Motor Development and Self-Esteem of Children and Adolescents with Visual Impairment

The aim of the present study was to evaluate and investigate the relationship between motor development and self-esteem in 37 children and adolescents only with visual impairment and no other impairment, and in 37 children and adolescents with typical development. The chronological age of the participants was between 8 and 14 years old. The short form of the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency (BOT-2), (Bruininks & Bruininks, 2005) was used to assess the participants’ motor development. Self-esteem was measured via the Self-esteem Inventory developed by Coopersmith (1987). Statistical analysis was performed via the SPSS version 20.0. The results indicated that the children’s and adolescents with visual impairment scores on motor development and self-esteem were lower compared to those of the typical participants. In addition, the results indicated interaction between motor development and self-esteem in visually impaired participants. The present study was a necessity to be conducted, because there was a research gap and there have not been conducted similar researches in Greece and internationally. It is important for educational community to know if the motor development and self-esteem of children and adolescents with visual impairment are covariates. Keywords: visual impairment, children and adolescents, self-esteem, motor development.

Perceptions and attitudes concerning individuals with disabilities in ancient Greece: physical exercise as a means of prevention and treatment of health-related problems

In the history of human kind in all ethnic groups and communities there have been individuals with physical or mental disabilities. Until the 18th century not only these individuals did not receive any support or care by their community but they were rather treated as inferior with a diminishing way. More or less the same attitude occurs to the ancient Greek world, where old age, limited psychomotor skills and potential disability were perceived as evidence of deprivation of the grace of gods. A minor acknowledgment of individuals with disabilities started from Athens, since there were several benefits introduced on behalf of the disabled for the very first time in the history of human kind. In the ancient times Greeks made use of physical exercise as a mean for therapeutic as well as prevention purposes against various diseases. Thus, a great number of distinguished physicians such as Herodikos and his student Hippocrates recommended physical exercise as the ideal treatment of several health related problems

E-Learning Courses Evaluation on the Basis of Trainees' Feedback on Open Questions Text Analysis

Life-long learning is a necessity associated with the requirements of the fourth industrial revolution. Although distance online education played a major role in the evolution of the modern education system, this share grew dramatically because of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak and the social distancing measures that were imposed. However, the quick and extensive adoption of online learning tools also highlighted the multidimensional weaknesses of online education and the needs that arise when considering such practices. To this end, the ease of collecting digital data, as well as the overall evolution of data analytics, enables researchers, and by extension educators, to systematically evaluate the pros and cons of such systems. For instance, advanced data mining methods can be used to find potential areas of concern or to confirm elements of excellence. In this work, we used text analysis methods on data that have emerged from participants' feedback in online lifelong learning programmes for professional development. We analysed 1890 Greek text-based answers of participants to open evaluation questions using standard text analysis processes. We finally produced 7-gram tokens from the words in the texts, from which we constructed meaningful sentences and characterized them as positive or negative. We introduced a new metric, called acceptance grade, to quantitatively evaluate them as far as their positive or negative content for the online courses is concerned. We finally based our evaluation on the top 10 sentences of each category (positive, negative). Validation of the results via two external experts and data triangulation showed an accuracy of 80%

INFLUENCE OF TRADITIONAL DANCE TRAINING PROGRAMS ON DYNAMIC BALANCE OF PEOPLE WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY: A SHORT REVIEW

Traditional dance is gaining popularity as an intervention choice for improving poor balance ability of people with intellectual disability (ID). Balance improvement for individuals with ID through dance provides opportunities for participation in sport activities and promotes independent living. This short review provides in brief research evidence of dynamic balance improvement as measured by means of a balance deck in duration of 30, 45, and 60 sec intervals, highlighting the need to incorporate traditional dance programs in Physical Education (PE) lessons applied on participants with ID. Overall, traditional dances provide emotional and cognitive interaction that has a direct positive effect on quality of life and successful motor performance of individuals with ID

Regulatory Reform - Regulatory Impact Assessment

In the mid-1990 for the first time in post-war period Greek strategies for economic development shifted markedly to reliance on market forces rather than a downward spiral in economic performance, ultimately resulting in crisis and discrediting the traditionally interventionist and regulatory role of the Greek state in economy. Today there are new opportunities for much-needed reforms. The many significant reforms underway reforms are accelerating structural adjustment creating a new economy that is more flexible and competitiveRegulatory Impact Assessment(RIA),Reform

Χειρουργική ανατομία του πρωκτού και συγγενείς διαμαρτίες

Οι συγγενείς διαμαρτίες της ορθοπρωκτικής περιοχής αποτελούν μια όχι σπάνια κλινική ομάδα ανωμαλιών σε ζώντα νεογνά. Υπολογίζεται ότι αφορούν σε 1/5000 γεννήσεις, με την μεγάλη τους πλειοψηφία να αφορά σε περιπτώσεις ατρησιών του πρωκτού. ‘Αλλη ομάδα ανωμαλιών είναι οι ατρησίες του ορθού. Και οι δύο κατηγορίες θα πρέπει να θεωρούνται όχι σαν μια συγκεκριμένη κλινική οντότητα αλλά σαν ένα φάσμα, στα πλαίσια του οποίου οι διαφορές και η πολυπλοκότητα των καταστάσεων οφείλονται σε αναστολή της εμβρυολογικής ανάπτυξης, σε διαφορετικά στάδια, κατά τον σχηματισμών του πρωκτού, του περινέου, και της ορθοπρωκτικής συμβολής. Η διερεύνηση της ακριβούς ανατομικής ανωμαλίας σε κάθε νεογνό θα πρέπει να είναι όσο το δυνατό πιο ενδελεχείς, ώστε να καθοριστεί το κατάλληλο θεραπευτικό πλάνο. Θα πρέπει πάντα δε, ο νεογνολόγος και ο χειρουργός να έχουν κατά νού, ότι συχνά συνυπάρχουν διαμαρτίες από άλλα, απομακρυσμένα ή μη συστήματα στα πλαίσια συνδρόμων. Όσον αφορά στις προτεραιότητες κατά την αντιμετώπιση αυτών των καταστάσεων, θα πρέπει να διακρίνουμε δύο φάσεις. Την πρώτη, τις πρώτες ώρες ή μέρες μετά την γέννηση, όπου κινδυνεύει άμεσα η ζωή του νεογνού, και στην δεύτερη των λειτουργικών και ανατομικών προβλημάτων του παιδιού που καθορίζουν την ποιότητα ζώης του. Και στις δύο περιπτώσεις ο ρόλος της χειρουργικής είναι καθοριστικός στην έκβαση των ασθενών. Από τις προσπάθειες ταξινόμησης και ορθής χειρουργικής πρακτικής, έγινε εδώ και χρόνια εμφανές, ότι ιδιαίτερη σημασία έχει το φύλο του παιδιού. Στο καθαρά χειρουργικό μέρος δε, η οπίσθια οβελιαία ορθοπρωκτοπλαστική, (Posterior sagittal anorectoplasty ή PSARP) ξεχωρίζει σαν η πιο πλήρης και ενδεικτική από τεχνικής άποψης επέμβαση, αλλά και ως η καθολικά αποδεκτή πλέον μέθοδος.Anorectal malformations represent a common clinical problem with an estimated incidence of 1/5000 living births; anal atresia being the most frequently reported one and rectal atresia another clinical group. However, these two conditions should not be approached as two separate diagnoses, but rather as two different clinical presentations both belonging in a spectrum of a common entity, as a result of inhibition of the normal embryological development of the anal canal, the perineum and the anorectal junction; each in a different stage. Identifying the exact anatomical defect in each infant is critical for determining the appropriate treatment strategy. At the same time, when approaching such a patient, clinicians should always keep in mind that one malformation may be indicative of co-existing distant deformities as part of various genetic syndromes. As far as the goals of our therapeutic approach are concerned, we should differentiate two distinct time frames. The first refers to hours or days after birth when there is imminent danger for the infant’s life. During the second one, the later one, we aim to treat functional and anatomical defects that will determine the child’s future quality of life. In both phases, the surgery plays a crucial role. In recent years, it has been established that the sex of the child is an important factor in determining the optimal surgical approach. As far as surgical techniques are concerned, the Posterior Sagital anorectoplasty (PSARP) has been established as the operative gold standard