Executive function (EF) predicts children's academic achievement; however, less is known about the relation between EF and the actual learning process. Furthermore, more research is needed to better understand how different aspects of the learning environment interact with EF to influence learning. The current dissertation includes two studies to…

Research investigating links between academic achievement and active music instruction has not previously differentiated between different types of instruction. In the current study, 155 seventh- and eighth-grade middle school band students were divided into two groups. Both groups received 2 months of instruction in jazz phrasing, scales, and…

Many kindergarten teachers have encountered children who enter school lacking the ability to control their behavior, but they may not understand the social and biological processes behind these children's disruptive behavior. The author reviews research into early childhood brain development to explain how trauma and chronic stress can make it…

Introduction: One of the lines of research that has aroused great interest in recent years has been to determine the role played by certain cognitive abilities in academic performance. This article describes the relationship between executive functions (interference, flexibility and planning) and empathy and their influence on the academic…

Widening achievement gaps between homeless and highly mobile (HHM) youth and their peers highlight the need for research to understand effects of risk and adversity on development to promote resilience and positive adaptation. Youth living under the poverty line experience more risk and adversity, leading to difficulty in multiple domains…

The paper reports on the adaptation of a D-KEFS test battery for Slovakia. Drawing on concrete examples, it describes and illustrates the key issues relating to the transfer of test items from one socio-cultural environment to another. The standardisation sample of the population of Slovak pupils in the fourth year of primary school included 250…