Educational mobile game design for children learning mathematics

Children can learn while playing computer educational games. Therefore, it is important that educational games for children are well designed and usable. This study proposes an educational mobile game design for children to learn mathematics. Based on the design, a low fidelity and high fidelity prototypes called PreMath Operations were designed and developed. A usability evaluation was conducted on the prototypes by observing children playing with the games. The result of the evaluation suggested that PreMath Operations prototypes is usable and can help children to learn math while playing. This study provides a design strategy of mathematic educational game for children to learn in a fun and interestin

Evaluating New Approaches of Intervention in Reading Difficulties in Students with Dyslexia: The ilearnRW Software Application

The aim of this paper is to increase knowledge and understanding on how the implementation of language content through specialized software, such as the “Integrated Intelligent Learning Environment for Reading and Writing-iLearnRW”, can enhance learning during intervention procedures to enhance reading skills for children with dyslexia.The iLearnRW software is a newly designed tool that makes use of innovative technology and provides individualized intervention through games that incorporate learning activities, addressing those language areas that are most challenging for children with dyslexia in a highly entertaining and motivating way. Individualized intervention is provided through an underlying user profile, which incorporates these language features and is constantly updated as the child uses the software playing games, presenting language material selected based on his difficulties and recording his progress. A group of 78 students (52 male, 26 female) diagnosed with dyslexia, aged between 9 and 11 years old, was assessed for phonological, morphological and vocabulary skills. The students logged in the iLearnRW software on a mean of 14.18 days over a six-month intervention. After the 6-month intervention, the students were assessed once again on the same skills so as to establish the tool’s effectiveness.The results’ analysis revealed the following: (i) there was a strong constructional linkage between the profile entries of the sample, the language content of the tasks of the screening test as well of the games and its effectiveness in the students’ performance; (ii) the students who received specific guidance by their teachers, obtained higher success rates in most of the games than the students without any guidance, and (iii) the quantity of the language content and the time playing were not correlated with the students’ performance in the software’s games. Keywords: Digital technology, assistive computer software, dyslexia, learning environmen

Feasibility of a smartphone application to identify young children at risk for Autism Spectrum Disorder in a low-income community setting in South Africa

Introduction and aims More than 90% of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) live in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) where there is a great need for culturally appropriate, scalable and effective early identification and intervention tools. Smartphone technology and application (‘apps’) may potentially play an important role in this regard. The Autism&Beyond iPhone App was designed as a potential screening tool for ASD risk in children aged 12-72 months. Here we investigated the technical feasibility and cultural acceptability of a smartphone app to determine risk for ASD in children aged 12-72 months in a naturalistic, low-income South African community setting. Methodology 37 typically-developing African children and their parents/carers were recruited from community centres in Khayelitsha Township, Cape Town, South Africa. We implemented a mixed-methods design, collecting both quantitative and qualitative data from participants in 2 stages. In stage 1, we collected quantitative data. With appropriate ethics and consent, parents completed a short technology questionnaire about their familiarity with and access to smartphones, internet and apps, followed by electronic iPhone-based demographic and ASD-related questionnaires. Next, children were shown 3 short videos of 30s each and a mirror stimulus on a study smartphone. The smartphone front facing (“selfie”) camera recorded video of the child’s facial expressions and head movement. Automated computer algorithms quantified positive emotions and time attending to stimuli. We validated the automatic coding by a) comparing the computer-generated analysis to human coding of facial expressions in a random sample (N=9), and b) comparing automated analysis of the South African data (N=33) with a matched American sample (N=33). In stage 2, a subset of families were invited to participate in focus group discussions to provide qualitative data on accessibility, acceptability, and cultural appropriateness of the app in their local community. Results Most parents (64%) owned a smartphone of which all (100%) were Android based, and many used Apps (45%). Human-automated coding showed excellent correlation for positive emotion (ICC= 0.95, 95% CI 0.81-0.99) and no statistically significant differences were observed between the South African and American sample in % time attending to the video stimuli. South African children, however, smiled less at the Toys&Rhymes (SA mean (SD) = 14% (24); USA mean (SD) = 31% (34); p=0.05) and Bunny video (SA mean (SD) = 12% (17); USA mean (SD) = 30% (0.27); p=0.006). Analysis of focus group data indicated that parents/carers found the App relatively easy to use, and would recommend it to others in their community provided the App and data transfer were free. Conclusion The results from this pilot study suggested the App to be technically accurate, accessible and culturally acceptable to families from a low-resource environment in South Africa. Given the differences in positive emotional response between the groups, careful consideration should be given to identify suitable stimuli if % time smiling is to be used as a global marker for autism risk across cultures and environments

Telerehabilitation in the Middle East North Africa Region: A Structured Review

A structured review using the PRISMA guidelines, MeSH keywords and eight health databases was conducted (1990 to March 2021). Telerehabilitation research evidence from the Middle East and North Africa region (MENA) was summarized. Twelve studies from Iran, Israel, Morocco, and Saudi Arabia met inclusion criteria; nearly all had been published within the past five years. Methodological quality was moderate to good in the four randomized controlled trials, five cohort-studies and three cross-section surveys. There were seven intervention studies in cardiovascular, musculoskeletal, neurology or burn rehabilitation and three patient perception and two practitioner perception studies. Narrative synthesis revealed content themes relating to rehabilitation availability and accessibility; patient/practitioner perceptions of telerehabilitation; telerehabilitation to augment traditional services; and barriers to telerehabilitation. Telerehabilitation practice in MENA has been demonstrated as feasible, acceptable to patients, and effective in practitioner-designed cohort specific programs. Practitioners are generally positive but lack experience and need training, enabling technological systems, and policy frameworks. &nbsp

Insights from mechanistic and digital intervention approaches

Eine effektive Förderung des Sozialverhaltens autistischer Kinder erfordert ein tiefgehendes Verständnis der Ursachen maladaptiver Reaktionen und die Bereitstellung eines leicht verfügbaren Förderangebots. Hier haben digitale Angebote ein großes Potential. Ebenso wie bei der Ursachenforschung mangelt es jedoch an Forschungsansätzen, welche eine Vielzahl an kognitiven und emotionalen Prozessen in die digitale Förderung integrieren. Dementsprechend untersuchte die Dissertation zunächst das Zusammenspiel verschiedener Ursachen aggressives Sozialverhaltens anhand eines etablierten Modells der sozial-kognitiven Informationsverarbeitung. Durch die Integration verschiedener Facetten der Empathie und deren zugrundeliegende Kompetenzen in ein digitales Förderangebot sollte im zweiten Schritt eine Verbesserung des Sozialverhaltens autistischer Grundschüler:innen erreicht werden. Es zeigte sich, dass Emotionsdysregulation verschiedene Formen aggressiven Sozialverhaltens und damit assoziierte feindselige Attributionen verstärkt. Letztere stand vor allem mit verbalen und verdeckten Aggressionsformen sowie mit guten Emotionserkennungsfertigkeiten im Zusammenhang. Eine Verbesserung des Sozialverhaltens und der Emotionsregulation konnte mittelfristig durch das sechswöchige, eltern-begleitete eLearningprogramm „Zirkus Empathico“ erreicht werden. Die multizentrische, randomisiert kontrollierte Studie ergab zudem kurzfristige und moderate Interventionseffekte für Empathie und Emotionserkennung als primäre Endpunkte. Insgesamt unterstreicht die Dissertation die Validität etablierter Modelle der sozialen Informationsverarbeitung sowie die Relevanz, diese zukünftigen Forschungs- und Interventionsansätzen zugrunde zu legen. Durch die Integration verschiedener sozio-emotionaler Kompetenzen scheint die digitale Intervention Zirkus Empathico prosoziales Verhalten autistischer Kinder auf effektive und praktikable Weise zu fördern.Effective training of autistic children`s social behavior requires an in-depth understanding of the causes of maladaptive responses and the provision of easily accessible support services. In this context, digital interventions have great potential. However, there is a lack of research approaches that integrate a variety of cognitive and emotional processes into both, explanation and digital support. The present dissertation first examined the interplay of different causes of aggressive social behavior by applying an established model of social-cognitive information processing to a sample of autistic elementary school students. Second, by integrating different facets of empathy and their underlying competencies into a digital program, the social behavior of autistic elementary school children should be improved. First, it was shown that emotion dysregulation strengthens various forms of aggressive social behavior and associated hostile attribution biases. The latter was mainly related to verbal and covert forms of aggression and good emotion recognition skills. Second, the parent-assisted eLearning program "Zirkus Empathico" led to a medium-term improvement in social behavior and emotion regulation after a six-week training. In addition, the multicenter randomized controlled trial showed moderate intervention effects on empathy and emotion recognition as primary outcomes, which were no longer detectable three months later. Overall, the dissertation highlights the validity of established models of social information processing and the relevance of using them as a foundation for future research and intervention. By integrating various socio-emotional competencies, the digital intervention Zirkus Empathico seems to strengthen autistic children’s prosocial behavior effectively and feasibly

Serious and Adventure Video Games as Tools in the Deaf Education of Children

Deaf education is characterized by specific challenges and needs. Studies showed, that deaf and hard-of-hearing children experience special difficulties in two fields – in learning a national verbal language, and in problem-solving. At the same time, video games are popularized in schools. However, in the education of deaf children, the use of games is hampered by accessibility issues. The main purpose of this master’s thesis will be to verify whether video games could prove to be a proper additional method of teaching in the case of deaf and hard-of hearing children, and what features should an educational video game have to meet the availability conditions. The research will be done on both serious and adventure games and will show which genre works better for developing which skills. Particular attention will be given to design guidelines for deaf-accessible games. Two research methods will be used for the purposes of this work. Qualitative research and discourse analysis of games. The qualitative research will consist of an open-ended questions survey among English-speaking and Polish-speaking teachers who work with deaf children, in order to get to know their attitudes towards games, main obstacles, and needs. The discourse analysis will be focused on two serious games, Prodigy and Wordwall, and on one adventure ASL-accessible game Deafverse. Based on the research, it will be explored, how, through using video games, modern education can meet the challenges of young deaf students and make learning more absorbing and effective.Master's Thesis in Digital CultureDIKULT350MAHF-DIKU

International Conference Sport, Health and Society

UBT Annual International Conference is the 11th international interdisciplinary peer reviewed conference which publishes works of the scientists as well as practitioners in the area where UBT is active in Education, Research and Development. The UBT aims to implement an integrated strategy to establish itself as an internationally competitive, research-intensive university, committed to the transfer of knowledge and the provision of a world-class education to the most talented students from all background. The main perspective of the conference is to connect the scientists and practitioners from different disciplines in the same place and make them be aware of the recent advancements in different research fields, and provide them with a unique forum to share their experiences. It is also the place to support the new academic staff for doing research and publish their work in international standard level. This conference consists of sub conferences in different fields like: Art and Digital Media Agriculture, Food Science and Technology Architecture and Spatial Planning Civil Engineering, Infrastructure and Environment Computer Science and Communication Engineering Dental Sciences Education and Development Energy Efficiency Engineering Integrated Design Information Systems and Security Journalism, Media and Communication Law Language and Culture Management, Business and Economics Modern Music, Digital Production and Management Medicine and Nursing Mechatronics, System Engineering and Robotics Pharmaceutical and Natural Sciences Political Science Psychology Sport, Health and Society Security Studies This conference is the major scientific event of the UBT. It is organizing annually and always in cooperation with the partner universities from the region and Europe. We have to thank all Authors, partners, sponsors and also the conference organizing team making this event a real international scientific event. Edmond Hajrizi, President of UBT UBT – Higher Education Institutio

International Conference on Sport

UBT Annual International Conference is the 11th international interdisciplinary peer reviewed conference which publishes works of the scientists as well as practitioners in the area where UBT is active in Education, Research and Development. The UBT aims to implement an integrated strategy to establish itself as an internationally competitive, research-intensive university, committed to the transfer of knowledge and the provision of a world-class education to the most talented students from all background. The main perspective of the conference is to connect the scientists and practitioners from different disciplines in the same place and make them be aware of the recent advancements in different research fields, and provide them with a unique forum to share their experiences. It is also the place to support the new academic staff for doing research and publish their work in international standard level. This conference consists of sub conferences in different fields like: Art and Digital Media Agriculture, Food Science and Technology Architecture and Spatial Planning Civil Engineering, Infrastructure and Environment Computer Science and Communication Engineering Dental Sciences Education and Development Energy Efficiency Engineering Integrated Design Information Systems and Security Journalism, Media and Communication Law Language and Culture Management, Business and Economics Modern Music, Digital Production and Management Medicine and Nursing Mechatronics, System Engineering and Robotics Pharmaceutical and Natural Sciences Political Science Psychology Sport, Health and Society Security Studies This conference is the major scientific event of the UBT. It is organizing annually and always in cooperation with the partner universities from the region and Europe. We have to thank all Authors, partners, sponsors and also the conference organizing team making this event a real international scientific event. Edmond Hajrizi, President of UBT UBT – Higher Education Institutio

Navigating the development and dissemination of internet cognitive behavioral therapy (iCBT) for anxiety disorders in children and young people: a consensus statement with recommendations from the #iCBTLorentz workshop group

Initial internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy (iCBT) programs for anxiety disorders in children and young people (CYP) have been developed and evaluated, however these have not yet been widely adopted in routine practice. The lack of guidance and formalized approaches to the development and dissemination of iCBT has arguably contributed to the difficulty in developing iCBT that is scalable and sustainable beyond academic evaluation and that can ultimately be adopted by healthcare providers. This paper presents a consensus statement and recommendations from a workshop of international experts in CYP anxiety and iCBT (#iCBTLorentz Workshop Group) on the development, evaluation, engagement and dissemination of iCBT for anxiety in CYP

The regulation of monoamine oxidase: a gene expression by distinct variable number tandem repeats

The monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) uVNTR (upstream variable number tandem repeat) is one of the most often cited examples of a gene by environment interaction (GxE) in relation to behavioral traits. However, MAOA possesses a second VNTR, 500 bp upstream of the uVNTR, which is termed d- or distal VNTR. Furthermore, genomic analysis indicates that there are a minimum of two transcriptional start sites (TSSs) for MAOA, one of which encompasses the uVNTR within the 5′ untranslated region of one of the isoforms. Through expression analysis in semi-haploid HAP1 cell lines genetically engineered in order to knockout (KO) either the uVNTR, dVNTR, or both VNTRs, we assessed the effect of the two MAOA VNTRs, either alone or in combination, on gene expression directed from the different TSSs. Complementing our functional analysis, we determined the haplotype variation of these VNTRs in the general population. The expression of the two MAOA isoforms was differentially modulated by the two VNTRs located in the promoter region. The most extensively studied uVNTR, previously considered a positive regulator of the MAOA gene, did not modulate the expression of what it is considered the canonical isoform, while we found that the dVNTR positively regulated this isoform in our model. In contrast, both the uVNTR and the dVNTR were found to act as negative regulators of the second less abundant MAOA isoform. The haplotype analysis for these two VNTRs demonstrated a bias against the presence of one of the potential variants. The uVNTR and dVNTR differentially affect expression of distinct MAOA isoforms, and thus, their combined profiling offers new insights into gene-regulation, GxE interaction, and ultimately MAOA-driven behavior