Models of information literacy (Coonan et al., 2018; SCONUL, 2011) are explicit: critical thinking and ethical information use are essential skills within higher education (HE). Referencing is key to ...this, demonstrating how students select and apply information to create knowledge (Buckley, 2015; Angelil-Carter, 1995).
Within HE there has been an increased focus on inclusivity and accessibility (Equality Act, 2010; United Nations, 2015; Department for Education and Department for Health, 2015). Growing numbers of students are declaring a disability (Advance HE, 2019) and reports suggest they are increasingly dissatisfied with their courses (Office for Students, 2020). Proportionally, students with disabilities achieve lower grades than students without (Advance HE, 2019), suggesting needs and expectations of students with a disability are not being met within HE provisions.
The presentation discussed an ethically approved small-scale mixed-methods study carried out as part of a MA in Special Educational Needs and Inclusion. The research investigated student perceptions of referencing, whether adherence to specific referencing styles is a barrier for students with dyslexia and began investigating the impact of referencing styles on reading comprehension.
The largest disability declared within HE is Specific Learning Disability (SpLD) (Advance HE, 2019), which includes dyslexia (American Psychological Association, 2013). Students with SpLD report lower confidence with academic writing than non-SpLD students (Kinder and Elander, 2012). Academic literacy skills are arguably intertwined with a sense of legitimacy and belonging (Gourlay, 2009): it is therefore vital to consider ways of improving inclusion for all students (Office for Students, 2020).
The presenter observed that students with SpLD spent more time and energy on referencing than their non-disabled peers. This perception is corroborated by others (Sanders, 2010) and when combined with slower reading speeds (Hendricks and Quinn, 2000; Sanders, 2010; Serry et al., 2018) reduces time students have for critical subject engagement (Wengelin, 2007).
Attendees gained an understanding of how students view referencing and whether the choice of referencing system disadvantages students with dyslexia. Attendees also took part in a reading comprehension test giving a taster of the next steps for research which requires collaborative partners.
Abstract The reflexive-discursive confrontation of the pedagogical aporias is a possibility of thinking about students’ learning and not learning. The guiding question was formulated as follows: ...considering our own experiences of difficulties as students, what style of teaching enabled our teachers to succeed in our learning? It reflects on the pertinence of thinking about facing pedagogical aporias in the learning/not learning processes of school students. The reflection is organized in six steps, with the intention of sustaining that the pedagogical success of teachers with students with unique learning rhythms involves recognizing and facing the aporias inherent to the educational process.
Resumen La confrontación reflexivo-discursiva de las aporías pedagógicas es una posibilidad para pensar el aprender y el no aprender de los estudiantes. Así pues, se formuló la pregunta orientadora: Teniendo en cuenta nuestras propias experiencias de dificultades con los estudiantes, ¿qué estilo de enseñanza ha permitido a nuestros profesores tuviesen éxito en nuestro aprendizaje? Se refleja sobre la pertinencia de la confrontación pensante de aporías pedagógicas en los procesos de aprendizaje/no aprendizaje de los escolares. La reflexión se organiza en seis pasos, con la intención de sostener que el éxito pedagógico de los profesores con alumnos con ritmos de aprendizaje únicos implica el reconocimiento y enfrentamiento de las aporías inherentes al proceso educativo.
Resumo O enfrentamento reflexivo-discursivo das aporias pedagógicas é uma possibilidade de pensar o aprender e o não aprender de estudantes. A pergunta que guia este trabalho é a seguinte: considerando nossas experiências de dificuldades como alunos, que estilo de docência possibilitou que nossos professores obtivessem sucesso em nossas aprendizagens? Reflete-se acerca da pertinência do enfrentamento pensante das aporias pedagógicas nos processos de aprender/não aprender de estudantes escolares. Organiza-se a reflexão em seis passos, com a intenção de sustentar que o sucesso pedagógico dos professores com alunos com ritmos singulares de aprendizagem passa pelo reconhecimento e pelo enfrentamento das aporias inerentes ao processo educativo.
Résumé L’affrontement réflexif-discursif des apories pédagogiques se présente comme une possibilité de penser l’apprentissage et le non-apprentissage des élèves. Notre question-guide a été formulée: en tenant compte de nos expériences des difficultés en tant qu’élèves, quel style d’enseignement a le mieux permis à nos enseignants de réussir notre apprentissage? On réflechit sur l’à-propos de l’affrontement rationnel des apories pédagogiques dans les processus d’apprentissage/de non-apprentissage des élèves à l’école. La réflexion est structurée en six étapes, dans le but de soutenir que la réussite pédagogique des enseignants concernant des élèves ayant des rythmes d’apprentissages singuliers demande la reconnaissance et l’affrontement des apories inhérentes au processus d’enseignement.
Abstract Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the government implemented a large-scale social restriction policy that impacted online learning. There are obstacles where not all students have supporting ...learning facilities and have learning difficulties requiring teacher intervention in the learning process. The study aimed to determine teacher intervention in the learning process for students with learning difficulties. The research method used descriptive qualitative at Madrasah Ibtidaiyah (Islamic Elementary School) Ats-Tsauroh Serang City, Banten Province. Data collection was limited to interviews with eight informants, including teachers, madrasa heads, and deputy madrasa heads, during the social restrictions period in February-April 2021. The results showed that teacher intervention in overcoming student learning difficulties was carried out directly, namely by understanding student conditions, understanding the typology of student learning difficulties, communicating with students' parents, observing students' family environmental conditions, conducting study visits to students' homes, and assessing student motivation. Teacher creativity is essential in making decisions for the benefit of student learning so that teachers provide the best service under challenging conditions. The implication of this research is that teacher intervention is effective in overcoming students' learning difficulties in the Covid-19 social restrictions.
CLINICAL RELEVANCEUnderstanding what aspects of vision or binocular vision may affect learning, and how these are assessed, is important for the eye health care professional assessing children with ...learning difficulties. It is vital that visual dysfunction is identified or excluded in these patients to ensure targeted and timely intervention.BACKGROUNDThe aim of this study was to investigate similarities and differences between eye care professionals in the knowledge, attitudes and practice patterns, when evaluating children with learning difficulties.METHODSThis study was a cross-occupational, cross-sectional, predominantly quantitative internet-based survey. Ophthalmologists, optometrists, and orthoptists working in Australia were eligible to participate. A questionnaire comprising of 31 multiple-choice questions with up to 19 additional branching questions was distributed using REDCap in September 2022.RESULTSA total of 130 responses were analysed (6 ophthalmologists, 84 orthoptists and 40 optometrists of whom 9 were practicing behavioural vision care). Most respondents assessed distance visual acuity (95%), near stereoacuity (85%), presence of strabismus (88%) and ocular movements (91%). Near vision was assessed less often (65%). Optometrists were most likely to measure colour vision (p < 0.002), accommodation and undertake a subjective refraction (each p < 0.001). Ophthalmologists were least likely to measure convergence (p = 0.041) but more likely to undertake a cycloplegic refraction (p = 0.044). More optometrists practicing behavioural vision care reported testing binocular vision (p = 0.026), fusional vergence (p < 0.001), saccades (p = 0.066), and smooth pursuit (p = 0.050) than other professions. There was a positive correlation between frequency and confidence level when assessing children with learning difficulties (ρ = 0.64). Respondents referred to paediatricians (39%), speech pathologists (30%), educational psychologists (29%) and general practitioners (29%).CONCLUSIONDespite similarities across occupations, there were differences in testing the vision and binocular functions of children with learning difficulties. Future research should aim to establish minimum standards for assessing this patient cohort to ensure consistent and relevant assessment.
Biology is a subject that contains of many difficult concepts to study. This study aimed to identify Biology topics taught in Senior High School (SHS) which were considered as difficult materials by ...undergraduate students. The data were gathered by means of a web-based survey from 198 Biology students of 25 universities and 51 Biology education students of nine universities in Indonesia. The biology students graduated from SHSs in 97 regions/municipality, while the biology education students were graduated from 34 regions/municipality. The data were analyzed using two formulas: 1) Biology Difficulty Index (BDI) to determine the difficulty index of Biology subject, and 2) Topic Difficulty Index (TDI) to examine the difficulty index of each Biology topics. The results showed that the highest value of TDI was Genetics. There was no significant difference of BDI between Biology students and Biology education students. The lower of the students’ BDI, the higher the level of their interest in Biology subject. The primary cause of difficulty encountered by the students in studying various topics of Biology was the complicated characteristics of the materials. The findings of this study can be followed up by designing diagnostic tests and instructional designs in biology topics which consider students’ difficulty.
This text focuses on the development of number sense, specifically addressing the challenges associated with understanding the number system, including the connections to and difficulties in early ...arithmetic learning. It provides a synthesis of the scientific literature related to this development. It concludes by proposing a hypothesis for the development of number sense, associated with the construction of dynamic and pictorial mental representations. This continuum proposes five key phases: perception of small quantities, additive thinking, multiplicative thinking and pre-place value, passage to tens and passage to hundreds and understanding place value.
Benign Epilepsy with Centro-Temporal Spikes (BECTS) is a pediatric epilepsy with typically good seizure control. Although BECTS may increase patients’ risk of developing neurological comorbidities, ...their clinical care and short-term outcomes are poorly quantified.
We retrospectively assessed adherence to National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines relating to specialist referral, electroencephalogram (EEG) conduct and annual review in the care of patients with BECTS, and measured their seizure, neurodevelopmental and learning outcomes at three years post-diagnosis.
Across ten centers in England, we identified 124 patients (74 male) diagnosed with BECTS between 2015 and 2017. Patients had a mean age at diagnosis of 8.0 (95% CI = 7.6–8.4) years. 24/95 (25%) patients were seen by a specialist within two weeks of presentation; 59/100 (59%) received an EEG within two weeks of request; and 59/114 (52%) were reviewed annually. At three years post-diagnosis, 32/114 (28%) experienced ongoing seizures; 26/114 (23%) had reported poor school progress; 15/114 (13%) were diagnosed with a neurodevelopmental disorder (six autism spectrum disorder, six attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder); and 10/114 (8.8%) were diagnosed with a learning difficulty (three processing deficit, three dyslexia). Center-level random effects models estimated neurodevelopmental diagnoses in 9% (95% CI: 2–16%) of patients and learning difficulty diagnoses in 7% (95% CI: 2–12%).
In this multicenter work, we found variable adherence to NICE guidelines in the care of patients with BECTS and identified a notable level of neurological comorbidity. Patients with BECTS may benefit from enhanced cognitive and behavioral assessment and monitoring.
Inclusive education is a government program that is realized through an inclusive school program to help students with disabilities so that their formal education can be well served. The ...implementation of inclusive education in Tasikmalaya City and District is less encouraging, various plans for implementing inclusive education need to be taken seriously. The purpose of this study: studying, analyzing, and describing the learning difficulties of dyscalculia students; discuss the challenges or learning process in inclusive schools for dyscalculia students. The method used in this study is descriptive qualitative and think aloud was carried out at 4 inclusive schools in Tasikmalaya namely SDN Manggungjaya 1, SDN Sukasirna, SDN Cibungkul and SDN Tanjung 2. The subjects in this study were principals, class teachers in inclusive schools, and dyscalculia students in grades 4, 5 and 6 of each. The methods used in this study were descriptive qualitative and think aloud. The instruments used the researchers themselves and questionnaires. The data were collected using observation, exploration, and interviews, all data obtained analyzed then described narratively. Based on the results of data analysis concluded: dyscalculia students in grades 4, 5 and 6 still have difficulty in reading and counting operations in numbers up to 50, do not understand negative integers. Just learning to study is still very difficult to condition, teachers who often teach dyscalculia students with their own learning styles. Learning is still held by the class teacher when the teacher comes from the Special Needs School. Ideally, at least two students with disabilities, provided by teachers who have a special education background.
Deep neural networks often suffer from performance inconsistency for multiorgan segmentation in medical images; some organs are segmented far worse than others. The main reason might be organs with ...different levels of learning difficulty for segmentation mapping, due to variations such as size, texture complexity, shape irregularity, and imaging quality. In this article, we propose a principled class-reweighting algorithm, termed dynamic loss weighting, which dynamically assigns a larger loss weight to organs if they are discriminated as more difficult to learn according to the data and network's status, for forcing the network to learn from them more to maximally promote the performance consistency. This new algorithm uses an extra autoencoder to measure the discrepancy between the segmentation network's output and the ground truth and dynamically estimates the loss weight of organs per the contribution of the organ to the new updated discrepancy. It can capture the variation in organs' learning difficult during training, and it is neither sensitive to data's property nor dependent on human priors. We evaluate this algorithm in two multiorgan segmentation tasks: abdominal organs and head-neck structures, on publicly available datasets, with positive results obtained from extensive experiments which confirm the validity and effectiveness. Source codes are available at: https://github.com/YouyiSong/Dynamic-Loss-Weighting .
We provide a commentary on current debates about the definition of dyslexia. We agree with others that dyslexia is best thought of as a dimensional disorder with the best established causal risk ...factor being a deficit in phonological processing. Dyslexia is particularly common in children from families with a history of dyslexia and in children with preschool language difficulties. We argue that definitions may differ depending upon their purpose. Traditional discrepancy definitions may be useful for research purposes, but when considering the provision of educational services discrepancy definitions are not useful since all children with reading difficulties require reading intervention regardless of their level of IQ.
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