Teachers Using Social Media to communicate with Parents

Teachers are turning to twitter, blogging and Facebook as a way of keeping in touch with parents about their child's learning, and according to Queensland University of Technology (QUT) education expert Associate Professor Margaret Lloyd it is a trend which is meeting the needs of busy parents with time restrictions.

Professor Lloyd said contemporary teaching involved teachers' blogging with students to capture their learning, and tweeting and emailing parents with information about the school day.

"Gone are the days of finding a scrunched-up newsletter in the bottom of a bag, squished between the rotten banana and mouldy sandwich," she said.

"Parents are now able to find out what their children are doing, virtually as they are doing it." Professor Lloyd said in many families today both parents worked, meaning parents were not able to be as involved in their child's schooling as they perhaps would like.

Prof Margaret Lloyd

"This trend of using digital technology as a means of connecting with parents, essentially bringing parents into the classroom, is really taking off," Professor Lloyd said. "It also fits with the trend that the walls of the classroom are disappearing."

Professor Lloyd said the notion of classes fitting inside four walls was a thing of the past, with digital technology rapidly being used as a communication tool between teachers and parents, teachers and students, students and students and teachers and teachers.

"For example it is common for students in one classroom to work with students in another classroom halfway across the world using digital technology," she said.

"There is also a change in the relationship between teachers and students with teachers nowadays able to see the students' work as they are working and comment and provide feedback progressively.

"There is a huge change in the way we are teaching and communicating." She said universities were leading the way in this method of teaching.

"At QUT we model this teaching practice. Future teachers are working on collaborative wikis, they are talking about collaborative learning and they are being afforded that enhanced teaching experience," Professor Lloyd said.

"The classroom is changing and our teaching students have to be positioned to lead that change and once they get on board, it just clicks into place."

Comment
Firstly, one wonders if the schools and teachers would be open to enabling wider Social Media forums that would allow parents to discuss general school and education matters more openly.

Thus allowing parents to see and share difficult areas and comments on potentially bad teachers /pupils and to bring group thinking into the discussion.

Secondly, this is an excellent step forward in teacher /parent communications but unfortunately, in some areas and countries the teachers and parents can be less able to use and understand the Technology, reported here.

Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) in childhood

Dr Minnis

Dr Minnis is a Senior Lecturer in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Her main research interest is in Reactive Attachment Disorder in childhood and her research has involved developing new assessment tools and increasing understanding of the aetiology of this serious disorder of social functioning.

She has also developed computerised assessment tools for aspects of child and adolescent mental health.

Background
Reactive attachment disorder (RAD) is described in clinical literature as a severe and relatively uncommon disorder that can affect children.

There is potentially a higher level of incidence in homes where the family is long-term unemployed and there is a history of social care provision but RAD can also occur in, what is believed to be, the best of family situations.

RAD is characterised by markedly disturbed and developmentally inappropriate ways of relating socially in most contexts.

It can take the form of a persistent failure to initiate or respond to most social interactions in

• a developmentally appropriate way, known as the "inhibited form," (RAD) or
• an indiscriminate sociability, such as excessive familiarity with relative strangers known as the "disinhibited form" (DAD). 

The term is used in both the World Health Organization's International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-10) and in the DSM-IV-TR, the revised fourth edition of the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM).

ICD-10 Definition
In ICD-10, the inhibited form is called RAD, and the disinhibited form is called "disinhibited attachment disorder", or "DAD".

DSM Definition
In the DSM, both forms are called RAD; for ease of reference, this article will follow that convention and refer to both forms as reactive attachment disorder.

RAD arises from a failure to form normal attachments to primary caregivers in early childhood. Such a failure could result from severe early experiences of neglect, abuse, abrupt separation from caregivers between the ages of six months and three years, frequent change of caregivers, or a lack of caregiver responsiveness to a child's communicative efforts. Not all, or even a majority of such experiences, result in the disorder.

The criteria for a diagnosis of a Reactive Attachment Disorder are very different from the criteria used in assessment or categorisation of attachment styles such as insecure or disorganised attachment, e.g. Pervasive Development Disorder (PDD).

PDD: Pervasive Development Disorder
It is differentiated and has a separate classification from Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) or developmental delay and from possibly comorbid conditions such as mental retardation, all of which can affect attachment behaviour.

Dr Minnis appeared on BBC Radio 4's Women's hour program to discuss RAD with the presenter and families that had suffered from the experience of having a teenager with RAD.

Neuromuscular diseases in Children: Dutch Researchers design new respirators

3D imaging system for the development of the breathing mask. TU Delft is developing a special respirator for children with a neuromuscular disease.

The Sporters in Actie foundation collected €100,000 for research on this breathing mask during the 'Greatest Golf Tournament in the World' in Zoetermeer on Saturday 6 April.

Many neuromuscular diseases damage respiratory muscles, so that artificial respiration becomes necessary in time.

As yet, there are no special respirators for small children (up to the age of six) who require artificial respiration for extended periods. These children often have to use masks designed for adults.

As the masks often do not fit properly this can lead to serious problems, such as eye infections caused by escaping air, facial and dental deformation, insufficient ventilation caused by leaking masks, pressure spots on the nose and forehead because the mask has to be tightened extra fast, and skin damage caused by the mask shifting due to the poor fit.

3D TU Delft is developing a special children's respirator. The project will cost €250,000 and the contribution by the 'Greatest Golf Tournament in the World' will help to complete the research so the mask can actually be produced.

Lyè Goto

PhD student Lyè Goto of TU Delft's Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering has been developing the new mask for over a year now.

'The first and most important step is the collection of what we call the anthropometric data. These data help describe the shape of an average child's face per age category and gender. '

'We build an inventory of 3D images of a large population of children's faces, paying particular attention to the level of diversity between the individual children. '

'To do this, we have a 3D imaging system made up of six digital cameras which record the faces from various angles.'

Prototypes Goto is presently photographing the faces of a few hundred healthy children aged between six months and six years.'

'This data will be supplemented with the data of patients with neuromuscular diseases, which is necessary because these children's faces may be malformed by the disease. '

'Next we have to analyse the anthropometric data, which can be a very complex operation,' explains Goto.

'Once we have completed the analysis we can deliberate on the design of the mask. We will have to decide whether to produce masks in different sizes or size categories, or to choose a modular design with a separate facepiece, or maybe another solution.'

'I will have working prototypes ready by the third year of my PhD research, after which we want to involve the industry in the project.'

TU Delft is collaborating on the research with Sophia Children's hospital in Rotterdam, Youth Healthcare and other scientists.

Johan Molenbroek

Dr Johan Molenbroek, TU Delft's project leader: 'The treatment of these children has been suboptimal for decades.

Thanks to this research, soon the youngest children will be able to have their own personal and comfortably fitting respirators as well.

The children and their parents and carers will sleep better at night and we will see fewer complications among these young patients.'  

Dyslexia: It's NOT a Vision Problem! It's a Cognitive Disorder!

A collaborative paper published in the journal Pediatrics, has been written by the American Academy of Pediatrics, Section on Ophthalmology, Council on Children with Disabilities, American Academy of Ophthalmology, American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus, American Association of Certified Orthoptists, which concluded that Dyslexia is NOT a vision problem and cannot be 'cured' by eye exercises, behavioural vision therapy, or special tinted filters or lenses.

Abstract
Learning disabilities, including reading disabilities, are commonly diagnosed in children. Their etiologies are multifactorial, reflecting genetic influences and dysfunction of brain systems.

Learning disabilities are complex problems that require complex solutions. Early recognition and referral to qualified educational professionals for evidence-based evaluations and treatments seem necessary to achieve the best possible outcome.

Most experts believe that dyslexia is a cognitive /language-based disorder. Vision problems can interfere with the process of learning; however, vision problems are not the cause of primary dyslexia or learning disabilities.

Scientific evidence does not support the efficacy of eye exercises, behavioural vision therapy, or special tinted filters or lenses for improving the long-term educational performance in these complex pediatric neurocognitive conditions.

Diagnostic and treatment approaches that lack scientific evidence of efficacy, including eye exercises, behavioral vision therapy, or special tinted filters or lenses, are not endorsed and should not be recommended.

Summary
Dyslexia and learning disabilities are complex problems that have no simple solutions. The most widely accepted view is that dyslexia is a language-based disorder.

The American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus, and the American Association of Certified Orthoptists strongly support the need for early diagnosis and educational intervention.

Recommendations for multidisciplinary evaluation and management must be based on evidence of proven effectiveness that is demonstrated by objective scientific methodology. It is important that any therapy for learning disabilities be scientifically established to be valid before it can be recommended for treatment.

Currently, there is no adequate scientific evidence to support the view that subtle eye or visual problems cause learning disabilities.

Furthermore, the evidence does not support the concept that vision therapy or tinted lenses or filters are effective, directly or indirectly, in the treatment of learning disabilities.

Thus, the claim that vision therapy improves visual efficiency cannot be substantiated. Diagnostic and treatment approaches that lack scientific evidence of efficacy are not endorsed or recommended.

With early recognition and individualized, interdisciplinary management strategies, children with learning disabilities can enjoy successful academic experiences.

Read the full text of the paper at THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS

Stepfathers: Three Factors Contribute to Closeness

Although one-third of American children live in a step-family during part of their childhood, little is known about the development of the relationship between stepfathers and stepchildren.

New research from Brigham Young University fills that gap with a study that identified three factors that significantly contribute to closeness in stepfamilies:

• The couple keeps arguments to a minimum
• Mothers help children feel comfortable sharing their frustrations. 
• The stepfather and mother agree on how to parent

Kevin Shafer

BYU professor Kevin Shafer's research on step-families appears in the academic journal Social Work.

"Family roles can be negotiated and there is going to be some bumpiness," said Shafer, who teaches and researches in BYU's School of Social Work.

"The notion that couples should put the couple first and everything else will fall into place is false."

Shafer and BYU grad student Todd Jensen analyzed data from a nationally representative sample of 1,088 children in step-families.

From the children's perspective, frustrations occur when the new dad assumes too much parental authority or when he disrupts the family's normal way of doing things.

"Moms need to let their children know that it's ok to talk if they have a problem with their stepfather because everybody is still trying to figure out this new family dynamic," Shafer said.

And the lack of history between step-fathers and children amplifies the detrimental effects of parental conflict. "Full-blown arguments set up step-families for failure," Shafer said.

Couples typically make one of two mistakes in the transition.

• The first type involves the couple acting as though nothing major has changed. that the new father is a replacement instead of an addition. 
• The second type of mistake is for mom to take upon herself all of the parenting.

The common thread in both scenarios is that the children's voices are missing.

"If you have teenagers, they should be a pretty active participant in discussions of what the family is going to look like and how the family is going to function," Shafer said.

The study contains one pleasant surprise:

Communicating openly and avoiding arguments contributes to closeness regardless of family income or education level.

"It really is the interpersonal dynamic that predicts family closeness," Shafer said. "You can build these bonds in spite of financial challenges."

Autism: Autistic Children omit inefficient actions

When a child with autism copies the actions of an adult, he or she is likely to omit anything 'inefficient' or "silly" about what they've just seen.

In contrast, typically developing children will go out of their way to repeat each and every element of the behaviour even as they may realise that parts of it don't make any sense.

The findings, reported in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on April 8, are the first to show that the social nature of imitation is very important and challenging for children with autism, the researchers say.

They also emphasise just how important it is for most children to be like other people.

Antonia Hamilton

"The data suggest that children with autism do things efficiently rather than socially, whereas typical children do things socially rather than efficiently," says Antonia Hamilton of the University of Nottingham.

"We find that typical children copy everything an adult does, whereas autistic children only do the actions they really need to do."

The researchers made the discovery after testing 31 children with autism spectrum conditions and 30 typically developing children who were matched for verbal mental age.

On each of five trials, each child was asked to watch carefully as a demonstrator showed how to retrieve a toy from a box or build a simple object.

Importantly, each demonstration included two necessary actions (e.g. unclipping and removing the box lid) and one unnecessary action (e.g. tapping the top of the box twice).

The box was then reset behind a screen and handed to the child, who was instructed to "get or make the toy as fast as you can." They were not specifically told to copy the behaviour they'd just seen.

Almost all of the children successfully reached the goal of getting or making the toy, but typically developing children were much more likely to include the unnecessary step as they did so, a behaviour known as over-imitation.

Those children copied 43 to 57 percent of the unnecessary actions, compared to 22 percent in the children with autism.

That's despite the fact that the children correctly identified the tapping action as "inefficient", "silly," or simply not "sensible."

Hamilton says the researchers now want to know precisely what kind of actions children copy, and how that tendency to copy everything might contribute to human cultural transmission of knowledge.

She says that parents and teachers should be aware of the social value in going beyond the successful completion of such tasks.

Reference
Children with autism do not overimitate. Current Biology, 2013 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2013.02.036

Cerebral Palsy: Botox helps boy take his first steps

Brave toddler Aiden Farrell has taken his first steps after having injections of the anti-ageing cosmetic drug botox in his legs.

Aiden, three, was born with crippling cerebral palsy and his muscles tightened up so much so he was unable to straighten his legs without feeling terrible pain.

The toddler’s parents Sara and Gevun scoured the internet for treatment and discovered that Botox injections had been used to relieve symptoms before presenting the idea to UK NHS medical management.

Botox injections work by unblocking nerve impulses which restrict his movement - the same way celebrities use it to combat the effects of ageing.

Mother-of-four Sara, 31, from Gosport, Hampshire, said: 'Seeing Aiden take his first steps is something I never dreamed would be possible.

'I noticed as soon as we got home after having the treatment the difference was amazing. 'Usually he would sit on the sofa with his legs bent up but his legs were normal, like ours would be when we sit on the sofa.

'It may sound unusual but if it helps my little boy walk I do not care. It´s about trying to build up strength in his legs and walking more. He is using muscles he has never used before.´

'The difference in mobility is unbelievable.' Aiden has suffered health problems all his young life after being born prematurely at 29 weeks, weighing just 3lb and kept alive on a ventilator.´

Sara added: 'When I was told Aiden had cerebral palsy we grieved every day, especially because we have other children and could see them running around the house.

'It was difficult because we wanted Aiden to do the same things they could do.

'Over time his legs tightened up so much he was unable to straighten them. He would cry with any physiotherapy exercises he was given to strengthen his legs.

'I felt useless because all I could do was massage them to make his pain go away.”

After reading about the treatment online, Aiden was placed on an 18-month waiting list and in December last year was given 12 injections, two in each of his calves, hamstrings and groin.

The family were told there was only a 50 per cent chance of it being successful.

Down's syndrome: Further insight into complex Neuropathology

Researchers at the University of Bristol have revealed new insight into the function of a key protein attributed to impaired learning and memory in Down's syndrome.

The findings, published online in Nature Cell Biology, offer further molecular insight into how the reduced level of this key protein termed 'sorting nexin-27' [SNX27] may contribute to learning and memory problems associated with Down's syndrome.

The Bristol-based team now reveal how SNX27 forms the core component of an ancient protein complex which functions to control the abundance of a select group of proteins at the surface of cells.

Included among these proteins are numerous transporters that regulate the cell's ability to take up various nutrients, including glucose and metal ions such as zinc and copper.

In cells lacking SNX27, the level of these transporters is reduced and the cell's ability to take up nutrients is adversely perturbed.

Peter Cullen

Peter Cullen, Professor of Biochemistry from the University's School of Biochemistry and senior author of the Wellcome Trust-funded study, said: "Besides the previously recognised role of SNX27 in regulating the synaptic activity of neurones, our study suggests that the lack of SNX27 expression observed in Down's syndrome may also lead to a reduced metabolic activity that may adversely affect neuronal development and cognitive function.

"Further analysis of the effect of reduced SNX27 expression on the synaptic and metabolic activity of specific neuronal populations will certainly provide much needed molecular insight into the complex neuropathology of Down's syndrome as well as other neurological conditions."

More information:
Steinberg F. et al. A global analysis of SNX27-retromer assembly and cargo specificity reveals a function in glucose and metal ion transport, Nature Cell Biology.

Autism, ADHD and Dyslexia: Can Animals rescue children

For years, studies have demonstrated the capacity of animals in encouraging social interaction among humans.

People walking a dog are more likely to receive positive social approaches than those walking alone.

Animals have been used in preschool and elementary school settings to serve as a social opportunity for children with and without disabilities.

Animals can also help children with learning and behavioural issues?

A family dog helps the development of a child
Pet therapy was first used by psychiatrist Boris Levison in 1953 – who used a dog to work with autistic children.

Dr. Levinson found the dog provided the child the opportunity to experience internal and external sensations – something the child could not do with people.

"A pet is an island of sanity in what appears to be an insane world. Friendship retains its traditional values and securities in one's relationship with one's pet. Whether a dog, cat, bird, fish, turtle, or what have you, one can rely upon the fact that one's pet will always remain a faithful, intimate, non-competitive friend -- regardless of the good or ill fortune life brings us." - Dr. Boris Levinson, child psychologist

The movie called “After Thomas” popularised the notion of using pets – particularly dogs for children with autism.

The boy in the movie (and in real life) only spoke in repetitive echolalic style sentences and was beyond the reach of his parents. His grandmother suggested the family adopt a dog.

The child flourished as a result of his bond with their pet dog. He is now described as a confident, friendly teenager who plays guitar in a band and also does volunteer work.

Bringing animals into a home of a child with ASD has been related to increased empathy and pro-social behaviour.

Service Dogs
Having a service dog in the home helps the ASD child by improving their mood and sense of well-being.

A published study in PLOS ONE , on February 27, 2013, and another study reported in SAGE compared social interaction between neuro-typical children and children with ASD in the presence of an animal or toys.

Researchers reported that children with ASD showed more social approach behaviors such as talking, looking at faces and making tactile contact as well as received more social approaches from their peers when an animal was present rather than if toys were present.

They also displayed less self-focused behaviours such as crying and whining and more pro-social behaviors such as smiling behaviors when the animals were present.

Therapeutic Riding (hippotherapy) has also shown benefits in children with autism. One study showed a significant decrease in childhood autism rate scale (CARS) after 3-6 months of riding.

Another study showed that therapeutic riding helped with sensory integration, directed attention and improved social motivation while decreasing inattention and distractibility.

In a new study, in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, researchers found that children who participated in therapeutic riding improved their abilities to relate appropriately to people, events or objects; translating into better relationships with classmates.

Also noted were improvement in sensory tolerance and less prompting to participate in school lessons.

Riding horses can help children with ADHD
Researchers at Arizona State University found that children with ADHD who rode horses demonstrated significantly greater improvements in reaction time, movement time, self-esteem, reduced depression, and decreased anxiety when compared to non-riders.

Horses have also provided a unique setting for group ADHD therapy that requires children to interact with one another in order to help the horse through a given scenario.

For instance, if the children are helping the horse through an obstacle course, they need to communicate with one another, be supportive, and handle their emotions.

Parents involved in a study to see if dogs can help with their children’s behavior have also been seeing positive effects.

Researchers and parents are stating their children are calmer which helps them function better at school and do better in subjects and they are also noting improved social skills.

Dogs help children with autism feel more comfortable

Children with dyslexia or difficulty reading are often hesitant to read aloud for fear of being judged and feeling embarrassed but these same children often times feel at ease around a dog who is there just to listen to the story – not to critique their reading abilities.

Reference

• Does Pet Arrival Trigger Prosocial Behaviors in Individuals with Autism? 
• Sentinels of Safety: Service Dogs Ensure Safety and Enhance Freedom and Well-Being for Families With Autistic Children
• Social Behaviors Increase in Children with Autism in the Presence of Animals Compared to Toys
• Prospective trial of equine-assisted activities in autism spectrum disorder.
• Kenro Dog Training

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