New technologies allow the display of text, static visuals, and animations. Although animations are inherently attractive, they are not always beneficial for learning. Problems may arise especially when animations modify the learner's cognitive load in an unintended way. In two learning experiments with 40 and 26 university students, the effects…

In March 2005, Barry Carpenter, OBE, Chief Executive and Director of Research at Sunfield, an education and residential care centre for children with severe and complex learning needs, gave his inaugural professional lecture at University College Worcester. This article is based on that lecture. In it, Barry Carpenter reviews international trends…

In Ontario, Canada, there is a demand for psychometrically robust screening tools capable of efficiently identifying students with specific learning disabilities (SLD), such as dyslexia. The present study investigated the ability of the Dyslexia Adult Screening Test (DAST) to discriminate between 117 post-secondary students with carefully…

An audit of 200 students entering an inner city secondary school indicated that 75% had communication difficulties which hampered relationships, behaviour and learning. A course was designed for 35 teachers and support staff. The premise was that improving dialogue with students, and facilitating their narrative speaking and writing structures,…

Drawing on learners' course diaries, this paper explores Chinese EFL learners' perceptions of difficulties and constraints in EFL learning and their responses to the perceived difficulties and constraints. The diary data appear to indicate that the students' learning difficulties lay mainly with their linguistic competence, but a closer scrutiny…

This authoritative, highly readable reference and text is grounded in the latest knowledge on how antisocial and criminal behavior develops in youth and how it can effectively be treated. Contributors describe proven ways to reduce juvenile delinquency by targeting specific risk factors and strengthening young people's personal, family, and…

This paper arises from research into inclusive literacy for pupils with severe learning difficulties who do not learn to read and write conventionally. The ultimate aim of the study was to seek out examples of good practice in teaching and learning literacy that includes students with severe learning difficulties and disseminate them as widely as…

The aim of this article is to promote discussion and professional development around the topic of learning difficulties in mathematics, particularly as these pertain to teaching and learning in the middle school years. The article has three sections. In the first section, a review of literature about learning difficulties (LD) in mathematics is…

Researchers have hypothesized four levels of instructional dialogue and claimed that teachers can improve children's language development by incorporating these dialogue levels in their classrooms. It has also been hypothesized that enhancing children's early language development enhances children's later reading development. This…

Results are reported for an exploratory study of eligibility decisions made for 21 Spanish-speaking English language learners (ELLs) with learning disabilities (LD) and no secondary disabilities who received special education support in reading. Eligibility determinations by an expert panel resulted in decisions that differed significantly from…

This review examined the extent to which commercially available social skills curricula designed for adolescent populations (including those with learning and behavior problems) accommodate cultural diversity. Introductory material discusses the need for culturally responsive teaching in social skills training. The study reviewed 11 curricula, and…

This study examined the efficacy beliefs of male and female college students in Southwestern Ontario (Canada) with and without scholastic deficits. A total of 20 men and 20 women without scholastic deficits and 51 men and 41 women with scholastic deficits (such as severe problems in reading, writing, or arithmetic) completed the Self-Estimate Test…

This paper reviews past research in adult learning, organizing it around cognitive and noncognitive factors in performance. The need for education and learning in the middle and older years is discussed within the context of developmental tasks. Finally, behaviors which apparently improve with age are related to prerequisites for learning. Paper…

This is the final report of a series of 19 experiments designed to study impasses in the learning of skills with a strong perceptual component. Several series of experiments were designed with the purpose of producing experimentally manipulable impasses or plateaus in the course of learning. Over 200 subjects (humans and animals) in learning…

Seventy-seven references from the ERIC (Educational Resources Information Center) database and the Exceptional Child Education Resources database are presented, on the topic of prereferral interventions for students with learning and behavior problems. References are arranged by database and then alphabetically by author. Information for each…