This study investigated the learning difficulties of grade 12 South African students in a national chemistry examination. A quantitative analysis of students' performance in the examination revealed there was a significant difference between student performance in questions where students needed to execute a transformation across levels of…

Despite dramatic changes in Irish special education policy during the last decade, there is little understanding of the factors influencing how special educational needs (SEN) are identified and whether identification varies across different school contexts. International research has tended to focus on how individual child characteristics…

An analysis of the improvement in attainments of 109 students attending specialist-resourced provision for specific learning difficulties (SpLD) attached to mainstream secondary schools was conducted as they progressed through Key Stages 3 and 4. Steady progress was made in terms of reading accuracy, reading comprehension, spelling ability and…

Density has been reported as one of the most difficult concepts for secondary school students (e.g. Smith et al. 1997). Discussion about the difficulties of learning this concept has been largely focused on the complexity of the concept itself or student misconceptions. Few, if any, have investigated how the concept of density was constituted in…

Much attention has been devoted in the literature to students' struggles with fraction division. With regard to the traditional invert and multiply algorithm, researchers and educators have examined such areas as typical errors, how to help students understand why this method works, and what alternatives are available that might be more intuitive.…

In Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) classrooms where students' L2 proficiency has not reached the threshold level, teachers have been observed to use L1 to assist students in grasping specific technical terms and abstract concepts. It is argued to be a 'realistic' approach to the learning problems caused by students' limited L2…

In this longitudinal study, we investigated the role of word reading and mathematical difficulties measured in 9th grade as factors for receiving educational support for learning in upper secondary education in Grades 10 to 12 (from ages 16 to 19) and furthermore as predictors of dropout from upper secondary education within 5 years after…

Through a comprehensive overview of policies and data related to the renewed European agenda for adult learning, this Eurydice report aims to support the exchange of policy and practice between countries. The report concentrates on measures to ensure that the most vulnerable groups of adult learners, in particular those with low basic skills or…

The project described in this paper included a bold attempt to involve a person with learning difficulties as a co-researcher. The authors are uncompromisingly honest in their appraisal of how this initiative did not work out as well as they had hoped, and blame themselves for not setting up the infrastructure for it sufficiently well. One point…

This paper presents an analysis of the different types of reasoning and physical explanation used in science, common thought, and physics teaching. It then reflects on the learning difficulties connected with these various approaches, and suggests some possible didactic strategies. Although causal reasoning occurs very frequently in common thought…

This paper challenges a view of concrete materials as artifacts used within a rigid instructional sequence that particular children are perceived to require or not, as the case may be. Focussing on mathematics teaching, it contends that it is more useful to consider the function of these materials as "tools," artefacts used flexibly and…

Bisphenol A (BPA) has been shown to affect brain and behavior in rodents and nonhuman primates, but there are few studies focusing on its relationship to human neurobehavior. We aimed to investigate the relationship between environmental exposure to BPA and childhood neurobehavior. Methods: Urinary BPA concentrations and behavioral and learning…

In a global and increasingly "knowledge-driven" economy where even semi-skilled jobs require qualifications, what may be done with and for young people whose attainment in school is low? This article draws on recent research with head teachers, college principals and administrators in English local authorities, combined with material…

This study is an exploratory study of faculty members' knowledge and perceptions toward of with academically vulnerable college students who are specifically experiencing reading and writing difficulties. Data were gathered from 174 college faculty at six higher education institutions throughout northwestern Pennsylvania via an online electronic…

This paper presents a 2-year collaborative action research project that investigated the use of digital technologies to support inclusive practices in Early French Immersion (EFI) classrooms. The findings reveal that the collaborative action research project contributed to empowering teachers in using digital technologies to support the…