This study investigates the potential of computer technology in assisting dyslexics to overcome their problems with written language. Spelling inaccuracy is a persistent problem for dyslexics and is particularly embarrassing for older students. In a study of the effectiveness of computer spell checkers, the spelling accuracy of nineteen 11 to 13 year old dyslexics was compared using three different spelling aids - a computer spell checker, an electronic hand held spell checker and a dictionary. Results from the dyslexic students were further compared with those obtained with a group of students with moderate learning difficulties (MLD). The spelling of both the dyslexics and the MLD group was found to be considerably more accurate when a computer spell checker was employed. Performance on the electronic hand held machine was also better than when a dictionary was used. For the dyslexic group, but not for the MLD students, performance on all three items of equipment was found to be a function of spelling age. A second investigation examined the effectiveness of utilising the editing facilities of a word processor in the teaching of punctuation skills to 17 dyslexics (mean C.A. = 11.8 yrs) and 14 MLD controls (mean CA. = 11.8 yrs). The results indicated the computer mediated teaching to be very effective for both subjects and controls. A third strand of the study examined the benefits resulting from provision of individual laptop computers to 10 secondary aged dyslexic students. After using the equipment for a year, teachers identified improvements in spelling and in the clarity and presentation of written work. Students said they were less anxious about their spelling problems and gained more enjoyment from written tasks. Parents reported a general increase in confidence among their sons and daughters. Older students were found to use their machines more extensively than their younger counterparts and a four year follow up of 3 students confrmed an increased use of the laptops as students progressed up the school.

This study explored how having a child with a profound or multiple disabilities affects the home school relationship in a multi-cultural Special School for Primary aged children. Research has highlighted the impact upon the family in terms of coping strategies and how families with good and poor coping strategies differ. The purpose of the study was to consider how a model of systemic thinking called the Family illness systems model (Rolland 1994) might be used to understand the context in which a family might be operating, informing how the school might appropriately foster the home/school relationship. The study took a phenomenological approach using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) to explore the impact of having a disabled child upon the family; how this affects coping strategies of the parent, family functioning, and how this feeds into the expectations and experiences with school. 5 mothers were interviewed using semi-structured interviews. Interview data was analysed using IPA and three superordinate themes emerged: ‘making sense of life changing events’, ‘impact on family dynamics’, ‘impact of a child needing a special school’. These finding were discussed in relation to relevant literature and the initial research questions. Strengths and limitations of the research were acknowledged. Finally the findings of the study were considered in relation to educational psychology practise and for further areas of research.

Research has shown that high levels of emotion are associated with lowered academic performance. However, the mechanisms involved in this relationship are as yet unclear. One potentially important process is the disruption of working memory. Building on previous research such as Wine (1971) and Sarason (Sarason, 1984), Eysenck and Calvo (1992) formulated a processing efficiency theory (PET) to account for the disruptive effects of anxiety on cognitive task performance. Briefly, PET suggests that anxiety can have the effect of reducing cognitive storage and processing resources in the working memory system. One effect is a reduction in task effectiveness, or the accuracy of performance. H.C. Ellis and colleagues have proposed a similar model, the resource allocation model, with special reference to depressed mood (e.g. Ellis & Moore, 1999). Under both theoretical frameworks, the negative effects of emotion are assumed to be most clearly seen on complex cognitive tasks. In addition, the negative effects of anxiety on performance are thought to be most pronounced under stressful conditions. This thesis explored the relationship between emotion, working memory and academic performance in an attempt to further understand the processes involved in educational underachievement in anxiety and depression. The first empirical investigation reported in Chapter Three was an initial step in testing the simple relationship between three emotions (trait anxiety, depression and test anxiety) and academic performance measures. Consistent with previous research moderate negative relationships were found between the two constructs. Chapter Four showed that working memory partially mediated the negative trait anxiety-academic performance relationship. Chapter Five replicated the mediation hypothesis also incorporating depression and test anxiety. A moderated mediation hypothesis was also tested. That is, that the negative links between emotion, working memory and academic performance were shown to be most pronounced when stress reactivity was high. Chapter Six replicated these moderated mediation results and tested an emotion x working memory interaction hypothesis that suggested that those with high emotion and low working memory were the poorest academic performers. Chapter Seven evaluated the moderated mediation and interaction hypotheses in a longitudinal study which allowed for some preliminary conclusions to be made concerning causality. It was shown that emotion was negatively associated with academic performance via verbal working memory over time when stress reactivity was high. Over time, high emotion and low working memory in combination were associated with lower academic performance. In Chapter Eight, the implications of the findings in this thesis for theory and practice were discussed.

This study investigates the influence of teaching assistants (TAs) on the peer relationships of pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in mainstream schools. Peer relationships are central to development. Whilst there is an increasing body of research into TAs’ contribution to academic outcomes, there are comparatively few studies into their social impact. The majority of studies investigating the impact of TAs on the peer relationships of pupils with SEND highlight concerns that TAs deployed in a one-to-one role inadvertently hinder pupil relationships. This study sought to explore and explain the strategies used by TAs and the underlying contextual factors which facilitate or constrain the development of positive peer relationships for pupils with SEND. The purpose of the research was to identify, from the perspective of TAs, ‘what works, for whom, in what contexts and with what outcomes’. Qualitative data from interviews with six TAs working in primary schools was analysed using a critical realist position and grounded theory methodology (Corbin & Strauss, 2015). The results propose that TAs use ‘manager’ and ‘coach’ strategies to influence pupil peer relationships, via the core category of ‘social agency’. The ‘manager’ enabled short-term reductions in pupils’ level of social ‘risk’, problems and isolation, but constrained the development of social skills and increased dependency in the longer-term. The ‘coach’ encouraged pupils to take controlled, short-term risks, but facilitated their reflective thinking, social skills and independence. Three causal factors influenced TAs’ use these strategies; the level of social need of pupils, TAs’ values, knowledge, skills and integrated experience and the school context. The concept of ‘social agency’, applied to both TAs and pupils, explains the properties of, and relationships between the above components. The theory has implications for the practice of TAs and educational professionals and provides a basis for future research.

Although research studies are plentiful regarding the cognitive aspects of children’s and young people’s reading difficulties, surprisingly few consider the emotional or relational impact of those difficulties. Those which do rarely invite young people to share their experiences of struggling to master this fundamental life skill. This exploratory, qualitative study used a psychosocial methodology to explore the reading experiences of young people who find reading difficult. A psychosocial ontology and epistemology gave equal consideration to the meaning constructed through participants’ social interactions and the unconscious psychological processes at work for participant and researcher, and facilitated an understanding of the emotional experience of each participant. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with two 12-year-old boys (UK school year 8) with persistent reading difficulties, using Free Association Narrative Interview (FANI) techniques. Each boy was interviewed twice, creating his own narrative in response to initial questions or prompts. The boys were also observed twice in a typical English lesson, using principles of infant observation. A reflective research diary was used to record the researcher’s personal responses to all aspects of the research. Interview data were analysed using thematic analysis. Reflective process notes from each observation provided an additional perspective on each boy’s experiences. Psychosocial research supervision enabled a reflexive stance to be maintained, holding in mind the ‘whole’ person, acknowledging the researcher as psychologically defended, and considering the relevance and appropriateness of themes as they emerged. Semantic and latent themes specific to each participant were identified. Although the aim was not to generalise between the boys’ experiences, similarities were found within the following areas: ‘(un)helpful helping’, ‘believed and understood?’, ‘lazy, dumb and stupid’, and ‘smarter sisters’. The findings provide a rich account of participants’ experiences as ‘struggling readers’. Strengths and limitations of the study are discussed, together with implications for teaching and Educational Psychology practice.