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Background: Active transportation (AT), described as self-powered modes of travel (eg, walking and cycling), is an important source of health-promoting physical activity. While AT behaviors have been measured on national health surveys in Canada for over 2 decades, historic prevalence has not been previously reported. We aimed to document the measures of AT on Canada's various national health surveys, examine AT over time, and interpret them within the context of evolving methods of assessment. Methods: We compiled and summarized the questions used to measure AT among Canadians on 4 national health surveys: National Population Health Survey (1994–1998), Canadian Community Health Survey (2000–2020), Canadian Health Measures Survey (2007–2019), and the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children Study (2010–2018). Among youth and adults (12+ y), we summarized over time: (1) the prevalence of AT participation and (2) time spent in AT (in hours per week) among those who report any AT participation. Where possible, we reported separate estimates of walking and cycling and produced an aggregate estimate of total AT. We stratified results by age group and sex. Results: Changes in AT survey questions over time and between surveys limit the interpretation and comparability of temporal trends. Nevertheless, a consistently higher proportion of females report walking, while a higher proportion of males report cycling. Irrespective of mode, males report spending more total time in AT. Participation in AT tends to decrease with age, with youth reporting the highest rates of AT and young adults often spending the most time in AT. Conclusions: Monitoring trends in AT can help assess patterns of behavior and identify whether promotion strategies are needed or whether population interventions are effective. Our evaluation of AT over time is limited by questions surveyed; however, consistent differences in AT by age and sex are evident over time. Moving forward, ensuring consistency of AT measurement over time is essential to monitoring this important behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study examined the after-school activities of Japanese elementary school children in which little information is available for understanding the process by which participation in organized activities leads to the decrease in children's independent mobility. Methods: One thousand eight hundred and twenty-four mothers of elementary school children participated in an online survey. The mothers responded to the questions on the number of lessons (or cram schools) their children attended weekdays, as well as their children's behavior after classes, and parents providing transportation when their children go out to play. Results: The proportion of children attending lessons and/or cram schools increased as their grades progressed. A significant interaction existed between the degree of parental transportation and grade in terms of whether or not the children attended lessons and/or cram schools. Parental involvement included pick up or drop-off for a large percentage of younger children without lessons, whereas the degree of parental involvement was greater for older children attending lessons. In other words, parents of children without attending lessons or cram schools tended to allow children to engage in independent activities when they reached the higher grades, whereas parents of children who frequently attended lessons and cram schools tended to remain involved in transporting their children, even when they reached the higher grades. Conclusions: The results suggested that the participation of children in organized activities leads to a routine of parental pickup and/or drop-off, which renders difficult the facilitation of opportunities for children to independently participate in play activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To compare the effect of planning interventions on self-reported changes in parents supervised oral health-related behaviors (OHRBs) and associated clinical oral health parameters for primary school-age children. Method and materials: In total, 110 parent–child pairs (children aged 3 to 8 years) were randomly assigned to either of the two groups. In the “action planning” group, parent participants of the pair were asked to make an “action plan” using the “how, when, where” format for their child OHRBs. In the “implementation intention” group, parents were asked to form an “if-then plan” to improve OHRBs for their child. Self-reported changes on target OHRBs, change in plaque scores, change in plaque stagnation areas, and change in caries status of tooth surfaces were observed at 2, 8, and 12 weeks. Results: Overall OHRBs scores changed significantly from baseline to 12 weeks for both interventions. The scores were significantly better with “if-then” planning than “action planning” (z = 4, P < .001) at 12 weeks. Plaque scores also changed significantly from baseline to 12 weeks for both interventions, and improved significantly more with “if-then” planning (16.20 ± 5.24) than “action planning” (50.66 ± 11.24) at 12 weeks. The number of plaque stagnation areas also changed significantly from baseline to 12 weeks for both interventions, and improved significantly more with “if-then” planning at 12 weeks (12.80 ± 5.33) than “action planning” (42.76 ± 10.34) (t = −11.55, P < .001). There was significant change in the caries status of sound tooth surfaces with “action planning” at 12 weeks (z = 116.50, P = .023). There were no new caries lesions reported with “if-then” planning at 12 weeks. Conclusion: The study observed significant improvement in OHRBs and associated oral health parameters with planning interventions, preferring “if-then” planning over “action planning.” It also elicited significant barriers to behaviors in action. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study sought to understand the influence of participation in a physical activity-based, social and emotional learning-focused after-school. Undergraduate students (N = 25) from a variety of ethnic backgrounds participated in semi-structured interviews and regular journaling. Data were analyzed inductively and deductively through the lens of occupational socialization theory. Four themes were developed: (a) career confirmation, refinement, and reevaluation that occurred from volunteering; (b) career development through hands-on experiences; (c) personal and interpersonal development through working with others; and (d) development in relationships and emotional health. The participants found the program to be valuable for their career choices, whether it was confirming their career choice or changing it. It also increased their ability to use social and emotional strategies to deepen relationships and navigate stress within and outside of the program. Implications for research and practice are discusses in relation to the findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Competence in fundamental movement skills (FMS) is purported to be linked with increased physical activity participation. Yet, recent research suggests a low level of FMS proficiency in children. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy, impact on gender, and influence of teacher fidelity on the Moving Well-Being Well intervention. Method: The intervention was delivered in 18 primary schools (n = 925, Mage = 7.55 years). Data were gathered on six FMS and two balance skills pre- and postintervention using the Test of Gross Motor Development—Third Edition and Bruininks–Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency 2. Results: The mean postintervention FMS score was higher than preintervention, with a mean increase of 7.85 (23%). A two-way analysis of covariance found gender was not statistically significant (p =.74), but teacher fidelity was statistically significant (p =.000; moderate effect size). Conclusions: The intervention significantly improved children's FMS, having a similar effect on boys and girls. Teacher fidelity of implementation had a significant impact on FMS improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Around 40% of Australian children do not participate in sport. Cost is a major barrier to participation, particularly for children from low socioeconomic backgrounds. This study aimed to evaluate the uptake of a population-level children's sports subsidy scheme, including sociodemographic differences in uptake. Methods: A state-wide cross-sectional analysis comparing sports voucher claimants (primary school-aged children with a valid Medicare or Australian visa number) from the 2019 financial year with population census data from South Australia. Chi-square was used to examine whether the percentage of eligible children who claimed a voucher differed based on age, sex, socioeconomic status (SES), and geographical remoteness. Subgroup analyses were conducted for the lowest 2 socioeconomic disadvantage deciles, split by gender. Scatterplots were used to compare sports between high and low SES children. Results: A total of 74,668 children claimed sports vouchers (45.5% of eligible children). Children who were relatively younger, female, from low socioeconomic backgrounds, and from major cities were least likely to claim the voucher. The 5 most common sports were Australian rules football (30.2%), netball (13.6%), soccer (13.1%), gymnastics (10.4%), and basketball (5.7%), with the popular sports similar for high and low SES children. Conclusions: Future work is needed to understand how Sports Voucher, and sport participation rates have changed over time, and to improve voucher uptake among girls, city dwellers, and low SES children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Evidence demonstrates that many school children fail to master fundamental movement skills (FMS). Little is known about the teaching and learning of FMS in Hong Kong. This study aimed to capture voices from both teachers and students to better understand the current FMS practices in primary physical education Methods: Semistructured interviews with physical education teachers and focus groups with students were conducted. Thematic analysis of teacher transcriptions was performed. Student focus groups were analyzed using a framework approach, guided by TARGET (i.e., Task, Autonomy, Recognition, Grouping, Evaluation, and Time). Results: Several "teacher" level themes were developed: Self-efficacy (mis)judgment, limited pedagogical content knowledge, ineffective instructional and assessment strategies, insufficient teacher training, and deprioritization of skill development in physical education. Students perceived the need for a more student-centered approach to the teaching of FMS. Conclusions: Results highlighted the need for a different approach to initial and continuous teacher education in FMS. Further investigation into the most effective forms of teacher education is necessary, in order to improve the teaching and learning of FMS in schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The advances in information and communications technology and the digitization of services offer new ways to reach, engage with, and provide services to consumers. Recent advances in technology have fueled the rapid growth of digitization in education, and the education industry has witnessed radical changes in the provision and delivery of its products and services. Digital textbooks, which are equipped with various learning resources including multimedia aids, assessment questions, and hyperlinks to external resources, can be an important channel for harnessing technologies in classrooms. Korea's digital textbook experiment provides a unique empirical setting to examine the effects of digital textbooks on students' academic outcomes. The authors employ a panel regression model with teacher fixed effects, propensity score weighting, and an instrumental variable strategy to find that greater usage of digital textbooks in class improves students' academic performance, academic interest, and learning skills. The authors explore the heterogeneity in the utilization effect across student levels and find greater improvements in academic performance for low-achieving students. The findings have important managerial and policy implications for major stakeholders in the education sector, including teachers, school administrators, students, and policy makers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Active commuting to school (ACS) can be an important source of physical activity for children. Schools are an important setting for policy-related ACS promotion. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between school policies and ACS, and to assess whether this relation varied by grade. Methods: This cross-sectional study used data from schools recruited to the Safe Travel Environment Evaluation in Texas School study (n = 94). The percent of trips made by active travel modes was measured through tallies among third to fifth grade classrooms from 5 school districts in Central Texas in 2018–2019. School ACS policies and practices were measured through 8 survey items aggregated into a score. Linear mixed effects models were used to assess the association between policies and ACS. Results: School health policy surveys and ACS data were collected from 69 elementary schools. An average of 14.6% of trips to/from school was made using active travel modes. Schools with higher numbers of policies had significantly higher percentages of students using active travel modes (P =.03), and for each additional policy, the predicted percentage of trips made by active travel modes was 1.46% higher. There was a significant interaction effect between school policy and grade, with stronger correlations among higher grades (P =.002). Conclusions: Results from this study demonstrate a correlation between the school policies designed to support walking and biking and ACS. Results from this study can be used to justify the use of school-based policy interventions to promote ACS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Lockdown measures, including school closures, due to the COVID-19 pandemic have caused widespread disruption to children's lives. The aim of this study was to explore the impact of a national lockdown on children's physical activity using seasonally matched accelerometry data. Methods: Using a pre/post observational design, 179 children aged 8 to 11 years provided physical activity data measured using hip-worn triaxial accelerometers worn for 5 consecutive days prepandemic and during the January to March 2021 lockdown. Multilevel regression analyses adjusted for covariates were used to assess the impact of lockdown on time spent in sedentary and moderate to vigorous physical activity. Results: A 10.8-minute reduction in daily time spent in moderate to vigorous physical activity (standard error: 2.3 min/d, P <.001) and a 33.2-minute increase in daily sedentary activity (standard error: 5.5 min/d, P <.001) were observed during lockdown. This reflected a reduction in daily moderate to vigorous physical activity for those unable to attend school (−13.1 [2.3] min/d, P <.001) during lockdown, with no significant change for those who continued to attend school (0.4 [4.0] min/d, P <.925). Conclusion: These findings suggest that the loss of in-person schooling was the single largest impact on physical activity in this cohort of primary school children in London, Luton, and Dunstable, United Kingdom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Physical education (PE) classes in schools are considered relevant to implement interventions, especially focused on physical activity. However, evidence overviews on how PE classes contribute to general health (physical, social, affective, and cognitive domains) are still needed. Thus, we summarized evidence synthesis (eg, systematic reviews) that addressed the contribution of PE classes to the health of school-aged children and adolescents. Methods: We performed a scoping review with searches in 8 databases and institutional websites to find systematic reviews or meta-analyses that answered this review's research question. Data charting form included the identification of the study, health outcomes, and PE classes' strategies (policies and environment, curriculum, appropriate instructions, and evaluation). An interactive process was performed to build the evidence summary. Results: An initial search yielded 2264 titles, and 49 systematic reviews (including 11 with meta-analysis) were included in this review. Most documents reported the main benefits of PE classes on physical domain outcomes (eg, physical activity, cardiorespiratory fitness, body mass index, and fundamental motor skills). However, evidence on the benefits of PE classes in affective (eg, enjoyment, motivation, and autonomy); social (eg, cooperation, problem-solving, and making friends); and cognitive (eg, memory, attention, concentration, and decision making) domains were found. Strategies on PE classes for health benefits were highlighted. Conclusions: These elements were detailed in the evidence summary, which may be considered to guide researchers, teachers, and practitioners to define research and practice priorities on PE class interventions for health in the school context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To evaluate the effectiveness of game-based approaches on game performance, fundamental movement skills, health-related indicators, and physical activity outcomes among children (5–12 years) when delivered in the primary physical education school setting. Method: A systematic search of six electronic databases without date limitation was conducted on June 11, 2021. Results: Among included studies (N = 17), positive outcomes were found for children's game performance, fundamental movement skills, physical and mental health, and/or physical activity. Game-based approaches intervention success appears to be related to the contents of teacher training, especially the inclusion of a theory-based syllabus, mentoring, and reflection sessions. Conclusions: The findings of this review confirm that hybrid sport education-invasion games interventions delivered in primary schools are beneficial for improving a range of student outcomes. To improve physical self-perception, intrinsic motivation, well-being, physiological, and potential psychological outcomes for children, it is necessary to explore more game-based approaches' longitudinal and intervention research with high quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate teacher and students' perspectives on their experiences within three consecutive hybrid sport education and cooperative learning pedagogical model units. Method: Fifty elementary school students (Mage = 10.52; SDage = 0.39) and a 36-year-old male teacher participated in three consecutive hybrid cooperative learning/sport education units (24 lessons). Semistructured interviews were conducted to gather data and gain a rich, insiders' perspective of their experiences. Results: Three main themes (including several subthemes) were generated from the data analysis: students' enthusiasm and involvement (autonomy support, motivation, and engagement); students' learning (technical–tactical learning, cooperative skills, and social learning); and teacher challenges. Conclusions: Findings from the current study showed that a teacher's use of three consecutive hybrid sport education/cooperative learning pedagogical model units promoted a learning environment where students were involved in authentic sport experiences that fostered the development of students' learning across all domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study examined the effectiveness of e-learning in flexible learning and its impact on students' academic performance in selected public elementary schools in Manila for the 2021-2022 school year. It found that most teachers were aged 31-40, female, married, held a bachelor's degree, and had less than ten years of teaching experience. Elearning was found to be highly effective in lesson delivery, participation, and discourse but moderately effective in virtual learning and critical analysis. Students' academic performance was outstanding in video conferencing/teleconferencing and very satisfactory in other areas like science investigation, weather reporting, discussion boards, and science journals/news. A significant relationship was identified between e-learning effectiveness and students' academic performance (Pearson-r = 0.84). Teachers faced challenges such as excessive paperwork, expensive professional development, and schedule conflicts. Recommended solutions include reducing paperwork, providing free training, enhancing support from school heads, promoting parent involvement, and securing electronic gadgets for students. Overall, teachers were effective in using e-learning for flexible learning, positively impacting students' academic performance, though addressing these challenges is essential for further improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contemporary library services are responsive to local conditions, supportive of families and welcoming to all. This paper describes how public libraries with these qualities could extend their reach by providing more comprehensive early language and literacy activities with their regular services. Recent research about existing early childhood activities provides evidence from observations of library sessions including 113 young children and 113 adults, and from interviews with 33 library staff and 67 parents/carers. Evidence indicates that while libraries offer planned language and literacy information through a range of regular sessions, there is new and additional work they could do to support young families with early language and literacy. Recommendations include libraries providing a greater amount of deliberate literacy content, staff being offered upgraded training, broader promotion of activities to the public, and creation of extended outreach services. Policy matters include advocacy for sustainable funding, along with the development of appropriate evaluation techniques. This may then decrease the 25% of children arriving at school with inadequate language skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Children's physical inactivity is a persisting international public health concern. While there is a large body of literature examining physical activity interventions for children, the unique physical activity context of low-density communities in rural areas and smaller urban centres remains largely underexplored. With an influx of families migrating to rural communities and small towns, evaluations of health promotion efforts that support physical activity are needed to ensure they are meeting the needs of the growing populations in these settings. The aim of this community-based research was to explore service providers' and parents' perspectives on physical activity opportunities available in their community and recommendations toward the development and implementation of efficacious physical activity programming for children in rural communities and smaller urban centres. Methods: Three in-person community forums with recreation service providers (n = 37 participants) and 1 online community forum with the parents of school-aged children (n = 9 participants) were hosted. An online survey and Mentimeter activity were conducted prior to the community forums to gather participants' views on the barriers and facilitators to physical activities and suggestions for activity-promoting programs. The service provider and parent discussions were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed following a deductive approach guided by Hseih and Shannon's (2005) procedure for direct content analysis. A code list developed from the responses to the pre-forum survey and Mentimeter activity was used to guide the analysis and category development. Results: Seven distinct categories related to the existing physical activity opportunities and recommendations for programs in rural communities and smaller urban centres were identified during the analysis: (1) Recovery from Pandemic-Related Measures, (2) Knowledge and Access to Programs, (3) Availability, (4) Personnel Support, (5) Quality of Programs and Facilities, (6) Expenses and Subsidies, and (7) Inclusivity and Preferences. Conclusion: To improve the health and well-being of children who reside in low-density areas, the results of this study highlight service provider and parent recommendations when developing and implementing community-based physical activity programs and interventions in rural and smaller urban settings, including skill development programs, non-competitive activity options, maximizing existing spaces for activities, and financial support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary Objective Methods Results Conclusion Assess longer‐term changes in food habits and anthropometry among Grades 1–2 primary school students from four public schools in Colombo, Sri Lanka, following a 3‐week programme including a classroom‐based motivational storybook discussion and self‐monitoring food diary (FD).This follow‐up study assessed changes from baseline (pre‐intervention) BMI z‐scores and food habits (increased healthy food‐item consumption/decreased unhealthy food‐item consumption reflected by an increase in FD score) and parental perceptions (anonymous questionnaires) among 863 students (aged 6–8 years), between 9 and 12 months after completing the programme (November 2019–February 2020).Food habits showed sustained improvement from baseline mean FD score (baseline vs. follow‐up: 51 ± 23% vs. 67 ± 22%, p < 0.001), with children from all BMI subgroups (underweight [UW], normal weight [NW], overweight [OW] and obesity [OB]) showing a significant increase in FD scores (ranging from 14.1% to 17.2%, p < 0.001). BMI z‐scores increased in children living with UW (−2.85 to −2.21, p < 0.00) and NW (−0.70 to −0.57, p < 0.001), but did not change in children with OW (+1.5 to +1.49, p = 0.83) and OB (+2.85 to +2.21, p = 0.19). Most parents (n = 497, 97.8%) reported satisfaction with programme outcomes.This programme led to sustained improvement in food habits among young primary school children from all BMI categories, increase in BMI towards the median among children living with UW and NW, and stabilization of BMI in children with OW and OB, suggesting it as a useful tool for improving nutritional status of young children in low‐ and middle‐income countries (LMIC) facing the double burden of under‐ and overnutrition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, the global prevalence of myopia is high and on the rise, seriously affecting the health of students. Studies have suggested that dietary factors may be associated with the occurrence and development of myopia, but the results are inconsistent. This survey aims to analyze the correlation between dietary factors and myopia while controlling for more confounding factors. A multi-stage stratified cluster sampling method was performed to select 10,619 primary and secondary school students in Shenyang for visual examination, and questionnaires were administered to 6974 of them. Logistic regression was performed with myopia as the dependent variable and the variables with p < 0.1 in the univariate analysis as independent variables. Sensitivity analysis was conducted using propensity score matching. The results showed that the overall prevalence of myopia among primary and secondary school students in Shenyang was 59.1%, with mild myopia predominating. Students who ate fresh fruits two or more times a day had a 0.69 times lower risk of myopia compared to those who did not eat fruits (95% CI 0.50–0.97). However, subgroup analysis demonstrated that this protective effect was only significant for male students, with an OR of 0.59 (95% CI 0.38–0.91). Moreover, female students who consumed sugary beverages once or more a day had a 1.8 times higher risk of myopia compared to those who did not consume sugary beverages (95% CI 1.03–3.15). Vegetable consumption, intake of fried foods, and breakfast habits were not significantly associated with myopia. In summary, excessive consumption of sugary beverages could increase the risk of myopia, especially in female students, whereas fruit intake contributed to reducing the risk of myopia, particularly in male students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Objectives Methods Results Conclusion One in ten U.S. children lives with a grandparent, and more foster children are being placed in kinship care.Our objective was to compare early language and communication development and school readiness among children raised by grandparents (alone or in multigenerational households) to children raised by parents.We included in this cross‐sectional study children ages 1–5 years from the 2016–2020 National Survey of Children's Health to examine healthy and ready to learn school readiness outcomes and binary language and communication development (2018–2020 data only) by caregiver type (parent, multigenerational, and grandparent‐only) with survey‐weighted log‐binomial regression adjusted for confounders. We stratified by survey years pre‐COVID‐19 pandemic versus during.Among 33,342 children, 86.0% (SE = 0.51) of children were ‘On‐Track’ for language and communication development; only 37.2% (SE = 0.68) were ‘On‐Track’ overall for school readiness. Children raised by grandparents or in multigenerational households were more often ‘On‐Track’ for school readiness than children raised by parents, but only upon adjustment for covariates (adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR) for grandparent‐only 1.13, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.11, 1.15; aPR for multigenerational 1.13, CI 1.12, 1.15). Smaller and less consistent differences in prevalence were observed for the other outcomes (language and communication development, school readiness domains of early learning skills, social–emotional development, self‐regulation development and physical well‐being and motor development). A disparity in school readiness may have emerged during the COVID‐19 pandemic; children in grandparent‐only households had a lower prevalence of being ‘On‐Track’ for school readiness (aPR 0.71, 95% CI 0.69, 0.73) compared to children in parent households, whereas children in multigenerational households continued to be more often school‐ready than children in parent households.Large proportions of children across caregiver types were not fully prepared for school. Consideration of key covariates is important because socio‐economic disadvantage may mask other advantages grandparent‐led and multigenerational households offer children's early development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Objectives Methods Results Conclusions Physical fitness is one of the most important health indicators in children. Although appropriate body composition or certain lifestyle factors such as frequent physical activity are thought to improve physical fitness, results of previous studies are inconsistent, and most studies were from Western countries.We investigated associations of body composition and modifiable lifestyle factors such as physical activity, screen time, diet and sleep duration with physical fitness in Japanese primary school children.2308 children (age 10–12 years old) in 12 primary schools were analysed in this cross‐sectional study. Physical fitness was evaluated by sports battery tests conducted routinely and annually at schools. The total score of sports battery tests, 20‐m shuttle run (laps) and grip strength (kg) were selected as outcomes. Information about lifestyle factors was collected by two questionnaires. Associations between lifestyle factors and physical fitness were assessed by multivariable linear mixed models by sex.Frequent exercise was related to better overall physical fitness. Regarding the 20‐m shuttle run, many unfavourable lifestyle factors such as higher BMI in boys (β −7.37, 95% confidence interval [CI] −8.39, −6.35) and girls (β −3.54, 95% CI −4.50, −2.58), longer screen time (β −4.31, 95% CI −7.29, −1.34) in boys and girls (β −5.65, 95% CI −9.01, −2.30); shortest (reference) versus longest, breakfast skipping in boys (β −5.24, 95% CI −8.71, −1.77) and girls (β −3.57, 95% CI −6.84, −0.30); consumers (reference) versus skippers were associated with worse performance. Better quality of diet was associated with better results in the 20‐m shuttle run only in girls (β 2.58, 95% CI 0.24, 4.93); lowest (reference) versus highest.Frequent exercise was related to better physical fitness. Higher BMI and unfavourable lifestyle factors such as longer screen time and breakfast skipping were associated with worse results of the 20‐m shuttle run. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Individuals on the autism spectrum commonly have differences from non-autistic people in expressing their emotions using communicative behaviors, such as facial expressions. However, it is not yet clear if this reduced expressivity stems from reduced physiological reactivity in emotional contexts or if individuals react internally, but do not show these reactions externally to others. We hypothesized that autism is characterized by a discordance between in-the-moment internal psychophysiological arousal and external communicative expressions of emotion. Methods: Forty-one children on the autism spectrum and 39 non-autistic, typically developing (TD) children of two age groups (2–4 and 8–12 years) participated in a low-level stress task whilst wearing a wireless electrocardiogram. Children's negative emotional expressions (facial, vocal, bodily) were coded following standardized protocols. Alexithymia traits were assessed using the Children's Alexithymia Measure with school-aged children only. Data analyses involved ANOVAs, correlations, and sensitivity analyses. Results: There were no group differences in physiological arousal (heart rate) or in communicative expressions of stress to the stress task. For TD preschoolers, physiological arousal during the stress task was associated with vocal expressions and for TD school-aged children, they were associated with facial and bodily expressions. By contrast, for children on the autism spectrum, physiological arousal during the stress tasks was not associated with communicative expressions across age groups. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that children on the autism spectrum might experience emotional disconcordance, in that their physiological arousal does not align with their communicative expressions. Therefore, the internally experienced stress of children on the autism spectrum may be inadvertently missed by teachers and caregivers and, consequently, learning opportunities for teaching emotional communication and regulation may be also missed. Our results support the use of wearable biosensors to facilitate such interventions in children on the autism spectrum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents Norwegian adaptations of the KoMus and KOPRA-M assessments designed to evaluate music-related competencies. Our research delves into the assessments’ alignment with the curriculum and investigates the psychometric properties of the Norwegian versions using a sample of Norwegian fifth graders (KoMus: N  =  374, KOPRA-M: N  =  370). Furthermore, it provides practical illustrations of how these item response theory (IRT)–based assessments can be employed, including competency-level examples. The Norwegian short versions of the KoMus and KOPRA-M tests demonstrated robust psychometric characteristics (especially in terms of reliability, model, and item fit), making them promising instruments for the deeper exploration of musical competency within primary and lower secondary school contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper draws on research conducted in four state schools with sixth forms to problematise two flagship 'disadvantage' policy agendas in the English context: the Pupil Premium (focusing on the narrowing of attainment gaps) and widening participation (focusing on fairer university access). While such 'priority' policies necessarily incorporate the promise of change, it argues that multiple forms of incoherence militate against this, including: their relative agenda-setting power in a highly marketised system; the contested, constitutive power of different proxy indicators; competing policy preferences that under-attend to the intersections between educational opportunities and material disadvantage. In contrast, interviews with school staff highlighted the transformative potential of lived experiences of disadvantage and reinforced the importance of adopting a wider lens than that of the school. The paper concludes that the absence of an over-arching theory of change is part of 'the problem' and it suggests where the mapping of one might begin. [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]

This document is a compilation of abstracts from the 15th International Newborn Brain Conference, focusing on various forms of brain monitoring in preterm neonates. The abstracts cover topics such as predicting posthemorrhagic ventricular dilatation in neonates with intraventricular hemorrhage, the association between blood lactate normalization and outcomes in neonates with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, the implementation of cerebral near-infrared spectroscopy in a neonatal intensive care unit, cry analysis as a potential biomarker in newborn neurological assessment, and the impact of neonatal hypoxia on thyroid hormones. Another study investigates the use of near-infrared spectroscopy in assessing splanchnic oxygenation in preterm infants receiving minimal enteral nutrition. The document also includes the names and affiliations of the authors. [Extracted from the article]

In this study, we describe the development and validation of a revised Pediatric Chronic Pain Grading (P-CPG) for children aged 8 to 17 years that adds emotional impairment to previously used measures of pain intensity and functional impairment. Such a measure enables the assessment of chronic pain severity in different epidemiological and clinical populations, the stratification of treatment according to pain severity, and the monitoring of treatment outcome. The P-CPG was developed using a representative sample of school children with chronic pain (n = 454; Mage = 12.95, SD = 2.22). Construct validity and sensitivity to change were examined within a sample of N = 2448 children and adolescents (Mage = 12.71, SD = 2.47) comprising 3 subsamples (school n = 1562, primary care n = 129, and tertiary care n = 757) affected by chronic pain to varying extents. Results showed that P-CPG grades differed significantly among the 3 subsamples, with school children being least affected by chronic pain and tertiary care patients being most affected. As P-CPG grade increased, so did pain intensity, functional impairment, pain-related school absence, and emotional impairment. Convergent validity was demonstrated by significant positive correlations between the P-CPG and global ratings of pain severity as well as objective claims data; the latter reflects greater health care costs with increasing P-CPG scores. Sensitivity to change was supported by a significant reduction in baseline P-CPG grades 3 and 6 months after intensive interdisciplinary pain treatment in tertiary care sample. In conclusion, the P-CPG is an appropriate measure of pain severity in children and adolescents with chronic pain in clinical as well as epidemiological settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For Black students in the United States, attending schools with a higher proportion of White students is associated with worse mental and physical health outcomes in adolescence/early adulthood. To our knowledge, no prior studies have evaluated the association between school racial/ethnic composition from kindergarten through grade 12 and later-life mental health. In a cohort of Black adults aged ≥50 years in Northern California who retrospectively reported (2017-2020) school racial/ethnic composition for grades 1, 6, 9, and 12, we assessed the association between attending a school with mostly Black students versus not and mid-/late-life depressive symptoms (8-item Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) depression score, standardized to the 2000 US adult population) using age-, sex/gender-, southern US birth–, and parental education–adjusted generalized estimating equations, and assessed effect modification by the presence of a caring teacher/staff member. Levels of later-life depressive symptoms were lower among those who attended schools with mostly Black students in grades 1 and 6 (β = −0.12 [95% CI, −0.23 to 0.00] and β = −0.11 [95% CI, −0.22 to 0.00], respectively). In grade 6, this difference was larger for students without an adult at school who cared about them (β = −0.29 [95% CI, −0.51 to −0.07] vs β = −0.04 [95% CI, −0.17 to 0.09]). Among Black Americans, experiencing early schooling with mostly Black students may have later-life mental health benefits; this protective association appears more important for students without the presence of caring teachers/staff. This article is part of a Special Collection on Mental Health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates structural inequalities in educational enjoyment in a contemporary cohort of United Kingdom (UK) primary school children. Foundational studies in the sociology of education consistently indicate that the enjoyment of education is stratified by social class, gender, and ethnicity. Analysing data from the UK Millennium Cohort Study, which is a major cohort study that tracks children born at the start of the 21st century, we examine children's enjoyment of both school and individual academic subject areas. The overarching message is that at age 11 most children enjoy their education. The detailed empirical analyses indicate that educational enjoyment is stratified by gender, and there are small differences between ethnic groups. However, there is no convincing evidence of a social class gradient. These results challenge orthodox sociological views on the relationship between structural inequalities and educational enjoyment, and therefore question the existing theoretical understanding of the wider role of enjoyment in education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Children in a grade two/three classroom co‐designed photographs of each other's important family objects to develop critical empathy and better understand their peers' home cultures. They engaged in visual critical literacy practices. The paper provides a narrative of what happened and a framework for creative collaborative pedagogy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Making inferences is essential to comprehending text. Teachers can ask inferential questions, model their thinking, and teach specific strategies to support upper elementary students in making inferences while reading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teaching elementary students how to read is undeniably crucial, yet a substantial number of children encounter difficulties despite early interventions. Cross‐age tutoring, a pedagogical approach that pairs older students with younger peers, emerges as a cost‐effective solution that brings academic and social benefits to both the tutor and the tutee. Consequently, cross‐age tutoring programs are widely adopted globally. To maximize the effectiveness of cross‐age tutoring, we offer five evidence‐based recommendations tailored for its implementation. When integrated into the preparation and implementation steps, these recommendations hold the potential to significantly improve learning outcomes for both tutors and tutees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies on peer relationships in school transitions neglected individual differences, or did not examine the relation with academic performance in secondary school. This study followed 649 students from their last year of primary school to their first year in secondary school (Mage at T1 = 11.6 (SD = 0.6); 53.6% girls). Results revealed that students became more attached to peers, less lonely, and were stable in victimization across the transition. Particularly students with more negative peer experiences in primary school enjoyed a "fresh start" in terms of peer experiences in secondary school. Students who had more co-transitioning peers experienced greater reductions in loneliness. Changes in peer experiences over the transition did not relate to academic performance in secondary school. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patients with developmental amnesia (DA) have suffered hippocampal damage in infancy and subsequently shown poor episodic memory, but good semantic memory. It is not clear how patients with DA learn semantic information in the presence of episodic amnesia. However, patients with DA show good recognition memory and it is possible that semantic learning may be supported by recognition. Building on previous work, we compared two methods for supporting semantic learning in DA; recognition-learning and recall-learning. In each condition, a patient with DA (aged 8 years) was presented with semantic information in animated videos. After each presentation of a video, learning was supported by an immediate memory test. Two videos were paired with a cued recall test. Another two videos were paired with a multiple-choice test to enable recognition-based learning. The outcome measure was semantic recall performance after a short delay of 30 min and a long delay of one week. Results showed a benefit of recognition-learning compared to recall-learning on cued recall in the patient with DA (76% vs. 35%). This finding indicates that young people with severe hippocampal damage can utilize recognition to support semantic learning. This has implications for the support of school-aged children with episodic memory difficulties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Recent research suggested fluent processing as an explanation on why number sense contributes to simple arithmetic tasks—'Fluency hypothesis'. Aims: The current study investigates whether number sense contributes to such arithmetic tasks when other cognitive factors are controlled for (including those that mediate the link); and whether this contribution varies as a function of participants' individual maths fluency levels. Sample: Four hundred and thirty‐seven Chinese schoolchildren (186 females; Mage = 83.49 months) completed a range of cognitive measures in Grade 1 (no previous classroom training) and in Grade 2 (a year later). Methods: Number sense, arithmetic (addition and subtraction), spatial ability, visuo‐spatial working memory, perception, reaction time, character reading and general intelligence were measured. Results: Our data showed that the link between number sense and arithmetic was weaker in Grade 1 (Beta =.15 for addition and.06 (ns) for subtraction) compared to Grade 2 (.23–.28), but still persisted in children with no previous maths training. Further, math's performance in Grade 1 did not affect the link between number sense and maths performance in Grade 2. Conclusion: Our data extended previous findings by showing that number sense is linked with simple maths task performance even after controlling for multiple cognitive factors. Our results brought some evidence that number sense‐arithmetic link is somewhat sensitive to previous formal maths education. Further research is needed, as the differences in effects between grades were quite small, and arithmetic in Grade 1 did not moderate the link at question in Grade 2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Parents are often involved in their child's homework with the goal of improving their child's academic achievement. However, mixed findings were observed for the role of parental involvement in homework in shaping students' learning outcomes. Aims: The present study examined whether and how the effect of parental involvement in homework on students' performance in science and math varies across sociocultural contexts by considering the degrees of societal collectivism–individualism. Methods: The present study used a large‐scale dataset, consisting of participants from 43 countries/regions, to test whether societal collectivism–individualism would moderate the relationship between three types of parental involvement (asking, helping and checking) in homework and elementary school students' academic performance in math and science. Results: The multi‐level analyses revealed diverse effects of different parental involvement behaviours for homework. Helping and checking behaviours were generally negatively associated with elementary school students' academic achievement, but asking behaviours were positively associated with their academic achievement. Importantly, the positive effect of asking behaviours was stronger, while the negative effect of helping behaviours was weaker in collectivistic societies than in individualistic societies. Conclusions: The present study highlights the importance of considering the multifaceted nature of parental homework involvement and the sociocultural contexts that vary in collectivism–individualism when evaluating the role of parents in elementary school students' learning in math and science. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This mixed-methods study investigates whether and to what extent positive psychology constructs (classroom enjoyment, grit, and growth mindset) and Extramural English predict primary school students' willingness to communicate in a second language (L2 WTC) both in the classroom (a fictitious but common setting for English communication among English as an Foreign Language [EFL] students) and outside the classroom (a natural and increasingly prevalent environment for EFL communication). We collect and analyze survey data from 160 EFL primary school students in Hong Kong (ages 6–13 years old). Hierarchical regression analyses reveal that L2 WTC in the classroom is predicted by classroom enjoyment, grit, and Extramural English. A slightly different picture emerges outside of the classroom, with grit, growth mindset, and Extramural English predicting L2 WTC. Semi-structured interviews (N = 8) confirm and elaborate on the quantitative findings. Our findings suggest that through grit- and Extramural English-integrated intervention programmes, EFL teachers can improve young learners' L2 WTC both inside and outside the classroom. Furthermore, teachers can improve young learners' L2 WTC in the classroom by creating a positive learning environment, while also improving their L2 WTC outside of the classroom by cultivating their growth mindset system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

All around the world, school-entry cohorts are organized on an annual calendar so that the age of students in the same cohort differs by up to one year. It is a well-established finding that this age gap entails a consequential (dis)advantage for academic performance referred to as the relative age effect (RAE). This study contributes to a recent strand of research that has turned to investigate the RAE on non-academic outcomes such as personality traits. An experimental setup is used to estimate the causal effect of monthly age on cognitive effort in a sample of 798 fifth-grade students enrolled in the Spanish educational system, characterized by strict enrolment rules. Participants performed three different real-effort tasks under three different incentive conditions: no rewards; material rewards; and material and status rewards. We observe that older students outwork their youngest peers by two-fifths of a standard deviation, but only when material rewards for performance are in place. Despite the previously reported higher taste for competition among the older students within a school-entry cohort, we do not find that the RAE on cognitive effort increases after inducing competition for peer recognition. Finally, the study also provides suggestive evidence of a larger RAE among boys and students from lower social strata. Implications for sociological research on educational inequality are discussed. To conclude, we outline policy recommendations such as implementing evaluation tools that nudge teachers toward being mindful of relative age differences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Many youth in the USA have access to a loaded and unlocked firearm in their home. Discussions between adult family members have the potential to positively influence firearm storage. Purpose Work with firearm-owning parents to develop and obtain preliminary data about the efficacy of a family-centered decision support tool about firearm storage. Methods We adapted the Ottawa Personal Decision Guide for Two to the issue of firearm storage, producing the Family Safety Check-In. Subsequently, we evaluated its acceptability and impact on intentions to make a plan with their partner (or other adult sharing parental duties) about safer firearm storage. Participants were parents/guardians of at least one school-aged child, had firearms in their home, and resided in the USA (n = 402). They completed a web-based pre-test survey, were randomized to the Family Safety Check-In or an American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) informational resource about firearm storage for families, and then completed a post-test survey. Results The Family Safety Check-In had higher ratings for acceptability (B = 1.24, 95% CI = 0.58–1.90) and appropriateness (B = 1.46, 95% CI = 0.72–2.19) than the AAP resource. Participants in the Family Safety Check-In condition also had greater intentions to make a plan with their partner about storing firearms more safely (OR = 1.90, 95% CI = 1.26–2.87). Conclusions The Family Safety Check-In is a promising direction for harm reduction that warrants further evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Alice Springs (Mparntwe) Education Declaration Goal two argues for young Australians 'to understand their responsibilities as global citizens'. In these precarious times, children and youth require (and are demanding) education on how to address the myriad of convergent global challenges that is the focus of global citizenship education (GCE); however, perceived ambiguity is recognised as a barrier to greater GCE uptake. To support teacher uptake of global citizenship education, we searched for and mapped open-access GCE materials to create a systematic, research-based resource catalogue for teachers and students. We employed a scoping study to examine each resource's alignments with Australian Curricula and global GCE frameworks and identified the areas where there is insufficient resourcing. Results showed that most resources were targeted to primary and secondary school students. More materials are needed for early childhood education as well as materials that engage learners of all ages to en/act on their understanding of what global citizenship entails. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Preliminary evidence from the Childhood Joint Attention Rating Scale (C-JARS; Mundy et al., 2017) suggests symptoms related to diminished joint attention and the spontaneous sharing of experience with others can be assessed with a parent-report measure in children and adolescents with autism. This study was designed to expand on the previous study by examining the validity of both a Social Symptom (SS) and a Prosocial (PS) scale of the C-JARS in a study of school-aged autistic children (n = 89) with and without co-occurring intellectual disability (ID), as well as an age matched neurotypical sample (n = 62). Results indicated that both C-JARS scales were sensitive and specific with respect to identifying the diagnostic status of the children. In addition, the PS scale was sensitive to differences in cognitive abilities (IQ) and sex differences in the autism group. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that joint attention and spontaneous sharing of experience symptoms are not only characteristic of preschool children with autism but may also constitute a developmentally continuous dimension of the social phenotype of autism that can be measured in school-aged children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerous studies show adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on students' cognitive skill development, while much less is known about the impact on their noncognitive skills. The paper focuses on the changes in gender differences in noncognitive skills among Chinese elementary school students aged 9 to 13 during the pandemic. We use two datasets that complement each other in design, both containing detailed information regarding students and their home and school environments before and during the pandemic. Our findings indicate that compared to boys, girls experienced statistically significant declines in noncognitive skills. We explore the mechanisms from the family, school and individual perspectives. The primary influence on gender disparities appears to be driven by a more significant decrease in peer interactions within the school environment and an elevated psychological stress level experienced by girls during the pandemic. However, there is limited evidence supporting the notion that girls experienced more family financial shock or less parental support during this period. Our results suggest that overlooking noncognitive dimensions may lead to serious underestimates of the impact of the pandemic on the development of gender inequality in the long run. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The number of missing child reports exceed police investigative capacity, yet some incidents are linked with harm, making effective risk assessment essential for safeguarding. Police data likely underrepresents harm to missing children due to harm being undisclosed, and missing incidents going unreported. A better understanding of harm associated with missing children could help to develop appropriate interventions to reduce missing incidents and prevent harm. This study examined 18 months of published Child Safeguarding Practice Reviews across England – a previously overlooked resource for understanding harm to missing children – to identify the intersecting characteristics, vulnerabilities, harm types, indicators, and issues with formal guardianship (safeguarding by carers, schools, local authorities, police and health professionals). Results revealed that children were missing, vulnerable, harmed, and showed indicators of exploitation in numerous and intersecting ways. Of the missing from home or care (MFHC) cases, all but two mentioned repeat missing incidents, all mentioned missing school, 75% mentioned exclusion, and over half mentioned going missing from both home and care. All MFHC cases mentioned multiple vulnerabilities and multiple harm types. All but one of the MFHC cases mentioned multiple exploitation indicators. This highlights opportunities for guardianship including extending the police Philomena Protocol to schools for children at risk of exclusion. The constraints of formal guardians, when combined with the risks faced by some vulnerable children, can lead to inadequate supervision and support – paradoxically leaving those children simultaneously overexposed to harm yet under-served by protective services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This document is a compilation of recent music publications that are available for review in the journal Notes. It includes a wide range of categories, such as scholarly editions, orchestral music, choral music, and music for various instruments. The list features works from different time periods and composers, covering classical to contemporary styles. These publications can be found in libraries or purchased for research purposes. [Extracted from the article]

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]

Purpose: The prevalence of myopia in Scandinavia tends to be lower than in other parts of the world. This study aimed to investigate the incidence of myopia and its predictors in Swedish children to characterise this trend. Methods: A 2‐year longitudinal study was conducted following a cohort of schoolchildren aged 8–16 years. Myopia was defined as a spherical equivalent refraction (SER) ≤ −0.50 D. The study enrolled 128 participants, 70 (55%) females with a mean age of 12.0 years (SD = 2.4). Results: The cumulative incidence of myopia during the follow‐up period was 5.5%, and the incidence rate of myopia was 3.2 cases per 100 person‐years. Participants with myopia at baseline exhibited a faster increase in refractive error during the follow‐up period. Likewise, participants with two myopic parents exhibited a more marked change towards myopia, regardless of their initial refractive error. Conclusion: In the current study, similar to prevalence, the incidence of myopia was low when compared with other parts of the world. These results lead us to formulate a new hypothesis that the normal emmetropisation process may be protected by low educational pressure practised in Sweden during early childhood. Further research is necessary to test this new hypothesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of individualized ocular refraction customized (IORC) spectacle lenses with different actual amounts of peripheral myopic defocus (MD) on myopia control over 1 year. These lenses compensate for the original peripheral refraction via the free‐form surface on the back of the lens. Methods: This 1‐year, double‐masked randomised clinical trial included 184 myopic schoolchildren aged 8–12 years. Participants were randomised to receive IORC lenses with high (IORC‐H group, +4.50 D), medium (IORC‐M group, +3.50 D) or low (IORC‐L group, +2.50 D) MD or single‐vision (SV) lenses. The spherical equivalent refractive error (SER) and axial length (AL) were measured at baseline and 6‐monthly intervals. Results: After 1 year, the mean (SD) changes in SER were −0.18 (0.37), −0.36 (0.37), −0.52 (0.39) and −0.60 (0.42) D for the IORC‐H, IORC‐M, IORC‐L and SV groups, respectively. Compared with the SV group, the effects of slowing myopia progression were 70%, 40% and 13% for the IORC‐H (difference of 0.47 D, p < 0.001), IORC‐M (difference of 0.32 D, p = 0.001) and IORC‐L (difference of 0.15 D, p > 0.05) groups, respectively. The mean (SD) changes in AL were 0.12 (0.16), 0.23 (0.17), 0.29 (0.17) and 0.36 (0.17) mm for the IORC‐H, IORC‐M, IORC‐L and SV groups, respectively. The axial elongation was 67%, 36% and 19% lower in the IORC‐H (difference of 0.25 mm, p < 0.001), IORC‐M (difference of 0.15 mm, p < 0.001) and IORC‐L (difference of 0.10 mm, p = 0.04) groups, respectively, compared with the SV group. The IORC‐H group exhibited significantly less axial elongation than the IORC‐M and IORC‐L groups (p = 0.01 and p < 0.001, respectively). Conclusion: Compared with the IORC‐M and IORC‐L lenses, the IORC‐H lens was found to have superior efficacy in inhibiting myopic progression and slowing eye growth in schoolchildren, with better myopia control efficacy in younger children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Music lessons in Croatia are characterised by the existence of three areas that intertwine and complement each other. Thus, in music lessons, students will listen to music, participate in various activities regarding their musical expression, and learn about music. A music teacher can choose which activities of musical expression he will carry out in his own educational process, and he chooses them according to his own interests as well as the abilities of the students. This paper aims to determine the perception of upper primary school students regarding the musical creativity activities in music lessons. Students (N = 128) from two schools in the Vukovar-Srijem county participated in the survey, and one group of those students actively participated in musical creativity activities. The research results show that students generally have a positive opinion about musical creativity activities. The students who have participated in the musical creativity activities highly rate their competencies for participating in various creative activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Knowledge of symbols, which can be influenced by school ethos, informs identity construction in primary school children. This study aimed to explore Gaelscoil (Irish-medium) and English-medium primary school children's familiarity with Irish and European symbols. Thirty 9–12-year-old children in Ireland participated in this study; 15 from two Irish-medium and 15 from an English-medium primary school. A draw-and-tell data collection design was used and qualitative data was analysed using the constant comparative method. Results indicate children from both school types shared a number of Irish symbols, namely Irish emblems, Irish mythology, sports and material aspects of culture. Irish-medium primary school children had two further Irish symbol categories, the past as a symbol and physical characteristics of Ireland. European symbols shared across children from both school types included signifiers of the European Union (EU), monetary symbols and European countries. The Irish-medium primary school children had two further categories, Europe through an Irish lens and European cuisine, while the English-medium children had one further category, sport. The results suggest that by middle childhood, children in both school types have knowledge about a number of symbols associated with both national and European identities. Implications for future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]