The purpose of the study was to establish diagnostic validity for a modified version of the Classroom Adjustment Rating Scale (CARS). To do this, two a priori multivariate contrasts were specified in order to detect differences on the three CARS scales between three groups of pupils. Subjects were 170 normal (NORM), 125 Learning Disabled (LD), and 48 Emotionally Handicapped (EH) elementary age boys who were rated by their classroom teachers. The original CARS was modified by maintaining and adding items that had high correlations with the original three scales of Acting-Out, Shy-Anxious, and Learning Problems. Results with both the CARS and modified CARS (MCARS) indicated a significant multivariate contrast between the NORM group and a weighted combination of the LD and EH groups. Also, a significant multivariate contrast between the LD and EH group resulted for the CARS and MCARS. Follow-up with discriminant analysis found 71.4% of all boys correctly classified by the original CARS scales. However, the MCARS scales resulted in only a slight improvement in overall correct classification, with 72.3% of boys correctly classified. Teacher-judged intelligence, social class, and prosocial classroom behavior were included as possible biasing variables. It was found that the set of prosocial items had considerable impact on the ratings of EH boys, thus demonstrating the importance of including positive behaviors on a rating scale.

This study explored the relationship between anxiety and children's performance on the Reitan-Indiana Aphasia Screening Test. Anxiety was measured using the Personality Inventory for Children. Participants' anxiety scores were correlated with the individual component error scores and the total error scores from the Reitan Aphasia Screening Test. Second, the individual component scores were examined to assess their independent and shared contributions in the prediction of the Anxiety Scale of the Personality Inventory for Children.Participants for this study were 176, 9 to 16 year old boys and girls referred to an outpatient neuropsychological assessment clinic. Anxiety was found to be significantly related to the total score of the Reitan-Indiana Aphasia Screening test, as well as, each of the individual components. The regression analysis showed that five of the individual components of the Reitan-Indiana Aphasia Screening Test were able to significantly predict scores on the Anxiety Scale of the Personality Inventory for Children with a multiple R of .76. These data were discussed in terms of the importance of the interrelationship between anxiety and the Reitan-Indiana Aphasia Screening Test when making clinical judgements concerning the individual patient. / Department of Educational Psychology

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship among measures of cognitive functioning, adaptive behavior, and language acquisition for a referred preschool population. The subjects were 115 preschoolers (75 boys and 40 girls) under the age of 6 years who had received a psychoeducational battery of tests for either suspected learning difficulties, emotional problems, or attention disorders. This data was collected from the archival records in a children's hospital.Pearson product moment correlations were used to examine the relationship among measures of cognitive functioning, adaptive behavior, and language acquisition. Correlation matrices were formulated to investigate the relationship.Three groups were delineated dependent on the instrument used to assess the preschoolers: Group 1 received the Bayley Intelligence Scale for Children and the Wisconsin Adaptive Behavior Scale; Group 2 received the Bayley Intelligence Scale for Children and the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scale; and Group 3 received the Stanford-Binet LM, the Vineland, and the Preschool Language Scale.The correlations obtained in Group 1 were all statistically significant (p<.01); these correlations for cognitive functioning and adaptive behavior were the highest of all the three groups. In fact, considerably higher than might be predicted after the review of the literature that contends that cognitive functioning and adaptive behavior are separate yet related constructs. Moderate correlations between cognitive functioning and adaptive behavior were found for the other two groups in alignment with earlier studies.In examining cognitive functioning and adaptive behavior for this referred preschool population it seems that the relationship changes as the child gets older. This study was not longitudinal; however, a greater separation of the constructs of cognitive functioning and adaptive behavior existed for the older child in this sample.In addition to examining the relationship between cognitive functioning and adaptive behavior, this study also looked at language acquisition in relationship to cognitive functioning and adaptive behavior. Statistically significantly high correlations were found for cognitive functioning and language acquisition for this study. The Preschool Language Scale Expressive subdomain was slightly more highly correlated with the Stanford-Binet LM than the Preschool Language Scale Receptive subdomain. This is consistent with the Vineland's Expressive subdomain correlating higher with the Stanford-Binet LM than the Vineland's Receptive subdomain. This suggests the age of the child has something to do with measuring language acquisition in the areas of receptive and expressive language.Given the moderate to high correlations for cognitive functioning, adaptive behavior, and language acquisition for this referred preschool population, it was concluded that measures of adaptive behavior and language acquisition assess constructs similar, yet distinct to cognitive functioning. Therefore, they are both valuable components in comprehensive assessment especially of children "at-risk". / Department of Educational Psychology

General education and special education teachers are expected to provide evidence-based instruction to all students in the classroom. Along with that, they must make sure that their students pass the state mandated tests based on state standards. Meeting the needs of everyone in the classroom is a difficult task especially with 10-20% of those students having special learning needs that require a different approach to assessment and instruction. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role that metacognitive strategies have in second grade students with learning disabilities while they are performing written spelling lists and story generation tasks. One-on-one interviews were conducted with two second grade students with learning disabilities after they had written ten word spelling lists as well as a story based on a photograph of their choice. The interviews were conducted to identify what metacognitive processes they used by asking them to report and reflect on what they wrote, how they knew what to write, and whether or not they could identify what they wrote was correct, as well as being able to independently correct any errors they made. The results indicate that although their metacognitive strategies were emerging, they had difficulty reporting consistently and accurately what spelling strategies they used. They also had difficulty reflecting on whether a word was correct or incorrect and if incorrect, how to correct it. Each student used a different approach to spelling a word, one “Brute Force” and the other “Rule-based.” Neither of these approaches worked effectively for these students as they made many spelling errors and still had difficulty correcting them. The overall findings indicate that these two second grade students with learning disabilities used limited metacognitive strategies of monitoring, regulating and reflecting. What strategies they did employ, were not consistent or effective to help them achieve a level of spelling efficiency needed to be successful in second grade. / Department of Special Education

Research literature indicates that parents of children with disabilities have different effects from and perceptions of their children’s disabilities. Evidence also suggests that mothers and fathers experience different effects from their child’s disabilities. The purpose of this study was to examine differences in stress levels between Kuwaiti fathers and mothers about their children with specific learning disabilities (SLD). The research utilized a descriptive survey design that employed a mixed methodology of both quantitative and qualitative research approaches. A sample size of 182 parents comprised of 91 fathers and 91 mothers participated in the study. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the demographic characteristics of the participants and their children with SLD. Descriptive statistics were also used to demonstrate participants’ responses toward the open-ended questions that were included in the qualitative section, while the t-test and repeated-measured MANOVA were used to examine the differences in stress levels between the Kuwaiti parents in the quantitative section. The outcome of the research revealed that there were significant differences in overall stress levels between Kuwaiti fathers and mothers about their children with SLD. The findings of this study showed that overall mothers have significantly higher stress levels than fathers, and they have higher stress levels specifically about the child’s characteristics (Child Domain) and also the parents’ characteristics (Parent Domain) as well. The researcher suggests that ministries of education and ministries of health in Kuwait and the Gulf Area need to provide effective programs that improve the quality of life of parents of children with disabilities and meet the needs of children with disabilities and their families. Parents of children with disabilities need governmental and other program models that support their efforts on behalf of their children with disabilities and decrease the unhealthy stress levels that these parents might experience. / Department of Special Education

The study is concerned with learning disabled children. A literature survey which deals with the definitions, causes and manifestations of learning disabilities was conducted. An aid programme, focussing specifically on the auditory modality, was developed. Through a careful study of relevant literature it is clear that although a learning disabled child possesses adequate or even above-average intellectual capabilities, deficiencies such as abnormal behaviour and inadequacies in learning which may be ascribed to malfunctions in the central nervous system, are manifested. The causes of learning disorders could be of an external or inherent nature and behavioural manifestations such as motor- or perceptual deficiencies, hyperactivity and inadequate academic performance frequently occur. The importance of the auditory perceptual skills in the acquisition of reading and spelling performances is emphasized. Research on auditory deficiencies and their subsequent detrimental effect on reading and spelling performance, indicate a significant relationship between these deficits and the impairment of analysis, synthesis, storing and recalling of auditory information. This survey was conducted in order to devise an auditory aid programme by means of which deficits in auditory perception could be overcome or improved and to decide whether the improvement of auditory deficits would contribute positively towards the reading and spelling results of the learning disabled child. From the literature a variety of exercises for the improvement of the various auditory perceptual skills were assembled. An integrated reading and spelling programme to stimulate the development of-auditory skills was subsequently devised and applied by means of the experimental method This aid programme was applied with great success in six cases who had previously been identified as learning disabled candidates. It resulted in a remarkable improvement in auditory skills of all six participants. All of them performed according to their mental age standard. Basic reading and spelling abilities improved accordingly. Those participants who best overcame their auditory perceptual deficiencies also gave the best performance in reading and spelling abilities. / Thesis (MEd)--PU vir CHO, 1984

The study is concerned with learning disabled children. A literature survey which deals with the definitions, causes and manifestations of learning disabilities was conducted. An aid programme, focussing specifically on the auditory modality, was developed. Through a careful study of relevant literature it is clear that although a learning disabled child possesses adequate or even above-average intellectual capabilities, deficiencies such as abnormal behaviour and inadequacies in learning which may be ascribed to malfunctions in the central nervous system, are manifested. The causes of learning disorders could be of an external or inherent nature and behavioural manifestations such as motor- or perceptual deficiencies, hyperactivity and inadequate academic performance frequently occur. The importance of the auditory perceptual skills in the acquisition of reading and spelling performances is emphasized. Research on auditory deficiencies and their subsequent detrimental effect on reading and spelling performance, indicate a significant relationship between these deficits and the impairment of analysis, synthesis, storing and recalling of auditory information. This survey was conducted in order to devise an auditory aid programme by means of which deficits in auditory perception could be overcome or improved and to decide whether the improvement of auditory deficits would contribute positively towards the reading and spelling results of the learning disabled child. From the literature a variety of exercises for the improvement of the various auditory perceptual skills were assembled. An integrated reading and spelling programme to stimulate the development of-auditory skills was subsequently devised and applied by means of the experimental method This aid programme was applied with great success in six cases who had previously been identified as learning disabled candidates. It resulted in a remarkable improvement in auditory skills of all six participants. All of them performed according to their mental age standard. Basic reading and spelling abilities improved accordingly. Those participants who best overcame their auditory perceptual deficiencies also gave the best performance in reading and spelling abilities. / Thesis (MEd)--PU vir CHO, 1984

No description available.

The thesis reviews the literature on early communication development, communication intervention with persons with severe intellectual disability, and on picture recognition and use. Drawing from both developmental and behaviourist perspectives, a theoretical base is described for designing intervention and assessment strategies to teach and monitor picto-graphic symbol use for augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). These strategies were investigated with students with severe intellectual disability, little or no spoken language, poor verbal comprehension and poor picture recognition skills. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

This study investigated the results of administering two intelligence tests, the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children -Third Edition (WISC-111), and the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale - Fourth Edition, to each of 33 Australian children with an intellectual disability. The experiment used a counterbalanced design in which the tests, order of presentation of the tests, the gender of the subjects, and the gender of the test administrators were factors. The 33 volunteer subjects, 14 males and 19 females, aged between 6 and 16 years, and known to have an intellectual disability, were allocated randomly for the assessments. The test administrators were students in the Clinical and Organisational Masters Program from the University of South Australia. It was hypothesised that; there would be a difference between the IQs on the two tests; that on average the WISC-111 FSIQ would be lower than the SB-1V TC; and that there would be a positive relationship between the WISC-111 FSIQ and the SB-1 V TC Statistical analysis of the data found the two tests' overall scores to be significantly different, while the counterbalanced factors and their interactions did not reach significance. There was a significant 4 point difference found between the mean WISC-111 FSIQs and SB-1V TCs. The results of a Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient revealed a strong positive correlation (r = .83). between the WISC-111 FSIQ and SB-1V TC. This finding supported the concurrent validity of the tests in this special population sample. It was suggested that while the two tests measured similar theoretical constructs of intelligence, the two tests were not identical and therefore the results were not interchangeable. Variable patterns of results were found among subtest scores from the two tests, and the implications for field work discussed. The differences between raw WISC-111 FSIQ and SB-1V TC scores were calculated, and a z transformation was applied to the difference scores. The resulting difference distribution and cumulative percentages were then suggested as a reference table for practitioners. Studies that examined clerical errors in scoring intelligence test protocols were reviewed. The manually scored test protocols in this study were rescored using a computer scoring programme and 27 errors were found and corrected. From the results of the experiment several suggestions were made; that agencies using large numbers of intelligence tests, or which test the same child over time, should make a decision to use the same test, wherever possible, for comparison; that all intelligence test protocols be computer scored as a checking mechanism; and that all professional staff should be aware of the possible differences which can occur between intelligence scores, resulting from norming and other differences. / thesis (MSocSc)--University of South Australia, 1999.