interactions and discussions with children, building both their pedagogical content knowledge and their subject matter knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This article focuses on key stages in the assessment of psychiatric disorders in children and adolescents. The main stages of the assessment interview are considered, including preparation for the interview, interview with the family, interview and observation of the child, interview with the parents, physical examination, and investigations, as well as the gathering of information from other sources. Some contextual factors are then considered in the formulation of the child’s difficulties. Key points are discussed as to how assessment of the adolescent may differ from that of a younger child and how the interview with an adolescent may be conducted in an ‘adolescent-friendly’ fashion. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background/Objective: Ageing and progressive increase in life expectancy in people with intellectual disability present significant challenges. The present study is to examine the needs that arise in the aging process of this population. To detect these needs is fundamental to ensure personal wellbeing; almost no psychometrically sound instruments have been developed. Method: A structured interview was developed and evaluated by a panel of 20 experts to obtain evidence of content validity. The interview was then applied to 1,173 people with intellectual disability. The ages ranged from 35 to 80 ( M  = 52.27; SD  = 7.5). Results: The interview consisted of 93 items evaluating four areas: perceived needs, personal problems, future perspectives, and solutions required. The results demonstrated the proximity and relationship of the various needs evaluated. In addition it was observed that those with intellectual disability who were older, male and users of residential services tended to indicate more needs, problems, and required more solutions. Conclusions: The instrument has adequate evidence of validity, allowing the evaluation of specific needs of people with intellectual disability. The results advocate the design of transversal intervention policies in order to effectively meet the needs and requirements of this population.