An evaluation of the effectiveness of a computer‐assisted reading intervention          下载免费PDF全文

David Messer  Gilly Nash 《Journal of Research in Reading》2018,41(1):140-158

Background

A cost‐effective method to address reading delays is to use computer‐assisted learning, but these techniques are not always effective.

Methods

We evaluated a commercially available computer system that uses visual mnemonics, in a randomised controlled trial with 78 English‐speaking children (mean age 7 years) who their schools identified as needing reading support. School‐based individual tutorials usually took place 2–3 times/week. Only the experimental group received the intervention in the first 10 months; thereafter, both the experimental and control groups received the intervention for 6 months.

Results

After 10 months, the experimental group had significantly higher standardised scores than the waiting list control group of decoding, phonological awareness, naming speed, phonological short‐term memory and executive loaded working memory.

Conclusions

The computer‐assisted intervention was effective, and this suggests that this medium can be used for reading interventions with English‐speaking children. What is already known about this topic

• There are comparatively few randomised controlled trial evaluations of computer‐based reading interventions.
• Meta‐analyses report small positive effect sizes for such interventions with English‐speaking children.
• The use of visual mnemonics to improve reading has rarely been investigated.

What this paper adds

• The findings suggest that computer‐based interventions for English‐speaking, struggling readers can be effective.
• The effects extended beyond the targeted abilities, and a longer intervention was more effective than a shorter one.
• Apart from spelling, the mean reading and reading related standardised scores for children at the end of the intervention were above or just below 100.

Implications for theory, policy or practice

• Computer‐based interventions can be used to support English‐speaking, struggling readers, and their effects can go beyond targeted abilities.
• The use of visual mnemonics and the development of the intervention programme over a number of years could have contributed to this success.
• The role of visual mnemonics as a help for struggling readers deserves further investigation.

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Self-regulation advantage for high-IQ children: Findings from a research study     

Maria Dolores Calero  Maria Beln García-Martín  Maria Isabel Jimnez  Miguel Kazn  Arsenio Araque 《Learning and individual differences》2007,17(4):328-343

Current approaches in intelligence research indicate the need for a more extensive determination of characteristics of children with possible giftedness, not only at an intellectual level, but also at the level of self-regulation and motivation. The present study compares self-regulation efficiency between high-IQ and average-ability children aged 6 to 11 years using a computerized task: The ‘Self-regulation and concentration test for children’ [SRTC, Kuhl, J. & Kraska, K. (1993). Self-regulation: Psychometric properties of a computer-aided instrument. The German Journal of Psychology, 17, 11–24]. Results show that high-IQ children have better self-regulatory abilities than a comparable group of average-ability children. In addition, self-regulation efficiency is related to working memory and action orientation (i.e., self-motivation). It is concluded that the assessment of self-regulation is important both for the research and practice related to children with high intellectual ability.  相似文献   

The Integration of English Language Development and Science Instruction in Elementary Classrooms     

Susan Gomez Zwiep  William J. Straits  Kristin R. Stone  Dolores D. Beltran  Leena Furtado 《Journal of Science Teacher Education》2011,22(8):769-785

This paper explores one district’s attempt to implement a blended science and English Language Development (ELD) elementary program, designed to provide English language learners opportunities to develop proficiency in English through participation in inquiry-based science. This process resulted in blended program that utilized a combined science/ELD lesson plan format to structure and guide teachers’ efforts to use science as the context for language development. Data, collected throughout the first 2 years of the program, include teacher-generated lesson plans, observation notes, and interviews with teachers and principals. The process by which the blended program was developed, the initial implementation of the program, the resulting science/ELD lesson plan format, and teachers’ perceptions about the program and its impact on their students are described.  相似文献   

Development of a virtual tool for learning basic organisation and planning in rural engineering projects     

María Dolores Redel-Macías  Carlos Castillo  Cristina Aguilar Porro  María Polo  Encarnación V. Taguas 《European Journal of Engineering Education》2014,39(5):507-517

This paper presents a virtual lab for the contents of an Engineering project, for designing an agro-industrial building, which is also useful for a range of different transversal courses in Engineering sciences. The aims of this tool are to analyse the most important contents of a project-document (calculation, regulations, drawings and budgets), as well as their relationship with the activities which make up the work and the schedule. The design criteria we considered were: its online applications and their compatibility with Moodle; the inclusion of different learning approaches, such as exploratory learning and inquiry-based learning; its interactivity, and the use of multimedia elements for visualisation and direct analysis on material common to Engineering subjects. The students’ perceptions of the improvements brought by the virtual lab were analysed statistically through a series of questions over two academic years. The results of the questionnaires suggested that most of those who had used the e-learning tool valued positively its overall suitability for reaching the objectives in their subject as well as the way it improved the working methodology. The practical knowledge acquired by the students was also highly valued. In addition, the lack of constraints commonly related to field trips (expenses, time and complexity) illustrates the utility of self-access learning tools in key transversal disciplines such as Engineering projects.  相似文献   

Social and communicative processes in computer-based problem solving     

Paul Light  Karen Littleton  David Messer  Richard Joiner 《European Journal of Psychology of Education - EJPE》1994,9(2):93-109

This paper overviews the results of four studies designed to investigate the effects of collaborative modes of computer use upon children's performance and learning. All used the same type of problem solving task, couched within an adventure game format. The first of these studies provides a striking illustration of how children who work in pairs on a route planning task can show better learning outcomes than children who work on the same problem individually. The possible psychological processes mediating this effect are considered. The second study extends this consideration further and seeks to identify those aspects of verbal interaction that underpin productive paired interaction. The third study includes consideration of the efficacy of pairing as a function of the relative ability of pair members. The fourth study focuses upon the effects of working in the presence of others, even in the absence of interaction. Taken together, the results of the third and fourth studies highlight the importance of paying closer attention to the ways in which children construe the particular experimental conditions we create and their own position in relation to them.  相似文献   

The counsellor and changing Canadian sexual mores     

Dolores L. Shymko 《International journal for the advancement of counseling》1979,2(2):153-160

To date, the counsellor in North America has been inadequately trained, and consequently ineffective in dealing with client problems involving human sexuality. The purpose of this paper is to help the counsellor increase his awareness and understanding of the sexual attitudes and behaviour of the clients with whom he interacts in the therapeutic setting. This task is undertaken by examining the empirical findings from some current Canadian sex research to determine some of the dominant changes in attitudes that have occurred within the past decade. The findings from this research have indicated that there has been a major change in the personal outlook of Canadian youth, as well as the viewpoint of the public at large, leading to a more general acceptance of a permissive sexual ethic. There are also signs that public attitudes toward prevalent social codes of sexual behaviour are being reappraised and redefined. The implications of these changes in Canadian sexual mores as a significant factor in the counselling process are discussed.  相似文献   

Applying Kember's Linear‐Process Model to distance education at Charles Sturt University‐Riverina     

David Roberts  Bruce Boyton  Susan Buete  Dolores Dawson 《Distance Education》1991,12(1):54-84

Kember's linear‐process model of drop‐out from distance education (described in detail in Distance Education 10, 2, 196‐211) has been adapted and used as the basis for a series of interviews with students studying externally at Charles Sturt University‐Riverina. Although the sample is small, many issues are raised that arc relevant for distance educators. It is concluded Kember's model provides a useful theoretical underpinning for examining not only reasons for student withdrawal but also why they continue their studies.  相似文献   

Georgia's P‐16 Reggio Emilia initiative: bringing schools and universities together     

Dolores A. Stegelin 《Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education》2013,34(2):117-120

ABSTRACT

This study examined the effects of coaching with versus without demonstrations of evidence-based book-reading practices on teachers’ use of strategies during independent book-reading periods. A total of 22 Head Start teachers were randomly assigned to one of two cohorts. One cohort (n = 12) participated in biweekly coaching sessions that included having coaches demonstrate how to incorporate a focus on key literacy skills while reading books aloud to students (C + D); the other cohort (n = 10) participated in coaching sessions that did not include explicit demonstration and modeling of evidence-based book-reading practices (C-only). Postintervention observations revealed that teachers in the C + D cohort engaged in behaviors and interactions during their book reading that focused on phonological awareness, alphabet and word knowledge, and print and book awareness to a greater extent than did teachers in the C-only cohort. Cohort differences were also found during an observed small-group activity and on the language and literacy items of a general measure of the classroom literacy environment. Results lend support for the importance of demonstration and observational learning as dimensions of coaching to bring about significant change in teachers’ literacy-enhancing practices.  相似文献   

Banco de ideas     

María Dolores Domínguez  Angel Carrera i López  Anna Mòlas i Marcellés 《Cultura y Educación》2013,25(7-8):163-183

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Variables involved in personal, social and school adjustment in a sample of preschool-aged children from different cultural backgrounds     

María Dolores Calero  Antonio Fernández-Parra  Sonia López-Rubio  Rosario Carles  Sara Mata  María del Carmen Vives  Elena Navarro  José Márquez 《European Journal of Psychology of Education - EJPE》2013,28(1):133-155

The continuing incorporation of immigrant populations into the Spanish educational system poses an important challenge in that all participants must cooperate toward creating the best possible adaptation process at the academic level as well as on the personal and social levels. A number of different factors appear to influence children’s adjustment during the preschool stage, and these factors are especially relevant since many studies have shown that this is a key period for the prevention of future difficulties. The present study examines the variables involved in the adaptation of a group of preschool-aged children from different cultural backgrounds in Spain. The results indicate that preschoolers, regardless of their background, have similar performance and learning potential, with language proficiency being the factor that most clearly affects the other variables investigated. It was also found that children’s attitudes toward learning were related to the presence of behavioral difficulties and with the quality and type of parental child-rearing practices. These practices appear to be related to a number of difficulties immigrant children may experience on personal and social levels.  相似文献