Investigating Visual Perception Impairments through Serious Games and Eye Tracking to Anticipate Handwriting Difficulties

Dysgraphia is a learning disability that causes handwritten production below expectations. Its diagnosis is delayed until the completion of handwriting development. To allow a preventive training program, abilities not directly related to handwriting should be evaluated, and one of them is visual perception. To investigate the role of visual perception in handwriting skills, we gamified standard clinical visual perception tests to be played while wearing an eye tracker at three difficulty levels. Then, we identified children at risk of dysgraphia through the means of a handwriting speed test. Five machine learning models were constructed to predict if the child was at risk, using the CatBoost algorithm with Nested Cross-Validation, with combinations of game performance, eye-tracking, and drawing data as predictors. A total of 53 children participated in the study. The machine learning models obtained good results, particularly with game performances as predictors (F1 score: 0.77 train, 0.71 test). SHAP explainer was used to identify the most impactful features. The game reached an excellent usability score (89.4 +/- 9.6). These results are promising to suggest a new tool for dysgraphia early screening based on visual perception skills

MONTSENSORY POCKET: DYSGRAPHIA CHILDREN’S LEARNING TOOL USING MOBILE APPLICATION

The fundamentals of writing are the most essential and crucial skill which all children must grasp. It is because with the ability of writing children will be able to perceive the skill of literacy and as well as other areas of life. On the other hand, some children still struggle with the capability of skill to write and this indicates them to be diagnosed with “Dysgraphia”. Dysgraphia is a neurological condition that results in problems with written abilities and expression. Children with dysgraphia have writing abilities that are below the level anticipated of individuals based on their intellectual, age, and educational backgroun

Model tulisan tangan berbantukan teknologi untuk memudahcara penulisan murid Disgrafia

Dysgraphia is a student learning problem related to handwriting skills, which is not inline according to their age. To overcome the problem, various handwriting skills intervention methods to dysgrapbic students have been conducted. However, past research on the intervention methods have not covered all levels of handwriting skills from the basic levels to automaticity. This embodies a research gap especially the absence of a comprehensive technology-assisted support model. The function of the dysgraphic student writing support application will be more effective with the presence of interaction design guidelines (IxD). Thus, this study proposes a technology-assisted handwriting model of dysgraphic students (DCHM) to improve their writing proficiency at the level of visualization, imagination and automation. The model involves a combination of letter formation components (transcription, visualization, imagination, text generation and cognitive) and ICT support (letter formation animation, control, tracing, arrow animation, feedback and repetition). To achieve the objective, three phases of research methods are involved namely 1) categorising and analysing handwriting patterns, model design and verifying the model; 2) developing the prototype; and 3) evaluating the prototype. The reliability of the model was tested through user's evaluation using handwriting legibility scale (HLS). Comparisons were made based on handwriting samples before and after the intervention with the assistance of the prototype. The findings demonstrated that, HLS is able to identify the sensitivity of each parameter in DCHM. To be more specific, the score achieved for global legibility and effort to read the script is 92 percent, layout on the page and letter fonnation attained 96 percent; while alterations to writing scored 100 percent. The overall evaluation of the model showed positive scores from the aspects of legibility, memory, correct letter formation, and ultimately automaticity achievement in handwriting. In conclusion, these findings confirmed that the implementation of DCHM in the prototype can significantly enhance the mastery of handwriting among dysgraphic students. More importantly, this study has contributed substantially to the field of interaction design by providing a novel understanding of the design model

Users\u27 Needs in Telehealth Speech-Language Pathology Services

Telehealth, as a provision of health care at a distance by usage of ICT, has also found its application in speech-language pathology (SLP) services. There are many advantages of remote usage of SLP services like extending the treatment or reaching remotely located people who need a treatment at affordable cost. While in the developed countries SLP telepractice is becoming common, there is little evidence about their usage in transitional and developing countries. This paper presents the findings of a survey conducted among SLP professionals and their clients in Croatia. The research results provide insights into the profiles of these two categories of SLP users regarding their computer literacy as well as their needs and preferences in using remote speech-language services. These findings present an important input for development and implementation of telerehabilitation approaches into environments that still lag behind developed countries

Una aplicación móvil para estudiantes con dificultades de aprendizaje: diseño y validación

En los últimos años, el uso de tecnologías y dispositivos portátiles se ha generalizado en muchos campos y también en la educación. Hay además muchas investigaciones que demuestran la enorme difusión del uso y la popularidad de los dispositivos móviles entre los jóvenes. La tecnología móvil ofrece la capacidad de apoyar el aprendizaje y también ofrece tanto a los estudiantes como a los profesores oportunidades de aprendizaje personalizadas. Los principales factores para la adopción e implementación del M-Learning en las escuelas son la disposición y disposición de los maestros. Hay muchos estudios que demuestran las actitudes y percepciones positivas de los profesores de secundaria sobre el uso de dispositivos móviles en la escuela. Es más, un gran número de encuestas indican que el uso de tecnologías móviles, afecta positivamente la educación de los niños con necesidades educativas especiales como el autismo, dislexia, etc. Esta tesis doctoral tiene como objetivo el diseño y la evaluación de una aplicación educativa para Android que se espera ayude a los estudiantes de escuela secundaria griega con dificultades de aprendizaje a adquirir habilidades adicionales en matemáticas. En primer lugar, se han analizado las actitudes y percepciones de los profesores griegos de educación especial sobre el uso de las TIC en clase para asegurarse, por una parte, de que el conocimiento de los profesores en este campo es adecuado, teniendo en cuenta el hecho de que el conocimiento de las TIC no es una habilidad previa para convertirse en profesor. Esta etapa se realiza a través de cuestionarios estructurados y el análisis de los datos de las respuestas se ha realizado con el software IBM SPSS Statistics. En segundo lugar, en el marco de la elaboración de la tesis se ha creado una nueva aplicación tecnológica Android, destinada a ayudar a los estudiantes con dificultades de aprendizaje en el campo de las matemáticas. La herramienta de desarrollo de aplicaciones que se ha utilizado es Android Studio, el IDE oficial (Entorno de Desarrollo Integrado) para la plataforma Android. El lenguaje de programación que se ha utilizado es Java. Antes de su implementación la aplicación fue evaluada por 7 docentes especializados tanto en el área de informática como en matemáticas a través de un cuestionario estructurado. Se implementó su uso durante dos meses en escuelas de secundaria educación . Después de su implementación se evaluaron los resultados a través de entrevistas a profesores de educación especial y cuestionarios dirigidos a estudiantes con dificultades de aprendizaje con el fin de estimar, por un lado, las opiniones e impresiones de los estudiantes y profesores y, por otro lado, las habilidades potenciales que los estudiantes podían haber adquirido. El análisis estadístico de los cuestionarios de evaluación docente reveló que los profesores de matemáticas e informática tienen una actitud positiva hacia la aplicación “Love2LearnMaths”. El mismo punto de vista positivo hacia la aplicación se puede observar en las respuestas de los profesores entrevistados, que son los docentes de matemáticas para estudiantes con NEE. Los estudiantes de los departamentos de integración, por otro lado, parecen estar positivamente entusiasmados con el uso de la aplicación “Love2LearnMaths” como lo revela el análisis de los cuestionarios de los estudiantes para la evaluación de la aplicación.In recent years the use of portable technologies and devices has become widespread in many fields, such as in the economy, tourism, entertainment, but also in education. There are many surveys that prove the huge spread of use and popularity of mobile devices (mobile phones, tablets and laptops) among young people. On the other hand, mobile phones are mostly preferred compared to other mobile devices by secondary school students. Mobile technology offers the ability to support learning and also offers to both students and teachers personalized learning opportunities. The main factors for the adoption and implementation of M-Learning in schools are the willingness and readiness of teachers. There are many studies that prove the positive attitudes and perceptions of secondary school teachers on the use of mobile devices in school. However, specifically for Greece much fewer studies have been carried out. What is more, a great number of surveys indicate that the use of mobile technologies, affects positively the education of children with special educational needs such as autism, ADHD, dyslexia etc. Therefore, this PhD dissertation aims at the design and evaluation of an educational Android application that is expected to help Greek gymnasium’s students with learning difficulties to acquire extra skills in mathematics. Firstly, the attitudes and perceptions of Greek special education teachers about the use of ICTs in class have been analyzed to make sure on the one hand that teachers’ knowledge on this field is adequate, considering the fact that ICTs’ knowledge is not a prerequisite skill for becoming teacher. Additionally, teachers’ attitudes towards the use of ICTs in class have been clarified. This stage is carried out via structured questionnaires and the data analysis of the answers has been made with IBM SPSS Statistics software. Secondly, in the framework of the thesis’ elaboration, a new technological Android application has been created, aiming at assisting students with learning difficulties in the field of mathematics. The application development tool that has been used is Android Studio, the official IDE (Integrated Development Environment) for the Android platform. The programming language that has been used is Java, while XML’s knowledge was required in order to customize the formatting and the appearance of the application. The application was to be implemented in integration departments of two secondary Greek schools within a period of six months (finally the period was reduced to two due to covid-19 restrictions). Before its implementation the application was evaluated by 7 teachers specialized in both the area of informatics and mathematics via a structured questionnaire. After its implementation the results were evaluated via interviews with special education teachers and questionnaires addressed to students with learning difficulties in order to estimate on the one hand the opinions and impressions of the students and teachers because of its use and, on the other hand the potential skills that the students may have acquired. The statistical analysis of teachers' evaluation questionnaires revealed that mathematicians and informatics’ teachers have a positive attitude towards the application “Love2LearnMaths”. Similar attitudes towards mobile devices and apps in general had been announced by the Special Education teachers of the first phase of our research. The same positive point of view towards the application “Love2LearnMaths” can be observed in the answers of the interviewees, who are the special education mathematicians. Students of integration departments on the other hand, appear positively enthusiastic about the use of the application “Love2LearnMaths” as revealed by the analysis of Students’ questionnaires for the evaluation of the app.

How effective is fine motor training in children with ADHD? : a scoping review

Background: Motor deficiencies are observed in a large number of children with ADHD. Especially fine motor impairments can lead to academic underachievement, low self-esteem and frustration in affected children. Despite these far-reaching consequences, fine motor deficiencies have remained widely undertreated in the ADHD population. The aim of this review was to systematically map the evidence on existing training programs for remediating fine motor impairments in children with ADHD and to assess their effectiveness. Methods: The scoping review followed the PRISMA-ScR guidelines. In March 2020, PsycINFO, MEDLINE (PubMed), Web of Science, Google Scholar and The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews were searched for evidence. The eligibility criteria and the data charting process followed the PICO framework, complemented by study design. The investigated population included children with a formal ADHD diagnosis (either subtype) or elevated ADHD symptoms aged between 4 and 12 years, both on and off medication. All training interventions aiming at improving fine motor skills, having a fine motor component or fine motor improvements as a secondary outcome were assessed for eligibility; no comparators were specified. Results: Twelve articles were included in the final report, comprising observational and experimental studies as well as a review. Both offline and online or virtual training interventions were reported, often accompanied by physical activity and supplemented by training sessions at home. The training programs varied in length and intensity, but generally comprised several weeks and single or multiple training sessions per week. All interventions including more than one session were effective in the treatment of fine motor deficiencies in children with ADHD and had a wide range of additional positive outcomes. The effects could be maintained at follow-up. Conclusions: Fine motor training in children with ADHD can be very effective and multiple approaches including specific fine motor and cognitive training components, some kind of physical activity, feedback mechanisms, or multimodal treatments can be successful. Training programs need to be tailored to the specific characteristics of the ADHD population. A mHealth approach using serious games could be promising in this context due to its strong motivational components

Current Understanding, Support Systems, and Technology-led Interventions for Specific Learning Difficulties

In January 2019, the Government Office for Science commissioned a series of 4 rapid evidence reviews to explore how technology and research can help improve educational outcomes for learners with Specific Learning Difficulties (SpLDs). This review examined: 1) current understanding of the causes and identification of SpLDs, 2)the support system for learners with SpLDs, 3)technology-based interventions for SpLDs 4) a case study approach focusing on dyscalculia to explore all 3 theme

Identification of EEG signal patterns between adults with dyslexia and normal controls

Electroencephalography (EEG) is one of the most useful techniques used to represent behaviours of the brain and helps explore valuable insights through the measurement of brain electrical activity. Hence, it plays a vital role in detecting neurological disorders such as epilepsy. Dyslexia is a hidden learning disability with a neurological origin affecting a significant amount of the world population. Studies show unique brain structures and behaviours in individuals with dyslexia and these variations have become more evident with the use of techniques such as EEG, Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI), Magnetoencephalography (MEG) and Positron Emission Tomography (PET). In this thesis, we are particularly interested in discussing the use of EEG to explore unique brain activities of adults with dyslexia. We attempt to discover unique EEG signal patterns between adults with dyslexia compared to normal controls while performing tasks that are more challenging for individuals with dyslexia. These tasks include real--‐word reading, nonsense--‐ word reading, passage reading, Rapid Automatized Naming (RAN), writing, typing, browsing the web, table interpretation and typing of random numbers. Each participant was instructed to perform these specific tasks while staying seated in front of a computer screen with the EEG headset setup on his or her head. The EEG signals captured during these tasks were examined using a machine learning classification framework, which includes signal preprocessing, frequency sub--‐band decomposition, feature extraction, classification and verification. Cubic Support Vector Machine (CSVM) classifiers were developed for separate brain regions of each specified task in order to determine the optimal brain regions and EEG sensors that produce the most unique EEG signal patterns between the two groups. The research revealed that adults with dyslexia generated unique EEG signal patterns compared to normal controls while performing the specific tasks. One of the vital discoveries of this research was that the nonsense--‐words classifiers produced higher Validation Accuracies (VA) compared to real--‐ words classifiers, confirming difficulties in phonological decoding skills seen in individuals with dyslexia are reflected in the EEG signal patterns, which was detected in the left parieto--‐occipital. It was also uncovered that all three reading tasks showed the same optimal brain region, and RAN which is known to have a relationship to reading also showed optimal performance in an overlapping region, demonstrating the likelihood that the association between reading and RAN reflects in the EEG signal patterns. Finally, we were able to discover brain regions that produced exclusive EEG signal patterns between the two groups that have not been reported before for writing, typing, web browsing, table interpretation and typing of random numbers

THE CONTRIBUTION OF THE MONTESSORI APPROACH TO MULTISENSORY APPROACHES TO EARLY LEARNING DISABILITIES

Faculty of Humanities School of Education 9805090w [email protected] disabilities have become of increasing concern for educators. More and more children are having difficulty learning to read and write. This dissertation investigates what constitutes a learning disability, its etiology and whether or not it is possible to identify these disabilities in early childhood. The investigation further aims to discover if these learning disabilities are comprised of sub-disabilities and if these can be identified as such. To this end the research aims to determine the most appropriate remedial intervention strategies used for learning disabilities. Multisensory intervention is therefore explored. On the basis of this the Montessori Method is examined to ascertain whether or not the method can contribute to multisensory intervention at the preschool level. It is argued that the Montessori Method is admirably suited to making such a contribution. Further empirical research for these claims is indicated