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Sample records for children hierarchical inclusiveness

  1. Hybrid Iterative Scheme for Triple Hierarchical Variational Inequalities with Mixed Equilibrium, Variational Inclusion, and Minimization Constraints

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    Lu-Chuan Ceng

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available We introduce and analyze a hybrid iterative algorithm by combining Korpelevich's extragradient method, the hybrid steepest-descent method, and the averaged mapping approach to the gradient-projection algorithm. It is proven that, under appropriate assumptions, the proposed algorithm converges strongly to a common element of the fixed point set of finitely many nonexpansive mappings, the solution set of a generalized mixed equilibrium problem (GMEP, the solution set of finitely many variational inclusions, and the solution set of a convex minimization problem (CMP, which is also a unique solution of a triple hierarchical variational inequality (THVI in a real Hilbert space. In addition, we also consider the application of the proposed algorithm to solving a hierarchical variational inequality problem with constraints of the GMEP, the CMP, and finitely many variational inclusions.

  2. PARENTS ATTITUDE: INCLUSIVE EDUCATION OF CHILDREN WITH DISABILITY

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    Daniela Blagoj Dimitrova-Radojicic

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available This article reports the findings of a study designed to investigate the attitudes of parents of “normal” developing children toward the inclusion of children with disabilities into mainstream education in Macedonia. Specifically, the study was aimed to explore the similarities and differences in the attitudes of two groups of parents: a group of parents of preschool children and a group of parents of school age children. Participants included 88 parents. Generally, many of the parents accept inclusive education, but most of them still think the special school is better place for education of children with disability.

  3. Play-Based Interview Methods for Exploring Young Children's Perspectives on Inclusion

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    Koller, Donna; San Juan, Valerie

    2015-01-01

    Inclusive education provides learning opportunities for children with disabilities in regular settings with other children. Despite the prevalence of inclusive education, few qualitative studies have adequately explored young children's perspectives on inclusion. This paper reviews the findings of a preliminary qualitative study where play-based…

  4. A Comprehensive Inclusion Program for Kindergarten Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

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    Sainato, Diane M.; Morrison, Rebecca S.; Jung, Sunhwa; Axe, Judah; Nixon, Patricia A.

    2015-01-01

    To date, reports of empirically validated comprehensive intervention programs for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have been limited to preschool-age children. We examined the effects of a model inclusive kindergarten program for children with ASD. Forty-one children received instruction in an inclusive kindergarten program with their…

  5. Newcomer Children: Experiences of Inclusion and Exclusion, and Their Outcomes

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    Jacqueline Oxman-Martinez

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available This article explores the potential inclusion and exclusion factors affecting the developmental outcomes of immigrant children, and examines the influence of inclusive school environment, social/psychological isolation, and perceived discrimination by peers and teachers on the psychosocial and academic adjustment of immigrant children. Our study is based on a subset of data from the New Canadian Children and Youth Study (NCCYS, a national longitudinal survey including 515 foreign-born immigrant children (11 to 13 years from three ethnic groups (Mainland China, Hong Kong, the Philippines living in the Montreal and Toronto metropolitan areas, Canada. The results show that after controlling for socio-demographic background variables, teachers’ discriminatory attitudes and psychological isolation contribute to the prediction of risk for immigrant children’s self-esteem, social competence, and academic performance. Inclusive school environment has a significant effect on social competence and academic performance of immigrant children. Peer discrimination is also associated with self-esteem and social competence. These findings suggest that inclusive school environment, social/psychological isolation, and discrimination are critical factors affecting the developmental outcomes of immigrant children that, in turn, are connected to future prospects for their eventual inclusion and participation in other social, economic, and political venues of the host country.

  6. Peculiarities of inclusive education of ASD children in Ukraine

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    Larysa Rybchenko

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Despite the fact that special education in Ukraine is quite extensive and eveloped, education itself and social psychological development remain unavailable for children with ASD. The article aim is to show a model of autistic children inclusion in the educational system of Ukraine taking into account the experience of success. The investigated group consists of 20 children with ASD and 20 children with mental retardation from a boarding school aged from 8 to 9 years. The children indices were investigated according to Binet-Simon Scale for intelligence level determination, method of neuropsychological research according to Alexander Luria for psychophysical development level determination and Childhood Autism Rating Scale for autism level determination. The analysis of inclusive education implementation in the educational system of Ukraine has been conducted. The results of studies have shown that children with ASD have substantially lower indices of speech development, capacity for imitation as well as concentration of attention than children with mental retardation. Conductance of social intervention based of TEACCH therapy elements for group of children with ASD has shown their progress in indices of social interaction, emotional reaction and communication. The results obtained allow us to build a model of inclusion of children with ASD in the educational system of Ukraine. The main components of the model are considered.

  7. Inclusion understood from the perspectives of children with disability.

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    Spencer-Cavaliere, Nancy; Watkinson, E Jane

    2010-10-01

    This study explored the perspectives of children with disabilities regarding the concept of inclusion in physical activity. Participants were children (two girls, nine boys, Mage = 10 years, five months, age range: 8-12 years) with disabilities, including cerebral palsy, fine and gross motor delays, developmental coordination disorder, muscular dystrophy, nemaline myopathy, brachial plexus injury, and severe asthma. Children's perspectives on inclusion in physical activity (e.g., sports, games, and play) were explored through semistructured interviews. Interviews were digitally audio taped and transcribed verbatim. Data were analyzed through content analysis. Three themes emerged from the data: gaining entry to play, feeling like a legitimate participant, and having friends. These themes were associated with feeling included to varying degrees in sports, games, and play. In essence, it was the actions of others that were the prominent features identified by children that contributed to feeling more or less included in physical activity contexts. These results are discussed in relation to inclusion in physical education, recreation, and unstructured free play.

  8. Enhancing Social Behavior of Children with Autism in an Inclusive Classroom

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    Rovira, Alexandra

    2014-01-01

    Though laws relating to including children on the autism spectrum and general education in public school settings are in place, inclusion of students is still not a widespread practice in all elementary classrooms. This study examines the social needs of children with autism and in an inclusive classroom. Children with autism are often placed in…

  9. Parents' Perspectives on Inclusive Schools for Children with Autism Spectrum Conditions

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    Falkmer, Marita; Anderson, Katie; Joosten, Annette; Falkmer, Torbjörn

    2015-01-01

    Children with autism spectrum conditions (ASC) increasingly participate in inclusive education. The present study reviewed studies of children with ASC for parents' perceptions of aspects they believed contributed to inclusive mainstream school settings. Understanding the parental perspective on the facilitators for inclusion of their child…

  10. Possibilities and limitations of children's participation in inclusion ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Beyond realising the right of children and young people to be heard in routine interactions, there is much scope for research with (rather than on) children. This is particularly pertinent in the field of inclusive education where there is potential for the voice of children and young people to be a lever for change and to promote ...

  11. The Opinions of Mothers of Children with Special Needs Regarding Inclusive Education

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    Ceylan, Remziye; Aral, Neriman

    2016-01-01

    The aim of this study was to investigate the opinions of mothers who had children with special needs attending inclusive elementary schools regarding inclusive practice. With this purpose, 11 mothers with children attending the first, second and third grades of inclusive elementary schools affiliated to the Ministry of National Education in the…

  12. Training Class Inclusion Responding in Typically Developing Children and Individuals with Autism

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    Ming, Siri; Mulhern, Teresa; Stewart, Ian; Moran, Laura; Bynum, Kellie

    2018-01-01

    In a "class inclusion" task, a child must respond to stimuli as being involved in two different though hierarchically related categories. This study used a Relational Frame Theory (RFT) paradigm to assess and train this ability in three typically developing preschoolers and three individuals with autism spectrum disorder, all of whom had…

  13. Children's moral judgments and moral emotions following exclusion of children with disabilities: relations with inclusive education, age, and contact intensity.

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    Gasser, Luciano; Malti, Tina; Buholzer, Alois

    2013-03-01

    We investigated relations between children's moral judgments and moral emotions following disability-based exclusion and inclusive education, age, and contact intensity. Nine- and 12-year-old Swiss children (N=351) from inclusive and noninclusive classrooms provided moral judgments and moral emotion attributions following six vignettes about social exclusion of children with disabilities. Children also reported on their level of sympathy towards children with disabilities and their contact intensity with children with disabilities. Overall, children condemned disability-based exclusion, attributed few positive emotions to excluder targets, and expressed high sympathy for children with disabilities, independent of age and educational setting. However, younger children from inclusive classrooms exhibited more moral judgments and moral emotions than younger children from noninclusive classrooms. Moreover, children who expressed high sympathy towards children with disabilities were more likely to report frequent contact with children with disabilities. The findings extend existing research on social exclusion by examining disability-based exclusion and are discussed with respect to developmental research on social and moral judgments and emotions following children's inclusion and exclusion decisions. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Animal-Assisted Activities: Effects of Animals on Positive Emotional Display in Children in Inclusion Classrooms

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    Mazgaonkar, Gayatri

    2017-01-01

    Animals are commonly present in classrooms and may be an important tool in enhancing children’s experiences, especially in inclusion classrooms that provide integrative learning for both typically developing children and children with special needs. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of animal-assisted activities on children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) as well was typically developing (TD) children in inclusion classrooms. Ninety-nine children from 15 inclus...

  15. Social inclusion and wellbeing of families of children with special needs transnational study report

    OpenAIRE

    Colomeischi, Aurora Adina; Fillella Gui, Gemma; Veiga Branco, Augusta; Alimović, Sonja; Baranauskiene, Ingrida; Gol-Guven, Mine

    2016-01-01

    BUILDING BRIDGES: PROMOTING SOCIAL INCLUSION AND WELLBEING FOR FAMILIES OF CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS – PSI-WELL The project entitled Building Bridges: Promoting Social Inclusion and Wellbeing for Families of Children with Special Needs (PSI_WELL) proposes an innovative approach aimed to facilitate social inclusion and wellbeing for families confronting with disabled children through adult education for parents. The project is addressing to the specific needs of families parenting childre...

  16. Effects of Exposure to Inclusion and Socioeconomic Status on Parental Attitudes towards the Inclusion of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children

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    Most, Tova; Ingber, Sara

    2016-01-01

    The purpose of the study was to investigate the attitudes of parents of normal hearing (NH) children towards the inclusion of deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) children in the educational setting of their child. In particular, it examined the effect of parental socio economic status (SES) and exposure to inclusion (whether their child was in a class…

  17. INCLUSION OF CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL NEEDS IN REGULAR SCHOOLS: STUDENTS ATTITUDES AND PERCEPTIONS

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    Ludmila MALCOCI

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available The Republic of Moldova started the process of deinstitutionalization of children with disabilities/and special educational needs and their inclusion in biological families and mainstream community based services. Alongside with the deinstitutionalization, inclusion of children with special educational needs in regular community schools became a strategic direction of the educational policies in Moldova. In 2014, the Alliance of NGOs in the field of Social Protection of Family and Child conducted a research on assessment of inclusive education models implemented in pilot schools with the aim to identify positive practices, learned lessons and challenges in developing policies in the field of evidence-based education2 The research was conducted in 20 pilot schools from 12 counties. There were interviewed 200 teachers, 20 school managers, 360 students (162 pupils with SEN, 112 students studying in classes with children with SEN and 86 children studying in classes with no students having SEN. 10 focus group discussions with caregivers, students, teachers, parents (all in total 100 participants and 6 interviews with the general directorates of education and mayors were conducted. The article is focused on comparative analysis of perceptions, attitudes and behaviors of students with SEN and typical students regarding the inclusion of children with SEN in regular schools. The author concluded that the implementation of inclusive education resulted in rather positive changes in respective schools: provision with materials, modern devices, improvement of teaching quality and methods, change in the behaviors of children with SEN and in typical children; the typical children have positive attitudes and perceptions regarding the inclusion of children with SEN in their regular community schools; the level of school satisfaction of both: children with SEN and typical children is pretty high; the social and learning environment in pilot schools is friendly

  18. Inclusive Education for Children with Specific Learning Difficulties: Analysis of Opportunities and Barriers in Inclusive Education in Slovenia

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    Marija Kavkler

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available Inclusive education allows for universal inclusion, participation and achievement of all children, including children with specific learning difficulties (SpLD. Children with SpLD form a heterogeneous group with diverse cognitive deficits, special educational needs (SEN and strengths, and have a legislated right to the continuum of both assistance and support programmes. Although their intellectual capacity is average or above average, their learning achievements in some learning domains are modest, and they are poorly integrated into their social environment, which often results in their discrimination. Barriers and opportunities in the area of SpLD were analysed with the aid of Ball’s model (1994, with factors and conditions being analysed within the contexts of policy influence, text production and practice. The contexts of policy influence and text production provide the basic conditions for the in clusive education of children with SpLD. The context of influence on in clusive policy for children with SpLD represents a systematic approach to policy initiation and to the prerequisites for its implementation in practice. The context of policy text production focuses on professionals and their impact on the enactment of the rights of children with severe SpLD. The context of practice concerns barriers and opportunities for implementing inclusion in practice. Early identification and diagnosis of pupils’ strengths, deficits and SEN, together with intensified treatment corresponding to the SEN of children with SpLD, could significantly influence the efficiency of the educational process. Barriers, primarily of an immaterial nature, are mainly encountered in those schools that do not implement the five-tier Response to Intervention (RTI approach. This approach enables children with SpLD a continuum of team-based diagnostic evaluation, effective adaptations and assistance. The main reasons for the unfavourable situation concern education

  19. Attitude of Regular and Itinerant Teachers Towards the Inclusion of Hearing Impairment Children

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    Kamal Parhoon

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available Objectives: Inclusive education is a process of enabling all children to learn and participate effectively within mainstream school systems. It does not segregate children who have different abilities or needs. This article explores the attitudes of regular and itinerant teachers about inclusion of hearing impairment children in their schools in general education. Methods: In a descriptive Survey research design, the sample included 100 teachers (50 regular and 50 itinerant who were selected randomly, according to a multistage sampling method. Data was collected by using questionnaire with 32 questions regarding their attitudes. One-way Analysis of Variance and t-test were performed to obtain between- group comparisons. Results: The results indicated that the teacher's positive attitudes towards inclusive educational system of students with hearing impairment. Significant difference in attitudes was observed, based on the teaching experience, gender, level of teaching. The results also indicate that most teachers are agreeable to the inclusion of students with hearing impairment in their classrooms. Discussion: successful inclusion for hearing impairment children in regular classrooms entails the positive attitudes of Regular and itinerant teachers through a systematic programming within the classroom.

  20. "I Just See All Children as Children": Teachers' Perceptions about Inclusion

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    Leatherman, Jane M.

    2007-01-01

    This narrative study examined teachers' perceptions of their inclusive classrooms. Eight early childhood teachers responded to open-ended interview questions about their experiences teaching children with and without disabilities in the same classroom environment. The social constructivist view of teaching and learning is highlighted as the…

  1. INCLUSION OF CHILDREN WITH INTELLECTUAL AND MULTIPLE DISABILITIES: A COMMUNITY-BASED REHABILITATION APPROACH, INDIA

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    Ram LAKHAN

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available Background: Inclusion of children with intellectual disabilities (ID and multiple disabilities (MD in regular schools in India is extremely poor. One of the key objectives of community-based rehabilitation (CBR is to include ID & MD children in regular schools. This study attempted to find out association with age, ID severity, poverty, gender, parent education, population, and multiple disabilities comprising one or more disorders cerebral palsy, epilepsy and psychiatric disorders with inclusion among 259 children in Barwani Block of Barwani District in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India.Aim: Inclusion of children with intellectual and multiple disabilities in regular schools through CBR approach in India.Method: Chi square test was conducted to investigate association between inclusion and predictor variables ID categories, age, gender, poverty level, parent education, population type and multiple disabilities. Result: Inclusion was possible for borderline 2(66.4%, mild 54(68.3%, moderate 18(18.2%, and age range from 5 to 12 years 63 (43%. Children living in poor families 63 (30.6%, not poor 11(18.9%, parental edu­ca­ti­on none 52 (26%, primary level 11 (65%, midd­le school 10 (48% high school 0 (0% and bachelor degree 1(7%, female 34 (27.9%, male 40 (29.2%, tribal 40 (28.7%, non-tribal 34(28.3% and multiple disabled with cerebral palsy 1(1.2%, epilepsy 3 (4.8% and psychiatry disorders 12 (22.6% were able to receive inclusive education. Sig­ni­ficant difference in inclusion among ID ca­te­gories (c2=99.8, p < 0.001, poverty (c2=3.37, p 0.044, parental education (c2=23.7, p < 0.001, MD CP (c2=43.9, p < 0.001 and epilepsy (c2=22.4, p < 0.001 were seen.Conclusion: Inclusion through CBR is feasible and acceptable in poor rural settings in India. CBR can facilitate inclusion of children with borderline, mild and moderate categories by involving their parents, teachers and community members.

  2. Strategies for improving disability awareness and social inclusion of children and young people with cerebral palsy.

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    Lindsay, S; McPherson, A C

    2012-11-01

    Children and youth with disabilities are at a higher risk of being socially excluded or bullied while at school compared with their typically developing peers. This study explored disabled children's suggestions for improving social inclusion. Fifteen children with cerebral palsy were interviewed or took part in a group discussion about social inclusion and bullying. All interviews and focus groups were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. The children and youth described several strategies to help improve social inclusion at school including: (1) disclosure of condition and creating awareness of disability; (2) awareness of bullying; (3) developing a peer support network and building self-confidence; and (4) suggestions on what teachers can do. It is recommended that children's suggestions be considered within the classroom context to enhance the social inclusion and participation of children with disabilities. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  3. Children's Moral Judgments and Moral Emotions Following Exclusion of Children with Disabilities: Relations with Inclusive Education, Age, and Contact Intensity

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    Gasser, Luciano; Malti, Tina; Buholzer, Alois

    2013-01-01

    We investigated relations between children's moral judgments and moral emotions following disability-based exclusion and inclusive education, age, and contact intensity. Nine- and 12-year-old Swiss children (N = 351) from inclusive and noninclusive classrooms provided moral judgments and moral emotion attributions following six vignettes about…

  4. Implementation of inclusive education for children with intellectual and developmental disabilities in African countries: a scoping review.

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    Okyere, Christiana; Aldersey, Heather Michelle; Lysaght, Rosemary; Sulaiman, Surajo Kamilu

    2018-04-25

    To advance understanding of practices that support inclusion of children with intellectual and developmental disabilities in inclusive education classrooms in Africa by conducting a review of the extant literature. Five academic databases were searched supplemented by a hand search of key journals and references of included studies. Two authors independently screened studies via a reference manager (Covidence) which allowed for blinding. A third author was consulted in cases of conflict. Thirty articles that provided empirical evidence of inclusive education implementation were included. Eight articles highlighted practices that support inclusion of children with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Using Bronfenbrenner's bioecological framework, findings revealed that inclusive education implementation is influenced by factors on the bio level, micro level, meso level, and macro level. Recommendations for promoting inclusive education implementation are provided. Inclusion goes beyond teachers and requires strong commitment of other stakeholders such as families and governments. To guarantee the smooth inclusion of children with special education needs and particularly with intellectual and developmental disabilities, a set of practices validated through rigorous research as supportive and unique and that can be universal to Africa is wise. Implications for rehabilitation A number of strategies were identified that can improve the classroom inclusion of children with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Development of policies that support such strategies could improve implementation. Inclusion goes beyond teachers. Rehabilitation professionals (i.e. occupational therapists) and educational professionals should partner to identify practical solutions to the challenges of creating inclusive environments for children with special education needs. Committing more resources and time towards the development and implementation of special education

  5. Social inclusion for children with hearing loss in listening and spoken Language early intervention: an exploratory study.

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    Constantinescu-Sharpe, Gabriella; Phillips, Rebecca L; Davis, Aleisha; Dornan, Dimity; Hogan, Anthony

    2017-03-14

    Social inclusion is a common focus of listening and spoken language (LSL) early intervention for children with hearing loss. This exploratory study compared the social inclusion of young children with hearing loss educated using a listening and spoken language approach with population data. A framework for understanding the scope of social inclusion is presented in the Background. This framework guided the use of a shortened, modified version of the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC) to measure two of the five facets of social inclusion ('education' and 'interacting with society and fulfilling social goals'). The survey was completed by parents of children with hearing loss aged 4-5 years who were educated using a LSL approach (n = 78; 37% who responded). These responses were compared to those obtained for typical hearing children in the LSAC dataset (n = 3265). Analyses revealed that most children with hearing loss had comparable outcomes to those with typical hearing on the 'education' and 'interacting with society and fulfilling social roles' facets of social inclusion. These exploratory findings are positive and warrant further investigation across all five facets of the framework to identify which factors influence social inclusion.

  6. Peer Inclusion in Interventions for Children with ADHD: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

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    Vilaysack, Brandon; Doma, Kenji; Wilkes-Gillan, Sarah; Speyer, Renée

    2018-01-01

    Objective To assess the effectiveness of peer inclusion in interventions to improve the social functioning of children with ADHD. Methods We searched four electronic databases for randomized controlled trials and controlled quasi-experimental studies that investigated peer inclusion interventions alone or combined with pharmacological treatment. Data were collected from the included studies and methodologically assessed. Meta-analyses were conducted using a random-effects model. Results Seventeen studies met eligibility criteria. Studies investigated interventions consisting of peer involvement and peer proximity; no study included peer mediation. Most included studies had an unclear or high risk of bias regarding inadequate reporting of randomization, blinding, and control for confounders. Meta-analyses indicated improvements in pre-post measures of social functioning for participants in peer-inclusive treatment groups. Peer inclusion was advantageous compared to treatment as usual. The benefits of peer inclusion over other therapies or medication only could not be determined. Using parents as raters for outcome measurement significantly mediated the intervention effect. Conclusions The evidence to support or contest the efficacy of peer inclusion interventions for children with ADHD is lacking. Future studies need to reduce risks of bias, use appropriate sample sizes, and provide detailed results to investigate the efficacy of peer inclusion interventions for children with ADHD. PMID:29744363

  7. Understanding Impulsivity among Children with Specific Learning Disabilities in Inclusion Schools

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    Al-Dababneh, Kholoud Adeeb; Al-Zboon, Eman K.

    2018-01-01

    Impulsive behavior is a characteristic of children with specific learning disabilities (SLD), and is related to learning ability. The present study aims to identify impulsivity behavior in children with SLD who attend inclusion schools, from their resource room teachers' perspectives. A 31-item questionnaire that addressed four subscales was…

  8. Evaluating Community Inclusion: A Novel Treatment Program for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

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    Natalie J. Webb

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available A state-funded, non-profit organization developed an innovative inclusion program for children with Autism spectrum disorders and developmental delays, Including Special Kids, which offers activities for children with developmental delays alongside typically developing children in collaboration with well-established local youth programs. This case study examines the ISK intervention program at the original community host sites to determine if the evidence supports a measurable and demonstrable change in behaviors in a real-world setting that may lead to increased quality of life and greater inclusion in the community. Using evidence-based data, we measured the progress of 30 children over 6-24 months. Children participating in the program showed average improvement in all but two function areas and improvement in all composite scores. While these results do not prove program success, they offer an indication that the program helps children learn skills and behaviors to successfully navigate and become part of community-based, after-school recreational programs.

  9. Parents perceptions of social inclusion for children with Williams Syndrome

    OpenAIRE

    Gulliver, Katherine

    2016-01-01

    This thesis explores parents’ perceptions of social inclusion for children with Williams Syndrome; a rare intellectual disability with a distinct social cognitive profile. 5 interviews with parents give rich understanding to what parents’ value for their child’s education, and how this is achieved. Thematic analysis highlights key similarities and differences in experiences between parents of children attending mainstream schools and one special school. Severity of disability affects how pare...

  10. Effects of inclusion on the academic achievement and adaptive behaviour of children with intellectual disabilities.

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    Dessemontet, R Sermier; Bless, G; Morin, D

    2012-06-01

    While an extensive body of research has examined the outcomes of inclusion for pupils with special needs, in particular learning disabilities, its effects on the development of children with intellectual disabilities (ID) have been less explored. As inclusive practices tend to be more common for this group of children, it is important to acquire more knowledge on this issue. A comparative study with an experimental group of 34 children with ID fully included in general education classrooms with support, and a control group of 34 comparable children in special schools has been conducted. The progress accomplished by these two groups in their academic achievement and adaptive behaviour has been compared over two school years. Included children made slightly more progress in literacy skills than children attending special schools. No differences were found between the progress of the two groups in mathematics and adaptive behaviour. Inclusive education is an appropriate educational option for primary pupils with ID who require extensive support in school. © 2011 The Authors. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  11. Attitudes of stakeholders in psychiatry towards the inclusion of children in genomic research

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sundby, Anna; Boolsen, Merete Watt; Burgdorf, Kristoffer Sølvsten

    2018-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Genomic sequencing of children in research raises complex ethical issues. This study aims to gain more knowledge on the attitudes towards the inclusion of children as research subjects in genomic research and towards the disclosure of pertinent and incidental findings to the parents...... age. Having children does not affect the stakeholder's attitudes towards the inclusion of children as research subjects in genomic research. CONCLUSION: Our findings illustrate that both the child's right to autonomy and the parents' interest to be informed are important factors that are found...... disclosing genetic information. Other important aspects were the child's right to an autonomous choice, the emotional burden of knowing imposed on both the child and the parents, and the possibility of receiving beneficial clinical information regarding the future health of the child. Nevertheless...

  12. Interventions and Adaptations for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Inclusive Early Childhood Settings

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    Brodzeller, Katharine L.; Ottley, Jennifer R.; Jung, Jeesun; Coogle, Christan G.

    2018-01-01

    The inclusive education of children with disabilities is considered best practice, yet many early childhood educators feel unprepared to deliver appropriate instruction for children with disabilities and often require supports to successfully meet the children's unique needs. Young children experiencing autism spectrum disorder are being diagnosed…

  13. New insight in magnetic saturation behavior of nickel hierarchical structures

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    Ma, Ji; Zhang, Jianxing; Liu, Chunting; Chen, Kezheng

    2017-09-01

    It is unanimously accepted that non-ferromagnetic inclusions in a ferromagnetic system will lower down total saturation magnetization in unit of emu/g. In this study, ;lattice strain; was found to be another key factor to have critical impact on magnetic saturation behavior of the system. The lattice strain determined assembling patterns of primary nanoparticles in hierarchical structures and was intimately related with the formation process of these architectures. Therefore, flower-necklace-like and cauliflower-like nickel hierarchical structures were used as prototype systems to evidence the relationship between assembling patterns of primary nanoparticles and magnetic saturation behaviors of these architectures. It was found that the influence of lattice strain on saturation magnetization outperformed that of non-ferromagnetic inclusions in these hierarchical structures. This will enable new insights into fundamental understanding of related magnetic effects.

  14. Organization of support to children from dysfunctional families in school within the framework of inclusion in Belarus

    OpenAIRE

    Shestunova, Tatsiana

    2017-01-01

    Shestunova Tatsiana, 2017. Organization of Support to Children from Dysfunctional Families in School within the Framework of Inclusion in Belarus. Master's Thesis in Education. University of Jyväskylä. Department of Education. Inclusion has been seen in many communities as a useful strategy in addressing learners’ diversity. Children from dysfunctional background usually have various needs and problems. The theoretical framework of inclusion was use...

  15. Assistive Technology for Young Children: Creating Inclusive Learning Environments

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    Sadao, Kathleen C.; Robinson, Nancy B.

    2010-01-01

    Assistive technology (AT) can help young children with disabilities fully participate in natural, inclusive learning environments--but many early childhood professionals don't get the training they need to harness the power of AT. Fill that gap with this unintimidating, reader-friendly resource, the go-to guide to recommended AT practice for…

  16. A Cross-Sectional Study of Shared Attention by Children with Autism and Typically Developing Children in an Inclusive Preschool Setting

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    Rice, Catherine E.; Adamson, Lauren B.; Winner, Ellen; McGee, Gail G.

    2016-01-01

    This study examined the ways in which young children with autism and typical children focus their engagement with objects and people (peers and adults) in an inclusive preschool setting. A cross-sectional analysis was conducted of 30 typical children and 30 children with autism, with 10 different children from each group at 3 different ages (2, 3,…

  17. The predictors of students' attitude towards inclusion of children with disabilities in physical education classes

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    Orlić Ana

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Positive attitude towards inclusion of children with disabilities in Physical Education (PE classes is one quite important factor for successful implementation of inclusive education. The aim of this study was to examine the predictors of attitude of the students as future PE teachers towards inclusion in PE. In this study, the predictors in the field of personality, professional competences for working with children with disabilities and certain personal characteristics (gender were included. The sample included 221 students of the final year of studies at the Faculty of Sport and Physical Education in Belgrade, Niš and Novi Sad. In order to measure the attitude towards inclusion in PE, the instrument of Attitude Toward Inclusive Physical Education was used. In the field of personality, a trait of openness to experience was examined, which was measured using the HEXACO PI-R instrument. An additional questionnaire was also designed by which the students were asked to indicate their gender and professional competences for working with children with disabilities: their average mark during the studies, subjective assessment of the level of knowledge and skills required for working with children with disabilities acquired in the course of their studies (self-assessment of professional competence and experience in working with children with disabilities during their professional practice. The results of multiple regression analysis showed that openness to experience, self-assessment of professional competence and gender were significant predictors. The results indicate that, during the training for teaching profession, it is necessary to develop students' specific competences required for the work in inclusive education as well as to create the teaching atmosphere which will enhance inquisitiveness and creativity as significant determinants of the trait of openness to experience.

  18. Social Inclusion: Meeting the Socio-Emotional Needs of Children with Vision Needs

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    Roe, Joao

    2008-01-01

    To meet the socio-emotional needs of children with vision impairment, it is important that professionals involved have a good understanding of these needs and are able to interpret children's behaviours. Professionals also need to create contexts that promote social inclusion alongside academic achievement. This is a continuous challenge for…

  19. Inclusion of children with autism and ADHD in physical education (PE) at primary school in Denmark

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bentholm, Anette Lisbeth

    Inclusion of children with autism and ADHD in physical education (PE) at primary school in DenmarkMore children diagnosed with autism and ADHD have been included in primary school by law in Denmark over the last years (L379, 2012). In a new School reform (L406, 2014) the children have to particip......Inclusion of children with autism and ADHD in physical education (PE) at primary school in DenmarkMore children diagnosed with autism and ADHD have been included in primary school by law in Denmark over the last years (L379, 2012). In a new School reform (L406, 2014) the children have...... to participate in physical activities at least 45 minutes each school day. Autism and ADHD are disabling conditions that affects social communication and interaction, and often also their motor skills and cognition (Harvey & Reid, 2003; Verret, 2010). Therefore these children can be challenge to participate...... a process-oriented methodology (Baur & Ernst, 2011).The methods of the research are primarily based on qualitative methods: Analysis of the curriculum for PE from the Danish ministry of Education and political strategies of inclusion, field observations primarily in PE, interviews with the 11 children...

  20. A comparison of the social competence of children with moderate intellectual disability in inclusive versus segregated school settings.

    LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

    Hardiman, Sharon

    2009-03-01

    This is the first study to compare the social competence of children with moderate intellectual disability in inclusive versus segregated school settings in the Republic of Ireland. A convenience sample was recruited through two large ID services. The sample comprised 45 children across two groups: Group 1 (n=20; inclusive school) and Group 2 (n=25; segregated school). Parents and teachers completed the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire and the Adaptive Behaviour Scale-School: 2nd edition. A series of 2 x 2 ANOVAs were carried out on social competence scores using educational placement type (inclusive vs segregated school) and proxy rater (parent vs teacher) as the independent variables. Key findings indicated that children in inclusive schools did not differ significantly from children in segregated schools on the majority of proxy ratings of social competence. This supports the belief that children with intellectual disabilities can function well in different educational settings. Present findings highlight the importance of utilising the functional model of ID when selecting and designing school placements for children with moderate ID.

  1. A comparison of the social competence of children with moderate intellectual disability in inclusive versus segregated school settings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hardiman, Sharon; Guerin, Suzanne; Fitzsimons, Elaine

    2009-01-01

    This is the first study to compare the social competence of children with moderate intellectual disability in inclusive versus segregated school settings in the Republic of Ireland. A convenience sample was recruited through two large ID services. The sample comprised 45 children across two groups: Group 1 (n=20; inclusive school) and Group 2 (n=25; segregated school). Parents and teachers completed the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire and the Adaptive Behaviour Scale-School: 2nd edition. A series of 2 x 2 ANOVAs were carried out on social competence scores using educational placement type (inclusive vs segregated school) and proxy rater (parent vs teacher) as the independent variables. Key findings indicated that children in inclusive schools did not differ significantly from children in segregated schools on the majority of proxy ratings of social competence. This supports the belief that children with intellectual disabilities can function well in different educational settings. Present findings highlight the importance of utilising the functional model of ID when selecting and designing school placements for children with moderate ID.

  2. Attitudes of stakeholders in psychiatry towards the inclusion of children in genomic research

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sundby, Anna; Boolsen, Merete Watt; Burgdorf, Kristoffer Sølvsten

    2018-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Genomic sequencing of children in research raises complex ethical issues. This study aims to gain more knowledge on the attitudes towards the inclusion of children as research subjects in genomic research and towards the disclosure of pertinent and incidental findings to the parents a...

  3. Inclusion of Children with Hearing Impairment in Schools: A Survey on Teachers’ Attitudes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dr. Santhi S Prakash

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available Purpose: Inclusion of children with disabilities in mainstream classrooms has become the focus of extensive research in education. It has both academic and social benefits for all students, such as providing opportunities for communication and social interaction. The evaluation of teachers’ attitudes towards inclusion appears to be a good method to determine the success of the programme. Although this has been widely researched in many countries, the available evidence is not consistent. This study was undertaken in the state of Andhra Pradesh in India, to measure and compare teachers’ attitudes towards the inclusion of children with hearing impairment in schools.Method: A questionnaire developed by Giles and Tanner (1995 measuring three domains - (1 effective strategies for meeting the needs of all students, (2 the support for educational change in their district, and (3 inclusive education - was modified in keeping with cultural and geographical variations and used as the test tool. A hundred teachers of various Government and non-Government schools in 2 districts of Andhra Pradesh, India, participated in the study.Results: Higher scores on domain 1 indicate that teachers feel effective strategies to benefit students with disabilities should be implemented in schools. The results also indicate that most teachers are agreeable to the inclusion of students with disabilities in their classrooms. Significant difference in attitudes was observed, based on the teachers’ qualifications, teaching experience, gender, level of teaching and management.Conclusion: The study concludes that there is a need for intervention to foster more positive attitudes among teachers, if the implementation of inclusive education is to succeed. It also has implications for the framing of laws and policies for children with hearing impairments.doi: 10.5463/dcid.v23i3.117

  4. A comparison on inclusive practices for children with special needs in faith-based kindergartens in Hong Kong.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lai, Yue Sum Sharon; Zhang, Kaili Chen

    2014-06-01

    This qualitative study aimed to examine the inclusive practices implemented in three faith-based kindergartens in Hong Kong. A questionnaire was used to collect information about school backgrounds, students' special needs, teacher training, special education services, curriculum design, school policy, parental involvement, and challenges faced by these schools when implementing their inclusive practices. The primary focus of this study was the influence of faiths on the provision of inclusive services for children with special needs. The results indicated that faiths, along with other factors, have played a significant role in contributing to the inclusive education services provided to children in these schools.

  5. Determinants of inclusive education of 8-12 year-old children with cerebral palsy in 9 European regions

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sentenac, Mariane; Ehlinger, Virginie; Michelsen, Susan Ishøy

    2013-01-01

    The principle of inclusive education has been increasingly recognised over recent decades and most countries officially support schooling of children with disabilities in mainstream settings. The SPARCLE study offers the opportunity to report on the schooling practices for children with cerebral...... on inclusion in mainstream school, depending on the region....

  6. Empowering children with special educational needs to speak up: experiences of inclusive physical education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Coates, Janine; Vickerman, Philip

    2010-01-01

    The inclusion of children with special educational needs (SEN) has risen up the political agenda since the return of the Labour Government in 1997. This has seen increasing numbers of children with SEN being educated within mainstream schools. This study examines the perspectives of children with SEN attending both mainstream and special schools in relation to their experiences of physical education (PE). Findings demonstrate that children with SEN in both mainstream and special schools enjoy PE, although issues were raised in mainstream schools regarding bullying and the appropriateness of activities in PE lessons. The findings show how children offered suggestions about how to improve PE and make it more beneficial. The findings identify how children are empowered through consultation, and are aware of their needs and abilities. As such it is evident that schools and those supporting inclusive physical activity for children with SEN must use consultation as a tool for empowering pupils as a means of providing them with choices while gaining a rich insight into their lived experiences of PE.

  7. A comparative analysis of global and local processing of hierarchical visual stimuli in young children (Homo sapiens) and monkeys (Cebus apella).

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Lillo, Carlo; Spinozzi, Giovanna; Truppa, Valentina; Naylor, Donna M

    2005-05-01

    Results obtained with preschool children (Homo sapiens) were compared with results previously obtained from capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella) in matching-to-sample tasks featuring hierarchical visual stimuli. In Experiment 1, monkeys, in contrast with children, showed an advantage in matching the stimuli on the basis of their local features. These results were replicated in a 2nd experiment in which control trials enabled the authors to rule out that children used spurious cues to solve the matching task. In a 3rd experiment featuring conditions in which the density of the stimuli was manipulated, monkeys' accuracy in the processing of the global shape of the stimuli was negatively affected by the separation of the local elements, whereas children's performance was robust across testing conditions. Children's response latencies revealed a global precedence in the 2nd and 3rd experiments. These results show differences in the processing of hierarchical stimuli by humans and monkeys that emerge early during childhood. 2005 APA, all rights reserved

  8. 77 FR 11119 - Request for Nominations of Children's Healthcare Quality Measures for Potential Inclusion in the...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-02-24

    ... Nominations of Children's Healthcare Quality Measures for Potential Inclusion in the CHIPRA 2013 Improved Core... quality for potential inclusion in the CHIPRA 2013 Improved Core Set of Health Care Quality Measures (the... inclusion, more information, including a copyright release (if applicable) and full measure specifications...

  9. SUPPORT IN INCLUSIVE EDUCATION

    OpenAIRE

    Belma Čičkušić; Ševala Tulumović; Selma Bakić; Salem Bakić

    2016-01-01

    In order for inclusive class to be successful, associates are of great help to teachers. Besides associates, teachers' specialization can be accomplished through educational seminars on the inclusion topic. However, information about inclusion, working with children with special needs, can also be found in scientific journals that offer more information on methods of working with children with special needs, didactic materials customized according to abilities of children. Aim of ...

  10. [Comparing students in inclusive education to those in special schools: the view of parents of children with learning disabilities].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Klicpera, Christian; Klicpera, Barbara Gasteiger

    2004-12-01

    The paper presents the results of a survey of 755 parents of learning disabled children with certified special needs who either attended classes within regular education or special schools. All parents were involved in the decision on the school placement of their children. The experiences of 547 parents of learning disabled students in inclusive classes were contrasted with those of 207 parents of children in special schools. Besides a rather high satisfaction with previous school experiences of their children a number of differences between the two groups of parents could be observed. Parents of students in special schools viewed their children as rather little challenged by their educational requirements whereas those in inclusive education found their children to be overtaxed. The social development of the students in inclusive education was judged as more positive and, generally, a higher rate of parents of learning disabled students in inclusive classes were satisfied with their choice of the educational setting. Although the requirements for parental support concerning studying were higher in inclusive classes this cannot solely explain the differences of experiences with school. In a second step, satisfied parents were compared to dissatisfied parents. It could be found that the group of dissatisfied parents had to make their choice on the educational setting of their children under less favourable conditions and many could not accept that their child had been classified as having special needs. This applied to parents of students in inclusive education as well as to parents of children in special schools. Additionally, parents of students with German as a second language reported to be discontented more frequently. No significant discrepancies could be found between different grades or federal states with different quotas of inclusive education.

  11. The pros and cons of inclusive education for children with Profound Intellectual and Multiple Disabilities

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Everaarts, Sanne; de Boer, Anke; van der Putten, Annette; Minnaert, Alexander

    2016-01-01

    Aim: Although children with disabilities have the right to be included into the school system, children with Profound Intellectual and Multiple Disabilities (PIMD) are often not included. The aim of this study is to gather knowledge about inclusive education for children with PIMD by identifying

  12. Early Childhood Educators' Perspectives and Practices about Inclusion of Children with Special Needs in Botswana

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chhabra, Simmi; Bose, Kabita; Chadha, Neerja

    2018-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate perspectives of Early Childhood Educators (ECEds) about inclusion of Children With Special Needs (CWSN) by examining their attitudes, training needs, and inclusive practices used in the inclusive classroom. One hundred twenty-eight ECEds completed a questionnaire that included the Scale of Teachers'…

  13. Young children's inclusion decisions in moral and social-conventional group norm contexts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rizzo, Michael T; Cooley, Shelby; Elenbaas, Laura; Killen, Melanie

    2018-01-01

    Being a member of a peer group involves making decisions about whom to include in or exclude from the group. Sometimes these decisions are related to whether members of the group support or challenge the norms of the group. To examine how young children weigh concerns for group norms and group membership in both moral and social-conventional norm contexts, children (3- to 6-year-olds; N=73) were asked to decide between including an ingroup member who challenged the group's norm or an outgroup member who supported the norm. Groups held either moral (equal or unequal resource allocation) or social-conventional (traditional or nontraditional) norms. In the moral contexts, children were more likely to include the peer who advocated for the moral concern for equality regardless of the peer's group membership or their group's specific norm. In the social-conventional contexts, however, children were more likely to include the peer who advocated for the conventional concern for maintaining traditions but only at the group-specific level. Furthermore, with age children increasingly based their inclusion decisions on normative concerns, rather than on group membership concerns, and differed in their inclusion decisions for ingroups and outgroups. Finally, children reasoned about their decisions by referencing concerns for fairness, group norms, and group membership, suggesting that preschool children weigh multiple concerns when deciding whom to include in their groups. Overall, the current study revealed differences in how preschool children weigh moral and social-conventional concerns in intergroup contexts. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. Inclusion, children's groups, music therapy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Holck, Ulla; Jacobsen, Stine Lindahl

    2016-01-01

    portrayal of the qualities of musical interplay that promotes well-being in group settings and, thus, the inclusion of vulnerable students. Therefore, we open the chapter with a focus on musicality and on the importance of applying a musical approach in relation to the children.......Music has a rare ability to affect us directly. Pulse and rhythms make us move, and notes and harmonies inspire and express our inner emotions in a direct and immediate way that goes beyond what words or even other art forms can rarely achieve (Panksepp & Trevarthen, 2009). Music creates...... a delightful build-up of tension or soothes us, and its narrative character gives rise to mental imagery or memories. Music brings people together and helps build communities across languages and common divides. And – not least – music captures children’s immediate attention, so when the music starts, so do...

  15. Exploring Children's Perceptions of Two School-Based Social Inclusion Programs: A Pilot Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lindsay, Sally; McPherson, Amy C.; Aslam, Henna; McKeever, Patricia; Wright, Virginia

    2013-01-01

    Background: Although social exclusion among typically developing school-aged children has been well explored, it is under-researched for children with disabilities even though they are at a higher risk for being excluded. While there are a number of different programs available to improve social inclusion at school, the appeal of these programs to…

  16. [Children with learning disabilities and handicaps in inclusive schools or in special schools? The view of parents and professionals].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bode, H; Hirner, V

    2013-03-01

    To investigate the view of parents and professionals on sending children with special educational needs to inclusive schools. 54 preschool children in the year before school entry and 155 school children attending a Social Pediatric Center. They displayed motor-, mental-, speech- or sensory handicaps, learning or behavioral disabilities. Questionnaires for parents of preschool- and of school children and questionnaires for the professional caring for the child were evaluated and compared. Parental expectations, experiences concerning school and the severity of disability were determined. 135 pupils attended special schools and 20 integrative schools. The parents were generally very content with both types of schools despite the fact that 33% of parents had not have a free choice of the school. They had a positive attitude to inclusive education. Preference for inclusive schooling decreased with increasing severity of the child's disability. The severity of disability was rated similar by parents and by professionals. Parents of preschool children tended more often and parents of school children less often than professionals towards sending the individual child to an inclusive school. Some parents of children with special educational needs would like to send their child to a special school, others prefer inclusive schools. It is paramount to improve the professional advice and guidance to parents since parental options to choose the school for their child are increasing in Germany. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

  17. Children who are deaf or hard of hearing in inclusive educational settings: a literature review on interactions with peers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xie, Yu-Han; Potměšil, Miloň; Peters, Brenda

    2014-10-01

    This review is conducted to describe how children who are deaf or hard of hearing (D/HH) interact with hearing peers in inclusive settings, illustrate the difficulties and challenges faced by them in interacting with peers, and identify effective interventions that promote their social interaction in inclusive education. A systematic search of databases and journals identified 21 papers that met the inclusion criteria. Two broad themes emerged from an analysis of the literatures, which included processes and outcomes of interactions with peers and intervention programs. The research indicates that children who are D/HH face great difficulties in communicating, initiating/entering, and maintaining interactions with hearing peers in inclusive settings. The co-enrollment and social skills training programs are considered to be effective interventions for their social interaction. Communication abilities and social skills of children who are D/HH, responses of children with normal hearing, and the effect of environment are highlighted as crucial aspects of social interactions. In addition, future research is needed to study the interaction between children who are D/HH and hearing peers in natural settings, at different stages of school life, as well as improving social interaction and establishing an inclusive classroom climate for children who are D/HH. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  18. Trainee teachers' attitudes to inclusive education for children with Down's syndrome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wishart, J G; Manning, G

    1996-02-01

    The attitudes of 231 trainee teachers towards inclusive education for children with Down's syndrome were surveyed in two UK colleges of education, one in Scotland and one in Northern Ireland. While the right to educational integration for children with special educational needs was widely endorsed, considerable reservations were expressed about its implementation in practice. Only 13% of respondents indicated that they would welcome the opportunity to teach in an integrated setting and 96% felt that their professional training did not prepare them to meet this challenge. Many underestimated potential levels of achievement in children with Down's syndrome and over half wrongly associated the condition with very short life expectancy.

  19. "Only you can play with me!" Children's inclusive decision making, reasoning, and emotions based on peers' gender and behavior problems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peplak, Joanna; Song, Ju-Hyun; Colasante, Tyler; Malti, Tina

    2017-10-01

    This study examined the development of children's decisions, reasoning, and emotions in contexts of peer inclusion/exclusion. We asked an ethnically diverse sample of 117 children aged 4years (n=59; 60% girls) and 8years (n=58; 49% girls) to choose between including hypothetical peers of the same or opposite gender and with or without attention deficit/hyperactivity problems and aggressive behavior. Children also provided justifications for, and emotions associated with, their inclusion decisions. Both 4- and 8-year-olds predominantly chose to include the in-group peer (i.e., the same-gender peer and peers without behavior problems), thereby demonstrating a normative in-group inclusive bias. Nevertheless, children included the out-group peer more in the gender context than in the behavior problem contexts. The majority of children reported group functioning-related, group identity-related, and stereotype-related reasoning after their in-group inclusion decisions, and they associated happy feelings with such decisions. Although most children attributed sadness to the excluded out-group peer, they attributed more anger to the excluded out-group peer in the aggression context compared with other contexts. We discuss the implications of our findings for current theorizing about children's social-cognitive and emotional development in contexts of peer inclusion and exclusion. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. Inclusion of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Listening and Hearing to Voices from the Grassroots

    Science.gov (United States)

    Majoko, Tawanda

    2016-01-01

    The current significantly high prevalence rates of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) coupled with the paradigm shift from exclusive to inclusive education warrants research on inclusion of children with ASD in mainstream classrooms in Zimbabwe. A qualitative methodology was used to interview 21 regular primary school teachers regarding social…

  1. Realizing the Educational Rights of Children with Disabilities: An Overview of Inclusive Education in Cameroon

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cockburn, Lynn; Hashemi, Goli; Noumi, Christian; Ritchie, Allison; Skead, Kimberly

    2017-01-01

    All children deserve access to education, including those in low income countries. Educators and teachers share a desire to promote inclusive education, and can came together, such as the current group of authors did, to educate themselves about current developments. This paper examines published research relevant to inclusive education in…

  2. Peer-Mediated Intervention: An Effective, Inclusive Strategy for All Young Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harris, Kathleen; Pretti-Frontczak, Kristie; Brown, Teresa

    2009-01-01

    The authors describe a teaching strategy that can support the development and learning of all children in inclusive learning environments. They give an overview of peer-mediated intervention and share useful information on how classroom teachers can use this tool to promote learning, particularly in the areas of social and communication…

  3. Conceptualisations of Disability and Inclusion: Perspectives of Educators of Young Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thornton, Colleen; Underwood, Kathryn

    2013-01-01

    This grounded theory study explores beliefs about disability and inclusion from the perspectives of educators of young children in their respective roles as elementary school teachers and early childhood educators, in Ontario, Canada. The social relational model described by Reindal is used as a theoretical framework for interviews with four…

  4. Using Children's Picture Books about Autism as Resources in Inclusive Classrooms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sigmon, Miranda L.; Tackett, Mary E.; Azano, Amy Price

    2016-01-01

    This article focuses on developing teacher understanding of how to carefully select and use children's picture books about autism as a tool for teaching awareness, empathy, and acceptance in an elementary classroom setting. We describe how the increased rate of autism and growing practice of inclusive educational settings affect classroom practice…

  5. Art in the inclusion of children with special needs in dentistry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    dos Santos, Marcio José Possari; de Aguiar, Sandra Maria Herondina Coelho Ávila

    2011-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to report the use of art and its segments as a source for inclusion of the children with special needs in dentistry. The application of the Art in social therapy activities and workshops was divided in modules: Session of Socialization, Complementary Workshops of Art and Activities, aiming at the cultural anamnesis and artistic preferences of the 313 participants, prior to their dental care treatment at CAOE (Center of Odontological Assistance to patients with special needs) FOA Unesp. According to preference of the participants that answered the questionnaires, the music and the painting are the artistic segments that proved to be most helpful in the activities of inclusion and adaptation. The authors concluded that the use of art in the adaptation and environmental inclusion of the patient, prior to dental procedures is favorable and efficient.

  6. Young children's communication and literacy: a qualitative study of language in the inclusive preschool.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kliewer, C

    1995-06-01

    Interactive and literacy-based language use of young children within the context of an inclusive preschool classroom was explored. An interpretivist framework and qualitative research methods, including participant observation, were used to examine and analyze language in five preschool classes that were composed of children with and without disabilities. Children's language use included spoken, written, signed, and typed. Results showed complex communicative and literacy language use on the part of young children outside conventional adult perspectives. Also, children who used expressive methods other than speech were often left out of the contexts where spoken language was richest and most complex.

  7. A case study: Inclusion for children with psychiatric diagnosis in physical education (PE) at primary school

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bentholm, Anette Lisbeth

    A case study: Inclusion for children with psychiatric diagnosis in physical education (PE) at primary school.Research bagground and aim:A large majority in the Danish parliament decided in 2012 that more children with special needs for example children with psychiatric diagnosis as autism spectrum...... activities at least 45 minutes each school day (Bekendtgørelse af lov om folkeskolen, 2014). ASD and ADHD are disabling conditions that emerge in childhood and affects social communication and interaction, and often also their motor skill performance and cognition fx. academic skills (Harvey & Reid, 2003...... framework:My overall research design is a Case study, because the research question requires an “in-depth” description and valuable insights to the complexities of the social phenomenon of inclusion and exclusions processes (Flyvbjerg, 2006; Yin, 2014). The research focus on 11 children with psychiatric...

  8. Hybrid Steepest-Descent Methods for Triple Hierarchical Variational Inequalities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    L. C. Ceng

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available We introduce and analyze a relaxed iterative algorithm by combining Korpelevich’s extragradient method, hybrid steepest-descent method, and Mann’s iteration method. We prove that, under appropriate assumptions, the proposed algorithm converges strongly to a common element of the fixed point set of infinitely many nonexpansive mappings, the solution set of finitely many generalized mixed equilibrium problems (GMEPs, the solution set of finitely many variational inclusions, and the solution set of general system of variational inequalities (GSVI, which is just a unique solution of a triple hierarchical variational inequality (THVI in a real Hilbert space. In addition, we also consider the application of the proposed algorithm for solving a hierarchical variational inequality problem with constraints of finitely many GMEPs, finitely many variational inclusions, and the GSVI. The results obtained in this paper improve and extend the corresponding results announced by many others.

  9. Promoting the development of children with disabilities through school inclusion: clinical psychology in supporting teachers in Mozambique

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Manuela Tomai

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available This article presents an intervention study developed within an international cooperation program, and aimed at promoting the school inclusion of children with disabilities in Mozambique. To avoid the risk of exporting models from a local context to another, and in order to favour a sustainable social change, a participatory and ecological framework was adopted. The main aim of the Participatory Action Research (PAR carried out was to explore teachers’ views and beliefs concerning disability and inclusion, and determine best practices to fully include students with disabilities. The paper illustrates the overall outcomes of a participatory research development process, and the results achieved in each phase. The final purpose is to increase the knowledge on school inclusion of children with disabilities in the Global South. Potentials and challenges of using clinical psychological, ecological and collaborative paradigms to address issues concerning health promotion and development of children with disabilities and local development are also discussed.

  10. Re-Imagining Inclusive Education for Young Children: A Kaleidoscope of Bourdieuian Theorisation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Klibthong, Sunanta

    2012-01-01

    This article discusses critical issues related to the development and practice of inclusive education of young children, from the perspective of Bourdieu's conceptual lenses of habitus, capital and field. The target question is: How can Bourdieu's lenses of critical social theory be applied to the development and implementation of early childhood…

  11. Supporting the Transition to Inclusive Education: Teachers' Attitudes to Inclusion in the Seychelles

    Science.gov (United States)

    Main, Susan; Chambers, Dianne J.; Sarah, Paulette

    2016-01-01

    The inclusion of children with disability in regular classroom settings has been identified worldwide as crucial to the provision of effective education for all children and to the creation of more inclusive societies. To this end there has been significant focus on pre-service and in-service teacher education to ensure that teachers are…

  12. Can we build inclusion?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kirkeby, Inge Mette; Grangaard, Sidse

    2016-01-01

    of some children with special needs. Hence the title – can we build inclusion? In the literature of Universal Design, accommodation and design features seldom reflect the less visible disabilities. The paper is based on a research project initiated to investigate how more or less space influences daily......Inclusion of children with special needs in kindergartens and preschools may be approached from different angles. This paper raises the question of whether the physical framework of kindergartens makes any difference for daily life at the kindergarten at all, and whether it can support inclusion...... on the answers in the interviews, we found support for answering the question in the title in the affirmative; we can build inclusion! This is because the teachers' experience indicated that, if there was sufficient space per child, there were fewer conflicts and the children managed to stay in the same activity...

  13. Developmental and Communication Disorders in Children with Intellectual Disability: The Place Early Intervention for Effective Inclusion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jacob, Udeme Samuel; Olisaemeka, Angela Nneka; Edozie, Isioma Sitamalife

    2015-01-01

    The paper attempts to discuss the place of intervention in the developmental and communication disorders of children with intellectual disability for the purpose of providing effective inclusion programme. The definition of early intervention was stated, areas affected by children communication disorder such as language comprehension, fluency,…

  14. Attitudes of stakeholders in psychiatry towards the inclusion of children in genomic research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sundby, Anna; Boolsen, Merete Watt; Burgdorf, Kristoffer Sølvsten; Ullum, Henrik; Hansen, Thomas Folkmann; Mors, Ole

    2018-03-05

    Genomic sequencing of children in research raises complex ethical issues. This study aims to gain more knowledge on the attitudes towards the inclusion of children as research subjects in genomic research and towards the disclosure of pertinent and incidental findings to the parents and the child. Qualitative data were collected from interviews with a wide range of informants: experts engaged in genomic research, clinical geneticists, persons with mental disorders, relatives, and blood donors. Quantitative data were collected from a cross-sectional web-based survey among 1227 parents and 1406 non-parents who were potential stakeholders in psychiatric genomic research. Participants generally expressed positive views on children's participation in genomic research. The informants in the qualitative interviews highlighted the age of the child as a critical aspect when disclosing genetic information. Other important aspects were the child's right to an autonomous choice, the emotional burden of knowing imposed on both the child and the parents, and the possibility of receiving beneficial clinical information regarding the future health of the child. Nevertheless, there was no consensus whether the parent or the child should receive the findings. A majority of survey stakeholders agreed that children should be able to participate in genomic research. The majority agreed that both pertinent and incidental findings should be returned to the parents and to the child when of legal age. Having children does not affect the stakeholder's attitudes towards the inclusion of children as research subjects in genomic research. Our findings illustrate that both the child's right to autonomy and the parents' interest to be informed are important factors that are found valuable by the participants. In future guidelines governing children as subjects in genomic research, it would thus be essential to incorporate the child's right to an open future, including the right to receive

  15. Thai Preschool Teachers' Views about Inclusive Education for Young Children with Disabilities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sukbunpant, Sasipin; Arthur-Kelly, Michael; Dempsey, Ian

    2013-01-01

    It is generally assumed that preschool teachers play a crucial daily role in the inclusion of young children with a disability in education settings. In many countries, however, there are little available data to inform such a view. Part of a larger project with 528 preschool teachers from northern Thailand, the aim of the study reported here was…

  16. More Policies, Greater Inclusion? Exploring the Contradictions of New Labour Inclusive Education Policy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roulstone, Alan; Prideaux, Simon

    2008-01-01

    The era of New Labour government has witnessed unprecedented growth in inclusive education policies. There is, however, limited evidence that policies have increased disabled children's inclusion. This article explores reasons for this contradiction. Drawing on sociological insights, it is argued that New Labour policies on inclusive education…

  17. Can We Build Inclusion?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kirkeby, Inge Mette; Grangaard, Sidse

    2016-01-01

    Inclusion of children with special needs in kindergartens and preschools may be approached from different angles. This paper raises the question of whether the physical framework of kindergartens makes any difference for daily life at the kindergarten at all, and whether it can support inclusion of some children with special needs. Hence the title - can we build inclusion? In the literature of Universal Design, accommodation and design features seldom reflect the less visible disabilities. The paper is based on a research project initiated to investigate how more or less space influences daily pedagogical practice in general. Twelve interviews were conducted with experienced teachers from twelve different kindergartens with different amounts of space, varying from a ratio of 2.1 m2 play area per child to 5.5 m2. The results indicated that, for a group of children with special needs in particular, the amount of space is crucial. This group consisted of children who were socially very extrovert, and who maybe were noisy, easily provoked, and quick to get involved in arguments with other children. Alternatively, children in the group were very restrained and withdrawn in social interaction. Based on the answers in the interviews, we found support for answering the question in the title in the affirmative; we can build inclusion! This is because the teachers' experience indicated that, if there was sufficient space per child, there were fewer conflicts and the children managed to stay in the same activity for a much longer period. Sufficient space made it possible to divide the children into smaller groups, and use any secluded space. Therefore, it was much easier for other children to include some children with special needs. Accordingly, we can say that, sufficient space per child and an adequate layout and furnishing of the kindergarten is an advantage for all children. This is a clear example of Universal Design in which architectural solutions that are good for

  18. Determinants of inclusive education of 8-12 year-old children with cerebral palsy in 9 European regions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sentenac, Mariane; Ehlinger, Virginie; Michelsen, Susan Ishoy; Marcelli, Marco; Dickinson, Heather Olivia; Arnaud, Catherine

    2013-01-01

    The principle of inclusive education has been increasingly recognised over recent decades and most countries officially support schooling of children with disabilities in mainstream settings. The SPARCLE study offers the opportunity to report on the schooling practices for children with cerebral palsy according to the nature and severity of their impairments and the schooling policy in European regions. The aim of this paper is to describe the type of schooling of children with cerebral palsy in various European regions after controlling for relevant individual factors. Children aged 8-12 years with cerebral palsy from 9 European regions and their families were interviewed. Our findings support the hypothesis that between-region variations in the type of schooling are still significant after adjustment for individual factors; and that motor function and intellectual ability have different effects on inclusion in mainstream school, depending on the region. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Building Alliance for Preschool Inclusion: Parents of Typically Developing Children, Attitudes and Perceptions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sira, Natalia; Maine, Erica; McNeil, Sarah

    2018-01-01

    The current study investigated perceptions, thoughts, and attitudes of parents of typically developing children enrolled in inclusive 3-year-old and 4-year-old preschool classrooms. Using a qualitative approach, guided by ecological system theory semi-structured interviews with parents (N = 7) were completed. Several common themes related to…

  20. The Role of Speech Pathologist in Inclusive Education of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tsyrulnikova E.L.,

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available This paper outlines the author’s practical experience in inclusion of children with autism spectrum disorder in a general educational setting, that is, in a group of normally developing peers participating in group lessons aimed at forming basic mathematical concepts. The author hopes that this material might be useful to teachers of kindergartens and schools who are providing education to children with ASD and including them in regular groups and classes.

  1. Inclusive Education for Children with Special Education Needs:A Critique of Policy and Practice in New Zealand

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Garry Hornby

    2012-04-01

    Full Text Available This article considers the issue of inclusive education for children with disabilities and special educational needs, in particular with regard to policies and practices in developed countries, such as New Zealand. The article reviews the debate about inclusive education and outlines several confusions about inclusion that have emerged from this debate. It then provides a critique of policies and practices regarding inclusive education in New Zealand, in comparison to those in other developed countries, such as the USA and England. Finally, implications of the issues discussed for developing countries, such as those in the Asia-'‐Pacific region, are outlined.

  2. Inclusion in the East: Chinese Students' Attitudes towards Inclusive Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Malinen, Olli-Pekka; Savolainen, Hannu

    2008-01-01

    A sample of 523 Chinese university students was given a questionnaire on their attitudes towards the inclusion of children with disabilities into regular classrooms. Factor analysis, analysis of variance, t-test and correlations were used to assess the respondents' general attitude towards inclusion, the factor structure of the attitudes, the…

  3. Re-framing Inclusive Education Through the Capability Approach: An Elaboration of the Model of Relational Inclusion

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maryam Dalkilic

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Scholars have called for the articulation of new frameworks in special education that are responsive to culture and context and that address the limitations of medical and social models of disability. In this article, we advance a theoretical and practical framework for inclusive education based on the integration of a model of relational inclusion with Amartya Sen’s (1985 Capability Approach. This integrated framework engages children, educators, and families in principled practices that acknowledge differences, rather than deficits, and enable attention to enhancing the capabilities of children with disabilities in inclusive educational environments. Implications include the development of policy that clarifies the process required to negotiate capabilities and valued functionings and the types of resources required to permit children, educators, and families to create relationally inclusive environments.

  4. Analysis of the recent international documents toward inclusive education of children with disabilities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tabatabaie Minou

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Analysis of various international documents clearly suggests that international documents have provided a significantmotivation to efforts undertaken at the national level about education of children with disabilities. UN Convention on theRights of the Child imposed a requirement for radical changes to traditional approaches to provision made for children withdisabilities. One year later, the 1990 World Conference on Education for all focused attention on a much broader range ofchildren with disabilities who may be excluded from or marginalized within education systems. Its development has involveda series of stages during which education systems have explored different ways of responding to children with disabilities andothers who experience difficulties in learning. This conference declared the inclusive education is regarded as the only meansto achieve the goal of "Education for All". This trend was reaffirmed by next international documents. And finally, accordingto the article 24 of the Convention on the rights of persons with disabilities, disabled persons should be able to accessgeneral tertiary education, vocational training, adult education and lifelong learning without discrimination and on an equalbasis with others through reasonable accommodation of their disabilities. All of these documents played an important role inbringing the attention on to children with disabilities, especially on education as a vehicle for integration and empowerment.This research examines the new international trends occurring regarding the education of children with disabilities and finallyresults that the new trends show a movement from special education to inclusive education and moving from seclusion toinclusion and provide that solutions must focus on prevention, cure and steps to make these children as normal as possible.In this regard, States must ensure the full realization of all human rights and fundamental freedoms for all disabled people,on an

  5. Investigation and Comparison of Turkish and American Preschool Teacher Candidates' Attitudes towards Inclusion of Young Children with Disabilities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rakap, Salih; Parlak-Rakap, Asiye; Aydin, Burak

    2016-01-01

    Inclusion of young children with disabilities into general education classrooms is a common practice that has been implemented for many years in developed countries around the world and many developing countries have been creating and implementing laws and regulations to support inclusive education in early years. Although extant literature…

  6. Association between parental guilt and oral health problems in preschool children: a hierarchical approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gomes, Monalisa Cesarino; Clementino, Marayza Alves; Pinto-Sarmento, Tassia Cristina de Almeida; Martins, Carolina Castro; Granville-Garcia, Ana Flávia; Paiva, Saul Martins

    2014-08-16

    Dental caries and traumatic dental injury (TDI) can play an important role in the emergence of parental guilt, since parents feel responsible for their child's health. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the influence of oral health problems among preschool children on parental guilt. A preschool-based, cross-sectional study was carried out with 832 preschool children between three and five years of age in the city of Campina Grande, Brazil. Parents/caregivers answered the Brazilian version of the Early Childhood Oral Health Impact Scale (B-ECOHIS). The item "parental guilt" was the dependent variable. Questionnaires addressing socio-demographic variables (child's sex, child's age, parent's/caregiver's age, mother's schooling, type of preschool and household income), history of toothache and health perceptions (general and oral) were also administered. Clinical exams for dental caries and TDI were performed by three dentists who had undergone a training and calibration exercise (Kappa: 0.85-0.90). Poisson hierarchical regression was used to determine the significance of associations between parental guilt and oral health problems (α = 5%). The multivariate model was carried out on three levels using a hierarchical approach from distal to proximal determinants: 1) socio-demographic aspects; 2) health perceptions; and 3) oral health problems. The frequency of parental guilt was 22.8%. The following variables were significantly associated with parental guilt: parental perception of child's oral health as poor (PR = 2.010; 95% CI: 1.502-2.688), history of toothache (PR = 2.344; 95% CI: 1.755-3.130), cavitated lesions (PR = 2.002; 95% CI: 1.388-2.887), avulsion/luxation (PR = 2.029; 95% CI: 1.141-3.610) and tooth discoloration (PR = 1.540; 95% CI: 1.169-2.028). Based on the present findings, parental guilt increases with the occurrence of oral health problems that require treatment, such as dental caries and TDI of greater severity. Parental perceptions of

  7. Investigating the provenance of iron artifacts of the Royal Iron Factory of Sao Joao de Ipanema by hierarchical cluster analysis of EDS microanalyses of slag inclusions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mamani-Calcina, Elmer Antonio; Landgraf, Fernando Jose Gomes; Azevedo, Cesar Roberto de Farias, E-mail: c.azevedo@usp.br [Universidade de Sao Paulo (USP), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil). Escola Politecnica. Departmento de Engenharia Metalurgica e de Materiais

    2017-01-15

    Microstructural characterization techniques, including EDX (Energy Dispersive X-ray Analysis) microanalyses, were used to investigate the slag inclusions in the microstructure of ferrous artifacts of the Royal Iron Factory of Sao Joao de Ipanema (first steel plant of Brazil, XIX century), the D. Pedro II Bridge (located in Bahia, assembled in XIX century and produced in Scotland) and the archaeological sites of Sao Miguel de Missoes (Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, production site of iron artifacts, the XVIII century) and Afonso Sardinha (Sao Paulo, Brazil production site of iron artifacts, XVI century). The microanalyses results of the main micro constituents of the microstructure of the slag inclusions were investigated by hierarchical cluster analysis and the dendrogram with the microanalyses results of the wüstite phase (using as critical variables the contents of MnO, MgO, Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}, V{sub 2}O{sub 5} and TiO{sub 2}) allowed the identification of four clusters, which successfully represented the samples of the four investigated sites (Ipanema, Sardinha, Missoes and Bahia). Finally, the comparatively low volumetric fraction of slag inclusions in the samples of Ipanema (∼1%) suggested the existence of technological expertise at the iron making processing in the Royal Iron Factory of Sao Joao de Ipanema. (author)

  8. Creating an inclusive leisure space: strategies used to engage children with and without disabilities in the arts-mediated program Spiral Garden.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smart, Eric; Edwards, Brydne; Kingsnorth, Shauna; Sheffe, Sarah; Curran, C J; Pinto, Madhu; Crossman, Shannon; King, Gillian

    2018-01-01

    This article describes how service providers use a set of practical strategies to create an inclusive leisure space in Spiral Garden, an arts-mediated outdoor summer day program for children with and without disabilities. This study was guided by an interpretive qualitative approach. Fourteen Spiral Garden service providers participated in semi-structured interviews. Nine had extensive experience with the program and had been present during key phases of program development spanning over a 26-year period and five were service providers during the summer of 2013. Transcript data were analyzed using inductive thematic analysis. The analysis produced eight strategies organized under three larger categories that service providers perceived to be essential in creating an inclusive leisure space: (1) engaging children in collective experiences; (2) encouraging peer interactions and friendships; and (3) facilitating collaborative child-directed experiences. Service providers working across different inclusive settings can use findings from this study to contribute to program design and implementation. Presented strategies enable children to experience opportunities for spontaneous free play, individualized structured support, and meaningful social participation. Overall, service providers are encouraged to enhance supportive child and service provider relationships and reciprocal child and environment relationships in group-based programs. Implications for Rehabilitation Exploring and facilitating reciprocal relationships between children and their environment is essential to creating inclusive leisure spaces. Transforming program intentions of meaningful social participation into practice requires learning about and affecting change in children's individual social contexts. Service providers can engage themselves as full participants in inclusive leisure spaces through playful negotiations, internal reflections, and artistic expressions.

  9. Inclusive Special Education: Development of a New Theory for the Education of Children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hornby, Garry

    2015-01-01

    Inclusive education and special education are based on different philosophies and provide alternative views of education for children with special educational needs and disabilities. They are increasingly regarded as diametrically opposed in their approaches. This article presents a theory of "inclusive special education" that comprises…

  10. Communicative Approach to Inclusive Education in Pre-School

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kraukle, Sandra

    2015-01-01

    The understanding of the basic principles of inclusive education motivates the inclusion of children with special needs in general education schools. The paper presents the process of implementing inclusive education in Latvia and the teachers' and parents' understanding of the role of communication in including children with special needs,…

  11. Testing and Inclusive Schooling

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Morin, Anne; Hamre, Bjørn; Ydesen, Christian

    Testing and Inclusive Schooling provides a comparative on seemingly incompatible global agendas and efforts to include all children in the general school system, Thus reducing exclusion. With an examination of the international testing culture and the politics of inclusion currently permeating...

  12. Substituting ICT as a lever for inclusion of children with reading and writing difficulties

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Levinsen, Karin

    2010-01-01

    This paper presents research findings from a 3 year development and research project named Project IT-folder (PIF) that aimed at inclusion of young children with potential reading and writing difficulties into normal classes in a suburb to the Danish capital. The project ran from 2007 to June 2010...

  13. Substituting ICT as a lever for inclusion of children with reading and writing difficulties

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Levinsen, Karin

    2010-01-01

    This paper presents research findings from a 3 year development and research project named Project IT-folder (PIF) that aimed at inclusion of young children with potential reading and writing difficulties into normal classes in a suburb to the Danish capital. The project ran from 2007 to June 201...

  14. Inclusive Education in Israel

    OpenAIRE

    O. V. Mayzel

    2013-01-01

    To get acquainted with the practice of inclusive education in mainstream schools, with professionals who work with special children, to visit the specialist centers to share experiences - all of this was part of an internship program «Early Childhood Education for Children with Special Needs», held in Israel (April 8 -02 May 2013) this year. The country has been selected for an internship, because the practice of inclusive education has been used for over 20 years in Israel. Moreover, a lot ...

  15. VIDA - Knowledge-based efforts for socially disadvantaged children in daycare - an inclusive ECEC program

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Holm, Anders; Wang, Camilla; Kousholt, Dorte

    experiments. Thus the program combines professionals’ personal knowledge and practice-based experiences, i.e. combines tacit knowledge with explicit scientifi c knowledge acquisition and sharing. The VIDA and VIDA+ education programs encourage participants to work with both explicit and implicit (tacit...... intervention program Knowledge-based efforts for socially disadvantaged children in daycare – a model program presented in this report, aims at improving all children’s well-being and cognitive functioning, and specifi cally improving the situation for socially disadvantaged children through inclusive efforts...

  16. Subject-Verb Agreement in Children and Adults: Serial or Hierarchical Processing?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Negro, Isabelle; Chanquoy, Lucile; Fayol, Michel; Louis-Sidney, Maryse

    2005-01-01

    Two processes, serial and hierarchical, are generally opposed to account for grammatical encoding in language production. In a developmental perspective, the question addressed here is whether the subject-verb agreement during writing is computed serially, once the words are linearly ordered in the sentence, or hierarchically, as soon as the…

  17. Oral diseases associated with condition-specific oral health-related quality of life and school performance of Thai primary school children: A hierarchical approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaewkamnerdpong, Issarapong; Krisdapong, Sudaduang

    2018-06-01

    To assess the hierarchical associations between children's school performance and condition-specific (CS) oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL), school absence, oral status, sociodemographic and economic status (SDES) and social capital; and to investigate the associations between CS OHRQoL and related oral status, adjusting for SDES and social capital. Data on 925 sixth grade children in Sakaeo province, Thailand, were collected through oral examinations for dental caries and oral hygiene, social capital questionnaires, OHRQoL interviews using the Child-Oral Impacts on Daily Performances index, parental self-administered questionnaires and school documents. A hierarchical conceptual framework was developed, and independent variables were hierarchically entered into multiple logistic models for CS OHRQoL and linear regression models for school performance. After adjusting for SDES and social capital, children with high DMFT or DT scores were significantly threefold more likely to have CS impacts attributed to dental caries. However, poor oral hygiene was not significantly associated with CS impacts attributed to gingival disease. High DMFT scores were significantly associated with lower school performance, whereas high Simplified Oral Hygiene Index scores were not. The final model showed that CS impacts attributed to dental caries and school absence accounted for the association between DMFT score and school performance. Dental caries was associated with CS impacts on OHRQoL, and exerted its effect on school performance through the CS impacts and school absence. There was no association between oral hygiene and CS impacts on OHRQoL or school performance. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  18. The needs of teachers of children with hearing loss within the inclusive education system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Dijk, Catherine; Hugo, René; Louw, Brenda

    2004-01-01

    In South Africa, the current movement towards the inclusion of children with disabilities, including children with hearing loss, is likely to have far-reaching consequences for both teachers and learners. Undoubtedly, needs will arise from teachers during the transition, especially in the areas pertaining to the audiological and educational management of children with hearing loss. Therefore, a descriptive research design was developed comprising of a questionnaire survey followed by focus group interviews to determine teachers' needs. The questionnaire survey explored the needs of 664 teachers while focus group interviews were conducted with 19 teachers of children with hearing loss. Teachers were mostly from special schools as only a very small number of children are educated outside these establishments. Findings revealed that, although participants realised the importance of various aspects of development of the child with hearing loss, they generally did not realise the importance of receiving support from an educational audiologist.

  19. When Inclusion Is Innovation: An Examination of Administrator Perspectives on Inclusion in China

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hu, Bi Ying; Roberts, Sherron Killingsworth

    2011-01-01

    This article examines administrator perspectives of innovative services for the inclusion of young children with disabilities in regular preschool classrooms in China. Twelve directors from 12 pilot inclusion preschools in Beijing participated in this study. Qualitative interview results revealed the following subthemes: definition, advocacy,…

  20. Understanding Family Migration in Rural South Africa: Exploring Children's Inclusion in the Destination Households of Migrant Parents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bennett, Rachel; Hosegood, Victoria; Newell, Marie-Louise; McGrath, Nuala

    2015-05-01

    Despite the removal of restrictions on movement and increasing female participation in migration, only a minority of migrant parents in South Africa include their children in their destination household. Quantitative analyses of the circumstances in which children accompany a migrant parent have been limited by the lack of available data that document family arrangements from the perspective of more than one household. This paper uses data about members of rural households in a demographic surveillance population in KwaZulu-Natal and a linked sample survey of adult migrants to examine factors associated with children's inclusion in the destination household of migrant parents, analyse the timing and sequence of children's moves to parental destination households, and describe the composition of parental origin and destination households. The findings confirm that in contemporary South Africa, only a small percentage (14%) of migrants' children who are members of the parental origin household are also members of the parental destination household. Membership of the parental destination household is associated with parental characteristics and the child's age, but not measures of socio-economic status, and children most commonly migrate several years after their migrant parent. Children included in the destination household of migrant fathers frequently live in small households, which also include their mother, whereas children included in the destination household of migrant mothers live in larger households. This study contributes to understanding the contexts of children's inclusion in parental destination households in South Africa and demonstrates the potential of data collected in migrants' origin and destination households.

  1. Cross-Cultural Considerations regarding Inclusion and Service Provision for Children with Disabilities in India

    Science.gov (United States)

    Browning, Ellen R.; Caro, Patricia; Shastry, Sunita P.

    2011-01-01

    Providing services for children with disabilities has been a part of the culture of India for generations. However service provision has been within the context of family and community rather than in the public sector and thus has been inclusive by its very nature. This article describes current educational provisions and practices in India for…

  2. A inclusão da criança com necessidades especiais na visão de berçaristas The inclusion of special needs children in the vision of day care center professionals

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fabiana Cristina Frigieri de Vitta

    2010-04-01

    Full Text Available A inserção das crianças de zero a 18 meses em creches poderá estimular o seu desenvolvimento motor e perceptocognitivo, podendo essa fase ser considerada a primeira da educação inclusiva. Objetivou-se verificar as concepções das profissionais do berçário relativas à inserção da criança com necessidades especiais na rotina de atividades desenvolvidas. Foram entrevistadas sete berçaristas da Secretaria Municipal de Educação de Bauru. Os dados, organizados segundo categorias analíticas: conceitos relativos ao processo de inclusão, benefícios para a criança e diferenças entre as crianças nessa faixa etária, foram submetidos à análise qualitativa. Os resultados mostraram que a inclusão de crianças com necessidades especiais é vista com reservas, explicitando ideias preconcebidas sobre a deficiência. Eles se justificam pela falta de conhecimento do desenvolvimento infantil e dos fatores que o envolvem, bem como pelo fato de os profissionais vincularem suas atividades às experiências pessoais.The inclusion of children from birth to 18 months in day care centers, a phase that can be considered as the first one for inclusive education, may stimulate their motor development and perceptual-cognitive abilities. The goal of this study was to identify how people working in such centers conceive the inclusion of children with special needs in their routine activities. For such, seven women involved in a municipal day care center in the city of Bauru (SP, Brazil were interviewed. The data - organized according to three analytical categories: believes related to the inclusion process; benefits that it can bring for the child; and differences between children in this age group - were subjected to a qualitative analysis. The results indicated that the inclusion of children with special needs in day-care centers is viewed with reservations. This negative bias toward disability can be explained by the lack of knowledge related to

  3. THE INCLUSION OF / FOCUS ON CHILDREN IN FAMILY MEDIATION: A REVIEW OF STUDIES AND FUTURE PROPOSALS

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    Carles Rodríguez-Domínguez

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available Mediation is an established model for conflict resolution, backed by the international community in relation to family law, to help parents seeking solutions to family problems in child custody cases. The aim of this article is to review the advantages and/or disadvantages presented in the studies with child-inclusive or child-focused interventions in family mediation processes. In the present research, we carry out a review of studies realised in Australia, New Zealand, some counties in the US and in Europe; meta-analysis and review studies of 'child inclusive' investigations, international guidelines that support listening to children and also studies that criticise it. While mediation has existed for four decades in other countries, in Spain it has only arisen since the enactment of Law (1/2001 of Family Mediation in Catalonia, followed by other local regulations, which explains why sufficient studies might not yet exist. In some countries a new paradigm is emerging, aimed at the inclusion of children due to the favourable findings in family mediation processes, although a multiple and flexible approach in the field of family mediation intervention is necessary.

  4. CULTURAL PEDAGOGIC INCLUSION - DALTONISM AND COLOR EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN EDUCATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Arielly Kizzy Cunha

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available The article approaches color teaching including children with color blindness. Colors are present in everything that surrounds us and the use of colors has a direct link in the development of the child. Babies perceive colors from 3 months and naming them is a process that extends up to 3 years, since it requires stimuli, and it is at this stage, between 2 and 3 years, that the suspicion of color blindness arises. The difficulty varies between perceiving variation of shades, and not seeing specific color. The objective of this work is understood the ocular deficiency and reflect an inclusive pedagogical project of a color class.

  5. Enhancing social inclusion of children with externalizing problems through classroom seating arrangements: A randomized controlled trial

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Berg, Y.H.M. van den; Stoltz, S.E.M.J.

    2018-01-01

    Inclusive education has brought new challenges for teachers, including the search for a suitable place in the classroom for children with externalizing problems. In the current study, we examined whether a careful rearrangement of the classroom seats could promote social acceptance and more

  6. What Leads Children to Adopt New Strategies?: A Microgenetic/Cross-Sectional Study of Class Inclusion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siegler, Robert S.; Svetina, Matija

    2006-01-01

    Learning of class inclusion by 5-year-olds in response to empirical and logical explanations of an adult's answers was examined. Contrary to the view that young children possess an empirical bias, 5-year-olds learned more, and continued learning for longer, when given logical explanations of correct answers than when given empirical explanations.…

  7. Early Childhood Inclusion in Australia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kemp, Coral R.

    2016-01-01

    From the introduction of early intervention services in Australian in the mid-1970s, the families of children with intellectual and multiple disabilities have been encouraged to enroll their children in local preschools and childcare centers. Children with disabilities have also accessed a range of alternatives to full inclusion, such as reverse…

  8. 'Kids need to talk too': inclusive practices for children's healthcare education and participation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koller, Donna

    2017-09-01

    To examine how children with chronic medical conditions view healthcare education and decision-making and to propose the application of the universal design for learning in paediatric settings. Children and adolescents with chronic medical conditions tend to be excluded from healthcare decision-making. In schools, the universal design for learning promotes access to education and participation in school communities for all children, regardless of their disabilities or medical needs, rendering it an appropriate model for children's participation in healthcare decision-making. This article presents findings from a qualitative study with 26 children and adolescents with chronic medical conditions about their views and experiences with healthcare education and decision-making. Twenty-six children and adolescents with chronic medical conditions were interviewed using semi-structured interviews. Findings provide evidence that clinical practices often fail to provide equal opportunities for paediatric patients to understand their condition, share their views and/or participate in decisions regarding their care. In response to ongoing concerns about paediatric decision-making, we propose that the universal design for learning be adapted in paediatrics. The model presents exemplary programmes as inclusive, accounting for the needs of all children through multiple means of engagement and expression. A discussion of how the principles of universal design for learning could be applied in paediatric settings is offered for the purpose of advancing ethical and psychosocial care for all children regardless of their age, developmental capacity or condition. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  9. Inclusive education: Ideas vs reality

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jovanović-Popadić Ana M.

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper discusses some of the key factors significant for the process of implementation of inclusive education in Serbia. After a brief review of the legal provisions regulating inclusive education in our country, the results of the research of attitudes towards inclusive education of teachers from six primary schools and one school for students with disabilities, as well as their experience, competencies, working conditions and opinions on consequences of inclusive education and education of children with developmental disabilities in specialized educational institutions are shown. Research was conducted in Krusevac, on a random sample of 60 teachers (51 teachers from primary schools and 9 special education teachers from schools for students with disabilities. We used two forms of questionnaires with twenty questions, and the results show predominantly negative attitudes towards inclusion in the majority of teachers in the sample. A significant percentage of respondents in both sub-samples considered that education of children with developmental disorders in specialized institutions (schools may give better results, primarily due to a lack of systematic support to teachers of primary schools in the process of implementing educational inclusion. The conclusion provides a critical overview of the current situation and presents the potential solutions to the problems that were identified during the research, and refer to the unsustainability of the current practice of inclusive education in Serbia.

  10. The Use of Web Based Expert System Application for Identification and Intervention of Children with Special Needs in Inclusive School

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dian Atnantomi Wiliyanto

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available This research is conducted to determine the effectiveness of web based expert system application for identification and intervention of children with special needs in inclusive school. 40 teachers of inclusive school in Surakarta participated in this research. The result showed that: (1 web based expert system application was suitable with the needs of teachers/officers, had 50% (excellence criteria, (2 web based expert system application was worthwhile for identification of children with special needs, had 50% (excellence criteria, (3 web based expert system application was easy to use, had 52.5% (good criteria, and (4 web based expert system application had result accuracy in making decision, had 52.5% (good criteria. It shows that the use of web based expert system application is effective to be used by teachers in inclusive school in conducting identification and intervention with percentage on average was more than 50%.

  11. IDEA and Early Childhood Inclusion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, Barbara J.; Rapport, Mary Jane K.

    This paper discusses 1997 amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) that promote the inclusion of children with disabilities in general early childhood education settings. The evolution of inclusion policy is explored and changes in disability terminology are described. Amended provisions are then explained and include:…

  12. Early Childhood Inclusion in Turkey

    Science.gov (United States)

    Diken, Ibrahim H.; Rakap, Salih; Diken, Ozlem; Tomris, Gozde; Celik, Secil

    2016-01-01

    Inclusion of young children with disabilities into regular preschool classrooms is a common practice that has been implemented for several decades in industrialized nations around the world, and many developing countries including Turkey have been developing and implementing laws, regulation, and services to support inclusion and teaching in…

  13. Educational psychology and the effectiveness of inclusive education/mainstreaming.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lindsay, Geoff

    2007-03-01

    Inclusive education/mainstreaming is a key policy objective for the education of children and young people with special educational needs (SEN) and disabilities. This paper reviews the literature on the effectiveness of inclusive education/mainstreaming. The focus is on evidence for effects in terms of child outcomes with examination also of evidence on processes that support effectiveness. The review covers a range of SEN and children from pre-school to the end of compulsory education. Following an historical review of evidence on inclusive education/mainstreaming, the core of the paper is a detailed examination of all the papers published in eight journals from the field of special education published 2001-2005 (N=1373): Journal of Special Education, Exceptional Children, Learning Disabilities Research and Practice, Journal of Learning Disabilities, Remedial and Special Education, British Journal of Special Education, European Journal of Special Needs Education, and the International Journal of Inclusive Education. The derived categories were: comparative studies of outcomes: other outcome studies; non-comparative qualitative studies including non-experimental case studies; teacher practice and development; teacher attitudes; and the use of teaching assistants. Only 14 papers (1.0%) were identified as comparative outcome studies of children with some form of SEN. Measures used varied but included social as well as educational outcomes. Other papers included qualitative studies of inclusive practice, some of which used a non-comparative case study design while others were based on respondent's judgements, or explored process factors including teacher attitudes and the use of teaching assistants. Inclusive education/mainstreaming has been promoted on two bases: the rights of children to be included in mainstream education and the proposition that inclusive education is more effective. This review focuses on the latter issue. The evidence from this review does not

  14. The social representation about handicapped students in inclusive education: the view of children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Karina Mendonça Vasconcellos

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available Historically excluded, handicapped people have been socially included through new standards guided by egalitarian principles. The Social Representation Theory, which studies how the common sense builds “theories” about relevant objects, was used to answer how this situation affects children socially and psychologically in inclusive schools. We use a multimethodological approach with free associations, drawings and focus groups to study the social representations of 39 third and fourth grade students about their handicapped colleagues, all the children being from a state school in Recife, Pernambuco. The data were submitted to content analysis and analysis using the EVOC software, and the results indicate that handicapped children are seen as people limited by a temporary or permanent shortage or disability; they learn differently from others and disrupt classes; they require constant care and protection; they are allowed to join the group, but not to be part of it. The group seems to be outlining the contours of otherness, which shows a representation under construction.

  15. Evidence on Inclusion

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dyssegaard, Camilla Brørup; Larsen, Michael Søgaard

    The purpose of this publication is to examine existing research on inclusion to identify strategies of inclusion that have generated positive effects. To do so it is necessary to understand the effect of the applied strategies. One approach, which is being discussed, is to use evidence to determine...... which methods have proven more effective than others. The desire to gain insight into research on inclusion forms the basis of the current systematic review. The task was to determine which strategies primary research has found to be most effective for inclusion purposes. We have solved this task...... by addressing the existing research with the following question: What is the effect of including children with special needs in mainstream teaching in basic school, and which of the applied educational methods have proved to have a positive effect?...

  16. A Descriptive Examination of the Types of Relationships Formed between Children with Developmental Disability and Their Closest Peers in Inclusive School Settings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Webster, Amanda A.; Carter, Mark

    2013-01-01

    Background: One of the most commonly cited rationales for inclusive education is to enable the development of quality relationships with typically developing peers. Relatively few researchers have examined the features of the range of relationships that children with developmental disability form in inclusive school settings. Method: Interviews…

  17. Inclusion of Children With Disabilities in Physical Education: A Systematic Review of Literature From 2009 to 2015.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilhelmsen, Terese; Sørensen, Marit

    2017-07-01

    This systematic review examines research published from 2009 to 2015 on inclusion of children with disabilities in physical education according to the PRISMA guidelines. We have used a stakeholder approach as a framework for organizing and discussing the results. The searches yielded 535 studies, of which 112 were included. The systematic review outlines which stakeholder perspectives received the most attention, the main themes and findings, the methodological trends that governed the research contribution, and the country of data collection. The main findings indicated that perspectives of pre- and in-service teachers and studies of attitudes still dominate the research contributions. The strengths and limitations of the research conducted to date highlight that several other perspectives need to be discussed. Especially important is seeking information from children with disabilities themselves. Other barriers and facilitators perceived by those actively involved in the inclusion process need to be sought.

  18. Parent and Professional Perceptions of Inclusion in Childcare: A Literature Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weglarz-Ward, Jenna M.; Santos, Rosa Milagros

    2018-01-01

    Many families seek quality, inclusive care for their young children with disabilities. A key to successful inclusion is understanding the needs of families and professionals who serve them. This review examined literature about the inclusion of young children with disabilities in childcare programs and collaboration among early childhood…

  19. Struggling for inclusive education in the North and the South: educators' perceptions on inclusive education in Finland and Zambia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moberg, Sakari; Savolainen, Hannu

    2003-03-01

    A survey assessed the perceptions of 1350 Zambian teachers and parents and 512 Finnish teachers regarding inclusive education and consequently the best placement for children with different disabilities. On the whole, perceptions varied but were quite critical. On inclusion in general, the regular (also termed "ordinary") Finnish teachers were the most critical group and the Finnish special education teachers the most optimistic. Most respondents felt that inclusive education enhances social justice. However, the pursuit of inclusion in practice, especially the guarantee of good and effective education for all, was seen as problematic. Compared with Finnish respondents, the Zambian respondents preferred a more segregated educational environment for children with different disabilities. Type and severity of disability affected the preferred educational setting and there were clear differences in this regard between the respondents from the two countries. The findings support the idea that educators' attitudes towards inclusion are important in developing inclusive school systems and that inclusive education is best understood as a multidimensional concept that, at the practical level, is highly context-dependent.

  20. «Resource class» model for inclusion of children with ASD from the point of view of education management: risks and possibilities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pogonina O.

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available «Resource class», or «Resource zone», is a model of inclusive education for children with autism spectrum disorders that has proved its effectivity in integraing children to comprehensive school system for the past five years. A resource class is a place where the resources for inclusion of a child with autism of other mental disorders into the school community are gathered. Here, the point of ‘resource class’ model is explained, described are the experience of introduction of resource zone technology, risks and problems appearing when creating a resource class in school. Member of the council of the Regional public organization to help children with autism spectrum disorders «Contact», educators, shares her experience in creating a resource class for autistic children with parents’ effort in «School № 2009» in Moscow.

  1. Inclusive research and inclusive education: why connecting them makes sense for teachers’ and learners’ democratic development of education

    OpenAIRE

    Nind, Melanie

    2014-01-01

    Following pushes from the disability movement(s) and increased interest in children and young people becoming involved in research concerning them, inclusive research is growing within and beyond education establishments. Yet this arena is alive with interesting and largely unanswered questions. This paper discusses some of them: What do inclusive research and inclusive education have in common? Where have the moves towards inclusive (participatory and emancipatory) research happened and why?...

  2. Examining the Attitudes of Secondary General Education and Special Education Teachers toward Inclusion of Children with Autism in General Education Classrooms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bosch, Morghan E.

    2016-01-01

    Academic environments, such as general education classrooms, have increasingly become important learning environments for children with autism. The purpose of the study was to examine the attitudes of secondary general education and special education teachers toward inclusion of children with autism in general education classrooms. The research…

  3. The problems of Russian inclusive education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kurmyshova O.A.

    2017-02-01

    Full Text Available the article is devoted to problems of Russian inclusive education. Based on the results of theoretical analysis the author raises some questions and their solutions may help to increase the effectiveness of the activity of inclusive educational organizations, provide harmonization of relations of inclusive education members and that will guarantee a successful integration of children with disabilities and special needs in the society.

  4. A Canada-Ukraine Collaborative Initiative for Introducing Inclusive Education for Children with Disabilities in Ukraine: Participant Perspectives

    Science.gov (United States)

    Loreman, Tim; McGhie-Richmond, Donna; Kolopayvea, Alla; Tarenchenko, Oksana; Mazin, Dymtro; Crocker, Cheryl; Petryshyn, Roman

    2016-01-01

    This article examines the experiences of Canadian and Ukrainian educators who collaborated on a 5-year Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) funded project to develop local capacity to implement inclusive education for children with disabilities in Ukraine. Ukrainian and Canadian educators and project coordinators engage in reflective…

  5. Using Hierarchical Linear Modeling to Examine How Individual SLPs Differentially Contribute to Children's Language and Literacy Gains in Public Schools.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Farquharson, Kelly; Tambyraja, Sherine R; Logan, Jessica; Justice, Laura M; Schmitt, Mary Beth

    2015-08-01

    The purpose of this study was twofold: (a) to determine the unique contributions in children's language and literacy gains, over 1 academic year, that are attributable to the individual speech-language pathologist (SLP) and (b) to explore possible child- and SLP-level factors that may further explain SLPs' contributions to children's language and literacy gains. Participants were 288 kindergarten and 1st-grade children with language impairment who were currently receiving school-based language intervention from SLPs. Using hierarchical linear modeling, we partitioned the variance in children's gains in language (i.e., grammar, vocabulary) and literacy (i.e., word decoding) that could be attributed to their individual SLP. Results revealed a significant contribution of individual SLPs to children's gains in grammar, vocabulary, and word decoding. Children's fall language scores and grade were significant predictors of SLPs' contributions, although no SLP-level predictors were significant. The present study makes a first step toward incorporating implementation science and suggests that, for children receiving school-based language intervention, variance in child language and literacy gains in an academic year is at least partially attributable to SLPs. Continued work in this area should examine the possible SLP-level characteristics that may further explicate the relative contributions of SLPs.

  6. Many diversity for an inclusive perspective

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrea Canevaro

    2010-07-01

    Full Text Available Andrea Canevaro’s paper to the congress: Alunni con disabilità, figli di migranti. Approcci culturali, questioni educative, prospettive inclusive. (Students with disabilities, children of migrants: Cultural approaches, educational questions, inclusive perspectives Bologna, 29 ottober 2010, Cappella Farnese, Comune di Bologna. The congress is part of a study and research project “Alunni con disabilità, figli di migranti” (Students with disabilities, children of migrants run by Bologna City Council , Education Department, and the University of Bologna, Education Faculty. Coordinator: Roberta Caldin.

  7. Measuring Nurse Educators' Willingness to Adopt Inclusive Teaching Strategies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Levey, Janet A

    The purpose of the study was to examine the characteristics and relationships of nurse educators' teaching practices, knowledge, support, and willingness to adopt inclusive teaching strategies (WillAdITS). Adopting more inclusive teaching strategies based on universal design for instruction is an innovative way for educators to reach today's diverse student body. However, the pedagogy has not diffused into nursing education. Descriptive statistics and hierarchical multiple regression were used for analyzing data from 311 nurse educators in prelicensure and RN to BSN programs. The model explained 44.8 percent of the variance in WillAdITS. The best indicators for this pedagogy were knowledge of universal design for instruction, social system support for inclusive teaching strategies, multiple instructional formats, and years of teaching. Knowing factors influencing the adoption of inclusive teaching strategies can inform schools of nursing of areas needing further development in the preparation of novice to experienced educators to teach diverse learners.

  8. INCLUSION OF CHILDREN WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DISORDERS IN DAY CARE INSTITUTION ESTREA MARA IN BITOLA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. SOTIROVSKA-SIRVINI

    1997-09-01

    Full Text Available The Day Care Institutions for children are forms of organized protection for improvement of the psycho-physical, emotional and social development of children. In this period, the growth and development are in their most intensive phase when the outside influence plays an extraordinary role both in a positive and in negative a direction. Directed and well-organized protection is of a great importance. By inclusion of children with developmental disorders in the group and with special, individual treatment of each child by adequate specialized staff, their socialization and stimulus for developmental acceleration is achieved.Many years ago, by recommendation of the Advisory Institution for Development, the doctors from the Advisory Institution for small children, the public-health nurses or by the parents initiative, the kindergartens accept children with Down syndrome, children with limited and lower level backwardness, with disharmonious development, with lower level forms of cerebral paralysis and with speech disorders.Children at the earliest age of one month are resided at the Advisory Institu­­tion for Development and receive treatment until they are categorized and are ready to start school, but certain children are sent to the kindergartens at the age of 3.In the previous years, out of five children with Down syndrome treated in the Advisory Institution for Development, four were sent to the kindergarten. Now, one of these children attends the fifth grade and two attend the first grade in a regular elementary school and one attends the special school. Three children with Spastic dyplegia, four children with lower level of retardation, two with surdomutitas and four with disharmonious development are still in the kindergarten.

  9. A Hierarchical Transactive Energy Management System for Energy Sharing in Residential Microgrids

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Most Nahida Akter

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents an analytical framework to develop a hierarchical energy management system (EMS for energy sharing among neighbouring households in residential microgrids. The houses in residential microgrids are categorized into three different types, traditional, proactive and enthusiastic, based on the inclusion of solar photovoltaic (PV systems and battery energy storage systems (BESSs. Each of these three houses has an individual EMS, which is defined as the primary EMS. Two other EMSs (secondary and tertiary are also considered in the proposed hierarchical energy management framework for the purpose of effective energy sharing. The intelligences of each EMS are presented in this paper for the purpose of energy sharing in a residential microgrid along with the priorities. The effectiveness of the proposed hierarchical framework is evaluated on a residential microgrid in Australia. The analytical results clearly reflect that the proposed scheme effectively and efficiently shares the energy among neighbouring houses in a residential microgrid.

  10. Social inclusion as a therapeutic and educational factor in a music therapy setting

    OpenAIRE

    Loss, Felix

    2016-01-01

    Inclusive approaches for children with special needs are applied in both the fields of music therapy and (music) education. In practice, inclusive music therapy groups consist only of children with special needs, whereas an inclusive kindergarten group for example may consist of typical and non-typical children, yet not in an actual therapy setting. Both practices hold explicit benefits for typical and non-typical children, however mutually exclusive of one another. The aim of the study is to...

  11. Inclusive Education in Government Primary Schools: Teacher Perceptions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Itfaq Khaliq Khan

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available The perceptions of primary school teachers towards inclusive education was investigated in mainstream government schools of Islamabad capital territory where inclusive education was being supported by Sight savers and other international organizations. The study was carried out involving 54 teachers in six randomly selected primary schools. The sampled group comprised both, teachers trained in inclusive education and teachers working in same schools, but not trained in inclusive education. Purposive sampling method was used to select the teachers. Structured questionnaire (Likert Scale and structured interview method was used for data collection. The results of the study revealed that inclusive education is considered to be a desirable practice. The teachers believed that all learners regardless of their disabilities should be in regular classrooms and they showed more favorable attitude towards children with mild disabilities, but were not very optimistic about children with severe disabilities. The study also recognized teachers’ capacity as an essential component of inclusive education and recommends that inclusive education should be a part of pre and in-service teacher education.

  12. Using a logic model to evaluate the Kids Together early education inclusion program for children with disabilities and additional needs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clapham, Kathleen; Manning, Claire; Williams, Kathryn; O'Brien, Ginger; Sutherland, Margaret

    2017-04-01

    Despite clear evidence that learning and social opportunities for children with disabilities and special needs are more effective in inclusive not segregated settings, there are few known effective inclusion programs available to children with disabilities, their families or teachers in the early years within Australia. The Kids Together program was developed to support children with disabilities/additional needs aged 0-8 years attending mainstream early learning environments. Using a key worker transdisciplinary team model, the program aligns with the individualised package approach of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). This paper reports on the use of a logic model to underpin the process, outcomes and impact evaluation of the Kids Together program. The research team worked across 15 Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) centres and in home and community settings. A realist evaluation using mixed methods was undertaken to understand what works, for whom and in what contexts. The development of a logic model provided a structured way to explore how the program was implemented and achieved short, medium and long term outcomes within a complex community setting. Kids Together was shown to be a highly effective and innovative model for supporting the inclusion of children with disabilities/additional needs in a range of environments central for early childhood learning and development. The use of a logic model provided a visual representation of the Kids Together model and its component parts and enabled a theory of change to be inferred, showing how a coordinated and collaborative approached can work across multiple environments. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. State Early Childhood Inclusion Self-Assessment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Whaley, Kathy T.; Cate, Debbie; Dell, Penny; Vinh, Megan; Neitzel, Jen

    2017-01-01

    This self-assessment tool provides a framework for examining key aspects of a State infrastructure that are useful for promoting high quality inclusive practices, programs and policies. The sections of the self-assessment are organized by the nine state recommendations of the "Policy Statement on Inclusion of Children with Disabilities in…

  14. Effect of Selected Variables on Regular School Teachers Attitude towards Inclusive Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Priyadarshini, S. Saradha; Thangarajathi, S.

    2017-01-01

    Inclusive education is a means of creating effective classrooms where educational needs of all children including children with special needs are addressed. The concept of inclusion is still emerging as far as India is concerned. In the recent years, there is a growing awareness about inclusive education among educators. Government of India had…

  15. Elementary School Teachers' Beliefs and Perceptions about the Inclusion of Children with Special Needs in Their Classrooms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gavish, Bella; Shimoni, Sarah

    2011-01-01

    For the past thirty years there's a wide world emergence of a policy of including children with special needs in regular classes (Daane, Beirne-Smith and Latham, 2000). The Inclusion Reform has called for far-reaching conceptual, organizational and structural changes, at the schools. The Israeli corresponding Special Education Law was issued in…

  16. The Impact of Inclusive Education (IE) on the Rights of Children with Intellectual Disabilities (IDs) in Chegutu

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mapuranga, Barbra; Dumba, Oswald; Musodza, Blessing

    2015-01-01

    This study investigated the impact of Inclusive Education (IE) on the rights of children with Intellectual Disabilities in schools around Chegutu. The qualitative case study method was used for the research. Questionnaires and interviews were used to collect data from schools around Chegutu. Random sampling was used to choose the sample group from…

  17. Early Childhood Inclusion in Croatia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ljubešic, Marta; Šimleša, Sanja

    2016-01-01

    This article explains early childhood inclusion in Croatia from its beginnings up to challenges in current policy and practice. The first preschool education for children with disabilities dates back to the 1980s and was provided in special institutions. In the last 10 years, mainstream kindergartens have been enrolling children with disabilities…

  18. Inclusive physical education – premises for the development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Monica Stănesc

    2009-06-01

    Full Text Available In last years, one of the major educational interests was to assure conditions for inclusion in normal school for children withspecial educational needs. This paper is part of a national research project (CNCSIS 931/2007 that finally intends toelaborate „Models of curricular design for adapted and inclusive physical education”. By starting from this project, thepresent study aims, on the one hand, at identifying the way in which the physical education teachers in mass schoolsperceive the integration of children with some disabilities into the physical education class, and, on the other hand, atidentifying the way in which the teachers working in special schools manage to involve them into the sport activitiespracticed by normal children, so that one could talk about integrated physical activities, where each pupil, with or without adisability, is equally important. Knowing the way of approaching the activity within the inclusive sport activities can facilitatethe disabled children’s better involvement into the respective practice and their better social integration.To this purpose, weinitiated two parallel studies. They were based on questionnaires and on direct observation, and were conducted on a 4-month period. The integration models through inclusive school determine the specialists to pay more attention to physical forall, where the disabled children are integrated in normal school classes.

  19. The Reggio Emilia Approach and Inclusive Early Childhood Programs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vakil, Shernavaz; Freeman, Ramona; Swim, Terry Jo

    2003-01-01

    Discusses benefits of inclusion in preschool and compares educational practices of high-quality inclusive preschools in the United States with those characterizing the Reggio Emilia approach. Offers recommendations for better serving children with special needs in inclusive settings, including viewing teachers as researchers, and using…

  20. Singing and social inclusion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Welch, Graham F; Himonides, Evangelos; Saunders, Jo; Papageorgi, Ioulia; Sarazin, Marc

    2014-01-01

    There is a growing body of neurological, cognitive, and social psychological research to suggest the possibility of positive transfer effects from structured musical engagement. In particular, there is evidence to suggest that engagement in musical activities may impact on social inclusion (sense of self and of being socially integrated). Tackling social exclusion and promoting social inclusion are common concerns internationally, such as in the UK and the EC, and there are many diverse Government ministries and agencies globally that see the arts in general and music in particular as a key means by which social needs can be addressed. As part of a wider evaluation of a national, Government-sponsored music education initiative for Primary-aged children in England ("Sing Up"), opportunity was taken by the authors, at the request of the funders, to assess any possible relationship between (a) children's developing singing behavior and development and (b) their social inclusion (sense of self and of being socially integrated). Subsequently, it was possible to match data from n = 6087 participants, drawn from the final 3 years of data collection (2008-2011), in terms of each child's individually assessed singing ability (based on their singing behavior of two well-known songs to create a "normalized singing score") and their written responses to a specially-designed questionnaire that included a set of statements related to children's sense of being socially included to which the children indicated their level of agreement on a seven-point Likert scale. Data analyses suggested that the higher the normalized singing development rating, the more positive the child's self-concept and sense of being socially included, irrespective of singer age, sex and ethnicity.

  1. Factor Analytic Study of Cognitive Processing and Self Perception of Learning Disabilities among the Elementary Inclusive School Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rijumol, K. C.; Thangarajathi, S.; Ananthasayanam, R.

    2011-01-01

    The present investigation was an attempt to explore the underlying construct of cognitive processing and self-perception of learning disabilities in elementary inclusive school children. A cognitive assessment test battery and self-perception of disabilities inventory was developed by the investigator and administered to 100 elementary sixth and…

  2. A Study of Ghanaian Early Childhood Teachers' Perceptions about Inclusive Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ntuli, Esther; Traore, Moussa

    2013-01-01

    Inclusion is designed to bring special education services into the general classrooms. Research indicates that children with disabilities demonstrate better progress when learning with typically developing peers in general classrooms than they would in segregated learning environments. In inclusive classrooms, children with disabilities learn by…

  3. "There is soccer but we have to watch": the embodied consequences of rhetorics of inclusion for South African children with cerebral palsy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bantjes, Jason; Swartz, Leslie; Conchar, Lauren; Derman, Wayne

    2015-01-01

    Twenty years after the advent of democracy in South Africa (SA), there have been some successes in the achievement of greater equality, access and inclusion for many persons with disabilities. The move towards inclusive education may, however, have had unanticipated embodied consequences for people positioned discursively as included, but who in fact may in some respects be further marginalised than they had been under apartheid. We describe ethnographic research conducted in a special needs school in SA to explore the lived experiences of children with cerebral palsy and their involvement in physical activity. Our study shows how inclusive educational practices in SA have impeded involvement in sport for some children with motor impairments because of resource limitations and other historic reasons. This paper raises important questions about the role of community psychology in recognising, naming and contributing to action around injustices, which may be hard to see but which can have profound effects on the lives and bodies of those who experience exclusion.

  4. RISKS OF INCLUSIVE EDUCATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. R. Husnutdinova

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction. Inclusion is a new and unfamiliar phenomenon for most of the Russians which is treated as ensuring equal access to education for all students taking into account a variety of their special educational needs and individual capabilities. Inclusive educational model began to take root in Russia without a broad public debate and today’s parents and teachers were not ready to the cardinal changes caused by transition to the new model of education. In this regard, the studying of directly educational process by consequences of inclusive training and education is urgent now.The aims of the research are the following: to identify the major risks that characterize the current stage of the implementation process of inclusion in the Russian educational organizations; to consider the main causes that lead to their occurrence; to present a comparative analysis of the views of respondents in comprehensive, inclusive and correctional schools. Methodology and research methods. The Sector Monitoring Studies of Moscow State University of Psychology & Education in 2010 and 2014 implemented a sociological study on the process of introduction of inclusion in the Russian schools. 200 teachers and 244 parents were interviewed in 2010; in 2014, in addition, 178 teachers and 386 parents were interviewed; 47 senior students including those with disabilities were interviewed too.Results. According to the results, the main concerns of the parents of students of comprehensive, inclusive and correctional schools are reduced to a few basic risks: lack of individual approach while teaching children with different educational needs, increased emotional pressure on the child, and child’s perception of the complexity of disability as an equal. These risks arise primarily because of the acute shortage of especially prepared-governmental teachers and socio-cultural, psychological unpreparedness of most contemporary children with disabilities to the perception of

  5. Disability, social functioning and school inclusion among older children and adolescents living with HIV in Zimbabwe.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rukuni, Ruramayi; McHugh, Grace; Majonga, Edith; Kranzer, Katharina; Mujuru, Hilda; Munyati, Shungu; Nathoo, Kusum; Gregson, Celia L; Kuper, Hannah; Ferrand, Rashida A

    2018-02-01

    Increasing numbers of children with HIV are surviving to adolescence and encountering multiple clinical and social consequences of long-standing HIV infection. We aimed to investigate the association between HIV and disability, social functioning and school inclusion among 6- to 16-year-olds in Zimbabwe. HIV-infected children receiving antiretroviral therapy from a public-sector HIV clinic and HIV-uninfected children attending primary care clinics in the same catchment area were recruited. Standardised questionnaires were used to collect socio-demographic, social functioning and disability data. Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess the relationship between HIV status and disability and functioning. We recruited 202 HIV-infected and 285 HIV-uninfected children. There was no difference in age and gender between the two groups, but a higher proportion of HIV-infected children were orphaned. The prevalence of any disability was higher in HIV-infected than uninfected children (37.6% vs. 18.5%, P disability to those with HIV but no disabilities. Children with HIV commonly experience disabilities, and this is associated with social and educational exclusion. Rehabilitation and support services are needed to facilitate educational attainment and social participation in this group. © 2017 The Authors. Tropical Medicine & International Health Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  6. Hierarchical ordering with partial pairwise hierarchical relationships on the macaque brain data sets.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Woosang Lim

    Full Text Available Hierarchical organizations of information processing in the brain networks have been known to exist and widely studied. To find proper hierarchical structures in the macaque brain, the traditional methods need the entire pairwise hierarchical relationships between cortical areas. In this paper, we present a new method that discovers hierarchical structures of macaque brain networks by using partial information of pairwise hierarchical relationships. Our method uses a graph-based manifold learning to exploit inherent relationship, and computes pseudo distances of hierarchical levels for every pair of cortical areas. Then, we compute hierarchy levels of all cortical areas by minimizing the sum of squared hierarchical distance errors with the hierarchical information of few cortical areas. We evaluate our method on the macaque brain data sets whose true hierarchical levels are known as the FV91 model. The experimental results show that hierarchy levels computed by our method are similar to the FV91 model, and its errors are much smaller than the errors of hierarchical clustering approaches.

  7. Early Childhood Inclusion in the United Kingdom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blackburn, Carolyn

    2016-01-01

    A policy-to-practice paper is presented of early childhood inclusion in England. The article aims to report the benefits of early intervention services and early childhood inclusion for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), document the chronology of policy development, and discuss research evidence about…

  8. Partnership with parents and disabled children. HIA of the All-Inclusive Wraparound Project for children with a disability

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Farrell, Brid; Elliott, Iris; Ison, Erica

    2004-01-01

    The All-Inclusive Wraparound Scheme seeks to develop new ways of multidisciplinary, interagency working that will make a difference to the lives of children with disabilities (aged 0-18 years) and their families and carers across the Southern Health and Social Services Board in Northern Ireland. A concurrent HIA was undertaken with the aims of identifying the positive and negative health impacts, producing clear recommendations to improve the service and informing the development of an evaluation and monitoring framework. Eight community-based projects linked to 15 partners were involved in the HIA. Health and social services, education, the Library Board, voluntary sector community groups, parents and children all took part. It was concluded that there was a need for better information for parents to enable them to access services. Partnership working with parents and between agencies needed to be improved and parents and professionals on partnership working. The handover between services at transition from preschool to school-age and from school-age to adult services needed to be better planned. Conducting a HIA early in the implementation of Wraparound has enabled the project to take account of more perspectives and influence the delivery of services for children with a disability

  9. Singing and social inclusion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Welch, Graham F.; Himonides, Evangelos; Saunders, Jo; Papageorgi, Ioulia; Sarazin, Marc

    2014-01-01

    There is a growing body of neurological, cognitive, and social psychological research to suggest the possibility of positive transfer effects from structured musical engagement. In particular, there is evidence to suggest that engagement in musical activities may impact on social inclusion (sense of self and of being socially integrated). Tackling social exclusion and promoting social inclusion are common concerns internationally, such as in the UK and the EC, and there are many diverse Government ministries and agencies globally that see the arts in general and music in particular as a key means by which social needs can be addressed. As part of a wider evaluation of a national, Government-sponsored music education initiative for Primary-aged children in England (“Sing Up”), opportunity was taken by the authors, at the request of the funders, to assess any possible relationship between (a) children's developing singing behavior and development and (b) their social inclusion (sense of self and of being socially integrated). Subsequently, it was possible to match data from n = 6087 participants, drawn from the final 3 years of data collection (2008–2011), in terms of each child's individually assessed singing ability (based on their singing behavior of two well-known songs to create a “normalized singing score”) and their written responses to a specially-designed questionnaire that included a set of statements related to children's sense of being socially included to which the children indicated their level of agreement on a seven-point Likert scale. Data analyses suggested that the higher the normalized singing development rating, the more positive the child's self-concept and sense of being socially included, irrespective of singer age, sex and ethnicity. PMID:25120514

  10. O processo de inclusão de crianças com deficiência auditiva na escola regular: vivências de professores The inclusion process of hearing impaired children in regular schools: the experience of teachers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Noemi Vieira de Freitas Rios

    2009-04-01

    Full Text Available O objetivo do presente estudo foi descrever e discutir, a partir da vivência de professores, o processo de inclusão de crianças com deficiência auditiva em escola regular. Foram selecionadas três crianças entre 05 e 08 anos de idade, e seus respectivos professores. Por meio de entrevistas com as professoras das crianças, foi selecionado o material que permitiu caracterizar o processo de inclusão de cada criança do estudo. Os relatos das professoras sobre suas experiências com as crianças deficientes auditivas deste estudo parecem indicar que, ainda hoje, apesar da evolução das práticas inclusivas, prevalecem nas escolas muito mais os pressupostos da integração do que da inclusão. As professoras foram unânimes em admitir que não vêm sendo suficientemente preparadas para receber deficientes auditivos e pouco sabem sobre o desenvolvimento da audição, da linguagem e sobre como esses aspectos influenciam e determinam formas particulares de apreensão de conteúdos. Prevalece a idéia de que é a criança com necessidades educacionais especiais quem deve se adaptar ao ambiente, empenhar-se para ser nele integrada; ou então, as professoras buscam estratégias individuais de aproximação, sem que essa questão seja problematizada junto ao corpo técnico da escola, que ainda não vem efetivando transformações em sua organização para receber esses alunos.The aim of this study was to describe and discuss the process of inclusion in regular schools of children who are hearing impaired, based on teachers' perceptions of the process. Three children between the ages of 5 and 8 years and their teachers participated in the study. The interviews with the children's teachers were recorded, and material was selected from the transcripts that allowed us to characterize the inclusion process of each child in the study. The teachers' reports about their experiences with the hearing impaired children of this study seem to indicate that, even

  11. A Comparison of Social Skills in Turkish Children with Visual Impairments, Children with Intellectual Impairments and Typically Developing Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ozkubat, Ufuk; Ozdemir, Selda

    2014-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to compare the social skills of five groups of children: children with visual impairments attending inclusive education schools, children with visual impairments attending schools for the blind, children with intellectual impairments attending inclusive education schools, children with intellectual impairments…

  12. Examining the Attitudes and Concerns of the Kenyan Teachers toward the Inclusion of Children with Disabilities in the General Education Classroom: A Mixed Methods Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Odongo, George; Davidson, Roseanna

    2016-01-01

    The philosophy of inclusive education aims at enabling all children to learn in the regular education classrooms. It is widely believed that the successful implementation of any inclusive policy is largely influenced by teachers being positive about the expectations. Grounded in Positioning Theory, this study was conducted to examine the attitude,…

  13. 'I never even gave it a second thought': PGCE students' attitudes towards the inclusion of children with speech and language impairments.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marshall, Julie; Stojanovik, Vesna; Ralph, Sue

    2002-01-01

    Approximately 7% of young school-aged children have specific language impairments. Many such children are now being educated in mainstream settings. However, there is a dearth of up-to-date and valid research that considers UK (student) teachers' attitudes towards such children. This study aimed to investigate trainee teachers' attitudes towards teaching children with speech and language impairments, to investigate the reported effects of those attitudes on participants' acceptance of teaching such children, and to consider any implications for speech and language therapy (SLT) services and inclusive education. Nineteen trainee teachers (PGCE students) from a university in the North West of England took part in semistructured group interviews. The data were transcribed and analysed qualitatively, and recurrent themes identified. A range of attitudes was expressed, and six major themes were identified from the data. Participants discussed concerns about the resources and knowledge they considered necessary to support fully children with specific language impairments. There was some differentiation of attitudes related to the types of disability that a child may have and the subject being taught. Much of the discussion was about disabilities in general rather than specific to speech and language impairments. Many of the participants reflected on their own previous experiences to inform their opinions. Although many of the participants expressed positive attitudes, some had concerns about workload and at least one was openly hostile to the idea of teaching children with disabilities within mainstream settings. The implications of these findings are discussed in relation to previous research, the quantitative data obtained in this project, SLT services and the increases in the inclusion of children with specific language impairments into mainstream educational settings.

  14. Art in the inclusion of children with special needs in dentistry A arte na inclusão da criança especial na odontologia

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    Marcio José Possari dos Santos

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to report the use of art and its segments as a source for inclusion of the children with special needs in dentistry. The application of the Art in social therapy activities and workshops was divided in modules: Session of Socialization, Complementary Workshops of Art and Activities, aiming at the cultural anamnesis and artistic preferences of the 313 participants, prior to their dental care treatment at CAOE (Center of Odontological Assistance to patients with special needs FOA Unesp. According to preference of the participants that answered the questionnaires, the music and the painting are the artistic segments that proved to be most helpful in the activities of inclusion and adaptation. The authors concluded that the use of art in the adaptation and environmental inclusion of the patient, prior to dental procedures is favorable and efficient.A proposta deste estudo é relatar a utilização da arte e seus segmentos, como recurso para inclusão da criança portadora de necessidades especiais ao ambiente odontológico. Foi utilizado como método a aplicação da arte em atividades de socioterapia e oficinas, divididas em módulos: sessão de socialização, oficinas de arte e atividades complementares, visando à elaboração de uma anamnese cultural por meio de questionários e a obtenção das preferências artísticas dos 313 participantes, previamente às suas assistências odontológicas no CAOE (Centro de Assistência Odontológica a Portadores de Necessidades Especiais FOA/Unesp. De acordo com os questionários respondidos, a música e a pintura, segundo a preferência dos participantes, são os segmentos artísticos que mais auxiliam nas atividades de inclusão e adaptação. Concluímos que a utilização da arte na adaptação e inclusão ambiental do paciente, previamente à assistência odontológica, é favorável e eficaz.

  15. CONTENT AND STRUCTURE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHER'S INCLUSIVE COMPETENCE

    OpenAIRE

    O. S. Kazachiner

    2017-01-01

    The aim of the article is analysis of content and structure of such phenomenon as a foreign language teachers’ inclusive competence. The necessity of development of such category of teachers’ inclusive competence was substantiated. On the base of scientists’ approaches to teacher’s inclusive competence content the author has defined foreign language teacher’s inclusive competence as an integrative personal background which includes the ability of teaching a foreign language to children with s...

  16. Preschool Inclusion: Navigating through Alphabet Soup

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lytle, Rebecca; Bordin, Judith

    2005-01-01

    The number of preschool-aged children with disabilities who spend some part of their day in an inclusive school or child care setting has grown tremendously in the past ten years. Meeting the needs of these children is always challenging. However, Public Law 105-17 the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA'97) mandates that children…

  17. Indonesian teachers' epistemological beliefs and inclusive education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sheehy, Kieron; Budiyanto; Kaye, Helen; Rofiah, Khofidotur

    2017-01-01

    A growing number of children with intellectual disabilities attend inclusive schools in Indonesia. Previous research has suggested that teachers' type of school and experience influences their beliefs about inclusive education. This research collected questionnaire data from 267 Indonesian teachers and compared the responses from those working in inclusive, special and regular schools regarding their epistemological and pedagogical beliefs. The results showed that teachers in inclusive schools expressed stronger social constructivist beliefs than those in other schools. However, it was teachers' epistemological beliefs, rather than their type of school or experience, which were the significant predictor of their beliefs about inclusive education. The findings suggest that international epistemological research needs to have a more nuanced view of constructivist models of learning to better understand and inform how inclusive pedagogy is being enacted in different contexts.

  18. Using Peer-Mediated LEGO® Play Intervention to Improve Social Interactions for Chinese Children with Autism in an Inclusive Setting.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hu, Xiaoyi; Zheng, Qunshan; Lee, Gabrielle T

    2018-02-16

    The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a peer-mediated LEGO® play intervention on improving social skills for children with ASD in an inclusive preschool in China. Three boys with ASD and 13 typically developing children participated in this study. A multiple-probe across participants design was used. The intervention consisted of LEGO® construction activities incorporated with peer-mediated strategies for one child with ASD and two typically developing peers. The intervention sessions were conducted two sessions per week with a total of 28-31 sessions for each participant. Results indicated that all three children with ASD increased their social initiations and responses following the completion of the intervention. Social validity was also obtained.

  19. Arte Juntos/Art Together: Promoting School Readiness among Latino Children through Parent Engagement and Social Inclusion in a Suburban Museum

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zoila Tazi

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available Census data reveal that suburban communities are becoming increasingly diverse. Once considered affluent and predictable places, American suburbs are now confronting increasing poverty rates as well as ethnic, racial and linguistic diversity. Currently, more than half of US Latinos live in the suburbs. Schools and public institutions such as museums are challenged to provide programming that meets the needs of Latinos, who are disproportionately poor (Ackerman and Tazi 2015:3. Promoting school readiness among Latino children is an important effort in maximizing the potential and educational attainment of this growing population. In one suburban community, a school-museum collaboration resulted in a bilingual parent-child program promoting school readiness and social inclusion for Latino families. Arte Juntos/Art Together engaged parents and children using art andculture-based activities that developed observation skills, creativity, critical thinking, vocabulary, and aesthetic appreciation. Celebrating diverse perspectives and self-expression, the program provided access to museums as enriching spaces for informal learning, personal empowerment and social inclusion

  20. Social Inclusion of Children With Down Syndrome: Jewish and Muslim Mothers' Knowledge, Attitudes, Beliefs, and Behavioral Intentions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barnoy, Sivia; Biton, Anna; Itzhaki, Michal

    The current study examined mothers' knowledge, beliefs, attitudes, and intention to socially integrate children with Down syndrome (DS) in the family, with children without disabilities and school system. A questionnaire based on a descriptive, cross-sectional design was administered to Jewish and Muslim mothers. The questionnaire included demographics, knowledge, beliefs, attitudes, and intention to integrate children with DS. Analysis included a regression test of intention to integrate children with DS and a one-way ANOVA for differences between Jewish and Muslim mothers. Nearly all the Jewish mothers (93.7%) and about half the Muslim mothers (52.8%) had performed screening tests for DS during their pregnancy. All mothers displayed low knowledge level about DS. Being Jewish (t=2.89; p=0.005) and holding more positive beliefs (t=3.39; p=0.001) were associated with a higher intention to socially integrate children with DS. Significant positive correlations were found between beliefs and attitudes (r=0.65; psocially integrate children with DS (r=0.39; psocial inclusion of children with DS are quite positive and the intention to integrate children with DS in the family, with children without disabilities, and in the mainstream school system is high. However, their level of knowledge about DS is low. Nurses, as a critical source of information about DS, should develop an ethno-cultural sensitivity to diverse populations in order to influence attitudes and beliefs regarding the social integration of children with DS. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. The Development of Inclusive Learning Relationships\\ud in Mainstream Settings: A Multimodal Perspective

    OpenAIRE

    Efthymiou, E.; Kington, Alison

    2017-01-01

    The debate regarding the inclusion of children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) in mainstream education in the UK partly revolves around what makes the classroom environment inclusive. Through the potential\\ud offered by the specific qualitative methodologies employed, this study aimed to explore the development of teachers’ pedagogical practices and learning relationships upon the inclusive education of children with special educational needs and disabilities in two pri...

  2. Role and challenges of school social workers in facilitating and supporting the inclusiveness of children with special needs in regular schools

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Doriana Balli

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Dynamic of the society development is associated with extension of social problems, notably in educational context. The role of school, as the main public institution for social development of the students, is now obvious throughout the world. Consequently the role of social workers in schools is becoming essential, especially in terms of the inclusion of marginalized children from the opportunity of education, by impacting the educational system, to meet the diverse needs of all learners. Social work is focused on the welfare of individuals by increasing and developing their potential, so it goes hand in hand with inclusive education for children with disabilities, which emphasizes the children’ rights to obtain a definite, qualitative and suitable education in regular schools. The main focus of this study was to draw a clear panorama of the school social workers’ role towards the processes of inclusiveness of students with disabilities in Albanian regular schools. The data were collected via in-depth interviews with eight school social workers of the secondary schools in Korça region. The results showed that social service in schools is very important for helping students to develop social competences, intermediating parents in utilizing school and community resources, identifying and reporting bullying phenomenon, etc. School social workers could play a key role to implement the educational reform, which is being undertaken in Albania. Interviewees also shared their difficulties regarding the practical work, especially obstacles related to inclusive education processes.

  3. Preparing Preschool Teacher Candidates for Inclusion: Impact of Two Special Education Courses on Their Perspectives

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rakap, Salih; Cig, Oguzcan; Parlak-Rakap, Asiye

    2017-01-01

    Successful implementation of inclusive practices depends mainly on teachers' attitudes towards children with special needs and their inclusion, and teachers' willingness to work with children with special needs in their classrooms. Experiences teacher candidates have during pre-service stage might influence their perceptions towards children with…

  4. The Effect of a Disability Camp Program on Attitudes towards the Inclusion of Children with Disabilities in a Summer Sport and Leisure Activity Camp

    Science.gov (United States)

    Papaioannou, Christina; Evaggelinou, Christina

    2014-01-01

    The aim of the present study was to examine the impact of a specific Disability Camp Program (DCP) in the attitudes of children without disabilities toward the inclusion of children with disabilities in a summer sport and leisure activity camp. Three hundred eighty-seven campers without disabilities participated in the study and were divided into…

  5. A Scoping Review of Inclusive Out-of-School Time Physical Activity Programs for Children and Youth With Physical Disabilities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arbour-Nicitopoulos, Kelly P; Grassmann, Viviane; Orr, Krystn; McPherson, Amy C; Faulkner, Guy E; Wright, F Virginia

    2018-01-01

    The objective of this study was to comprehensively evaluate inclusive out-of-school time physical activity programs for children/youth with physical disabilities. A search of the published literature was conducted and augmented by international expertise. A quality appraisal was conducted; only studies with quality ratings ≥60% informed our best practice recommendations. Seventeen studies were included using qualitative (n = 9), quantitative (n = 5), or mixed (n = 3) designs. Programs had a diversity of age groups, group sizes, and durations. Most programs were recreational level, involving both genders. Rehabilitation staff were the most common leaders. Outcomes focused on social skills/relationships, physical skill development, and psychological well-being, with overall positive effects shown in these areas. The best practice recommendations are consistent with an abilities-based approach emphasizing common group goals and interests; cooperative activities; mastery-oriented, individualized instruction; and developmentally appropriate, challenging activities. Results indicate that inclusive out-of-school time physical activity programs are important for positive psychosocial and physical skill development of children/youth with physical disabilities.

  6. Child wellness and social inclusion: values for action.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prilleltensky, Isaac

    2010-09-01

    Participatory Action Research (PAR) with children and youth is at the intersection of child wellness and social inclusion. Exclusion and marginalization detract from personal and collective health. Inclusion, on the contrary, contributes to wellness. Hence, we should study inclusion and exclusion in the overall context of child wellness. This special issue offers a wealth of methodologies and lessons for fostering inclusion of young people through PAR. In an effort to synthesize my concerns with child wellness, inclusion, and the scholarly work of this special issue, this paper will (a) articulate the values underpinning the philosophy of social inclusion and child wellness, (b) suggest roles and responsibilities for putting these values into action, and (c) integrate the contributions of this special issue into the emerging framework for social inclusion and child wellness.

  7. Children and Youth in Behavioural and Emotional Difficulties, Skyrocketing Diagnosis and Inclusion/Exclusion Processes in School Tendencies in Denmark

    Science.gov (United States)

    Langager, Søren

    2014-01-01

    In parallel with a national school policy on an inclusive school with a marked reduction in the number of pupils who, due to their disruptive behaviour, are referred to educational provisions outside of the ordinary school environment, a sharp rise has been seen in the number of children and teenagers who are given a clinical diagnosis, first and…

  8. Inclusive Educational Practice in Europe: Psychological Perspectives

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arnold, Christopher, Ed.; Horan, Jacqueline, Ed.

    2017-01-01

    The inclusion of all children in the educational system still poses challenges, and psychologists have long been researching and facilitating effective practice with children who don't adjust readily to school. This book collates the findings and practice of psychologists working in schools and educational settings in 13 European states, and will…

  9. A descriptive examination of the types of relationships formed between children with developmental disability and their closest peers in inclusive school settings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Webster, Amanda A; Carter, Mark

    2013-03-01

    One of the most commonly cited rationales for inclusive education is to enable the development of quality relationships with typically developing peers. Relatively few researchers have examined the features of the range of relationships that children with developmental disability form in inclusive school settings. Interviews were conducted with 25 children with developmental disability, aged 5 and 12 years, their 3 closest peers, and parents and teachers to examine 6 types of relationships. Behaviours associated with general friendship and acquaintance were the most commonly reported. Few dyads reported high rates of behaviour associated with special treatment, helping, ignoring, or intimate best friend relationships. The relationships of the majority of dyads were characterised by friendship or acceptance, but evidence of more intimate relationships was limited. An important direction for future research is the examination of ways to encourage more intimate relationships.

  10. The Initiation of Early Childhood Inclusion in China: A Case Study from Beijing

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hu, Bi Ying; Roberts, Sherron Killingsworth; Wang, Yanhua; Zhao, Hongmei

    2011-01-01

    The national policies of the Chinese government regarding preschool inclusion are emerging to promote the well-being of all children, particularly children with disabilities in natural environments such as regular preschools or in homes. Following the global trend towards inclusive education, preschools in Beijing are gradually implementing both…

  11. Inclusion on the Bookshelf

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jackson, Camille

    2009-01-01

    Three decades have passed since federal law mandated inclusion--ending, officially at least, a system that segregated students with disabilities from the rest of the student population. The publishing world has yet to catch up. In children's books, characters with disabilities often inhabit their own separate world, where disability is the only…

  12. POVERTY AND COLOR IN CHILDREN'S EDUCATION: NECESSARY OBSERVATIONS TO THE WORK OF SCHOLAR INCLUSION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Deise Maria Santos de Aguiar

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available This article presents a part of the results of a Master’s research in which the issue of children who face differentiation and inequality processes in their relationships inside school is investigated in terms of its ties to socioeconomic conditions, as well as color/race definitions. The investigation was made using the children’s own perception. The article aims to contribute to the discussion towards both the initial and continuous formation of professionals working at schools, those who should be able to observe and even question their own manners of acting and feeling while working, identifying prejudices and situations of exclusion/marginalization which they may help to produce in the school routine. The research used the ethnographic method, focusing on the children’s narratives, color/race classifications, socioeconomic surveys, field observations and interviews with the children and the teachers. The analysis of the results indicates the need of a discussion of the educational culture and its important role in the process of building identities, since it was possible to identify the daily practices that discriminate and exclude children who should supposedly find, at school, an inclusive environment able to build a positive image of themselves, as well as the African-American population and its aesthetics and culture.

  13. Educational and Social Inclusion of Handicapped Children. Polish Experiences

    Science.gov (United States)

    Czyz, Anna

    2016-01-01

    This paper is dedicated to a very difficult and important subject--inclusion. Removing barriers, spreading social awareness and firmly established assistantship-guidance: these are the pillars by which inclusion is no longer an idea, but it becomes a process of creating a modern model of human functioning in the world. This pattern is primarily…

  14. Inclusive Educational Practices in Kenya: Evidencing Practice of Itinerant Teachers Who Work with Children with Visual Impairment in Local Mainstream Schools

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lynch, Paul; McCall, Steve; Douglas, Graeme; McLinden, Mike; Mogesa, Bernard; Mwaura, Martha; Muga, John; Njoroge, Michael

    2011-01-01

    This article presents a findings from an investigation of the work of 38 specialist itinerant teachers (ITs) supporting the educational inclusion of children with visual impairment in Kenya. The research was designed around a participatory action research framework involving in-country researchers and participants (teachers) working in…

  15. Using social capital to construct a conceptual International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health Children and Youth version-based framework for stronger inclusive education policies in Europe.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maxwell, Gregor; Koutsogeorgou, Eleni

    2012-02-01

    Inclusive education is part of social inclusion; therefore, social capital can be linked to an inclusive education policy and practice. This association is explored in this article, and a practical measure is proposed. Specifically, the World Health Organization's International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health Children and Youth Version (ICF-CY) is proposed as the link between social capital and inclusive education. By mapping participation and trust indicators of social capital to the ICF-CY and by using the Matrix to Analyse Functioning in Education Systems (MAFES) to analyze the functioning of inclusive education policies and systems, a measure for stronger inclusive education policies is proposed. Such a tool can be used for policy planning and monitoring to ensure better inclusive education environments. In conclusion, combining enhanced social capital linked to stronger inclusive education policies, by using the ICF-CY, can lead to better health and well-being for all.

  16. Inclusão de crianças com Síndrome de Down e paralisia cerebral no ensino fundamental I: comparação dos relatos de mães e professores Inclusion of children with Down Syndrome and cerebral palsy in elementary schools: comparison between parents' and teachers' reports

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Clara Regina Abdalla Ferraz

    2010-12-01

    Full Text Available O princípio fundamental da escola inclusiva é de que todas as crianças aprendam juntas, independentemente de dificuldades ou diferenças. Hoje, há necessidade de revisão da inclusão de alunos com deficiências e da função da escola como contribuinte do seu desenvolvimento. Diante disso, percebe-se a importância da interação pais e escola para efetivação desse processo. Assim, este trabalho buscou conhecer o processo de inclusão do aluno com Síndrome de Down (SD e Paralisia Cerebral (PC, a partir da comparação dos relatos de pais e professores e analisar como sua interação afeta o processo de inclusão. Participaram deste estudo 4 mães com filhos com PC, 4 mães com filhos com SD e 8 respectivos professores dessas crianças, do ensino público regular de um município na grande São Paulo. Utilizou-se uma entrevista estruturada construída pelos pesquisadores e adaptada para pais e professores. Para análise foram identificadas as categorias que emergiram dos relatos dos grupos. Como resultados observaram-se: oportunidade da inclusão diminuir o preconceito; a expectativa dos pais em matricular o filho na escola regular como possibilidade de aprender a ler e a escrever ao menos o nome. Por outro lado, os professores declaram não se sentirem preparados para este trabalho; entretanto, mesmo sem orientações, recursos e estrutura física adequada, trabalham para efetivação do aprendizado em sala de aula. A escola deve possibilitar condições para que os pais e professores se comuniquem de forma adequada e assim compartilhem conhecimentos indispensáveis para a inclusão e aprendizado efetivo de crianças com SD e PC.The fundamental principle of inclusive schools is that all children learn together, no matter their differences or difficulties. Currently, there is a need to review the inclusion of students who have disabilities, and the role of schools as contributors to their development. Thus, the importance of parent

  17. Hierarchical Network Design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Thomadsen, Tommy

    2005-01-01

    Communication networks are immensely important today, since both companies and individuals use numerous services that rely on them. This thesis considers the design of hierarchical (communication) networks. Hierarchical networks consist of layers of networks and are well-suited for coping...... with changing and increasing demands. Two-layer networks consist of one backbone network, which interconnects cluster networks. The clusters consist of nodes and links, which connect the nodes. One node in each cluster is a hub node, and the backbone interconnects the hub nodes of each cluster and thus...... the clusters. The design of hierarchical networks involves clustering of nodes, hub selection, and network design, i.e. selection of links and routing of ows. Hierarchical networks have been in use for decades, but integrated design of these networks has only been considered for very special types of networks...

  18. Problems of implementation of inclusive education in the USA and European countries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Liventseva N. A.

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available The article represents an analytical review of empirical studies covering the problems of inclusive education in the developed countries: the USA, Great Britain, Scandinavian countries. The article examines 18 scientific publications on inclusive education in psychological periodicals of the USA and Europe issued in 2006—2011. They give coverage to empirical findings concerning the implementation of inclusive education and are subdivided into two thematically different groups. The first one includes investigations focused on the study of professional training for inclusion educators. It means the organization of the effective system of training for educators which can make them ready to provide inclusive education in classrooms; problems of educators' attitudes to inclusion as factors providing its successful implementation; development of educators' basic skills in their interactions with special children and their families. The second group of studies focuses on the problems of adaptation, namely, the way children with special needs adjust in a group of nominally healthy peers.

  19. A scoping review of the role of LEGO® therapy for improving inclusion and social skills among children and youth with autism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lindsay, Sally; Hounsell, Kara Grace; Cassiani, Celia

    2017-04-01

    LEGO ® therapy uses children's natural interest in play to help motivate behavioural change and may be an effective teaching tool to increase social competency and communication skills. Although the literature is growing it has not been synthesized. To review the literature on the role of LEGO ® therapy on social skills and inclusion among children and youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). A scoping review was conducted, involving comprehensive searches of international databases. Eligible articles included: (a) youth aged 19 or younger, with ASD; (b) empirical research on LEGO ® therapy interventions; (c) published from 1996 to 2016 in a peer-reviewed journal, conference proceedings, or dissertation. Of the 6964 studies identified, 15 articles-involving 293 participants, aged 5-16 (mean age 8.7 years), across five countries-met the inclusion criteria. Although the outcomes of the LEGO ® therapy varied across the studies, 14 studies reported at least one improvement in social and communication skills (e.g., building friendships, improved social interactions and social competence), ASD-specific behaviors, belonging, family relationships, coping, and reductions in playing alone. Although LEGO ® therapy shows promise as an intervention for children and youth with ASD, more rigorously designed studies are needed to fully understand its impact. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. How children's victimization relates to distorted versus sensitive social cognition: Perception, mood, and need fulfillment in response to Cyberball inclusion and exclusion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lansu, Tessa A M; van Noorden, Tirza H J; Deutz, Marike H F

    2017-02-01

    This study examined whether victimization is associated with negatively distorted social cognition (bias), or with a specific increased sensitivity to social negative cues, by assessing the perception of social exclusion and the consequences for psychological well-being (moods and fundamental needs). Both self-reported and peer-reported victimization of 564 participants (M age =9.9years, SD=1.04; 49.1% girls) were measured, and social exclusion was manipulated through inclusion versus exclusion in a virtual ball-tossing game (Cyberball). Children's perceptions and psychological well-being were in general more negative after exclusion than after inclusion. Moreover, self-reported-but not peer-reported-victimization was associated with the perception of being excluded more and receiving the ball less, as well as more negative moods and less fulfillment of fundamental needs, regardless of being excluded or included during the Cyberball game. In contrast, peer-reported victimization was associated with more negative mood and lower need fulfillment in the exclusion condition only. Together, these results suggest that children who themselves indicate being victimized have negatively distorted social cognition, whereas children who are being victimized according to their peers experience increased sensitivity to negative social situations. The results stress the importance of distinguishing between self-reported and peer-reported victimization and have implications for interventions aimed at victimized children's social cognition. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. Discussion Paper Social and emotional learning for children with Learning Disability: Implications for inclusion.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Valeria Cavioni

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available This paper discusses the key role of social and emotional learning programmes for children with Learning Disability (LD. The first part of the paper discusses the difficulties students with learning disability may encounter in their education, such as issues related to peer group acceptance, friendship and social isolation, low self-efficacy and self-esteem, and externalized and internalized behavior problems. The relationship between social and emotional learning programmes and learning disability is then discussed, underlining the benefits of social and emotional learning for students with LD. The paper concludes by highlighting the need for universal social and emotional learning as a vehicle for the academic and social inclusion of students with LD.

  2. Equitable service provision for inclusive education and effective early intervention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wicks, K M

    1998-01-01

    This paper illustrates one model of providing an integrated paediatric speech and language therapy service which attempts to meet the demands of both inclusive education and effective early intervention. A move has been made from location-oriented therapy provision to offering children and their families equal opportunities to have appropriate intervention according to need. The model incorporates the philosophy of inclusive education and supports the development of current specialist educational establishments into resource bases of expertise for children with special needs in mainstream schools.

  3. The Hierarchical Factor Model of ADHD: Invariant across Age and National Groupings?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Toplak, Maggie E.; Sorge, Geoff B.; Flora, David B.; Chen, Wai; Banaschewski, Tobias; Buitelaar, Jan; Ebstein, Richard; Eisenberg, Jacques; Franke, Barbara; Gill, Michael; Miranda, Ana; Oades, Robert D.; Roeyers, Herbert; Rothenberger, Aribert; Sergeant, Joseph; Sonuga-Barke, Edmund; Steinhausen, Hans-Christoph; Thompson, Margaret; Tannock, Rosemary; Asherson, Philip; Faraone, Stephen V.

    2012-01-01

    Objective: To examine the factor structure of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in a clinical sample of 1,373 children and adolescents with ADHD and their 1,772 unselected siblings recruited from different countries across a large age range. Hierarchical and correlated factor analytic models were compared separately in the ADHD and…

  4. Development of a Scale to Measure Attitudes toward Inclusive Education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilczenski, Felicia L.

    1995-01-01

    The Attitudes toward Inclusive Education Scale (ATIES) is a measure of positive and negative attitudes toward integrating children with disabilities into regular classes. Results with 445 teachers show that the ATIES defines a unidimensional attitudinal variable and yields interval measures of attitudes toward inclusive education. (SLD)

  5. Conditions for inclusive education from the viewpoint of headmasters

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Janez Kovač

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available The paper presents conditions for inclusive education as perceived by headmaster in Slovenian primary schools. In the theoretical part, we focused on key elements of inclusive schools, i.e. headmasters, teachers and parents of children with special needs. In conclusion, we briefly highlight some theoretical propositions in relation to additional professional support in primary schools. In the empirical part of the paper, we present the results of an online survey conducted among headmasters in Slovenian primary schools. The aim of the survey was, among other things, to find how headmasters perceive conditions for inclusive education – those relating to headmasters themselves, to teachers/professional staff working with students with special needs, and those relating to school as a whole. Here, we also paid our attention to differences regarding the number of children with special needs who are included in regular program with adjusted implementation and additional professional assistance. The obtained results provide an opportunity for assessment of current situation, and for further consideration concerning the development of inclusive education in Slovenia in the future.

  6. Issues in Inclusion and Individual Learning Needs Learning to Read

    Science.gov (United States)

    McMurray, Sharon; Thompson, Ross

    2016-01-01

    For many lower ability children, inclusion in the mainstream setting does not guarantee that that their individual needs will be met. With increased numbers of children with well-below average ability being placed in mainstream schools, it is imperative that teachers understand factors which impact on learning for this group of children. Current…

  7. No “Obstacles” In Playgrounds That Are Not Only Accessible But Also Inclusive

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hatice Ayataç

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available In the current century, the importance of play for children is a major issue addressed in the literature. Play enables the physical, mental and social development of children. According to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, engaging in play is a fundamental right for children. This article of the convention covers all children below the age of 18 and does not exclude the children with disabilities. Like their peers, children with disabilities should also enjoy the right to engage in play, and societies should use every means available in order to help children play whether indoors or outdoors.According to the 2011 Population and Housing Research, 6.6% of the population in Turkey has one or more disabilities. The target group of this study is ‘children with disabilities’ who live in İstanbul. In this group, speech disorders (21.9%, and mental disabilities (17.1% prove to be the most dominant disabilities. However, the number of playgrounds where disabled children can play are scarce in number.This study provides an analysis of children’s playgrounds, which are essential for the development of children, and evaluates the design features of these playgrounds based on inclusive design principles. The study also addresses the requirements of inclusive playgrounds by referring to the examples of inclusive playgrounds around the world as well as those few examples in Turkey.  The design principles of inclusive playgrounds were also evaluated for three parks in İstanbul which were designed and are currently in use - namely Kadıköy Göztepe 60. Yıl Park, Beşiktaş Dilek Sabancı Park and Kadıköy Selamiçeşme Özgürlük Park.

  8. Detecting Hierarchical Structure in Networks

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Herlau, Tue; Mørup, Morten; Schmidt, Mikkel Nørgaard

    2012-01-01

    Many real-world networks exhibit hierarchical organization. Previous models of hierarchies within relational data has focused on binary trees; however, for many networks it is unknown whether there is hierarchical structure, and if there is, a binary tree might not account well for it. We propose...... a generative Bayesian model that is able to infer whether hierarchies are present or not from a hypothesis space encompassing all types of hierarchical tree structures. For efficient inference we propose a collapsed Gibbs sampling procedure that jointly infers a partition and its hierarchical structure....... On synthetic and real data we demonstrate that our model can detect hierarchical structure leading to better link-prediction than competing models. Our model can be used to detect if a network exhibits hierarchical structure, thereby leading to a better comprehension and statistical account the network....

  9. Making It Logical: Implementation of Inclusive Education Using a Logic Model Framework

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stegemann, Kim Calder; Jaciw, Andrew P.

    2018-01-01

    Educational inclusion of children with special learning needs is a philosophy and movement with an international presence. Though Canada is a leader in educational inclusion, many would claim that our public educational systems have not yet fully realized the dream of inclusive education. As other countries have noted, making full-fledged changes…

  10. Inclusion through Infusion: Disability Awareness Training for Elementary Educators

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cassiere, Amanda Rose

    2017-01-01

    Evidence consistently reveals that taking part in an inclusion classroom does not guarantee that children with disabilities will be accepted, valued, or included (Lindsay & Edwards, 2012; Rillota & Nettelbeck, 2007; Ison et al., 2010). Children with disabilities have been reported to have significantly less friendships and overall social…

  11. Social Inclusion and Residential Child Care

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schwartz, Ida

    to an inclusion perspective, the focal point of this presentation will be on how professionals – with focus on relations and networks – work with the expansion of social opportunities of participation for children and young people in out-of-home care. This paper is based on a Danish practice-research project Børn...... in relation to social inclusion in out-of-home care. How can we conceptualise the cooperative development of professional practices in order to establish flexible alignments of actions relative to problems within complex issues?...

  12. Child with autism in inclusive educational setting

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tomić Katarina N.

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The paper examines the possibility of including children with autistic spectrum disorders in mainstream groups in kindergartens, but from the perspective of preschool educators in inclusive educational groups, examining their attitudes to the problem concerned, and knowledge of the basic aspects of the disorder and effective methodological solutions, which were used in their work. The research conducted in Preschool institution 'Nata Veljkovic' in Krusevac, on a sample of 36 preschool teachers selected randomly, with the request to have more than five years of working experience, has shown that most teachers expressed concern and fear of the inclusion of children with autism and that there was a need for additional education in the field of developmental disabilities, that would make them better equipped to work and give them more confidence.

  13. Functional annotation of hierarchical modularity.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kanchana Padmanabhan

    Full Text Available In biological networks of molecular interactions in a cell, network motifs that are biologically relevant are also functionally coherent, or form functional modules. These functionally coherent modules combine in a hierarchical manner into larger, less cohesive subsystems, thus revealing one of the essential design principles of system-level cellular organization and function-hierarchical modularity. Arguably, hierarchical modularity has not been explicitly taken into consideration by most, if not all, functional annotation systems. As a result, the existing methods would often fail to assign a statistically significant functional coherence score to biologically relevant molecular machines. We developed a methodology for hierarchical functional annotation. Given the hierarchical taxonomy of functional concepts (e.g., Gene Ontology and the association of individual genes or proteins with these concepts (e.g., GO terms, our method will assign a Hierarchical Modularity Score (HMS to each node in the hierarchy of functional modules; the HMS score and its p-value measure functional coherence of each module in the hierarchy. While existing methods annotate each module with a set of "enriched" functional terms in a bag of genes, our complementary method provides the hierarchical functional annotation of the modules and their hierarchically organized components. A hierarchical organization of functional modules often comes as a bi-product of cluster analysis of gene expression data or protein interaction data. Otherwise, our method will automatically build such a hierarchy by directly incorporating the functional taxonomy information into the hierarchy search process and by allowing multi-functional genes to be part of more than one component in the hierarchy. In addition, its underlying HMS scoring metric ensures that functional specificity of the terms across different levels of the hierarchical taxonomy is properly treated. We have evaluated our

  14. Review of the Visiting Teachers Service for Children with Hearing and Visual Impairment in Supporting Inclusive Educational Practice in Ireland: Examining Stakeholder Feedback through an Ecological Systems Theory

    Science.gov (United States)

    McLinden, Mike; McCracken, Wendy

    2016-01-01

    In line with recent developments in inclusive practice in Ireland, children with sensory needs are increasingly educated in mainstream rather than specialist provision. Educational supports are provided by a range of practitioners and include input from the visiting teachers service for children with hearing and visual impairment. This paper…

  15. Parental Perspectives and Challenges in Inclusive Education in Singapore

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wong, Meng Ee; Poon, Kenneth K.; Kaur, Sarinajit; Ng, Zi Jia

    2015-01-01

    Relatively little work has focused on inclusive education in Singapore. This study examines the experiences and perceptions of parents whose children with disabilities are attending mainstream secondary schools in Singapore. Data was drawn from interviews with 13 parents of children with mild disabilities. Our findings reveal that parental…

  16. Student Behaviour Self-Monitoring Enabling Inclusion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jull, Stephen K.

    2009-01-01

    Disruptive, antisocial behaviour remains an ongoing issue for all schools, and particularly those identified as inclusive. Children who exhibit elevated levels of antisocial behaviour have an increased risk of numerous negative life consequences, including impaired social relationships, escalating aggressive behaviours, substance abuse, and school…

  17. Inclusive Pedagogy and Knowledge in Special Education: Addressing the Tension

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mintz, Joseph; Wyse, Dominic

    2015-01-01

    There has been an increasing focus in policy and practice on adopting inclusive pedagogy as a way of reconceptualising how schools work with children with special educational needs (SEN). The paper considers the split between knowledge and pedagogy inherent in some dominant strains of "inclusive pedagogy". Drawing on the "knowledge…

  18. Transport and Access to Inclusive Education in Mashonaland West Province, Zimbabwe

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maria Kett

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Lack of accessible transportation is considered a major barrier to education for children with disabilities—children already far less likely to attend school. While millions of children face challenges with getting to school, including long distances, poor roads, lack of transport and safety issues, these can be compounded for children with disabilities. Yet there is little data from low and middle-income countries on the nature and extent of this exclusion, or on attempted solutions. This paper explores some practical options for improving transport as part of providing inclusive education for children with disabilities in low income countries, as well applying concepts of transport-related social exclusion in such contexts. The paper reviews a project designed to improve sustainable transportation to school for children with disabilities in four districts in Mashonaland West Province, Zimbabwe. The most common solution was three wheel motorbikes (tricycles with trailers. Whilst not been unproblematic, teachers, parents and the wider communities overwhelmingly agree that they have supported children with disabilities to attend school. Obviously tricycles are not the only component needed for an inclusive education system, but they are a start. The paper also highlights some crucial gaps in current approaches, key among which is the fact the most government departments work in silos. Whilst inclusive education is strongly supported by the Zimbabwean Government, there is a lack of joined up thinking between transport and education ministries. Without stronger collaboration across ministries children with disabilities will continue to experience avoidable barriers and transport-related social exclusion.

  19. Catalysis with hierarchical zeolites

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Holm, Martin Spangsberg; Taarning, Esben; Egeblad, Kresten

    2011-01-01

    Hierarchical (or mesoporous) zeolites have attracted significant attention during the first decade of the 21st century, and so far this interest continues to increase. There have already been several reviews giving detailed accounts of the developments emphasizing different aspects of this research...... topic. Until now, the main reason for developing hierarchical zeolites has been to achieve heterogeneous catalysts with improved performance but this particular facet has not yet been reviewed in detail. Thus, the present paper summaries and categorizes the catalytic studies utilizing hierarchical...... zeolites that have been reported hitherto. Prototypical examples from some of the different categories of catalytic reactions that have been studied using hierarchical zeolite catalysts are highlighted. This clearly illustrates the different ways that improved performance can be achieved with this family...

  20. CHILDREN WITH ADHD, CLASSROOM INCLUSIVE PROGRAMMES

    OpenAIRE

    Ana Majko

    2017-01-01

    Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a common disorder known to be associated with behavioral and academic difficulties. This article describes effective school-based intervention strategies including programmes designed with the focus on the importance of the level of information on ADHD, awareness, training of teachers and school psychologists on the types of intervention in class and supporting children in classroom. One overlooked aspect of treatment of children with ADHD is...

  1. Principal Preparation in Special Education: Building an Inclusive Culture

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hofreiter, Deborah

    2017-01-01

    The importance of principal preparation in special education has increased since the Education for All Handicapped Children Act was passed in 1975. There are significant financial reasons for preparing principals in the area of special education. Recent research also shows that all children learn better in an inclusive environment. Principals who…

  2. Reconceptualising Advocacy: Creating Inclusive Education in US Universal Pre-Kindergarten

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sherfinski, Melissa; Weekley, Brandi Slider; Mathew, Sera

    2015-01-01

    This narrative inquiry concerns preschool education in the USA. It describes and analyses the barriers and possibilities for inclusion/exclusion that educators and parents of young children in a West Virginian community believe that it poses. The researchers present a case study designed to examine the context of inclusive education as revealed in…

  3. Parallel hierarchical radiosity rendering

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Carter, Michael [Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States)

    1993-07-01

    In this dissertation, the step-by-step development of a scalable parallel hierarchical radiosity renderer is documented. First, a new look is taken at the traditional radiosity equation, and a new form is presented in which the matrix of linear system coefficients is transformed into a symmetric matrix, thereby simplifying the problem and enabling a new solution technique to be applied. Next, the state-of-the-art hierarchical radiosity methods are examined for their suitability to parallel implementation, and scalability. Significant enhancements are also discovered which both improve their theoretical foundations and improve the images they generate. The resultant hierarchical radiosity algorithm is then examined for sources of parallelism, and for an architectural mapping. Several architectural mappings are discussed. A few key algorithmic changes are suggested during the process of making the algorithm parallel. Next, the performance, efficiency, and scalability of the algorithm are analyzed. The dissertation closes with a discussion of several ideas which have the potential to further enhance the hierarchical radiosity method, or provide an entirely new forum for the application of hierarchical methods.

  4. Hierarchical prisoner’s dilemma in hierarchical game for resource competition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fujimoto, Yuma; Sagawa, Takahiro; Kaneko, Kunihiko

    2017-07-01

    Dilemmas in cooperation are one of the major concerns in game theory. In a public goods game, each individual cooperates by paying a cost or defecting without paying it, and receives a reward from the group out of the collected cost. Thus, defecting is beneficial for each individual, while cooperation is beneficial for the group. Now, groups (say, countries) consisting of individuals also play games. To study such a multi-level game, we introduce a hierarchical game in which multiple groups compete for limited resources by utilizing the collected cost in each group, where the power to appropriate resources increases with the population of the group. Analyzing this hierarchical game, we found a hierarchical prisoner’s dilemma, in which groups choose the defecting policy (say, armament) as a Nash strategy to optimize each group’s benefit, while cooperation optimizes the total benefit. On the other hand, for each individual, refusing to pay the cost (say, tax) is a Nash strategy, which turns out to be a cooperation policy for the group, thus leading to a hierarchical dilemma. Here the group reward increases with the group size. However, we find that there exists an optimal group size that maximizes the individual payoff. Furthermore, when the population asymmetry between two groups is large, the smaller group will choose a cooperation policy (say, disarmament) to avoid excessive response from the larger group, and the prisoner’s dilemma between the groups is resolved. Accordingly, the relevance of this hierarchical game on policy selection in society and the optimal size of human or animal groups are discussed.

  5. Inclusion in Aotearoa/New Zealand: From Rhetoric to Reality.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McDonald, Trevor

    2002-01-01

    This article argues that the education system in Aotearoa/New Zealand relegates children with disabilities, along with Maori and children of minority groups, to the margins of education. It stresses the need for teachers to focus on ways in which inclusion practices are reinforcing the marginal position of many students. (Contains references.)…

  6. Micromechanics of hierarchical materials

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mishnaevsky, Leon, Jr.

    2012-01-01

    A short overview of micromechanical models of hierarchical materials (hybrid composites, biomaterials, fractal materials, etc.) is given. Several examples of the modeling of strength and damage in hierarchical materials are summarized, among them, 3D FE model of hybrid composites...... with nanoengineered matrix, fiber bundle model of UD composites with hierarchically clustered fibers and 3D multilevel model of wood considered as a gradient, cellular material with layered composite cell walls. The main areas of research in micromechanics of hierarchical materials are identified, among them......, the investigations of the effects of load redistribution between reinforcing elements at different scale levels, of the possibilities to control different material properties and to ensure synergy of strengthening effects at different scale levels and using the nanoreinforcement effects. The main future directions...

  7. Percepção de professores de educação infantil sobre a inclusão da criança com deficiência Perception of early childhood education teachers on the inclusion of children with disabilities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fabiana Cristina Frigieri de Vitta

    2010-12-01

    Full Text Available A educação infantil é importante para o desenvolvimento da criança com necessidades especiais. Nesse processo educacional, o professor e sua percepção de educação inclusiva são fatores primordiais. Este trabalho objetivou analisar a percepção de professores de educação infantil, que quanto à prática educativa atual, diferem em relação à presença de alunos com deficiências em seus ambientes de trabalho, sobre a educação da criança com deficiência na faixa etária de 3 a 6 anos. Foram sujeitos da pesquisa 12 professores de educação infantil divididos eqüitativamente em três grupos: de escolas especiais; de escolas comuns que trabalham com crianças com deficiências inseridas em suas classes e de escolas comuns que não possuem em suas classes crianças com deficiências. A coleta de dados foi realizada através de entrevistas semi-estruturadas, gravadas em fita cassete. Foi realizada análise de conteúdo e os dados mostraram que os professores vêem como a principal contribuição do processo de inclusão a socialização da criança com deficiências, restringindo-o, porém, a crianças com possibilidades de independência. Quanto à aprendizagem, acreditam que a criança com deficiência mental é a que encontra maiores dificuldades, contrariamente à com deficiência física. Ressaltam problemas com o espaço físico, recursos materiais e humanos e relativos à formação do professor. Pôde se concluir que é preciso possibilitar aos professores uma formação que abranja conhecimentos sobre as diferentes deficiências e as necessidades educacionais relativas a estas, propiciar a adequação do espaço físico e dos recursos materiais, além de assistência técnica específica.Early childhood education is important for the development of children with special needs. The teacher and his/her perception of inclusive education are essential factors throughout such educational processes. The present study aimed to

  8. Exploring Professional Knowing, Being and Becoming through Inclusive Pedagogical Approach in Action (IPAA) Framework

    Science.gov (United States)

    Klibthong, Sunanta; Agbenyega, Joseph S.

    2018-01-01

    Despite extensive changes in early childhood inclusive education policy and practice, various barriers continue to inhibit access and participation of children with special needs in inclusive schools. Often mentioned barriers include negative beliefs, lack of understanding of inclusive pedagogy and the effectiveness of professional development to…

  9. How hierarchical is language use?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frank, Stefan L.; Bod, Rens; Christiansen, Morten H.

    2012-01-01

    It is generally assumed that hierarchical phrase structure plays a central role in human language. However, considerations of simplicity and evolutionary continuity suggest that hierarchical structure should not be invoked too hastily. Indeed, recent neurophysiological, behavioural and computational studies show that sequential sentence structure has considerable explanatory power and that hierarchical processing is often not involved. In this paper, we review evidence from the recent literature supporting the hypothesis that sequential structure may be fundamental to the comprehension, production and acquisition of human language. Moreover, we provide a preliminary sketch outlining a non-hierarchical model of language use and discuss its implications and testable predictions. If linguistic phenomena can be explained by sequential rather than hierarchical structure, this will have considerable impact in a wide range of fields, such as linguistics, ethology, cognitive neuroscience, psychology and computer science. PMID:22977157

  10. Characterization of interactions between inclusion membrane proteins from Chlamydia trachomatis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Emilie eGauliard

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available Chlamydiae are obligate intracellular pathogens of eukaryotes. The bacteria grow in an intracellular vesicle called an inclusion, the membrane of which is heavily modified by chlamydial proteins called Incs (Inclusion membrane proteins. Incs represent 7-10% of the genomes of Chlamydia and, given their localization at the interface between the host and the pathogen, likely play a key role in the development and pathogenesis of the bacterium. However, their functions remain largely unknown. Here, we characterized the interaction properties between various Inc proteins of C. trachomatis, using a bacterial two-hybrid (BACTH method suitable for detecting interactions between integral membrane proteins. To validate this approach, we first examined the oligomerization properties of the well-characterized IncA protein and showed that both the cytoplasmic domain and the transmembrane region independently contribute to IncA oligomerization. We then analyzed a set of Inc proteins and identified novel interactions between these components. Two small Incs, IncF and Ct222, were found here to interact with many other Inc proteins and may thus represent interaction nodes within the inclusion membrane. Our data suggest that the Inc proteins may assemble in the membrane of the inclusion to form specific multi-molecular complexes in an hierarchical and temporal manner. These studies will help to better define the putative functions of the Inc proteins in the infectious process of Chlamydia.

  11. Inclusive education in Nigeria: a myth or a reality? | Eni-Olorunda ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This paper looks at the implementation of inclusive education in Nigeria, whether it\\'s a myth or a reality. The present forms of Education for children with special needs such as special and integrated schools were critically evaluated. This is because, the implementation of inclusive education would depend on the ...

  12. SPECIAL AND INCLUSIVE MODELS OF EDUCATION IN MODERN AMERICAN AND BRITISH STUDIES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nataliya Andriichuk

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available The article deals with a comparative description of inclusive and special systems of education. On the basis of American and British studies are shown that modern scientists, voluntary organizations and parents of the disabled kids meet two problems: to prove that inclusion is necessary for children with special needs as the alternative to special education and to illustrate the real ways of inclusive education implementation into general educational process. The main goal of inclusive education is defined – to educate an absolutely full member of society by attracting all participants of education process to the general school activities. The author of the article points out that the professionals in the sphere of special education created and worked out a great amount of forms, methods and techniques of teaching which work with particular categories of children with special educational needs. This potential is useful and valuable from the point of view of inclusion which cannot succeed without the professional participation of specialists in different fields of pedagogy, psychology and rehabilitology.

  13. Perspectives on Inclusive Education with Reference to United Nations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sharma, Arvind

    2015-01-01

    This essay explores inclusive education and explains the role of United Nations for imparting it to different nations. Undoubtedly, the UN and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) strive for all children to have equitable access to education as a basic human right. The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) combined with the Convention…

  14. Inhibitory control efficiency in a Piaget-like class-inclusion task in school-age children and adults: a developmental negative priming study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Borst, G; Poirel, N; Pineau, A; Cassotti, M; Houdé, O

    2013-07-01

    Most children under 7 years of age presented with 10 daisies and 2 roses fail to indicate that there are more flowers than daisies. Instead of the appropriate comparison of the relative numerosities of the superordinate class (flowers) to its subordinate class (daisies), they perform a direct perceptual comparison of the extensions of the 2 subordinate classes (daisies vs. roses). In our experiment, we investigated whether increasing efficiency in solving the Piagetian class-inclusion task is related to increasing efficiency in the ability to resist (inhibit) this direct comparison of the subordinate classes' extensions. Ten-year-old and young adult participants performed a computerized priming version of a Piaget-like class-inclusion task. The experimental design was such that the misleading perceptual strategy to inhibit on the prime (in which a superordinate class had to be compared with a subordinate class) became a congruent strategy to activate on the probe (in which the two subordinate classes' extensions were directly compared). We found a negative priming effect of 291 ms in children and 129 ms in adults. These results provide evidence for the first time (a) that adults still need to inhibit the comparison of the subordinate classes' extensions in class-inclusion tasks and (b) that the ability to inhibit this heuristic increases with age (resulting in a lower executive cost). Taken together, these findings provide additional support for the neo-Piagetian approach of cognitive development that suggests that the acquisition of increasingly complex knowledge is based on the ability to resist (inhibit) heuristics and previously acquired knowledge.

  15. Inclusão de crianças com Síndrome de Down Inclusión de niños con Sindrome de Down Inclusion of children with Down Syndrome

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Flávia Mendonça Rosa Luiz

    2012-12-01

    inclusion process of children with Down's syndrome, with a view to promoting the health of these families. A multiple case study was developed with a qualitative approach, involving 11 families of children with Down's syndrome. Data were collected through semistructured interviews and analyzed through content analysis. The results demonstrated that, from the participants' perspective, teachers are not prepared for this inclusion but, nevertheless, this process reveals to benefit child education. The need for articulation between education and health sectors and a change in the educational model paradigm were evidenced. The research appoints aspects which the professionals involved should pay attention to, in order to make the inclusion a process to be lived as best as possible.

  16. Hierarchical architecture of active knits

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Abel, Julianna; Luntz, Jonathan; Brei, Diann

    2013-01-01

    Nature eloquently utilizes hierarchical structures to form the world around us. Applying the hierarchical architecture paradigm to smart materials can provide a basis for a new genre of actuators which produce complex actuation motions. One promising example of cellular architecture—active knits—provides complex three-dimensional distributed actuation motions with expanded operational performance through a hierarchically organized structure. The hierarchical structure arranges a single fiber of active material, such as shape memory alloys (SMAs), into a cellular network of interlacing adjacent loops according to a knitting grid. This paper defines a four-level hierarchical classification of knit structures: the basic knit loop, knit patterns, grid patterns, and restructured grids. Each level of the hierarchy provides increased architectural complexity, resulting in expanded kinematic actuation motions of active knits. The range of kinematic actuation motions are displayed through experimental examples of different SMA active knits. The results from this paper illustrate and classify the ways in which each level of the hierarchical knit architecture leverages the performance of the base smart material to generate unique actuation motions, providing necessary insight to best exploit this new actuation paradigm. (paper)

  17. [International aspects of inclusion in schools].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Häßler, Frank; Burgert, Michael; Fegert, Jörg Michael; Chodan, Wencke

    2015-07-01

    The term inclusion (=admittance, involvement) is used almost synonymously for the concept of the joint schooling of children with and without intellectual disabilities, language disabilities, physical handicaps, or mental disorders. This article addresses the current state of inclusion in Germany as well as the international situation, such as the Salamanca Declaration of the UNESCO, the «Individuals with Disabilities Act» (IDEA) in the United States as well as European developments, particularly in Great Britain, Austria, and Russia. Even though, from a political perspective, the decision in favor of inclusion seems irreversible, there appears to be a lack an agreement on the modality and timeframe. Thus, the average percentage of students with special education needs in Germany amounts to only 28.2%. The reasons behind this situation are presently being analyzed and discussed. A question of key importance concerns the benefit for the persons concerned, since that should be the measure of the success of inclusion. This question will most likely be validly answered only for individual subgroups of disabilities. This field still requires extensive research.

  18. Nested and Hierarchical Archimax copulas

    KAUST Repository

    Hofert, Marius

    2017-07-03

    The class of Archimax copulas is generalized to nested and hierarchical Archimax copulas in several ways. First, nested extreme-value copulas or nested stable tail dependence functions are introduced to construct nested Archimax copulas based on a single frailty variable. Second, a hierarchical construction of d-norm generators is presented to construct hierarchical stable tail dependence functions and thus hierarchical extreme-value copulas. Moreover, one can, by itself or additionally, introduce nested frailties to extend Archimax copulas to nested Archimax copulas in a similar way as nested Archimedean copulas extend Archimedean copulas. Further results include a general formula for the density of Archimax copulas.

  19. Nested and Hierarchical Archimax copulas

    KAUST Repository

    Hofert, Marius; Huser, Raphaë l; Prasad, Avinash

    2017-01-01

    The class of Archimax copulas is generalized to nested and hierarchical Archimax copulas in several ways. First, nested extreme-value copulas or nested stable tail dependence functions are introduced to construct nested Archimax copulas based on a single frailty variable. Second, a hierarchical construction of d-norm generators is presented to construct hierarchical stable tail dependence functions and thus hierarchical extreme-value copulas. Moreover, one can, by itself or additionally, introduce nested frailties to extend Archimax copulas to nested Archimax copulas in a similar way as nested Archimedean copulas extend Archimedean copulas. Further results include a general formula for the density of Archimax copulas.

  20. Professional and private experience with persons with special needs and attitudes of teachers of regular schools towards inclusion

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rajović Vera

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, we seek for the factors of formation of attitudes of primary school teachers towards inclusion of children who due to some sensory, bodily, mental disability or social deprivation have the need for additional support in development and learning. Research on attitudes towards inclusive education of children with special needs so far indicates that teachers of regular schools 'hesitate' in accepting children with special needs, stating as a reason the fact that they do not feel competent enough to work with them. However, the increase in teacher readiness to work with these children can be seen from the projects for the inclusion of these children that educate the teachers and envisage the support of the school expert team. This study was conducted with the aim of determining whether teacher's experience - either private or professional - with persons with disabilities distinguishes the respondents who exhibit more favourable attitudes towards inclusive education of these children from those with less favourable attitudes. The sample consisted of 105 teachers from five regular primary schools at the territory of Belgrade, 44.2% of whom declared that they had professional experience in working with students with special needs, while 40% of respondents had private experience with persons with developmental disabilities. The results (ANOVA indicate that professional experience with working with children with special needs does not significantly affect the formation and changing of attitudes of teachers of regular schools towards inclusive education. On the other hand, private experience with persons with developmental disabilities has a significant influence both on the attitude towards inclusion as a whole and towards all its components (cognitive, conative, the feeling of competence. Based on the obtained results, implications for the development of the curriculum for educating teachers for working with children with developmental

  1. Internet social networks as important agents of social inclusion for contemporary children and youth

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Khynova J.

    2012-10-01

    Full Text Available The article shows that the use of social networks is a very powerful mean and often the way of socialization and social inclusion of contemporary children and youth. Direct social communication is often substituted by communication through the modern media, which takes places in the cyber space and has a great importance for experience and socialization of current generations. This article is trying to point out that the use of internet social networks is an important component of children’s and youth’s subculture. Potential absence in the world of internet social networks can bring individuals to the marginal position among their peer group. On the basis of the survey made among Czech children and youngsters, from 11 to 19 years, we can find out how important the use of internet social networks for the Czech contemporary young people is. Activities connected with the internet social networks create an important part of leisure time activities for the interviewed respondents. For them it is very considerable to be the part of some internet social community. Moreover, virtual communication helps respondents to keep in touch with their peers and increase their social status in the community. They can also experiment with different identities and find the best way of communication with others.

  2. LN Murungi INCLUSIVE BASIC EDUCATION IN SOUTH AFRICA

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This article considers how “inclusive education” may be construed in ... Primary Education of Children with Disabilities: A Comparative Study of Kenya and ..... paradigm.83 It departed from the pre-existing classification of learners as either.

  3. Identifying and Correcting Barriers to Successful Inclusive Practices: A Literature Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grant, Marquis C.; Jones-Goods, Kimberly Michelle

    2016-01-01

    The inclusion of students with disabilities in the general education classroom is one of the most debated subjects in the field of education today. A review of the literature revealed that while inclusion has been shown to benefit children who receive special education services alongside their non-disabled peers, there are a number of barriers…

  4. The "hierarchical" Scratch Collapse Test for identifying multilevel ulnar nerve compression.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Davidge, Kristen M; Gontre, Gil; Tang, David; Boyd, Kirsty U; Yee, Andrew; Damiano, Marci S; Mackinnon, Susan E

    2015-09-01

    The Scratch Collapse Test (SCT) is used to assist in the clinical evaluation of patients with ulnar nerve compression. The purpose of this study is to introduce the hierarchical SCT as a physical examination tool for identifying multilevel nerve compression in patients with cubital tunnel syndrome. A prospective cohort study (2010-2011) was conducted of patients referred with primary cubital tunnel syndrome. Five ulnar nerve compression sites were evaluated with the SCT. Each site generating a positive SCT was sequentially "frozen out" with a topical anesthetic to allow determination of both primary and secondary ulnar nerve entrapment points. The order or "hierarchy" of compression sites was recorded. Twenty-five patients (mean age 49.6 ± 12.3 years; 64 % female) were eligible for inclusion. The primary entrapment point was identified as Osborne's band in 80 % and the cubital tunnel retinaculum in 20 % of patients. Secondary entrapment points were also identified in the following order in all patients: (1) volar antebrachial fascia, (2) Guyon's canal, and (3) arcade of Struthers. The SCT is useful in localizing the site of primary compression of the ulnar nerve in patients with cubital tunnel syndrome. It is also sensitive enough to detect secondary compression points when primary sites are sequentially frozen out with a topical anesthetic, termed the hierarchical SCT. The findings of the hierarchical SCT are in keeping with the double crush hypothesis described by Upton and McComas in 1973 and the hypothesis of multilevel nerve compression proposed by Mackinnon and Novak in 1994.

  5. Singing and social inclusion

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Graham Frederick Welch

    2014-07-01

    Full Text Available There is a growing body of neurological, cognitive and social psychological research to suggest the possibility of positive transfer effects from structured musical engagement. In particular, there is evidence to suggest that engagement in musical activities may impact on social inclusion (sense of self and of being socially integrated. Tackling social exclusion and promoting social inclusion are common concerns internationally, such as in the UK and the EC, and there are many diverse Government ministries and agencies globally that see the arts in general and music in particular as a key means by which social needs can be addressed. As part of a wider evaluation of a national, Government-sponsored music education initiative for Primary-aged children in England (‘Sing Up’, opportunity was taken by the authors, at the request of the funders, to assess any possible relationship between (a children’s developing singing behaviour and development and (b their social inclusion (sense of self and of being socially integrated. Subsequently, it was possible to match data from n=6087 participants, drawn from the final three years of data collection (2008-2011, in terms of each child’s individually assessed singing ability (based on their singing behaviour of two well-known songs to create a 'normalised singing score' and their written responses to a specially-designed questionnaire that included a set of statements related to children’s sense of being socially included to which the children indicated their level of agreement on a seven-point Likert scale. Data analyses suggested that the higher the normalized singing development rating, the more positive the child’s self-concept and sense of being socially included, irrespective of singer age, sex and ethnicity.

  6. Psycho-pedagogical Research of Inclusive Education in the Undergraduates Training

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alyohina S. V.

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available The author examines the cultural and historical psychology as a methodological basis of research in the inclusive process of education. The article presents the current trends in research of inclusive education such as the design of organizational and psychological and pedagogical conditions for reinforcing the cultural norms of inclusion in the school: individual development in inclusive education; designing an inclusive educational environment. The article describes the logic of the research master students training. The author suggests for discussion some variants of design and research tasks in order to form the necessary research and development competencies of master students. The author is convinced that the quality of an inclusive process in basic education linked to the development of inclusive practice based on scientific research. Cultural-historical framework and its main idea becomes the methodological basis of psychological research as it claims a leading role of social environment in the development and educating of children

  7. Social inclusion and its interrelationships with social cognition and social functioning in first-episode psychosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gardner, Andrew; Cotton, Sue M; Allott, Kelly; Filia, Kate M; Hester, Robert; Killackey, Eóin

    2017-10-27

    People with psychosis are at risk of social exclusion. Research is needed in this area due to the lack of direct measurement of social inclusion, which becomes salient in adolescence and is relevant to first-episode psychosis (FEP; the onset of which typically occurs during or shortly after adolescence). Social inclusion may be impacted by impaired social cognition and social functioning, which are related features observed in psychosis. The aim of this study was to explore interrelationship(s) between social cognition, social functioning and social inclusion in FEP while controlling for symptomatology (positive, negative and depressive symptoms) and demographic characteristics. A series of cross-sectional hierarchical multiple regressions were conducted to examine whether: social cognition (theory of mind, emotion recognition) predicted social functioning; social functioning predicted social inclusion, and whether social functioning mediated the relationship between social cognition and social inclusion in people aged 15 to 25 (M = 20.49, SD = 2.41) with FEP (N = 146). Age, sex, premorbid IQ, positive and negative psychotic symptoms and depression were control variables. Poor facial emotion recognition (β = -.22, P social functioning. Role-specific social functioning (ie, current employment) predicted greater social inclusion (β = .17, P social inclusion (β = -.43, P Social functioning did not mediate the relationship between social cognition and inclusion. Psychotic symptoms were unrelated to social inclusion. Employment and depression may influence social inclusion somewhat independently of psychotic symptomatology in FEP. Inferences should be viewed with caution given this study did not involve longitudinal data. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

  8. The Development of Inclusive Learning Relationships in Mainstream Settings: A Multimodal Perspective

    Science.gov (United States)

    Efthymiou, Efthymia; Kington, Alison

    2017-01-01

    The debate regarding the inclusion of children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) in mainstream education in the UK partly revolves around what makes the classroom environment inclusive. Through the potential offered by the specific qualitative methodologies employed, this study aimed to explore the development of teachers'…

  9. Teaching in Informal Learning Environments as a Means for Promoting Inclusive Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Angelides, Panayiotis; Avraamidou, Lucy

    2010-01-01

    The idea of inclusive education has featured very highly in the educational priorities of many educational systems. However, the same educational systems are often criticised because of the failings of their teachers to respond to inclusive environments of learning, where all children, despite their different abilities, receive equal opportunities…

  10. Development of the Resilience of Students through Experiencing Inclusion during Teaching Practice

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Karmen Drljić

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available The theory of resilience studies the response to stress and adversities, which is manifested in individual’s constructive response to environmental challenges. For students—future preschool teachers on teaching practice —the first concrete contact with children with special needs can represent a challenge, which due to students’ lack of experience and competence can be sometimes rather difficult. . The aim of our qualitative research was to determine how the resilience of students that attend the study programme Preschool Education at the University of Primorska, Faculty of Education was expressed through the observation of mentor’s inclusiveness and through identifying the challenges of the inclusion of children with special needs. We analysed 43 third year students’ reports on teaching practice. The results show that students identify both inclusive and non-inclusive attitudes and functioning of their mentors. Nevertheless, they describe the mentor’s inclusive statements and functioning more frequently. Furthermore, we found out that more than a half (55.8% of students respond proactively to the concrete inclusive experience, while 44.2% of them respond passively. Students who are not yet capable of proactive response need support and guidance, but more importantly, they need mechanisms for building resilience gradually and autonomously, as resilience is recognised as an important and required teacher’s competence.

  11. Inclusive Research and Inclusive Education: Why Connecting Them Makes Sense for Teachers' and Learners' Democratic Development of Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nind, Melanie

    2014-01-01

    Following pushes from the disability movement(s) and increased interest in children and young people becoming involved in research concerning them, inclusive research is growing within and beyond education establishments. Yet this arena is alive with interesting and largely unanswered questions. This paper discusses some of them: What do inclusive…

  12. Through a spiritual lens: early childhood inclusive education in Hong Kong.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Kaili Chen

    2014-12-01

    The main purpose of this research was to explore early childhood education teachers', principals', and parents' perceptions of the role of spirituality in the lives of children with special needs, and how educators and schools can support the spiritual development of these children. Three preschools, the Buddhist, Christian, and Waldorf schools, were purposefully selected on the basis that each of them reflects a philosophy that includes the spiritual. Three themes emerged from the data analysis: (a) the influence of the schools' religion and/or spiritual orientations on inclusion; (b) support provided for the spiritual development of children with special needs; and (c) the role of spirituality in the lives of children with special needs. By drawing attention to and offering a preliminary study on early childhood inclusion and spirituality, I hope to encourage more scholars and educators to engage with research and debate on this important yet under-studied dimension of early childhood education.

  13. Working Children and Educational Inclusion in Yemen

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dyer, Caroline

    2007-01-01

    The Republic of Yemen has a very high number of working children, employed in a variety of occupations, ranging from street vending to guards on farms, and domestic labour. Including these children in formal education is a major challenge facing the Republic, which has one of the lowest rates of female participation in primary education in the…

  14. The Dilemma of Inclusion: Is Full Inclusion Ethical? An Examination of the Culture of Special Education within a Semi-Rural Pre-K to Sixth Grade Elementary School District

    Science.gov (United States)

    Press, Kandie A.

    2010-01-01

    At its core the political push for full inclusion models of special education delivery derives from the belief that inclusion provides equal access, equitable distribution of resources and increased social opportunity to children. This study focused upon the evolution of special education programming within a pre-K to sixth grade elementary school…

  15. Age-Related Change in Shifting Attention between Global and Local Levels of Hierarchical Stimuli

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huizinga, Mariette; Burack, Jacob A.; Van der Molen, Maurits W.

    2010-01-01

    The focus of this study was the developmental pattern of the ability to shift attention between global and local levels of hierarchical stimuli. Children aged 7 years and 11 years and 21-year-old adults were administered a task (two experiments) that allowed for the examination of 1) the direction of attention to global or local stimulus levels;…

  16. Evidence that we can change the profile from a study of inclusive education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Buckley, Sue; Bird, Gillian; Sacks, Ben

    2006-06-01

    This paper discusses the evidence that the specific developmental profile frequently described as being associated with Down syndrome--a profile of communication weaknesses relative to social and daily living skills - can be changed. It is not an inevitable outcome of having Down syndrome. Drawing on data collected to explore the outcomes of fully inclusive education for school-age children with Down syndrome, the authors identify that the profile is seen in teenagers in special education settings but is not evident for teenagers in inclusive education. They argue that this is the result of both the effects of fully inclusive education and teaching approaches which have been adapted to address the cognitive and communication weaknesses of the children from an early age.

  17. Assessment of Quality for Inclusive Programs in Greek Preschool Classrooms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fyssa, Aristea; Vlachou, Anastasia

    2015-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine the quality of the practices that Greek teachers use to support the inclusion of children with disabilities in general preschools. Fifty-two preschool units for children between 4 and 6 years of age participated in this study. Data were collected through systematic observation with the use of the Inclusive…

  18. Moving Towards Inclusive Education as a Human Right, An analysis of international legal obligations to implement inclusive education in law and policy

    OpenAIRE

    Waddington, L.B.; Toepke, C

    2014-01-01

    Children with disabilities experience ongoing segregation in special education classes or are otherwise excluded from education. This is in spite of the fact that States have a legal obligation to offer an accessible and inclusive education to all learners. Exclusion of any child from education is a violation of international law and a breach of human rights. The provision of inclusive education is an obligation under international law, as well as the means by which to fulfil the additional l...

  19. Friendship in inclusive physical education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seymour, Helena; Reid, Greg; Bloom, Gordon A

    2009-07-01

    Social interaction and development of friendships between children with and without a disability are often proposed as potential outcomes of inclusive education. Physical activity specialists assert that exercise and sport environments may be conducive to social and friendship outcomes. This study investigated friendship in inclusive physical education from the perspective of students with (n = 8) and without (n = 8) physical disabilities. All participants attended a reversely integrated school and were interviewed using a semistructured, open-ended format. An adapted version of Weiss, Smith, and Theeboom's (1996) interview guide exploring perceptions of peer relationships in the sport domain was used. Four conceptual categories emerged from the analysis: development of friendship, best friend, preferred physical activities and outcomes, and dealing with disability. The results demonstrated the key characteristics of best friends and the influential role they play.

  20. Urban Early Childhood Teachers' Attitudes towards Inclusive Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hsieh, Wu-Ying; Hsieh, Chang-Ming

    2012-01-01

    This study investigated the relationship between urban early childhood teachers' attitudes towards inclusive education and personal characteristics, professional background, and programme context. Questionnaires were completed by teachers (n = 130) who taught preschool children in primarily low-income, urban neighbourhoods. Attitude ratings were…

  1. The Impact of Social Cognitive and Personality Factors on Teachers' Reported Inclusive Behaviour

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilson, Claire; Woolfson, Lisa Marks; Durkin, Kevin; Elliott, Mark A.

    2016-01-01

    Background: Inclusive education of children with intellectual disabilities (ID) is intended to maximize their educational experience within the mainstream school setting. While policy mandates inclusion, it is classroom teachers' behaviours that determine its success. Aims: This study provided a novel application of the theory of planned behaviour…

  2. "We Are Inclusive. We Are a Team. Let's Just Do It": Commitment, Collective Efficacy, and Agency in Four Inclusive Schools

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lyons, Wanda E.; Thompson, S. Anthony; Timmons, Vianne

    2016-01-01

    Implementation of inclusive education for children with disabilities continues to vary across and within Canadian provinces and territories leading us to question why some schools move forward while others maintain traditional segregated approaches. Drawing from Appreciative Inquiry methodology, this study used semi-structured interviews to gather…

  3. Advocating for Inclusion of Children with Williams Syndrome

    Science.gov (United States)

    Self, Michelle A.

    2010-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to describe and explore the experience of inclusion of students with Williams syndrome, a rare genetic condition of a microdeletion on chromosome 7 which has medical, behavior, and cognitive issues. The study was conducted by gaining an understanding from the parents' point of view. The study was twofold. First, the…

  4. Karma and Human Rights: Bhutanese Teachers' Perspectives on Inclusion and Disability

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kamenopoulou, Leda; Dukpa, Dawa

    2018-01-01

    The Sustainable Development Goals call on countries to ensure that all children, especially the most vulnerable, are included in education. The small kingdom of Bhutan has made attempts to embrace inclusion in education at the policy level. However, research on inclusion and disability in this context is limited, and there are few studies focusing…

  5. Psychological autonomy and hierarchical relatedness as organizers of developmental pathways.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keller, Heidi

    2016-01-19

    The definition of self and others can be regarded as embodying the two dimensions of autonomy and relatedness. Autonomy and relatedness are two basic human needs and cultural constructs at the same time. This implies that they may be differently defined yet remain equally important. The respective understanding of autonomy and relatedness is socialized during the everyday experiences of daily life routines from birth on. In this paper, two developmental pathways are portrayed that emphasize different conceptions of autonomy and relatedness that are adaptive in two different environmental contexts with very different affordances and constraints. Western middle-class children are socialized towards psychological autonomy, i.e. the primacy of own intentions, wishes, individual preferences and emotions affording a definition of relatedness as psychological negotiable construct. Non-Western subsistence farmer children are socialized towards hierarchical relatedness, i.e. positioning oneself into the hierarchical structure of a communal system affording a definition of autonomy as action oriented, based on responsibility and obligations. Infancy can be regarded as a cultural lens through which to study the different socialization agendas. Parenting strategies that aim at supporting these different socialization goals in German and Euro-American parents on the one hand and Nso farmers from North Western Cameroon on the other hand are described. It is concluded that different pathways need to be considered in order to understand human psychology from a global perspective. © 2015 The Author(s).

  6. Neutrosophic Hierarchical Clustering Algoritms

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rıdvan Şahin

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available Interval neutrosophic set (INS is a generalization of interval valued intuitionistic fuzzy set (IVIFS, whose the membership and non-membership values of elements consist of fuzzy range, while single valued neutrosophic set (SVNS is regarded as extension of intuitionistic fuzzy set (IFS. In this paper, we extend the hierarchical clustering techniques proposed for IFSs and IVIFSs to SVNSs and INSs respectively. Based on the traditional hierarchical clustering procedure, the single valued neutrosophic aggregation operator, and the basic distance measures between SVNSs, we define a single valued neutrosophic hierarchical clustering algorithm for clustering SVNSs. Then we extend the algorithm to classify an interval neutrosophic data. Finally, we present some numerical examples in order to show the effectiveness and availability of the developed clustering algorithms.

  7. The impact of social cognitive and personality factors on teachers' reported inclusive behaviour.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilson, Claire; Woolfson, Lisa Marks; Durkin, Kevin; Elliott, Mark A

    2016-09-01

    Inclusive education of children with intellectual disabilities (ID) is intended to maximize their educational experience within the mainstream school setting. While policy mandates inclusion, it is classroom teachers' behaviours that determine its success. This study provided a novel application of the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) in this setting. It examined the effect of TPB variables and personality on reported inclusive teaching behaviours for learners with ID. The sample comprised 145 primary school teachers (85% female) from mainstream schools across Scotland. Participants completed a TPB questionnaire assessing attitudes (instrumental and affective), subjective norms (injunctive and descriptive norms), perceptions of control (self-efficacy and controllability), and behavioural intentions towards using inclusive strategies. The Big Five Personality Index, measuring extraversion, conscientiousness, openness, neuroticism, and agreeableness, was also completed. Teaching practices were reported 2 weeks later. Instrumental attitudes, descriptive norm, self-efficacy, and neuroticism predicted teachers' intentions to use inclusive strategies. Further, conscientiousness had indirect effects on intentions through TPB variables. These intentions, however, did not predict reported behaviour expected by TPB. Instead, self-efficacy was the only significant predictor of reported behaviour. This study demonstrates the application of TPB to an educational setting and contributes to the understanding of teachers' reported use of inclusive strategies for children with ID. © 2016 The British Psychological Society.

  8. Hierarchical functional modularity in the resting-state human brain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ferrarini, Luca; Veer, Ilya M; Baerends, Evelinda; van Tol, Marie-José; Renken, Remco J; van der Wee, Nic J A; Veltman, Dirk J; Aleman, André; Zitman, Frans G; Penninx, Brenda W J H; van Buchem, Mark A; Reiber, Johan H C; Rombouts, Serge A R B; Milles, Julien

    2009-07-01

    Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies have shown that anatomically distinct brain regions are functionally connected during the resting state. Basic topological properties in the brain functional connectivity (BFC) map have highlighted the BFC's small-world topology. Modularity, a more advanced topological property, has been hypothesized to be evolutionary advantageous, contributing to adaptive aspects of anatomical and functional brain connectivity. However, current definitions of modularity for complex networks focus on nonoverlapping clusters, and are seriously limited by disregarding inclusive relationships. Therefore, BFC's modularity has been mainly qualitatively investigated. Here, we introduce a new definition of modularity, based on a recently improved clustering measurement, which overcomes limitations of previous definitions, and apply it to the study of BFC in resting state fMRI of 53 healthy subjects. Results show hierarchical functional modularity in the brain. Copyright 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc

  9. The Hierarchical Perspective

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniel Sofron

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available This paper is focused on the hierarchical perspective, one of the methods for representing space that was used before the discovery of the Renaissance linear perspective. The hierarchical perspective has a more or less pronounced scientific character and its study offers us a clear image of the way the representatives of the cultures that developed it used to perceive the sensitive reality. This type of perspective is an original method of representing three-dimensional space on a flat surface, which characterises the art of Ancient Egypt and much of the art of the Middle Ages, being identified in the Eastern European Byzantine art, as well as in the Western European Pre-Romanesque and Romanesque art. At the same time, the hierarchical perspective is also present in naive painting and infantile drawing. Reminiscences of this method can be recognised also in the works of some precursors of the Italian Renaissance. The hierarchical perspective can be viewed as a subjective ranking criterion, according to which the elements are visually represented by taking into account their relevance within the image while perception is ignored. This paper aims to show how the main objective of the artists of those times was not to faithfully represent the objective reality, but rather to emphasize the essence of the world and its perennial aspects. This may represent a possible explanation for the refusal of perspective in the Egyptian, Romanesque and Byzantine painting, characterised by a marked two-dimensionality.

  10. Comparisons of Flow Patterns over a Hierarchical and a Non-hierarchical Surface in Relation to Biofouling Control

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bin Ahmad Fawzan Mohammed Ridha

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Biofouling can be defined as unwanted deposition and development of organisms on submerged surfaces. It is a major problem as it causes water contamination, infrastructures damage and increase in maintenance and operational cost especially in the shipping industry. There are a few methods that can prevent this problem. One of the most effective methods which is using chemicals particularly Tributyltin has been banned due to adverse effects on the environment. One of the non-toxic methods found to be effective is surface modification which involves altering the surface topography so that it becomes a low-fouling or a non-stick surface to biofouling organisms. Current literature suggested that non-hierarchical topographies has lower antifouling performance compared to hierarchical topographies. It is still unclear if the effects of the flow on these topographies could have aided in their antifouling properties. This research will use Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD simulations to study the flow on these two topographies which also involves comparison study of the topographies used. According to the results obtained, it is shown that hierarchical topography has higher antifouling performance compared to non-hierarchical topography. This is because the fluid characteristics at the hierarchical topography is more favorable in controlling biofouling. In addition, hierarchical topography has higher wall shear stress distribution compared to non-hierarchical topography

  11. The Relationship Between Speech, Language, and Phonological Awareness in Preschool-Age Children With Developmental Disabilities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barton-Hulsey, Andrea; Sevcik, Rose A; Romski, MaryAnn

    2018-05-03

    A number of intrinsic factors, including expressive speech skills, have been suggested to place children with developmental disabilities at risk for limited development of reading skills. This study examines the relationship between these factors, speech ability, and children's phonological awareness skills. A nonexperimental study design was used to examine the relationship between intrinsic skills of speech, language, print, and letter-sound knowledge to phonological awareness in 42 children with developmental disabilities between the ages of 48 and 69 months. Hierarchical multiple regression was done to determine if speech ability accounted for a unique amount of variance in phonological awareness skill beyond what would be expected by developmental skills inclusive of receptive language and print and letter-sound knowledge. A range of skill in all areas of direct assessment was found. Children with limited speech were found to have emerging skills in print knowledge, letter-sound knowledge, and phonological awareness. Speech ability did not predict a significant amount of variance in phonological awareness beyond what would be expected by developmental skills of receptive language and print and letter-sound knowledge. Children with limited speech ability were found to have receptive language and letter-sound knowledge that supported the development of phonological awareness skills. This study provides implications for practitioners and researchers concerning the factors related to early reading development in children with limited speech ability and developmental disabilities.

  12. ANALYSES OF THE TEACHER-PUPIL INTERACTION WITHIN THE INCLUSIVE CLASSROOM-CASE STUDY OF A CHILD WITH A COCHLEAR IMPLANT

    OpenAIRE

    JACHOVA Zora; KAROVSKA Aleksandra

    2015-01-01

    The educational system in Macedonia is directed towards the modern European standards and models of inclusive education. This is done by initiation and implementation of the innovations in the education.The inclusion of the children with impaired hearing is not connected only with their placement in the schools. In an inclusive school, quality education can be assured only in educational surrounding that is friendly towards the children and the learning process, where the difference is accept...

  13. Adaptive hierarchical multi-agent organizations

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ghijsen, M.; Jansweijer, W.N.H.; Wielinga, B.J.; Babuška, R.; Groen, F.C.A.

    2010-01-01

    In this chapter, we discuss the design of adaptive hierarchical organizations for multi-agent systems (MAS). Hierarchical organizations have a number of advantages such as their ability to handle complex problems and their scalability to large organizations. By introducing adaptivity in the

  14. Inclusive education in Islamic kindergarten, why not?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. Agung Hidayatulloh

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available This work shows the implementation of inclusive education in Islamic Kindergarten Taruna al-Qur’an (IKTQ, the assessment of child development in inclusive class, and supporting and restriction of the implementation of inclusive education in IKTQ. This qualitative descriptive research used observation, interview, and documentation as the technique of collecting data. The results are only the ABK with less in terms of social skills that were included in the non-ABK class. IKTQ pointed the special guides that monitored the development of ABK. The development of the child was assessed through observations and notes. These notes were documented as reports of child development communicated to the parents. The assessment did not touch the ABKs who joined in learning with other children. The development of ABK was assessed when they were in a special place of ABK therapy. The factors supported the implementation of inclusive education in IKTQ were: (1 the communication between teachers and ABK guides, (2 a good relationship through weekly meeting for all teachers, and (3 the communication between IKTQ and parents either verbally or through a liaison document. Regarding the restriction, the teachers explicitly express that there were no obstacles in the implementation of inclusive education in IKTQ.

  15. Inclusive Education for Students with Intellectual Disability

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Janaki Balakrishnan

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available This paper traces briefly the evolution of Inclusive Education for students with special education needs (SEN and discusses some significant challenges in its implementation. While the aim of Inclusive Education is to include all children with SEN in mainstream schools, there are many challenges that have to be overcome for their education to be meaningful. This paper focuses primarily on the inclusion of students with intellectual disability, since they are likely to be the largest number with special education needs in ‘inclusive’ schools. It offers the outline of a curriculum that may be derived from the mainstream one in use, and suggests a model that emphasises the replacement of age / grade placement, as is the present practice, with experience and maturity underpinning learning in persons with intellectual disability. The proposed model needs, of course, to be field-tested.doi 10.5463/DCID.v23i2.111

  16. Hierarchical video summarization

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ratakonda, Krishna; Sezan, M. Ibrahim; Crinon, Regis J.

    1998-12-01

    We address the problem of key-frame summarization of vide in the absence of any a priori information about its content. This is a common problem that is encountered in home videos. We propose a hierarchical key-frame summarization algorithm where a coarse-to-fine key-frame summary is generated. A hierarchical key-frame summary facilitates multi-level browsing where the user can quickly discover the content of the video by accessing its coarsest but most compact summary and then view a desired segment of the video with increasingly more detail. At the finest level, the summary is generated on the basis of color features of video frames, using an extension of a recently proposed key-frame extraction algorithm. The finest level key-frames are recursively clustered using a novel pairwise K-means clustering approach with temporal consecutiveness constraint. We also address summarization of MPEG-2 compressed video without fully decoding the bitstream. We also propose efficient mechanisms that facilitate decoding the video when the hierarchical summary is utilized in browsing and playback of video segments starting at selected key-frames.

  17. Social inclusion and inclusive education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marsela Robo

    2014-07-01

    In line with global debate on social inclusion and exclusion, the author brings the way this debate has now pervaded both the official and development policy discourse in Albania.Social inclusion is considered as one of the priorities of the current government, with poverty reduction as its main focus, which will be ensured not only through economic development. In the end, the article focuses on the role of education as a very important and useful tool for ensuring social inclusion.Social inclusion through education, in particular through vocational education, considered by the author as the only way towards sustainable development of Albanian society.

  18. Transforming Praxis in Science Through Dialogue Towards Inclusive Approaches

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brendel, Michelle; Siry, Christina; Haus, Jana Maria; Breedijk-Goedert, Fabienne

    2017-08-01

    This paper offers analyses from a project examining the construction of narrative assessments within elementary science investigations. We examined how positioning children to express understandings through narrative assessments created spaces for revealing children's perspectives on classroom experiences with their teachers and each other. Four findings emerged. First, transformation of practice requires a change of the teacher's role. Second, children's narrations provided a platform for elaborating their understandings. Third, our work illustrates the critical role of trust and time in working towards inclusive assessment practices. Lastly, dialogue around the children's products illustrates how they made decisions and challenges normative ideas of what children can or cannot do or know. Overall, we highlight how dialogue became a way for adults and children to cross boundaries of age and knowledge hierarchies in the construction of science assessments.

  19. Deaf Children and Children with ADHD in the Inclusive Classroom: Working Memory Matters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cockcroft, Kate; Dhana-Dullabh, Hansini

    2013-01-01

    This study compared the working memory functioning of deaf children, children with ADHD and typically developing children. Working memory is involved in the storage and mental manipulation of information during classroom learning activities that are crucial for the acquisition of complex skills and knowledge. Thus, it is important to determine how…

  20. A Quasi-Experimental Study of the Effects of Teacher Training on Attitudes towards Inclusion Settings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Woodward, Jillian

    2017-01-01

    Least restrictive environment (LRE) is defined as teaching children with disabilities alongside non-disabled children; these children have not been identified as students with disabilities. An inclusion setting is the integration of students with disabilities in the general education setting to provide the least restrictive environment. Inclusion…

  1. Stakeholder Perspectives on Barriers and Facilitators of Inclusive Education in the Solomon Islands

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sharma, Umesh; Loreman, Tim; Simi, Janine

    2017-01-01

    This paper reports perceived barriers and facilitators of disability-inclusive education, and outcomes of an effective system of inclusive education in the Solomon Islands. Data were gathered from a variety of stakeholder group participants (n = 10) and individual key informants (n = 2), ranging from parents of children with disabilities to…

  2. INCLUSIVE EDUCATION SUPPORTING CHILDREN WITH BEHAVIORAL PROBLEMS AND THEIR REFERENCE PERSONS IN LOWER PRIMARY SCHOOL (GRADES 1-3

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ulrike BECKER

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available Background: in Germany we may state that despite all efforts of inclusive education there is a tendency towards segregated education as far as “Emotional and Social Development” is concerned. In Berlin, the “Transition” project could be developed. By the help of this support approach it was possible all participating children to stay at their primary schools. Aims: the survey was meant to find out in which way the support, in context of the “Transition” project, has contributed to successful inclusive learning of students with considerable problems in their social behaviour. Methods:a semi-standardized questionnaire for interviewing class teachers of regular school classes was used, and furthermore school certificates were assessed concerning regular school attendance as well as performance in Mathematics and German. Nine Berlin schools took part in the survey. The response rate was 96%. Results: the current survey shows that inclusive education in case of considerable problems in social behaviour may be successful by counselling parents and teachers, by cooperation with school and by youth aid, as well as by way of a temporary learning group relieving both students with difficult behaviour as well as the overall group and the teachers, one succeeds with practicing recognition and acceptance, even despite serious behavioural problems at school. Conclusion: the results clearly show that the teacher - student interaction and the student - student interaction improves significantly in the subjective perception of class teachers. For this relationship to work, all those participating in it need “a specific environment”.

  3. Effective Practice in Inclusive and Special Needs Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Buli-Holmberg, Jorun; Jeyaprathaban, Sujathamalini

    2016-01-01

    The present study attempts to evaluate the effective teaching practice for children with special learning needs. The research question framed in the present study for investigation is which practice will be effective in different inclusive classroom settings and what are the factors that contribute for effective practices? Qualitative research was…

  4. Special education versus inclusive education: the role of the TEACCH program.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Panerai, Simonetta; Zingale, Marinella; Trubia, Grazia; Finocchiaro, Maria; Zuccarello, Rosa; Ferri, Raffaele; Elia, Maurizio

    2009-06-01

    Our study aimed at comparing, over a period of 3 years, the effectiveness of three different educational approaches addressed to children with autism and severe mental retardation. The first one was a treatment and education of autistic and related communication handicapped children (TEACCH) program implemented in a residential center; the second was a TEACCH program implemented at home and at mainstream schools, after a specific parent psychoeducational training; the third approach referred to inclusive education in mainstream schools, in which a nonspecific approach was implemented. Each subject was assessed twice, using the Psycho-Educational Profile-Revised (PEP-R) and Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scale (VABS)-survey form. Effectiveness of TEACCH appeared to be confirmed, showing positive outcomes in the natural setting, and revealing its inclusive value.

  5. Evaluating Hierarchical Structure in Music Annotations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McFee, Brian; Nieto, Oriol; Farbood, Morwaread M; Bello, Juan Pablo

    2017-01-01

    Music exhibits structure at multiple scales, ranging from motifs to large-scale functional components. When inferring the structure of a piece, different listeners may attend to different temporal scales, which can result in disagreements when they describe the same piece. In the field of music informatics research (MIR), it is common to use corpora annotated with structural boundaries at different levels. By quantifying disagreements between multiple annotators, previous research has yielded several insights relevant to the study of music cognition. First, annotators tend to agree when structural boundaries are ambiguous. Second, this ambiguity seems to depend on musical features, time scale, and genre. Furthermore, it is possible to tune current annotation evaluation metrics to better align with these perceptual differences. However, previous work has not directly analyzed the effects of hierarchical structure because the existing methods for comparing structural annotations are designed for "flat" descriptions, and do not readily generalize to hierarchical annotations. In this paper, we extend and generalize previous work on the evaluation of hierarchical descriptions of musical structure. We derive an evaluation metric which can compare hierarchical annotations holistically across multiple levels. sing this metric, we investigate inter-annotator agreement on the multilevel annotations of two different music corpora, investigate the influence of acoustic properties on hierarchical annotations, and evaluate existing hierarchical segmentation algorithms against the distribution of inter-annotator agreement.

  6. Evaluating Hierarchical Structure in Music Annotations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Brian McFee

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Music exhibits structure at multiple scales, ranging from motifs to large-scale functional components. When inferring the structure of a piece, different listeners may attend to different temporal scales, which can result in disagreements when they describe the same piece. In the field of music informatics research (MIR, it is common to use corpora annotated with structural boundaries at different levels. By quantifying disagreements between multiple annotators, previous research has yielded several insights relevant to the study of music cognition. First, annotators tend to agree when structural boundaries are ambiguous. Second, this ambiguity seems to depend on musical features, time scale, and genre. Furthermore, it is possible to tune current annotation evaluation metrics to better align with these perceptual differences. However, previous work has not directly analyzed the effects of hierarchical structure because the existing methods for comparing structural annotations are designed for “flat” descriptions, and do not readily generalize to hierarchical annotations. In this paper, we extend and generalize previous work on the evaluation of hierarchical descriptions of musical structure. We derive an evaluation metric which can compare hierarchical annotations holistically across multiple levels. sing this metric, we investigate inter-annotator agreement on the multilevel annotations of two different music corpora, investigate the influence of acoustic properties on hierarchical annotations, and evaluate existing hierarchical segmentation algorithms against the distribution of inter-annotator agreement.

  7. Moving Towards Inclusive Education as a Human Right, An analysis of international legal obligations to implement inclusive education in law and policy

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Waddington, L.B.; Toepke, C

    2014-01-01

    Children with disabilities experience ongoing segregation in special education classes or are otherwise excluded from education. This is in spite of the fact that States have a legal obligation to offer an accessible and inclusive education to all learners. Exclusion of any child from education is a

  8. Children's Rights and Research Processes: Assisting Children to (In)formed Views

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lundy, Laura; McEvoy, Lesley

    2012-01-01

    Acknowledging children as rights-holders has significant implications for research processes. What is distinctive about a children's rights informed approach to research is a focus not only on safe, inclusive and engaging opportunities for children to express their views but also on deliberate strategies to assist children in the formation of…

  9. Learning Goals in Didactics and Education, Inclusion and Social Mobility

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bruun, Mette; Braüner, Ninna

    2017-01-01

    Abstract NERA 2016 Learning Goals in Didactics and Education, Inclusion, Social Mobility Ninna V. Braüner, master in general pedagogy, University College Sjælland, nvb@ucsj.dk Mette Bruun, master in general pedagogy, University College Sjælland, meb@ucsj.dk During the last 5-10 years teaching...... with centralized learning goals in didactics and education together with inclusion of children with special needs have been focus areas both nationally and internationally. In Denmark the Inclusion Act was passed in 2012 and a new school act in 2014. Several pupils with special needs are included in the school...... pupils. Even the social mobility will increase. In our project we want to discuss the hypothesis mentioned above. Which advantages and disadvantages have effective learning goals of inclusion? How can practice be developed within these frames? Teachers, educators, directors of education etc. find...

  10. Historical Background of Inclusive Education Development in the Nordic Countries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Natalia Andriichuk

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available The article analyzes and interprets the comprehensive presentation of the development of inclusive education in some Nordic countries, namely Sweden, Norway and Iceland. The article states that the special education is still an alternative form of education for children with special needs who cannot attend secondary schools in the majority of the countries. Thus, the relation between inclusive and special education allows the author to draw some parallels between these two types of study to trace the transition from one to another. The author concludes that the history of inclusive education formation in Sweden, Norway and Iceland has much in common, but the Icelandic education system has characteristics which distinguish it from the two others.

  11. The difference in the family background, school inclusion and Occupational Therapy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Juliana Fonsêca de Queiroz Marcelino

    2013-04-01

    Full Text Available Based on discussions and studies carried out on the topic, the text talks about the stigma of disability,the family, and the investment in children`s schooling under the guidance of some authors who discuss such issues. Stigma is a term that was once considered as reference for a evidence body, but it is widely used to mean discomfort with difference and exclusion. The concepts of identity and difference are important in the discussion about disability, they are interdependent and inseparable, and they will constitute the identity of the self-other relationship. In the scenario of education, the development stages of care for people with disabilities are exclusion, institutional segregation, integration, and inclusion. The occupational therapist is a professional who holds great commitment in his work with the inclusion of schoolchildren and their future in their insertion in the labor market. Professional support often facilitates the deconstruction of concepts and ideas related to the impossibility of social inclusion of disabled people and it plays an important role in the family investment.

  12. ADHD AND LONELINESS SOCIAL DISSATISFACTION IN INCLUSIVE SCHOOL FROM AN INDIVIDUAL-CONTEXT PARADIGM

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Viviana LANGHER

    2009-11-01

    Full Text Available ADHD children can experience severe relational problems with peers, and individual treatments are not likely to eradicate peer problems. The school is the main arena in which peer difficulties develop and can be faced.Present study is aimed to explore the hypothesis that even in a fully inclusive educational system, like the Italian one, ADHD children would still experience peer difficulties if compared with children with other special needs, given the relational implications of the disturb. 31 ADHD children, 31 children with other special needs, 31 children with no special needs, matched by gender and age, were recruited from primary and low secondary State mainstream schools. The "Children's Loneliness and Social Dissatisfaction Rating Scale was administered to all children during class time. A single ANOVA test between the three groups and three planned comparisons were performed on the perceived loneliness and social dissatisfaction scores. The results showed low levels of perceived loneliness and social dissatisfaction for all groups. However, 30% of ADHD children showed a perceived loneliness and social dissatisfaction level twice than the other children, confirming the hypothesis that children with ADHD are at risk of isolation even within a fully inclusive environment.The authors interpretated the results according to a relational perspective, in which ADHD symptoms are not seen as totally dependant on the disorder in itself, but also a specific result of the relational system in which the child is part of. Implications regarding educational strategies and intervention strategies are discussed.

  13. Hierarchically Nanostructured Materials for Sustainable Environmental Applications

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zheng eRen

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available This article presents a comprehensive overview of the hierarchical nanostructured materials with either geometry or composition complexity in environmental applications. The hierarchical nanostructures offer advantages of high surface area, synergistic interactions and multiple functionalities towards water remediation, environmental gas sensing and monitoring as well as catalytic gas treatment. Recent advances in synthetic strategies for various hierarchical morphologies such as hollow spheres and urchin-shaped architectures have been reviewed. In addition to the chemical synthesis, the physical mechanisms associated with the materials design and device fabrication have been discussed for each specific application. The development and application of hierarchical complex perovskite oxide nanostructures have also been introduced in photocatalytic water remediation, gas sensing and catalytic converter. Hierarchical nanostructures will open up many possibilities for materials design and device fabrication in environmental chemistry and technology.

  14. Towards Inclusive Learning Environments (TILE): Developing the "Roadmap for the Inclusion of Students with Special Educational Needs in Vocational Education and Workplace Settings"

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, Andy; Bell, Sheena

    2015-01-01

    Twenty years after UNESCO's Salamanca Statement enshrined international action for provision for children, youth and adults with special educational needs within the regular educational system, this article presents the current underpinning international and national UK context for developing inclusion in vocational education and training and…

  15. Hierarchically structured, nitrogen-doped carbon membranes

    KAUST Repository

    Wang, Hong; Wu, Tao

    2017-01-01

    The present invention is a structure, method of making and method of use for a novel macroscopic hierarchically structured, nitrogen-doped, nano-porous carbon membrane (HNDCMs) with asymmetric and hierarchical pore architecture that can be produced

  16. Hidden Contradictions and Conditionality: Conceptualisations of Inclusive Education in International Human Rights Law

    Science.gov (United States)

    Byrne, Bronagh

    2013-01-01

    The nature of education that children with disabilities should receive has been subject to much debate. This article critically assesses the ways in which the international human rights framework has conceptualised "inclusive education". It argues that the right to education for children with disabilities in international law is…

  17. School inclusion: the perspective of mothers of students with Down Syndrome

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Luciane Najar Smeha

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available The research aimed to know the perception of the parents on the pertaining to school life of their child with Down syndrome. Its objective was to identify feelings, to know experiences and factors that contribute or make the process difficult, bringing in the problematic of inclusion in regular public system of Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul. A qualitative research, with five mothers, was carried through. The data collected in semistructuralized interview had been analyzed based on Bardin (2002. Three final categories had emerged: the search for the inclusion of the child with Down syndrome; the fragility of the inclusion in the regular education net; the contributions and difficulties of the inclusion process in regular schools. Results point that the disparities between what it is ranked as ideal and what it carries through in the practical way is seen by mothers as an inefficient and harmful process to the mental health of children. Disturbing experiences are provoked by the lack of observation of what can be found in the inclusive rank of laws and rules, making the mothers feel hurt, sadness, and frustration. The inclusion law shows that there’s an obligation in accepting all the children without distinction, however, it does not show the ways to make it possible, or how to include each context, taking into account its especificities, what makes each experience singular. A single solution is difficult to point out, since the school was constituted, and still remains, as an exculpatory institution. However, the task to include the child with Down syndrome passes for the commitment to discover and organize actions to solve, in an adequate way, the people’s expectations.

  18. Developing Inclusive Pre-Service and In-Service Teacher Education: Insights from Zanzibar Primary School Teachers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Juma, Said; Lehtomäki, Elina; Naukkarinen, Aimo

    2017-01-01

    Developing inclusive teacher education to improve learning and schooling for all children is attracting increasing interest worldwide. This study examined teachers' insights into the development of inclusive teacher education by drawing on collaborative action research conducted by 20 primary school teachers in Zanzibar, Tanzania. The data were…

  19. Hierarchically organized layout for visualization of biochemical pathways.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsay, Jyh-Jong; Wu, Bo-Liang; Jeng, Yu-Sen

    2010-01-01

    Many complex pathways are described as hierarchical structures in which a pathway is recursively partitioned into several sub-pathways, and organized hierarchically as a tree. The hierarchical structure provides a natural way to visualize the global structure of a complex pathway. However, none of the previous research on pathway visualization explores the hierarchical structures provided by many complex pathways. In this paper, we aim to develop algorithms that can take advantages of hierarchical structures, and give layouts that explore the global structures as well as local structures of pathways. We present a new hierarchically organized layout algorithm to produce layouts for hierarchically organized pathways. Our algorithm first decomposes a complex pathway into sub-pathway groups along the hierarchical organization, and then partition each sub-pathway group into basic components. It then applies conventional layout algorithms, such as hierarchical layout and force-directed layout, to compute the layout of each basic component. Finally, component layouts are joined to form a final layout of the pathway. Our main contribution is the development of algorithms for decomposing pathways and joining layouts. Experiment shows that our algorithm is able to give comprehensible visualization for pathways with hierarchies, cycles as well as complex structures. It clearly renders the global component structures as well as the local structure in each component. In addition, it runs very fast, and gives better visualization for many examples from previous related research. 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  20. Hierarchical screening for multiple mental disorders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Batterham, Philip J; Calear, Alison L; Sunderland, Matthew; Carragher, Natacha; Christensen, Helen; Mackinnon, Andrew J

    2013-10-01

    There is a need for brief, accurate screening when assessing multiple mental disorders. Two-stage hierarchical screening, consisting of brief pre-screening followed by a battery of disorder-specific scales for those who meet diagnostic criteria, may increase the efficiency of screening without sacrificing precision. This study tested whether more efficient screening could be gained using two-stage hierarchical screening than by administering multiple separate tests. Two Australian adult samples (N=1990) with high rates of psychopathology were recruited using Facebook advertising to examine four methods of hierarchical screening for four mental disorders: major depressive disorder, generalised anxiety disorder, panic disorder and social phobia. Using K6 scores to determine whether full screening was required did not increase screening efficiency. However, pre-screening based on two decision tree approaches or item gating led to considerable reductions in the mean number of items presented per disorder screened, with estimated item reductions of up to 54%. The sensitivity of these hierarchical methods approached 100% relative to the full screening battery. Further testing of the hierarchical screening approach based on clinical criteria and in other samples is warranted. The results demonstrate that a two-phase hierarchical approach to screening multiple mental disorders leads to considerable increases efficiency gains without reducing accuracy. Screening programs should take advantage of prescreeners based on gating items or decision trees to reduce the burden on respondents. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  1. Self-assembled biomimetic superhydrophobic hierarchical arrays.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Hongta; Dou, Xuan; Fang, Yin; Jiang, Peng

    2013-09-01

    Here, we report a simple and inexpensive bottom-up technology for fabricating superhydrophobic coatings with hierarchical micro-/nano-structures, which are inspired by the binary periodic structure found on the superhydrophobic compound eyes of some insects (e.g., mosquitoes and moths). Binary colloidal arrays consisting of exemplary large (4 and 30 μm) and small (300 nm) silica spheres are first assembled by a scalable Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) technology in a layer-by-layer manner. After surface modification with fluorosilanes, the self-assembled hierarchical particle arrays become superhydrophobic with an apparent water contact angle (CA) larger than 150°. The throughput of the resulting superhydrophobic coatings with hierarchical structures can be significantly improved by templating the binary periodic structures of the LB-assembled colloidal arrays into UV-curable fluoropolymers by a soft lithography approach. Superhydrophobic perfluoroether acrylate hierarchical arrays with large CAs and small CA hysteresis can be faithfully replicated onto various substrates. Both experiments and theoretical calculations based on the Cassie's dewetting model demonstrate the importance of the hierarchical structure in achieving the final superhydrophobic surface states. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. [School escorts in inclusive education- the current situation in the state of Baden-Wurttemberg].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Henn, Katharina; Thurn, Leonore; Besier, Tanja; Künster, Anne K; Fegert, Jörg M; Ziegenhain, Ute

    2014-11-01

    In the context of inclusive education, so-called «Schulbegleiter» (school escorts) have been installed to assist children with special needs. However, adequate conceptions of their role are lacking, and no provisions exist describing the exact tasks and duties of these school escorts. This article presents data on a statewide empirical study and provides information on the professional background, qualifications, and assignments of such escorts as well as the nature of the assisted children in the German state of Baden-Württemberg. The data were collected in nearly 50 % of all schools providing general education in Baden-Württemberg, and a total of 526 school escorts completed a questionnaire on their work. Children with special needs who received such assistance were aged 6 to 19 years (M = 10.4) and had a mental disorder in nearly three-fourths of all cases, with autism spectrum disorders being most common (59.4 %). The most frequent assignments of the escorts were providing practical assistance during classes and mobilizing the child as well as providing direct support in emotionally challenging situations. Such escorts can make a significant contribution to the inclusive education of disabled children. They do, however, need an adequate qualification and practical competences to meet the diverse challenges of children with special needs. Child and adolescent psychiatrists are supposed to stay involved in the process, not only by planning interventions, but also during the course of inclusive education itself. Thus, the emotional situation and adjustment of included children with mental disorders over time must be monitored adequately.

  3. The Contemporary Socio-Economic Crisis Situation and the Implementation of Inclusive Education for Nomadic Children with Disabilities in Nigeria: Implications for Guidance and Counselling

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sylvester MwandarYakwal

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available The present socio-economic crisis situation in Nigeria has affected so many facets of life of the people generally not least of all the life of nomadic children with disabilities. Presently, a lot of focus is being directed at the provision of educational services for children with special needs (including nomadic children through inclusive education. This paper attempts to identify some of the ways that teaching and learning can be effectively carried out for nomadic children with disabilities in Nigeria with particular emphasis on its implications for guidance and counseling. The paper will attempt to identify the methods that can be used in the nomadic education classroom as well as establish the expected roles that guidance and counselling can play in the provision of such programmes for the enhancement of better quality of life for nomadic children with disabilities in the Nigerian educational system. Furthermore, it will strive to identify the problems emanating from the socio-economic crisis situation and how it affects nomadic children with disabilities. In particular, it will attempt to identify the counseling strategies that can be used for the insurance of better quality of life for nomadic children with disabilities generally and make far reaching recommendations to that effect.

  4. Working Together: Reading and Writing in Inclusive Classrooms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scala, Marilyn C.

    This book is about meeting the needs of all students--especially those in the intermediate grades with mild to moderate disabilities who need special education services--by teaching them in inclusive, general education classrooms where literacy is a personal, academic, and social event in which children are immersed all day. The book tells about…

  5. Hierarchically structured, nitrogen-doped carbon membranes

    KAUST Repository

    Wang, Hong

    2017-08-03

    The present invention is a structure, method of making and method of use for a novel macroscopic hierarchically structured, nitrogen-doped, nano-porous carbon membrane (HNDCMs) with asymmetric and hierarchical pore architecture that can be produced on a large-scale approach. The unique HNDCM holds great promise as components in separation and advanced carbon devices because they could offer unconventional fluidic transport phenomena on the nanoscale. Overall, the invention set forth herein covers a hierarchically structured, nitrogen-doped carbon membranes and methods of making and using such a membranes.

  6. Hierarchical Rhetorical Sentence Categorization for Scientific Papers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rachman, G. H.; Khodra, M. L.; Widyantoro, D. H.

    2018-03-01

    Important information in scientific papers can be composed of rhetorical sentences that is structured from certain categories. To get this information, text categorization should be conducted. Actually, some works in this task have been completed by employing word frequency, semantic similarity words, hierarchical classification, and the others. Therefore, this paper aims to present the rhetorical sentence categorization from scientific paper by employing TF-IDF and Word2Vec to capture word frequency and semantic similarity words and employing hierarchical classification. Every experiment is tested in two classifiers, namely Naïve Bayes and SVM Linear. This paper shows that hierarchical classifier is better than flat classifier employing either TF-IDF or Word2Vec, although it increases only almost 2% from 27.82% when using flat classifier until 29.61% when using hierarchical classifier. It shows also different learning model for child-category can be built by hierarchical classifier.

  7. USE OF ICT TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF INCLUSIVE EDUCATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Y. Zaporozhchenko

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available The article outlines the main changes in the education system in recent years; reflectes the new educational opportunities for children with disabilities; identifies the possible ways of use of ICT to improve the quality of inclusive education.

  8. Family Learning Programmes: an investigation of parental perceptions, social capital and social inclusion

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Viv Moriarty

    2006-04-01

    Full Text Available Abstract: This paper reports on interview data collected as part of an evaluation of a Family Learning Programme operating in an inner London Borough that is determined to be multiply deprived (DETR, 2000. The programme aims to build social inclusion and break cycles of disadvantage by developing the way nursery and primary schools engage in partnerships with parents, by developing parents’ mathematics and literacy skills and encouraging parents to be more involved in their children’s education. The study was therefore concerned to investigate the effects of this on parents in order to understand more about how social inclusion might be promoted. Through particular consideration of this programme, the study begins to explore the relationship between social capital and the promotion of social inclusion. A general theoretical framework for this is presented, with an analysis of the interviews conducted with parents who participated in the programme. Post-programme interviews indicated that parents had an increased sense of efficacy in their parenting abilities and felt more competent in participating in learning activities with their children. There was also more familiarity with the school and parents felt more confident about being in school and talking to teachers about their children. Whilst it is difficult to conclude whether or not the programme achieved their over-arching aim of facilitating social inclusion, parents interviewed for this study did feel more able to support their children and some considered the possibility of further education for themselves.

  9. Montessori and Non-Montessori Early Childhood Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Inclusion and Access

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Natalie Danner

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available Montessori and non-Montessori general education early childhood teachers were surveyed about their attitudes towards including children with disabilities and providing access in their classrooms.  Both groups reported similar and positive supports for inclusion within their schools. Montessori teachers reported having less knowledge about inclusion and less special education professional development than their non-Montessori counterparts.   Implications for professional development and teacher preparation are described.

  10. Hierarchical Recurrent Neural Hashing for Image Retrieval With Hierarchical Convolutional Features.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lu, Xiaoqiang; Chen, Yaxiong; Li, Xuelong

    Hashing has been an important and effective technology in image retrieval due to its computational efficiency and fast search speed. The traditional hashing methods usually learn hash functions to obtain binary codes by exploiting hand-crafted features, which cannot optimally represent the information of the sample. Recently, deep learning methods can achieve better performance, since deep learning architectures can learn more effective image representation features. However, these methods only use semantic features to generate hash codes by shallow projection but ignore texture details. In this paper, we proposed a novel hashing method, namely hierarchical recurrent neural hashing (HRNH), to exploit hierarchical recurrent neural network to generate effective hash codes. There are three contributions of this paper. First, a deep hashing method is proposed to extensively exploit both spatial details and semantic information, in which, we leverage hierarchical convolutional features to construct image pyramid representation. Second, our proposed deep network can exploit directly convolutional feature maps as input to preserve the spatial structure of convolutional feature maps. Finally, we propose a new loss function that considers the quantization error of binarizing the continuous embeddings into the discrete binary codes, and simultaneously maintains the semantic similarity and balanceable property of hash codes. Experimental results on four widely used data sets demonstrate that the proposed HRNH can achieve superior performance over other state-of-the-art hashing methods.Hashing has been an important and effective technology in image retrieval due to its computational efficiency and fast search speed. The traditional hashing methods usually learn hash functions to obtain binary codes by exploiting hand-crafted features, which cannot optimally represent the information of the sample. Recently, deep learning methods can achieve better performance, since deep

  11. The Attitudes of Teachers towards Inclusive Education in Vojvodina

    Science.gov (United States)

    Galovic, Dragana; Brojcin, Branislav; Glumbic, Nenad

    2014-01-01

    The aim of this study was to examine the attitudes of preschool, primary, secondary and high school teachers towards inclusive education of children with special educational needs. In addition, the study established the correlation between these attitudes and gender, education level, teaching experience, formal training in the special education…

  12. Is a Sociology of Special and Inclusive Education Possible?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tomlinson, Sally

    2015-01-01

    This article discusses the expansion of education systems that now, following international declarations, are expected to offer an "Education for All" to children, young people and adults. Since in these declarations special education and inclusive education are conjoined, sociological questions can be asked as to what sort of social…

  13. Zeolitic materials with hierarchical porous structures.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lopez-Orozco, Sofia; Inayat, Amer; Schwab, Andreas; Selvam, Thangaraj; Schwieger, Wilhelm

    2011-06-17

    During the past several years, different kinds of hierarchical structured zeolitic materials have been synthesized due to their highly attractive properties, such as superior mass/heat transfer characteristics, lower restriction of the diffusion of reactants in the mesopores, and low pressure drop. Our contribution provides general information regarding types and preparation methods of hierarchical zeolitic materials and their relative advantages and disadvantages. Thereafter, recent advances in the preparation and characterization of hierarchical zeolitic structures within the crystallites by post-synthetic treatment methods, such as dealumination or desilication; and structured devices by in situ and ex situ zeolite coatings on open-cellular ceramic foams as (non-reactive as well as reactive) supports are highlighted. Specific advantages of using hierarchical zeolitic catalysts/structures in selected catalytic reactions, such as benzene to phenol (BTOP) and methanol to olefins (MTO) are presented. Copyright © 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  14. Processing of hierarchical syntactic structure in music.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koelsch, Stefan; Rohrmeier, Martin; Torrecuso, Renzo; Jentschke, Sebastian

    2013-09-17

    Hierarchical structure with nested nonlocal dependencies is a key feature of human language and can be identified theoretically in most pieces of tonal music. However, previous studies have argued against the perception of such structures in music. Here, we show processing of nonlocal dependencies in music. We presented chorales by J. S. Bach and modified versions in which the hierarchical structure was rendered irregular whereas the local structure was kept intact. Brain electric responses differed between regular and irregular hierarchical structures, in both musicians and nonmusicians. This finding indicates that, when listening to music, humans apply cognitive processes that are capable of dealing with long-distance dependencies resulting from hierarchically organized syntactic structures. Our results reveal that a brain mechanism fundamental for syntactic processing is engaged during the perception of music, indicating that processing of hierarchical structure with nested nonlocal dependencies is not just a key component of human language, but a multidomain capacity of human cognition.

  15. Hierarchical Nanoceramics for Industrial Process Sensors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ruud, James, A.; Brosnan, Kristen, H.; Striker, Todd; Ramaswamy, Vidya; Aceto, Steven, C.; Gao, Yan; Willson, Patrick, D.; Manoharan, Mohan; Armstrong, Eric, N., Wachsman, Eric, D.; Kao, Chi-Chang

    2011-07-15

    This project developed a robust, tunable, hierarchical nanoceramics materials platform for industrial process sensors in harsh-environments. Control of material structure at multiple length scales from nano to macro increased the sensing response of the materials to combustion gases. These materials operated at relatively high temperatures, enabling detection close to the source of combustion. It is anticipated that these materials can form the basis for a new class of sensors enabling widespread use of efficient combustion processes with closed loop feedback control in the energy-intensive industries. The first phase of the project focused on materials selection and process development, leading to hierarchical nanoceramics that were evaluated for sensing performance. The second phase focused on optimizing the materials processes and microstructures, followed by validation of performance of a prototype sensor in a laboratory combustion environment. The objectives of this project were achieved by: (1) synthesizing and optimizing hierarchical nanostructures; (2) synthesizing and optimizing sensing nanomaterials; (3) integrating sensing functionality into hierarchical nanostructures; (4) demonstrating material performance in a sensing element; and (5) validating material performance in a simulated service environment. The project developed hierarchical nanoceramic electrodes for mixed potential zirconia gas sensors with increased surface area and demonstrated tailored electrocatalytic activity operable at high temperatures enabling detection of products of combustion such as NOx close to the source of combustion. Methods were developed for synthesis of hierarchical nanostructures with high, stable surface area, integrated catalytic functionality within the structures for gas sensing, and demonstrated materials performance in harsh lab and combustion gas environments.

  16. "Unconscious" Inclusion of Students with Learning Disabilities in a Malaysian Mainstream Primary School: Teachers' Perspectives

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Lay Wah; Low, Hui Min

    2013-01-01

    The inclusion of children with special needs in mainstream regular schools has been seen as the best practice in special education provision, most markedly since the 90s. International research has provided amassing evidence towards the advantages of inclusive model over a segregation model of special education provision. However, nearly two…

  17. The Case for a Hierarchical Cosmology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vaucouleurs, G. de

    1970-01-01

    The development of modern theoretical cosmology is presented and some questionable assumptions of orthodox cosmology are pointed out. Suggests that recent observations indicate that hierarchical clustering is a basic factor in cosmology. The implications of hierarchical models of the universe are considered. Bibliography. (LC)

  18. Classification using Hierarchical Naive Bayes models

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Langseth, Helge; Dyhre Nielsen, Thomas

    2006-01-01

    Classification problems have a long history in the machine learning literature. One of the simplest, and yet most consistently well-performing set of classifiers is the Naïve Bayes models. However, an inherent problem with these classifiers is the assumption that all attributes used to describe......, termed Hierarchical Naïve Bayes models. Hierarchical Naïve Bayes models extend the modeling flexibility of Naïve Bayes models by introducing latent variables to relax some of the independence statements in these models. We propose a simple algorithm for learning Hierarchical Naïve Bayes models...

  19. Improved Adhesion and Compliancy of Hierarchical Fibrillar Adhesives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Yasong; Gates, Byron D; Menon, Carlo

    2015-08-05

    The gecko relies on van der Waals forces to cling onto surfaces with a variety of topography and composition. The hierarchical fibrillar structures on their climbing feet, ranging from mesoscale to nanoscale, are hypothesized to be key elements for the animal to conquer both smooth and rough surfaces. An epoxy-based artificial hierarchical fibrillar adhesive was prepared to study the influence of the hierarchical structures on the properties of a dry adhesive. The presented experiments highlight the advantages of a hierarchical structure despite a reduction of overall density and aspect ratio of nanofibrils. In contrast to an adhesive containing only nanometer-size fibrils, the hierarchical fibrillar adhesives exhibited a higher adhesion force and better compliancy when tested on an identical substrate.

  20. "Inclusion in Practice": Programme Practices in Mainstream Preschool Classrooms and Associations with Context and Teacher Characteristics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vlachou, Anastasia; Fyssa, Aristea

    2016-01-01

    This study observed the extent to which teachers supported the inclusion of children with disabilities into mainstream classrooms and involved monitoring 52 mainstream preschool settings in Greece. The association between programme quality, context and teacher characteristics was also tested. Findings showed that the quality of inclusion ranged…

  1. Young children's attitudes toward peers with intellectual disabilities: effect of the type of school.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Georgiadi, Maria; Kalyva, Efrosini; Kourkoutas, Elias; Tsakiris, Vlastaris

    2012-11-01

    This study explored typically developing children's attitudes towards peers with intellectual disabilities, with special reference to the type of school they attended. Two hundred and fifty-six Greek children aged 9-10 (135 in inclusive settings) completed a questionnaire and an adjective list by Gash (European Journal of Special Needs Education 1993; 8, 106) and drew a child with intellectual disabilities, commenting also on their drawings. Typically developing children expressed overall neutral attitudes towards peers with intellectual disabilities. Type of school differentiated their attitudes, with children from inclusive settings being more positive towards peers with intellectual disabilities and choosing less negative adjectives to describe them than children from non-inclusive settings. Girls and students who expressed more positive social, emotional and overall attitudes towards students with intellectual disabilities chose more positive adjectives to describe a child with intellectual disabilities. It was also found that children from inclusive settings drew children with intellectual disabilities as more similar to a child with Down syndrome in comparison with children from non-inclusive settings. Effective inclusive practices should be promoted to foster social acceptance of students with intellectual disabilities. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  2. Implementing Inclusive Education in Primary Schools in Bangladesh: Recommended Strategies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ahmmed, Masud; Mullick, Jahirul

    2014-01-01

    Continued discrimination towards, and exclusion of, children with special needs, combined with the high dropout rate of students from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds, creates considerable pressure on the inclusive education (IE) reform initiatives of developing countries. To minimise the challenges to implementing IE reform policies…

  3. Inclusions and Exclusions in Rural Tanzanian Primary Schools: Material Barriers, Teacher Agency and Disability Equality

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Susie Miles

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available This article begins with the assumption that the argument for the inclusion of children with disabilities in mainstream schools, championed by Sustainable Development Goal 4 and Article 24 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, has largely been accepted nationally and internationally by policy makers, and is increasingly being accepted by teachers. In interrogating the complex craft of developing inclusive and equal learning environments for children with disabilities, this article draws upon Kershner’s ‘core aspects of teachers’ knowledge and knowing’, and in particular, ‘the school as a site for the development of teaching expertise and the creation of knowledge’. Data is presented from in-depth interviews following videoed lesson observations with experienced teachers in 15 rural, urban and coastal primary schools in four districts in Tanzania. Findings indicate that the teachers’ practice is moving unevenly towards disability equality, and involves processes of inclusions and exclusions. This involves teacher autonomy, agency and reflective practice in the context of material, attitudinal, structural, pedagogic and curricular barriers. The teachers’ expertise has potential to inform national and international policy developments, and so reduce the evident rhetoric-reality gap. In conclusion, it is argued that inclusive education needs to grapple with disability as a social construct, and lessons are drawn for the further fulfilment of the rights of children with disabilities to equal participation in education.

  4. Social Behaviors Increase in Children with Autism in the Presence of Animals Compared to Toys

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Haire, Marguerite E.; McKenzie, Samantha J.; Beck, Alan M.; Slaughter, Virginia

    2013-01-01

    Background Previous research has demonstrated the capacity of animal presence to stimulate social interaction among humans. The purpose of this study was to examine the interactions of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with an adult and their typically-developing peers in the presence of animals (two guinea pigs) compared to toys. Methods Ninety-nine children from 15 classrooms in 4 schools met the inclusion criteria and participated in groups of three (1 child with ASD and 2 typically-developing peers). Each group was video-recorded during three 10-minute, free-play sessions with toys and three 10-minute, free-play sessions with two guinea pigs. Two blinded observers coded the behavior of children with ASD and their peers. To account for the nested study design, data were analyzed using hierarchical generalized linear modeling. Results Participants with ASD demonstrated more social approach behaviors (including talking, looking at faces, and making tactile contact) and received more social approaches from their peers in the presence of animals compared to toys. They also displayed more prosocial behaviors and positive affect (i.e., smiling and laughing) as well as less self-focused behaviors and negative affect (i.e., frowning, crying, and whining) in the presence of animals compared to toys. Conclusions These results suggest that the presence of an animal can significantly increase positive social behaviors among children with ASD. PMID:23468902

  5. Social behaviors increase in children with autism in the presence of animals compared to toys.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marguerite E O'Haire

    Full Text Available Previous research has demonstrated the capacity of animal presence to stimulate social interaction among humans. The purpose of this study was to examine the interactions of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD with an adult and their typically-developing peers in the presence of animals (two guinea pigs compared to toys.Ninety-nine children from 15 classrooms in 4 schools met the inclusion criteria and participated in groups of three (1 child with ASD and 2 typically-developing peers. Each group was video-recorded during three 10-minute, free-play sessions with toys and three 10-minute, free-play sessions with two guinea pigs. Two blinded observers coded the behavior of children with ASD and their peers. To account for the nested study design, data were analyzed using hierarchical generalized linear modeling.Participants with ASD demonstrated more social approach behaviors (including talking, looking at faces, and making tactile contact and received more social approaches from their peers in the presence of animals compared to toys. They also displayed more prosocial behaviors and positive affect (i.e., smiling and laughing as well as less self-focused behaviors and negative affect (i.e., frowning, crying, and whining in the presence of animals compared to toys.These results suggest that the presence of an animal can significantly increase positive social behaviors among children with ASD.

  6. Social behaviors increase in children with autism in the presence of animals compared to toys.

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Haire, Marguerite E; McKenzie, Samantha J; Beck, Alan M; Slaughter, Virginia

    2013-01-01

    Previous research has demonstrated the capacity of animal presence to stimulate social interaction among humans. The purpose of this study was to examine the interactions of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with an adult and their typically-developing peers in the presence of animals (two guinea pigs) compared to toys. Ninety-nine children from 15 classrooms in 4 schools met the inclusion criteria and participated in groups of three (1 child with ASD and 2 typically-developing peers). Each group was video-recorded during three 10-minute, free-play sessions with toys and three 10-minute, free-play sessions with two guinea pigs. Two blinded observers coded the behavior of children with ASD and their peers. To account for the nested study design, data were analyzed using hierarchical generalized linear modeling. Participants with ASD demonstrated more social approach behaviors (including talking, looking at faces, and making tactile contact) and received more social approaches from their peers in the presence of animals compared to toys. They also displayed more prosocial behaviors and positive affect (i.e., smiling and laughing) as well as less self-focused behaviors and negative affect (i.e., frowning, crying, and whining) in the presence of animals compared to toys. These results suggest that the presence of an animal can significantly increase positive social behaviors among children with ASD.

  7. Leadership styles across hierarchical levels in nursing departments.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stordeur, S; Vandenberghe, C; D'hoore, W

    2000-01-01

    Some researchers have reported on the cascading effect of transformational leadership across hierarchical levels. One study examined this effect in nursing, but it was limited to a single hospital. To examine the cascading effect of leadership styles across hierarchical levels in a sample of nursing departments and to investigate the effect of hierarchical level on the relationships between leadership styles and various work outcomes. Based on a sample of eight hospitals, the cascading effect was tested using correlation analysis. The main sources of variation among leadership scores were determined with analyses of variance (ANOVA), and the interaction effect of hierarchical level and leadership styles on criterion variables was tested with moderated regression analysis. No support was found for a cascading effect of leadership across hierarchical levels. Rather, the variation of leadership scores was explained primarily by the organizational context. Transformational leadership had a stronger impact on criterion variables than transactional leadership. Interaction effects between leadership styles and hierarchical level were observed only for perceived unit effectiveness. The hospital's structure and culture are major determinants of leadership styles.

  8. Learning with hierarchical-deep models.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Salakhutdinov, Ruslan; Tenenbaum, Joshua B; Torralba, Antonio

    2013-08-01

    We introduce HD (or “Hierarchical-Deep”) models, a new compositional learning architecture that integrates deep learning models with structured hierarchical Bayesian (HB) models. Specifically, we show how we can learn a hierarchical Dirichlet process (HDP) prior over the activities of the top-level features in a deep Boltzmann machine (DBM). This compound HDP-DBM model learns to learn novel concepts from very few training example by learning low-level generic features, high-level features that capture correlations among low-level features, and a category hierarchy for sharing priors over the high-level features that are typical of different kinds of concepts. We present efficient learning and inference algorithms for the HDP-DBM model and show that it is able to learn new concepts from very few examples on CIFAR-100 object recognition, handwritten character recognition, and human motion capture datasets.

  9. The Effects of Special Education Training on Educator Efficacy in Classroom Management and Inclusive Strategy Use for Students with Autism in Inclusion Classes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parsons, Lynn D.; Miller, Heather; Deris, Aaron R.

    2016-01-01

    The rise in the number of students with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis combined with the educational trend toward inclusion for students with disabilities has led to an unprecedented number of these students placed in general education classrooms. General educators require appropriate training if these children are to be successful.…

  10. Implementation of Inclusive Education in General Education Institutions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tat'yana A. Kalashnikova

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Nowadays much attention is attached to the problem of inclusive education. Inclusive education of children with learning disabilities is a new strategic trend of educational policy of the Republic of Kazakhstan, significantly addressing fundamental education. This article considers the possibility of involving the schoolchildren with learning disabilities in educational process and the necessity to secure favorable environment and support for the children with learning disabilities in accordance with the Law “On Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan” and State Program of Education Development in the Republic of Kazakhstan for 2011–2012.The trend of maximum possible involvement of children with special needs in common general education institutions determines the educational culture dynamics in many countries of the world. Number of European Union countries has already made drastic structural alterations, resulted in the abolition of special schools (Sweden, Denmark, Italy, Australia, USA, etc.. Children with different disabilities study in “the least restrictive environment”, in other words, whenever possible, together with peers in the environment of general education institutions [1].The goal of Kazakhstan development strategy up to 2030, involving the educational system is “to provide the development of the national educational model and its integration into international educational environment”.The priority of state program “Education” (2000–2005 “is to create conditions for efficient development of national educational model, providing access to qualitative education”. “The Concept of Kazakhstan Educational System”, the realization of which should provide: transfer from the principle of “education for life” to the principle of “lifelong education for everyone”; affordability and continuity of all educational levels; comprehensive, qualitative, competitive result-oriented education has been adopted

  11. Inclusive fashion, recognizing the need of the child wheelchair

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rosângela Elisa de Sousa

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available This project addresses social inclusion, as a resource to be stimulated by the development of fashion products. Taking into account this market demand research, part of the project, identified aspects of use, accessibility, comfort and perception of parents and therapists with regard to dress, undress and cognitive development in relation to clothing. The audience researched this project were wheelchair children with age range from eight to twelve years, parents and professionals in the health field, such as Physiotherapists, Physical Educator, Occupational Therapist and psychologists, members of institutions CEAEHH - Centro de Atividades Especiais Helena Holanda e FUNAD – Fundação Centro Integrado de Apoio ao Portador de Deficiência, João Pessoa - PB, supporters this project through the sale of infrastructure and public access. The data resulted in the development of a fashion collection with differentiated modeling, versatility of uses combined with an aesthetic framework that prioritized the inclusion of wheelchair-bound child in society through the use of the usual market trends in the children's segment.

  12. Hierarchical analysis of acceptable use policies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    P. A. Laughton

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available Acceptable use policies (AUPs are vital tools for organizations to protect themselves and their employees from misuse of computer facilities provided. A well structured, thorough AUP is essential for any organization. It is impossible for an effective AUP to deal with every clause and remain readable. For this reason, some sections of an AUP carry more weight than others, denoting importance. The methodology used to develop the hierarchical analysis is a literature review, where various sources were consulted. This hierarchical approach to AUP analysis attempts to highlight important sections and clauses dealt with in an AUP. The emphasis of the hierarchal analysis is to prioritize the objectives of an AUP.

  13. The Acceptance of Students with Physical Disabilities by Their Peers in Inclusive and Non-Inclusive Schools in Tehran

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Narges Adib-Sereshki

    2005-07-01

    Full Text Available Objective: The present research determines the level of peer acceptance of students with physical disabilities in inclusive and non-inclusive schools. A number of studies which have sought to identify the influential factors in the success of inclusive education, have pointed out the acceptance of special need student by his/her regular peers to be a significant variable. Materials & Methods: This is a descriptive investigation. The instrument utilized was the Acceptance Scale (Voelts, 1980. The upper elementary level version that we were used consists of 34 items, two are general friendship items, two are veridicalite items, and the remaining items are acceptance items.Three response options are provided for each item,I agree, I disagree, and maybe. For such reliability, a Spearman-Brown corrected split-half reliability index of +.82 was reported, as well as an alpha coefficient of +.77. A test –retest stability coefficient of .68 was obtained by retesting a sample of 101 children on two occasions separated by three weeks. In Iran, with test retest on 72 students we got Reliability coefficient of .83. The sample includes 179 student boys and girls in grades three to five who had classmates with physical disability in their elementary schools in Tehran. This sample was randomly selected from each of the five different regions in the city of Tehran. In addition, for the purpose of comparison, a sample of fifty-five students in similar grades was studied in regular schools. The effect of gender and type of school (inclusive vs. non-inclusive on students’ acceptance of a peer with physical disability all were assessed. Results: Results indicated that acceptance level is similar in boys and in girls in inclusive schools. The girl and boy students in inclusive schools demonstrated a significantly higher level of peer acceptance than their pupils in non-inclusive schools. This difference was much more noticeable in boy students. The lowest level

  14. STRATEGY FOR FAMILY HEALTH CO-PARTICIPATION IN THE PROCESS OF INCLUSION OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS WITH SPECIALNEEDS EDUCATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jamine Barros Oliveira

    2009-05-01

    Full Text Available The attention given to the family by staff of the health family serves as a model reorientador of actions health. Thus, exceeds, in their Estratégia de Saúde da Família: co- participação no processo de inclusão... practices, the concept of health as absence of disease, turned to actions and curative medical-assistencials, centred on the disease. Every action is focused on management practices and health, democratic and participative, in the form of working in teams, addressed to the people of territories defined, for which the team takes responsibility. Faced integralizador the role of the health strategy in the family, it is critical to the co-participation in conjunction with the other sectors, especially education, embodied in the form of the school, since it deals directly with children and young people in full rise in the production of knowledge, they are endowed with functional capacities “normals” are affected by diseases that led to the period of hospitalization, or other reason for his expulsion school, requiring the partnership x school team in the process of reintegration of the same this environment. Highlight the role of the health strategy in the family not just in performance on measures directly related to health, but co-participant in the process of social and educational inclusion, through partnerships established with different social and institutional segments, speaking directly in situations beyond the specificity of the health sector and have decisive effects on the living conditions of the individual, family, society. From this co-responsibility and interdisciplinarity among health professionals and education, health steps to be understood and experienced not as a mere absence of disease but a process comprehensive, holistic and integralizador, thereby establishing networks of care in the care of the childrens and adolescents. For so much, bibliographical study was used, when the qualitative study was delimited

  15. Administrative and Teacher Efforts for Elementary Emotionally Disturbed and Behaviorally-Disordered Students: A Literary Review and Recommendations for an Inclusion Program.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rife, Racheal M.; Karr-Kidwell, PJ

    This paper reviews the literature on inclusion of children with emotional and behavioral disorders in regular education classrooms and proposes implementation of an inclusion program at one elementary school in Texas. The literature review covers the following aspects of inclusion: teacher selection and their expectations, professional…

  16. Contributions of Child's Physiology and Maternal Behavior to Children's Trajectories of Temperamental Reactivity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blandon, Alysia Y.; Calkins, Susan D.; Keane, Susan P.; O'brien, Marion

    2010-01-01

    Trajectories of children's temperamental reactivity (negative affectivity and surgency) were examined in a community sample of 370 children across the ages of 4 to 7 with hierarchical linear modeling. Children's physiological reactivity (respiratory sinus arrhythmia [RSA]), physiological regulation ([delta]RSA), and maternal parenting behavior…

  17. Virtual timers in hierarchical real-time systems

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Heuvel, van den M.M.H.P.; Holenderski, M.J.; Cools, W.A.; Bril, R.J.; Lukkien, J.J.; Zhu, D.

    2009-01-01

    Hierarchical scheduling frameworks (HSFs) provide means for composing complex real-time systems from welldefined subsystems. This paper describes an approach to provide hierarchically scheduled real-time applications with virtual event timers, motivated by the need for integrating priority

  18. The challenges of realising inclusive education in South Africa ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    In South Africa, up to 70% of children of school-going age with disabilities are out of school. Of those who do attend, most are still in separate, “special” schools for learners with disabilities. This situation prevails despite the push for the educational inclusion of learners with disabilities over twelve years ago by the South ...

  19. Hierarchical modeling and analysis for spatial data

    CERN Document Server

    Banerjee, Sudipto; Gelfand, Alan E

    2003-01-01

    Among the many uses of hierarchical modeling, their application to the statistical analysis of spatial and spatio-temporal data from areas such as epidemiology And environmental science has proven particularly fruitful. Yet to date, the few books that address the subject have been either too narrowly focused on specific aspects of spatial analysis, or written at a level often inaccessible to those lacking a strong background in mathematical statistics.Hierarchical Modeling and Analysis for Spatial Data is the first accessible, self-contained treatment of hierarchical methods, modeling, and dat

  20. Inclusive Basic Education in South Africa: Issues in its Conceptualisation and Implementation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lucyline Nkatha Murungi

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available Education is one of the most topical issues in South Africa. In recent years, particularly in the period after the adoption of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006 (hereinafter CRPD, the discourse on the education of children with disabilities has mainly focused on the potential of White Paper 6 on Special Needs Education (2001 (hereinafter WP 6 and its implementing programmes to facilitate the realisation of the right to education for children with disabilities. The CRPD proposes inclusive education as the appropriate way of ensuring the right to education for children with disabilities, and sets out a framework for the implementation thereof. In addition, the CRPD sets out other principles which essentially redefine the approach to the interpretation and implementation of the rights of persons with disabilities. One such principle is the principle of non-discrimination, which demands that all rights be implemented on a basis of equality between all people, disability notwithstanding. Arguably, the legal and policy frameworks on education in South Africa reflect the standards proposed under the CRPD to some extent, and other instruments on the right to education. However, there are still considerable challenges in the conceptualisation and implementation of inclusive education, especially at the basic education level. These challenges are not unique to South Africa, and are mainly attributable to the evolutionary background of the concept of inclusive education at the international level. Hence for instance, the understanding of inclusive education often tends to focus exclusively on the education of persons with disabilities as opposed to the inclusion of all marginalised and excluded groups. This narrow understanding is replicated in South African law, policy, and practice of education. Challenges to the realisation of inclusive basic education in South Africa are compounded further by the pertinent issues

  1. Hierarchical organization versus self-organization

    OpenAIRE

    Busseniers, Evo

    2014-01-01

    In this paper we try to define the difference between hierarchical organization and self-organization. Organization is defined as a structure with a function. So we can define the difference between hierarchical organization and self-organization both on the structure as on the function. In the next two chapters these two definitions are given. For the structure we will use some existing definitions in graph theory, for the function we will use existing theory on (self-)organization. In the t...

  2. CRITERIA OF FORMATION OF SOCIAL-PEDAGOGICAL COMPETENCE OF FUTURE PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS IN INCLUSIVE SECONDARY SCHOOL

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zoia Shevtsiv

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available The article aims to justify the formation of criteria and indicators of social-pedagogical competence of the future teachers of primary school of inclusive comprehensive school and to determine its level of development. The objectives are to determine the status of the development problems of professional competence of teachers in inclusive education; essence and structural components of social-pedagogical competence of future primary school teacher of inclusive comprehensive school; criteria, indicators and levels of social-pedagogical competence of future primary school teacher of inclusive comprehensive schools. The education system in Ukraine is gradually transition to inclusive education. Inclusive comprehensive school is being created. It requires a highly qualified primary school teacher who co-teaches regulatory children and children with disability. The article is grounded the necessity of social-pedagogical competence of future teachers of primary school of inclusive comprehensive schools. The essence of social-pedagogical competence of future primary school teacher of inclusive comprehensive schools is defined. The structural components of social-pedagogical competence are characterized. Scientific papers on the issue of formation of competence of experts in various fields are analyzed. The pronunciation for selection and justification criteria and parameters of formation of professional competence is overviewed. The group of the criteria suggested by various scientists from the evaluation of the formation of professional competence of specialists in different fields is considered. The criteria and parameters of evaluating the levels of social-pedagogical competence of future teachers of primary school in inclusive comprehensive schools are selected on the base of the analysis of modern achievements of scientists. Future prospects of research is in developing of a method of diagnosing the levels of social-pedagogical competence of

  3. Children's cognitive representation of the mathematical number line.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rouder, Jeffrey N; Geary, David C

    2014-07-01

    Learning of the mathematical number line has been hypothesized to be dependent on an inherent sense of approximate quantity. Children's number line placements are predicted to conform to the underlying properties of this system; specifically, placements are exaggerated for small numerals and compressed for larger ones. Alternative hypotheses are based on proportional reasoning; specifically, numerals are placed relative to set anchors such as end points on the line. Traditional testing of these alternatives involves fitting group medians to corresponding regression models which assumes homogenous residuals and thus does not capture useful information from between- and within-child variation in placements across the number line. To more fully assess differential predictions, we developed a novel set of hierarchical statistical models that enable the simultaneous estimation of mean levels of and variation in performance, as well as developmental transitions. Using these techniques we fitted the number line placements of 224 children longitudinally assessed from first to fifth grade, inclusive. The compression pattern was evident in mean performance in first grade, but was the best fit for only 20% of first graders when the full range of variation in the data are modeled. Most first graders' placements suggested use of end points, consistent with proportional reasoning. Developmental transition involved incorporation of a mid-point anchor, consistent with a modified proportional reasoning strategy. The methodology introduced here enables a more nuanced assessment of children's number line representation and learning than any previous approaches and indicates that developmental improvement largely results from midpoint segmentation of the line. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  4. The Techniques of Participatory Design for Inclusive Public Space Provision in Kampung Kota of Surakarta

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    N.H Kusumaningdyah

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The technique of participatory design is essential for the future development knowledge of architecture to inform the improvement of architectural education and practice in Asia. Therefore to provide of inclusive public spaces for the community, this research article presents a field study of the usage of community participation design method in design and planning to provide inclusive public spaces within the kampung (settlements in Surakarta, Indonesia. Surakarta has a problem to provide inclusive public space for its dense organic-informal kampung’s for the vulnerable populations such as children. Multi dimensional complexities of the kampung’s often challenge the notion of public space provision. Community participation approach arises as one of the preferred alternative methods to solve the problems with its basic community-based foundation. This research chose Sangkrah and Gandekan sub-districts as research locations both of the areas represent kampung’s characteristics and inhabited by many children population. Steps toward the goal of the study are; (1 field observation of the implementation of a community participation design through participatory place making project, and (2 examining typology assessment perspective, and (3 clarify participation techniques. This research used: (1 descriptive analysis for the project implementation, and (2 qualitative analysis for examining community’s perspectives. Through this multi-perspective analysis, this research presents the an alternative framework for implementing techniques community participation methods in design and planning to provide inclusive public spaces especially for children in Indonesia and other developing countries.

  5. Attitudes of basic school teachers towards inclusive education in the southern province of Zambia

    OpenAIRE

    Muleya, Edmond Moses

    2006-01-01

    Review of literature indicates that successful implementation of inclusion in regular schools is enhanced when regular class teachers have positive attitudes towards inclusion. This investigation explored teachers attitude toward including children with special education needs in the regular classroom. A questionnaire survey was administered to 300 teachers from 3 zones in three different districts in southern province of Zambia. In general it was found that teachers had negative attitudes t...

  6. Designing Out the Play: Accessibility and Playfulness in Inclusive Play.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Holt, Raymond; Beckett, Angharad

    2017-01-01

    Play is an important part of child development, yet disabled children are often excluded from the opportunity to play, either due to lack of accessible toys and games, or social pressures. This paper presents a case study reflecting on the development of Button Bash: a switch accessible game intended to encourage inclusive play between disabled and non-disabled children. In particular, the paper focuses on how changes intended to make the game more accessible tended to make it less playful, and reflects on the relationship between playfulness and accessibility.

  7. Confronting New Demands : Inclusive Growth, Inclusive Trade ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Confronting New Demands : Inclusive Growth, Inclusive Trade. Policymakers, businesspeople and civil society advocates need evidence-based research to react ... understood implications, such as labour standards and intellectual property; ...

  8. Deliberate change without hierarchical influence?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nørskov, Sladjana; Kesting, Peter; Ulhøi, John Parm

    2017-01-01

    reveals that deliberate change is indeed achievable in a non-hierarchical collaborative OSS community context. However, it presupposes the presence and active involvement of informal change agents. The paper identifies and specifies four key drivers for change agents’ influence. Originality....../value The findings contribute to organisational analysis by providing a deeper understanding of the importance of leadership in making deliberate change possible in non-hierarchical settings. It points to the importance of “change-by-conviction”, essentially based on voluntary behaviour. This can open the door...

  9. Multiparty hierarchical quantum-information splitting

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang Xinwen; Zhang Dengyu; Tang Shiqing; Xie Lijun

    2011-01-01

    We propose a scheme for multiparty hierarchical quantum-information splitting (QIS) with a multipartite entangled state, where a boss distributes a secret quantum state to two grades of agents asymmetrically. The agents who belong to different grades have different authorities for recovering the boss's secret. Except for the boss's Bell-state measurement, no nonlocal operation is involved. The presented scheme is also shown to be secure against eavesdropping. Such a hierarchical QIS is expected to find useful applications in the field of modern multipartite quantum cryptography.

  10. Biased trapping issue on weighted hierarchical networks

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    archical networks which are based on the classic scale-free hierarchical networks. ... Weighted hierarchical networks; weight-dependent walks; mean first passage ..... The weighted networks can mimic some real-world natural and social systems to ... the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education ...

  11. Developing a financial inclusion index and inclusive growth in India

    OpenAIRE

    Susanta Kumar SETHY

    2016-01-01

    Financial inclusion is one of the systems through which Inclusive Growth can be achieved in developing countries like India where large sections are unable or hopeless to contribute in the financial system. An inclusive financial system mobilizes more resources for productive purposes leading to higher economic growth, better opportunities and reduction of poverty. This study, proposed an Index of financial inclusion – a multidimensional measure. The Financial Inclusion Index c...

  12. Anti-hierarchical evolution of the active galactic nucleus space density in a hierarchical universe

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Enoki, Motohiro; Ishiyama, Tomoaki; Kobayashi, Masakazu A. R.; Nagashima, Masahiro

    2014-01-01

    Recent observations show that the space density of luminous active galactic nuclei (AGNs) peaks at higher redshifts than that of faint AGNs. This downsizing trend in the AGN evolution seems to be contradictory to the hierarchical structure formation scenario. In this study, we present the AGN space density evolution predicted by a semi-analytic model of galaxy and AGN formation based on the hierarchical structure formation scenario. We demonstrate that our model can reproduce the downsizing trend of the AGN space density evolution. The reason for the downsizing trend in our model is a combination of the cold gas depletion as a consequence of star formation, the gas cooling suppression in massive halos, and the AGN lifetime scaling with the dynamical timescale. We assume that a major merger of galaxies causes a starburst, spheroid formation, and cold gas accretion onto a supermassive black hole (SMBH). We also assume that this cold gas accretion triggers AGN activity. Since the cold gas is mainly depleted by star formation and gas cooling is suppressed in massive dark halos, the amount of cold gas accreted onto SMBHs decreases with cosmic time. Moreover, AGN lifetime increases with cosmic time. Thus, at low redshifts, major mergers do not always lead to luminous AGNs. Because the luminosity of AGNs is correlated with the mass of accreted gas onto SMBHs, the space density of luminous AGNs decreases more quickly than that of faint AGNs. We conclude that the anti-hierarchical evolution of the AGN space density is not contradictory to the hierarchical structure formation scenario.

  13. Anti-hierarchical evolution of the active galactic nucleus space density in a hierarchical universe

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Enoki, Motohiro [Faculty of Business Administration, Tokyo Keizai University, Kokubunji, Tokyo 185-8502 (Japan); Ishiyama, Tomoaki [Center for Computational Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8577 (Japan); Kobayashi, Masakazu A. R. [Research Center for Space and Cosmic Evolution, Ehime University, Matsuyama, Ehime 790-8577 (Japan); Nagashima, Masahiro, E-mail: enokimt@tku.ac.jp [Faculty of Education, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Nagasaki 852-8521 (Japan)

    2014-10-10

    Recent observations show that the space density of luminous active galactic nuclei (AGNs) peaks at higher redshifts than that of faint AGNs. This downsizing trend in the AGN evolution seems to be contradictory to the hierarchical structure formation scenario. In this study, we present the AGN space density evolution predicted by a semi-analytic model of galaxy and AGN formation based on the hierarchical structure formation scenario. We demonstrate that our model can reproduce the downsizing trend of the AGN space density evolution. The reason for the downsizing trend in our model is a combination of the cold gas depletion as a consequence of star formation, the gas cooling suppression in massive halos, and the AGN lifetime scaling with the dynamical timescale. We assume that a major merger of galaxies causes a starburst, spheroid formation, and cold gas accretion onto a supermassive black hole (SMBH). We also assume that this cold gas accretion triggers AGN activity. Since the cold gas is mainly depleted by star formation and gas cooling is suppressed in massive dark halos, the amount of cold gas accreted onto SMBHs decreases with cosmic time. Moreover, AGN lifetime increases with cosmic time. Thus, at low redshifts, major mergers do not always lead to luminous AGNs. Because the luminosity of AGNs is correlated with the mass of accreted gas onto SMBHs, the space density of luminous AGNs decreases more quickly than that of faint AGNs. We conclude that the anti-hierarchical evolution of the AGN space density is not contradictory to the hierarchical structure formation scenario.

  14. Factors Influencing Belize District Primary School Teachers' Attitudes toward Inclusive Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    McKay, Maxine

    2012-01-01

    Inclusive education continues to be a reoccurring challenge as various factors affect to what extent teachers or educators are willing to educate children with disabilities in the regular education setting alongside their non-disabled peers. This quantitative study examined factors influencing Belize District Primary School teachers' attitudes…

  15. Discovering hierarchical structure in normal relational data

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schmidt, Mikkel Nørgaard; Herlau, Tue; Mørup, Morten

    2014-01-01

    -parametric generative model for hierarchical clustering of similarity based on multifurcating Gibbs fragmentation trees. This allows us to infer and display the posterior distribution of hierarchical structures that comply with the data. We demonstrate the utility of our method on synthetic data and data of functional...

  16. ANALYSES OF THE TEACHER-PUPIL INTERACTION WITHIN THE INCLUSIVE CLASSROOM-CASE STUDY OF A CHILD WITH A COCHLEAR IMPLANT

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zora JACHOVA

    2008-12-01

    Full Text Available The educational system in Macedonia is directed towards the modern European standards and models of inclusive education. This is done by initiation and implementation of the innovations in the education.The inclusion of the children with impaired hearing is not connected only with their placement in the schools. In an inclusive school, quality education can be assured only in educational surrounding that is friendly towards the children and the learning process, where the difference is accepted and acknowledged as process for enrichment of all the persons involved. The social aspects of the learning process should be accentuated. This includes a dialogue between the teacher and the other teachers, the teacher and head masters of the schools, between the teacher and the children with impaired hearing and a dialogue with the parents. The teachers should take in consideration the children’s needs and interests and they should be able to conduct a flexible management of the classroom.

  17. Developing Responsive Preventative Practices: Key Messages from Children's and Families' Experiences of the Children's Fund

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pinnock, Katherine; Evans, Ruth

    2008-01-01

    As part of the prevention and social inclusion agenda, the Children's Fund, set up in 2000, has developed preventative services for children at risk of social exclusion. Drawing on a large qualitative dataset of interviews conducted in 2004/05 with children, young people and their parents/carers who accessed Children Fund services, this article…

  18. Digital Technology in Education: Towards New Inclusive Practices

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jönsson, Lise Høgh

    for new inclusive practices. The main theoretical argument derives from the work of French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu. Bourdieu argues that we act upon the world with our habitus, i.e. dispositions created due to previous experiences working as a matrix of perceptions, assumptions and actions....... Using Bourdieu’s theoretical framework, it becomes possible to explain how children and people with learning disabilities are able to strengthen their position by the use of digital technology. This theoretical framework is enhanced by theories of empowerment as any improvement in the participation...... and decision-making power, hold the potential to change opportunity structures in an inclusive direction . Research was carried out in kindergartens and special education facilities in Denmark. Building upon design-based research, the research aimed at testing and developing approaches to digital technology...

  19. Road Network Selection Based on Road Hierarchical Structure Control

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    HE Haiwei

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available A new road network selection method based on hierarchical structure is studied. Firstly, road network is built as strokes which are then classified into hierarchical collections according to the criteria of betweenness centrality value (BC value. Secondly, the hierarchical structure of the strokes is enhanced using structural characteristic identification technique. Thirdly, the importance calculation model was established according to the relationships among the hierarchical structure of the strokes. Finally, the importance values of strokes are got supported with the model's hierarchical calculation, and with which the road network is selected. Tests are done to verify the advantage of this method by comparing it with other common stroke-oriented methods using three kinds of typical road network data. Comparision of the results show that this method had few need to semantic data, and could eliminate the negative influence of edge strokes caused by the criteria of BC value well. So, it is better to maintain the global hierarchical structure of road network, and suitable to meet with the selection of various kinds of road network at the same time.

  20. Hierarchically Structured Electrospun Fibers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nicole E. Zander

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Traditional electrospun nanofibers have a myriad of applications ranging from scaffolds for tissue engineering to components of biosensors and energy harvesting devices. The generally smooth one-dimensional structure of the fibers has stood as a limitation to several interesting novel applications. Control of fiber diameter, porosity and collector geometry will be briefly discussed, as will more traditional methods for controlling fiber morphology and fiber mat architecture. The remainder of the review will focus on new techniques to prepare hierarchically structured fibers. Fibers with hierarchical primary structures—including helical, buckled, and beads-on-a-string fibers, as well as fibers with secondary structures, such as nanopores, nanopillars, nanorods, and internally structured fibers and their applications—will be discussed. These new materials with helical/buckled morphology are expected to possess unique optical and mechanical properties with possible applications for negative refractive index materials, highly stretchable/high-tensile-strength materials, and components in microelectromechanical devices. Core-shell type fibers enable a much wider variety of materials to be electrospun and are expected to be widely applied in the sensing, drug delivery/controlled release fields, and in the encapsulation of live cells for biological applications. Materials with a hierarchical secondary structure are expected to provide new superhydrophobic and self-cleaning materials.

  1. Hierarchical control of electron-transfer

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Westerhoff, Hans V.; Jensen, Peter Ruhdal; Egger, Louis

    1997-01-01

    In this chapter the role of electron transfer in determining the behaviour of the ATP synthesising enzyme in E. coli is analysed. It is concluded that the latter enzyme lacks control because of special properties of the electron transfer components. These properties range from absence of a strong...... back pressure by the protonmotive force on the rate of electron transfer to hierarchical regulation of the expression of the gens that encode the electron transfer proteins as a response to changes in the bioenergetic properties of the cell.The discussion uses Hierarchical Control Analysis...

  2. The Social Networks of Children With and Without Disabilities in Early Childhood Special Education Classrooms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Jing; Lin, Tzu-Jung; Justice, Laura; Sawyer, Brook

    2017-09-01

    Interaction with peers is an important contributor to young children's social and cognitive development. Yet, little is known about the nature of social networks within preschool inclusive classrooms. The current study applied a social network analysis to characterize children's peer interactions in inclusive classrooms and their relations with children's disability status. The participants were 485 preschoolers from 64 early childhood special education (ECSE) inclusive classrooms. Results from teachers' report of children's social networks showed that children with disabilities formed smaller play networks compared to their typically developing peers in the classroom, but no evidence indicated that children with disabilities engaged in more conflict networks than their counterparts. Children's play and conflict networks were segregated by children's disability status.

  3. Multi-objective hierarchical genetic algorithms for multilevel redundancy allocation optimization

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kumar, Ranjan [Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Kyoto University, Yoshida-honmachi, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501 (Japan)], E-mail: ranjan.k@ks3.ecs.kyoto-u.ac.jp; Izui, Kazuhiro [Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Kyoto University, Yoshida-honmachi, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501 (Japan)], E-mail: izui@prec.kyoto-u.ac.jp; Yoshimura, Masataka [Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Kyoto University, Yoshida-honmachi, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501 (Japan)], E-mail: yoshimura@prec.kyoto-u.ac.jp; Nishiwaki, Shinji [Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Kyoto University, Yoshida-honmachi, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501 (Japan)], E-mail: shinji@prec.kyoto-u.ac.jp

    2009-04-15

    Multilevel redundancy allocation optimization problems (MRAOPs) occur frequently when attempting to maximize the system reliability of a hierarchical system, and almost all complex engineering systems are hierarchical. Despite their practical significance, limited research has been done concerning the solving of simple MRAOPs. These problems are not only NP hard but also involve hierarchical design variables. Genetic algorithms (GAs) have been applied in solving MRAOPs, since they are computationally efficient in solving such problems, unlike exact methods, but their applications has been confined to single-objective formulation of MRAOPs. This paper proposes a multi-objective formulation of MRAOPs and a methodology for solving such problems. In this methodology, a hierarchical GA framework for multi-objective optimization is proposed by introducing hierarchical genotype encoding for design variables. In addition, we implement the proposed approach by integrating the hierarchical genotype encoding scheme with two popular multi-objective genetic algorithms (MOGAs)-the strength Pareto evolutionary genetic algorithm (SPEA2) and the non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II). In the provided numerical examples, the proposed multi-objective hierarchical approach is applied to solve two hierarchical MRAOPs, a 4- and a 3-level problems. The proposed method is compared with a single-objective optimization method that uses a hierarchical genetic algorithm (HGA), also applied to solve the 3- and 4-level problems. The results show that a multi-objective hierarchical GA (MOHGA) that includes elitism and mechanism for diversity preserving performed better than a single-objective GA that only uses elitism, when solving large-scale MRAOPs. Additionally, the experimental results show that the proposed method with NSGA-II outperformed the proposed method with SPEA2 in finding useful Pareto optimal solution sets.

  4. Multi-objective hierarchical genetic algorithms for multilevel redundancy allocation optimization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kumar, Ranjan; Izui, Kazuhiro; Yoshimura, Masataka; Nishiwaki, Shinji

    2009-01-01

    Multilevel redundancy allocation optimization problems (MRAOPs) occur frequently when attempting to maximize the system reliability of a hierarchical system, and almost all complex engineering systems are hierarchical. Despite their practical significance, limited research has been done concerning the solving of simple MRAOPs. These problems are not only NP hard but also involve hierarchical design variables. Genetic algorithms (GAs) have been applied in solving MRAOPs, since they are computationally efficient in solving such problems, unlike exact methods, but their applications has been confined to single-objective formulation of MRAOPs. This paper proposes a multi-objective formulation of MRAOPs and a methodology for solving such problems. In this methodology, a hierarchical GA framework for multi-objective optimization is proposed by introducing hierarchical genotype encoding for design variables. In addition, we implement the proposed approach by integrating the hierarchical genotype encoding scheme with two popular multi-objective genetic algorithms (MOGAs)-the strength Pareto evolutionary genetic algorithm (SPEA2) and the non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II). In the provided numerical examples, the proposed multi-objective hierarchical approach is applied to solve two hierarchical MRAOPs, a 4- and a 3-level problems. The proposed method is compared with a single-objective optimization method that uses a hierarchical genetic algorithm (HGA), also applied to solve the 3- and 4-level problems. The results show that a multi-objective hierarchical GA (MOHGA) that includes elitism and mechanism for diversity preserving performed better than a single-objective GA that only uses elitism, when solving large-scale MRAOPs. Additionally, the experimental results show that the proposed method with NSGA-II outperformed the proposed method with SPEA2 in finding useful Pareto optimal solution sets

  5. Hierarchical Neural Regression Models for Customer Churn Prediction

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Golshan Mohammadi

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available As customers are the main assets of each industry, customer churn prediction is becoming a major task for companies to remain in competition with competitors. In the literature, the better applicability and efficiency of hierarchical data mining techniques has been reported. This paper considers three hierarchical models by combining four different data mining techniques for churn prediction, which are backpropagation artificial neural networks (ANN, self-organizing maps (SOM, alpha-cut fuzzy c-means (α-FCM, and Cox proportional hazards regression model. The hierarchical models are ANN + ANN + Cox, SOM + ANN + Cox, and α-FCM + ANN + Cox. In particular, the first component of the models aims to cluster data in two churner and nonchurner groups and also filter out unrepresentative data or outliers. Then, the clustered data as the outputs are used to assign customers to churner and nonchurner groups by the second technique. Finally, the correctly classified data are used to create Cox proportional hazards model. To evaluate the performance of the hierarchical models, an Iranian mobile dataset is considered. The experimental results show that the hierarchical models outperform the single Cox regression baseline model in terms of prediction accuracy, Types I and II errors, RMSE, and MAD metrics. In addition, the α-FCM + ANN + Cox model significantly performs better than the two other hierarchical models.

  6. Inclusion, Learning Goals in Didactics and Education - Effects and Findings

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bruun, Mette; Braüner, Ninna

    Abstract NERA 2017 Inclusion, Learning Goals in Didactics and Education – Effects and Findings Ninna V. Braüner, M.Ed general pedagogy, University College Sjælland, nvb@ucsj.dk Mette Bruun, M.Ed.in general pedagogy, University College Sjælland, meb@ucsj.dk During the last 5-10 years teaching...... with centralized learning goals in didactics and education together with inclusion of children with special needs have been focus areas both nationally and internationally. Educators, directors of education etc. find inspiration in works by John Hattie and James Nottingham and visit schools in Ontario. Many Danish...... learning goals have of inclusion? How can practice be developed within these frames? We have both observed how students in complicated learning situations participate in education without learning goals and how the same students participate when the teacher has planned the education with learning goals. We...

  7. Special and Inclusive Education in Tanzania: Reminiscing the Past, Building the Future

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mwajabu K. Possi

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Special education was introduced in Tanzania Mainland in 1950 by the Church Missionary Society. Despite its long history in the country, not many policies have clearly stipulated the need for special and inclusive education. This paper succinctly and systematically evaluates various educational reforms and policies in Tanzania, and points out some successes and embedded challenges in the development of special needs and inclusive education in Tanzania. To analyze clearly the current situation of special and inclusive education in the country, the Peter’s model and cases of some identified schools for exceptional students are used. The analysis has indicated an evolution from special to integrated and later on to inclusive education, which has led to an apparent increase in the number of schools and subsequent relatively higher enrollment figures for children with special needs. Despite this evolution, Tanzania has a long way to go, when compared to other countries in effectively achieving the provision of education to exceptional individuals. Finally, towards a new era of special and inclusive education in Tanzania, various recommendations are offered.

  8. Hierarchical Traces for Reduced NSM Memory Requirements

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dahl, Torbjørn S.

    This paper presents work on using hierarchical long term memory to reduce the memory requirements of nearest sequence memory (NSM) learning, a previously published, instance-based reinforcement learning algorithm. A hierarchical memory representation reduces the memory requirements by allowing traces to share common sub-sequences. We present moderated mechanisms for estimating discounted future rewards and for dealing with hidden state using hierarchical memory. We also present an experimental analysis of how the sub-sequence length affects the memory compression achieved and show that the reduced memory requirements do not effect the speed of learning. Finally, we analyse and discuss the persistence of the sub-sequences independent of specific trace instances.

  9. Parent Involvement in Inclusive Primary Schools in New Zealand: Implications for Improving Practice and for Teacher Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hornby, Garry; Witte, Chrystal

    2010-01-01

    A critical factor in the success of inclusive schools is effective parent involvement in the education of children with special educational needs. This article reports the results of a survey of the practice of parent involvement in inclusive primary schools in a large city in New Zealand. Interviews were conducted with 21 primary school…

  10. Hierarchical subtask discovery with non-negative matrix factorization

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Earle, AC

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Hierarchical reinforcement learning methods offer a powerful means of planning flexible behavior in complicated domains. However, learning an appropriate hierarchical decomposition of a domain into subtasks remains a substantial challenge. We...

  11. Hierarchical subtask discovery with non-negative matrix factorization

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Earle, AC

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Hierarchical reinforcement learning methods offer a powerful means of planning flexible behavior in complicated domains. However, learning an appropriate hierarchical decomposition of a domain into subtasks remains a substantial challenge. We...

  12. Statistical Significance for Hierarchical Clustering

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kimes, Patrick K.; Liu, Yufeng; Hayes, D. Neil; Marron, J. S.

    2017-01-01

    Summary Cluster analysis has proved to be an invaluable tool for the exploratory and unsupervised analysis of high dimensional datasets. Among methods for clustering, hierarchical approaches have enjoyed substantial popularity in genomics and other fields for their ability to simultaneously uncover multiple layers of clustering structure. A critical and challenging question in cluster analysis is whether the identified clusters represent important underlying structure or are artifacts of natural sampling variation. Few approaches have been proposed for addressing this problem in the context of hierarchical clustering, for which the problem is further complicated by the natural tree structure of the partition, and the multiplicity of tests required to parse the layers of nested clusters. In this paper, we propose a Monte Carlo based approach for testing statistical significance in hierarchical clustering which addresses these issues. The approach is implemented as a sequential testing procedure guaranteeing control of the family-wise error rate. Theoretical justification is provided for our approach, and its power to detect true clustering structure is illustrated through several simulation studies and applications to two cancer gene expression datasets. PMID:28099990

  13. Full Inclusion: Understanding the Role of Gay and Lesbian Texts and Films in Teacher Education Classrooms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hermann-Wilmarth, Jill M.

    2007-01-01

    This paper identifies some of the resources the author has found and used to help future teachers become fully inclusive teachers, particularly of early elementary students. Through sharing these resources--children's literature, a children's literature textbook, edited books for teacher educators and pre- and inservice teachers, and a video--the…

  14. Hierarchically Nanoporous Bioactive Glasses for High Efficiency Immobilization of Enzymes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    He, W.; Min, D.D.; Zhang, X.D.

    2014-01-01

    Bioactive glasses with hierarchical nanoporosity and structures have been heavily involved in immobilization of enzymes. Because of meticulous design and ingenious hierarchical nanostructuration of porosities from yeast cell biotemplates, hierarchically nanostructured porous bioactive glasses can...... and products of catalytic reactions can freely diffuse through open mesopores (2–40 nm). The formation mechanism of hierarchically structured porous bioactive glasses, the immobilization mechanism of enzyme and the catalysis mechanism of immobilized enzyme are then discussed. The novel nanostructure...

  15. Do schools promote social inclusion? The experiences of intercountry adoptees in Australia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Beverly Scarvelis

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Intercountry adoption programs have brought children from racially and culturally diverse backgrounds to live as Australians, including 30 children from Ransgit Children’s Home who arrived in South Australia in the late 1980s and early 1990s. As part of a larger project which explored the life experiences of 12 adults who had arrived as children aged between 4 and 9 from Ransgit, this paper explores the role of schools in facilitating their inclusion into life in Australia. The school experience was often critical in learning English and was pre-requisite for acceptance in the school yard but also a place in which most of these Thai-born intercountry adoptees experienced racism. Despite very few participants completing secondary school, all had employment. However, many held jobs which were low-paying and which precluded them from participating in opportunities to return to Thailand to learn more about their Thai origins or participating as adoptive parents in intercountry adoption programs. Hence, while schools can play an important role in facilitating social inclusion, the school system alone may be unable to address the multiple dimensions of exclusion experienced by intercountry adoptees.

  16. Between psychopathology and inclusion

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hedegaard-Sørensen, Lotte; Hamre, Bjørn Frithiof

    2017-01-01

    and social pedagogy. We thus enquire into how the rise of diagnostics and medicalisation affects our understanding of children’s difficulties. We discuss a paradox that is present in Denmark and other countries. As educational policies emphasise inclusion, the field of schooling experiences a huge rise......This article reports on a Danish study on interprofessional collaboration between child psychiatrists and educational psychologists concerning children who are categorised as being at risk. Methodologically, the analysis is grounded in qualitative interviews with psychologists. A Foucauldian...... approach is applied to narratives and experiences that occur within these interviews concerning external collaboration with child psychiatrists. The article is informed by the research tradition that has problematised the significance of psychiatry and diagnoses in the field of special needs education...

  17. Three Ways to Link Merge with Hierarchical Concept-Combination

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chris Thornton

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available In the Minimalist Program, language competence is seen to stem from a fundamental ability to construct hierarchical structure, an operation dubbed ‘Merge’. This raises the problem of how to view hierarchical concept-combination. This is a conceptual operation which also builds hierarchical structure. We can conceive of a garden that consists of a lawn and a flower-bed, for example, or a salad consisting of lettuce, fennel and rocket, or a crew consisting of a pilot and engineer. In such cases, concepts are put together in a way that makes one the accommodating element with respect to the others taken in combination. The accommodating element becomes the root of a hierarchical unit. Since this unit is itself a concept, the operation is inherently recursive. Does this mean the mind has two independent systems of hierarchical construction? Or is some form of integration more likely? Following a detailed examination of the operations involved, this paper shows there are three main ways in which Merge might be linked to hierarchical concept-combination. Also examined are the architectural implications that arise in each case.

  18. Hierarchical modeling and its numerical implementation for layered thin elastic structures

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cho, Jin-Rae [Hongik University, Sejong (Korea, Republic of)

    2017-05-15

    Thin elastic structures such as beam- and plate-like structures and laminates are characterized by the small thickness, which lead to classical plate and laminate theories in which the displacement fields through the thickness are assumed linear or higher-order polynomials. These classical theories are either insufficient to represent the complex stress variation through the thickness or may encounter the accuracy-computational cost dilemma. In order to overcome the inherent problem of classical theories, the concept of hierarchical modeling has been emerged. In the hierarchical modeling, the hierarchical models with different model levels are selected and combined within a structure domain, in order to make the modeling error be distributed as uniformly as possible throughout the problem domain. The purpose of current study is to explore the potential of hierarchical modeling for the effective numerical analysis of layered structures such as laminated composite. For this goal, the hierarchical models are constructed and the hierarchical modeling is implemented by selectively adjusting the level of hierarchical models. As well, the major characteristics of hierarchical models are investigated through the numerical experiments.

  19. Reinventing "Inclusion": New Labour and the Cultural Politics of Special Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Armstrong, Derrick

    2005-01-01

    New Labour has placed inclusion at the centre of its educational agenda. Its policies have been characterised by an attempt to include disabled children, together with others identified as having "special educational needs", within the ordinary school system and the shifting of responsibility for meeting their needs to teachers in the…

  20. Improving attitudes towards children with disabilities in a school context: a cluster randomized intervention study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Godeau, Emmanuelle; Vignes, Céline; Sentenac, Mariane; Ehlinger, Virginie; Navarro, Félix; Grandjean, Hélène; Arnaud, Catherine

    2010-10-01

    although inclusive education of disabled children is now an accepted practice, it is often challenged by negative peer attitudes. We undertook an interventional study aimed at improving students' attitudes towards their disabled peers. the participants were students from the 7th grade of twelve paired schools (1509 students from 62 classes; age 12-13y), randomly allocated to an intervention group (205 males, 285 females) or a control group (132 males, 165 females). The intervention consisted of a mandatory comprehensive educational project on disability. The Chedoke-McMaster Attitudes Towards Children with Handicaps Scale (CATCH) was used to assess children's attitudes before (T0) and after (T1) intervention. The hierarchical structure of the data was taken into account by adjusting standard deviations and using linear multilevel models. seven hundred and eighty-four students had at least one score on the three domains (cognitive, affective, behavioural) of the CATCH at T0 and T1. The final scores were higher than baseline scores (total scores, intervention group: baseline score 25.6 (SD=5.4), final score 26.8 (5.9), pattitudes was found in students from schools with special units for their peers with cognitive impairment for total (p=0.013), affective (pattitudes in the intervention and control groups that could be a result of the nature of the scales and questionnaires the students had to complete before the intervention.

  1. Hierarchical surfaces for enhanced self-cleaning applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fernández, Ariadna; Francone, Achille; Thamdrup, Lasse H.; Johansson, Alicia; Bilenberg, Brian; Nielsen, Theodor; Guttmann, Markus; Sotomayor Torres, Clivia M.; Kehagias, Nikolaos

    2017-04-01

    In this study we present a flexible and adaptable fabrication method to create complex hierarchical structures over inherently hydrophobic resist materials. We have tested these surfaces for their superhydrophobic behaviour and successfully verified their self-cleaning properties. The followed approach allow us to design and produce superhydrophobic surfaces in a reproducible manner. We have analysed different combination of hierarchical micro-nanostructures for their application to self-cleaning surfaces. A static contact angle value of 170° with a hysteresis of 4° was achieved without the need of any additional chemical treatment on the fabricated hierarchical structures. Dynamic effects were analysed on these surfaces, obtaining a remarkable self-cleaning effect as well as a good robustness over impacting droplets.

  2. IMPACT OF SELF-CONCEPT OF DISABLED LEARNERS ON INCLUSIVE PHYSICAL EDUCATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammed ALI,

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available This paper examines the conceptual foundations of self-concept, self-esteem and the self as they relate to disabled students in the context of physical education. Disable school children experience severe discriminations in society and within the school system, especially if the school is the mainstream type. With increasing emphasis on inclusiveness in school to different groups of excluded children, the need to thoroughly examine the psychological frame of mind of these children is now more important than ever before. Consequently, this paper sought to uncover the fundamental tenets of self-concept of disabled learners and highlight the key characteristics of disabled children. The paper concludes by with an analysis of the major impacts that disabled learners self-concept has on participation in physical education activities.

  3. Assessing exposure to violence using multiple informants: application of hierarchical linear model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kuo, M; Mohler, B; Raudenbush, S L; Earls, F J

    2000-11-01

    The present study assesses the effects of demographic risk factors on children's exposure to violence (ETV) and how these effects vary by informants. Data on exposure to violence of 9-, 12-, and 15-year-olds were collected from both child participants (N = 1880) and parents (N = 1776), as part of the assessment of the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN). A two-level hierarchical linear model (HLM) with multivariate outcomes was employed to analyze information obtained from these two different groups of informants. The findings indicate that parents generally report less ETV than do their children and that associations of age, gender, and parent education with ETV are stronger in the self-reports than in the parent reports. The findings support a multivariate approach when information obtained from different sources is being integrated. The application of HLM allows an assessment of interactions between risk factors and informants and uses all available data, including data from one informant when data from the other informant is missing.

  4. [Children in family mediation: A practice model].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mayer, Stefan; Normann, Katrin

    2006-01-01

    The authors briefly describe the history of family mediation under the perspective of the role of the children in the process of mediation. They state that originally children were not directly included. But through empirical studies and different higher escalated families asking for help by mediation, the inclusion of children got an important issue in theory and practice. The discussion began with the question in which phases of the mediation process the children should be included - it went to the issue of the age of the children - and the authors propose to take the amount of escalation in the family as the most important point of reference to decide if and how the children should be included. They suggest to diagnose the loss of responsibility and autonomy of the parents on a nine level scale (from F. Glasl) with the parents and to decide and negotiate with them how the children will be included. They describe five different settings of inclusion of the children.

  5. Hierarchical Micro-Nano Coatings by Painting

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kirveslahti, Anna; Korhonen, Tuulia; Suvanto, Mika; Pakkanen, Tapani A.

    2016-03-01

    In this paper, the wettability properties of coatings with hierarchical surface structures and low surface energy were studied. Hierarchically structured coatings were produced by using hydrophobic fumed silica nanoparticles and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) microparticles as additives in polyester (PES) and polyvinyldifluoride (PVDF). These particles created hierarchical micro-nano structures on the paint surfaces and lowered or supported the already low surface energy of the paint. Two standard application techniques for paint application were employed and the presented coatings are suitable for mass production and use in large surface areas. By regulating the particle concentrations, it was possible to modify wettability properties gradually. Highly hydrophobic surfaces were achieved with the highest contact angle of 165∘. Dynamic contact angle measurements were carried out for a set of selected samples and low hysteresis was obtained. Produced coatings possessed long lasting durability in the air and in underwater conditions.

  6. Hierarchical virtual screening approaches in small molecule drug discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kumar, Ashutosh; Zhang, Kam Y J

    2015-01-01

    Virtual screening has played a significant role in the discovery of small molecule inhibitors of therapeutic targets in last two decades. Various ligand and structure-based virtual screening approaches are employed to identify small molecule ligands for proteins of interest. These approaches are often combined in either hierarchical or parallel manner to take advantage of the strength and avoid the limitations associated with individual methods. Hierarchical combination of ligand and structure-based virtual screening approaches has received noteworthy success in numerous drug discovery campaigns. In hierarchical virtual screening, several filters using ligand and structure-based approaches are sequentially applied to reduce a large screening library to a number small enough for experimental testing. In this review, we focus on different hierarchical virtual screening strategies and their application in the discovery of small molecule modulators of important drug targets. Several virtual screening studies are discussed to demonstrate the successful application of hierarchical virtual screening in small molecule drug discovery. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF TEACHERS IN THE FIELD OF INCLUSIVE EDUCATION IN SCHOOL (THE EXPERIENCE OF RUSSIA AND BULGARIA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Iglika A. Angelova

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The aim of the investigation is to discuss the problems connected with a current state of inclusive education in Russia and Bulgaria.Methods. Experience, positive and negative tendencies in the field of inclusive education of the Russian and Bulgarian systems of training and education are analysed and generalized.Results and scientific novelty. Creating conditions for quality education for all children regardless of the characteristics of their health is a social guarantee of any post-industrial country. Access to quality education for children with disabilities is a target of nowadays reforms of the Russian and Bulgarian education in the context of globalization: Bulgaria’s accession to the European Union and activity of Russia as an independent state on the international education arena.Adverse conditions of inclusive education in the two countries complicate establishing and implementation of public policies for the development of inclusive education. However, objective data about teachers’ readiness for the implementation of inclusive education and public debate around this issue stimulates a better understanding of the principles on which the activities of the teacher, directed at the education of children with disabilities.The principles providing a basis for developing professional teacher competencies in the field of inclusive education are presented in the article. The importance of complex solution to the problem is highlighted: involvement of an administrative resource, realization of the social mechanism of a special type of mutual aid (tutoring, formation in the organization and society of culture of the attitude towards people with peculiarities of health. Everything listed has to be supported by the state measures, including the motivation of teachers to development in a profession and obtaining special professional competences.Practical significance. The research findings can be useful for correction of pedagogical activity

  8. WISC-IV Profiles Are Associated with Differences in Symptomatology and Outcome in Children with ADHD

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thaler, Nicholas S.; Bello, Danielle T.; Etcoff, Lewis M.

    2013-01-01

    Objective: The current study investigated the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition (WISC-IV) cluster profiles of children with ADHD to examine the association between IQ profiles and diagnostic frequency, symptomatology, and outcome in this population. Method: Hierarchical cluster analysis was conducted on 189 children with a…

  9. Questioning Inclusion: The Education of Roma/Traveller Students and Young People in Europe and England--A Critical Examination

    Science.gov (United States)

    Themelis, Spyros

    2009-01-01

    This article deals with issues pertinent to the "inclusion" of Roma/Traveller children and young people in Europe and, in particular, England. It discusses some key issues that pertain to the inclusion of Roma/Traveller groups in society and it critically presents some key policies that have been advanced to tackle educational and social…

  10. Introduction into Hierarchical Matrices

    KAUST Repository

    Litvinenko, Alexander

    2013-01-01

    Hierarchical matrices allow us to reduce computational storage and cost from cubic to almost linear. This technique can be applied for solving PDEs, integral equations, matrix equations and approximation of large covariance and precision matrices.

  11. Introduction into Hierarchical Matrices

    KAUST Repository

    Litvinenko, Alexander

    2013-12-05

    Hierarchical matrices allow us to reduce computational storage and cost from cubic to almost linear. This technique can be applied for solving PDEs, integral equations, matrix equations and approximation of large covariance and precision matrices.

  12. Approaching Inclusion as Social Practice: Processes of Inclusion and Exclusion

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Molbæk, Mette; Hansen, Janne Hedegaard; Lassen, Mikkel

    2018-01-01

    The article presents the results of a review of international research investigating mechanisms and processes of inclusion and exclusion as an ongoing part of social practice in a school context. The review forms part of a research project investigating the social practices of inclusive education...... in primary and lower-secondary education (age 6–16) in public schools as constituted by processes of inclusion and exclusion. The project aims to shift the scientific focus of research in inclusive education from the development of pedagogical and didactic practice to the importance of community construction...... through inclusion and exclusion processes. The project arises in context of Danish education policy, while the review looked for international research findings on the limits between inclusion and exclusion: how they are drawn, by whom, for what reasons, and for whose benefit? On the background...

  13. Linking immigrant parents' educational expectations and aspirations to their children's school performance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Areepattamannil, Shaljan; Lee, Daphnee H L

    2014-01-01

    The authors examined the relationships of parental expectations and aspirations for their children's educational attainment to children's academic performance in school among 783 immigrant-origin children aged 5-18 years in Canada. The results of hierarchical regression analyses, after accounting for student and family background characteristics, indicated that immigrant parents' expectations and aspirations for their children's educational attainment were positively linked to immigrant-origin children's academic performance in school. Implications of these findings are briefly discussed.

  14. A National Early Intervention System as a Strategy to Promote Inclusion and Academic Achievement in Portugal.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Franco, Vitor; Melo, Madalena; Santos, Graça; Apolónio, Ana; Amaral, Leonor

    2017-01-01

    Early intervention with children at risk or facing developmental problems is a practice defined by three fundamental characteristics: being family-centered, being based on the community and on the child's life context, and being conducted by a team with transdisciplinary practice. In this paper we wish to present how the SNIPI-National System of Early Intervention, implemented in Portugal over the past 15 years, contributes to promote maximum development and the full inclusion of children up to 6 years of age and works to prevent school failure. The SNIPI covers the entire territory and intends to respond to the needs of children with developmental disorders or those in at risk situations. This community-based early intervention model is linked to the health, education and social care systems, involving the three responsible Ministries. In the present community case study, we present the implementation of this program in the Alentejo region, involving 31 local teams and almost 2500 children. Through the regional structure's reports and the responses of parents and professionals in impact studies, we demonstrate how the system is established and how it tackles school failure and improves the educational inclusion of these children. The impact of this Early Intervention model has been significant not only on children's developmental outcomes, but also for the health, education and social care professionals who work in a transdisciplinary perspective, as well as for the families who became more skilled at evaluating the children's needs and the support provided. This approach to implementing a family-centered Early Intervention program can contribute to full inclusion. It facilitates the transition to schooling based on a non-discriminatory approach and educational achievement by aiding development and an adapted contextualization in pre-school education. This program system introduces significant innovation within the framework of existing educational policies that

  15. Hierarchical surfaces for enhanced self-cleaning applications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fernández, Ariadna; Francone, Achille; Sotomayor Torres, Clivia M; Kehagias, Nikolaos; Thamdrup, Lasse H; Johansson, Alicia; Bilenberg, Brian; Nielsen, Theodor; Guttmann, Markus

    2017-01-01

    In this study we present a flexible and adaptable fabrication method to create complex hierarchical structures over inherently hydrophobic resist materials. We have tested these surfaces for their superhydrophobic behaviour and successfully verified their self-cleaning properties. The followed approach allow us to design and produce superhydrophobic surfaces in a reproducible manner. We have analysed different combination of hierarchical micro-nanostructures for their application to self-cleaning surfaces. A static contact angle value of 170° with a hysteresis of 4° was achieved without the need of any additional chemical treatment on the fabricated hierarchical structures. Dynamic effects were analysed on these surfaces, obtaining a remarkable self-cleaning effect as well as a good robustness over impacting droplets. (paper)

  16. The hierarchical structure of childhood personality in five countries: continuity from early childhood to early adolescence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tackett, Jennifer L; Slobodskaya, Helena R; Mar, Raymond A; Deal, James; Halverson, Charles F; Baker, Spencer R; Pavlopoulos, Vassilis; Besevegis, Elias

    2012-08-01

    Childhood personality is a rapidly growing area of investigation within individual differences research. One understudied topic is the universality of the hierarchical structure of childhood personality. In the present investigation, parents rated the personality characteristics of 3,751 children from 5 countries and 4 age groups. The hierarchical structure of childhood personality was examined for 1-, 2-, 3-, 4-, and 5-factor models across country (Canada, China, Greece, Russia, and the United States) and age group (3-5, 6-8, 9-11, and 12-14 years of age). Many similarities were noted across both country and age. The Five-Factor Model was salient beginning in early childhood (ages 3-5). Deviations across groups and from adult findings are noted, including the prominent role of antagonism in childhood personality and the high covariation between Conscientiousness and intellect. Future directions, including the need for more explicit attempts to merge temperament and personality models, are discussed. © 2011 The Authors. Journal of Personality © 2011, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  17. Attitudes of a group of primary school teachers towards the educational inclusion of hearing-impaired learners in regular classrooms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keith, K; Ross, E

    1998-01-01

    Research has clearly demonstrated a link between the attitudes of regular education teachers and the success of inclusion of learners with special educational needs. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the attitudes of a group of junior primary school teachers from the Gauteng area towards the inclusion of hearing-impaired children into regular classes. A survey research design was employed which utilized a questionnaire as the research tool. Analysis of results indicated that the teachers surveyed were relatively positive in their attitudes towards inclusion. Greater exposure to disability in terms of training and experience was related to more positive attitudes. Similarly, more positive attitudes were related to greater perceived competence in teaching hearing-impaired pupils. All of the teachers surveyed felt that speech-language pathologists and audiologists (SLPs & As) should be involved in facilitating inclusion of hearing-impaired children. Many of the respondents expressed concern regarding their lack of training, knowledge and skills. The findings from the research project highlight the need for an adequate training and support system for teachers prior to the implementation of an inclusive educational policy, and the potential role of SLPs & As in this regard.

  18. Limits to Inclusion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hansen, Janne Hedegaard

    2012-01-01

    In this article, I will argue that a theoretical identification of the limit to inclusion is needed in the conceptual identification of inclusion. On the one hand, inclusion is formulated as a vision that is, in principle, limitless. On the other hand, there seems to be an agreement that inclusion has a limit in the pedagogical practice. However,…

  19. Hierarchical processing in the prefrontal cortex in a variety of cognitive domains

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hyeon-Ae eJeon

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available This review scrutinizes several findings on human hierarchical processing within the prefrontal cortex (PFC in diverse cognitive domains. Converging evidence from previous studies has shown that the PFC, specifically Brodmann area (BA 44, may function as the essential region for hierarchical processing across the domains. In language fMRI studies, BA 44 was significantly activated for the hierarchical processing of center-embedded sentences and this pattern of activations was also observed in artificial grammar. The same pattern was observed in the visuo-spatial domain where BA44 was actively involved in the processing of hierarchy for the visual symbol. Musical syntax, which is the rule-based arrangement of musical sets, has also been construed as hierarchical processing as in the language domain such that the activation in BA44 was observed in a chord sequence paradigm. P600 ERP was also engendered during the processing of musical hierarchy. Along with a longstanding idea that a human’s number faculty is developed as a by-product of language faculty, BA44 was closely involved in hierarchical processing in mental arithmetic. This review extended its discussion of hierarchical processing to hierarchical behavior, that is, human action which has been referred to as being hierarchically composed. Several lesion and TMS studies supported the involvement of BA44 for hierarchical processing in the action domain. Lastly, the hierarchical organization of cognitive controls was discussed within the PFC, forming a cascade of top-down hierarchical processes operating along a posterior-to-anterior axis of the lateral PFC including BA44 within the network. It is proposed that PFC is actively involved in different forms of hierarchical processing and specifically BA44 may play an integral role in the process. Taking levels of proficiency and subcortical areas into consideration may provide further insight into the functional role of BA44 for hierarchical

  20. Hierarchical Ag mesostructures for single particle SERS substrate

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Xu, Minwei, E-mail: xuminwei@xjtu.edu.cn; Zhang, Yin

    2017-01-30

    Highlights: • Hierarchical Ag mesostructures with the size of 250, 360 and 500 nm are synthesized via a seed-mediated approach. • The Ag mesostructures present the tailorable size and highly roughened surfaces. • The average enhancement factors for individual Ag mesostructures were estimated to be as high as 10{sup 6}. - Abstract: Hierarchical Ag mesostructures with highly rough surface morphology have been synthesized at room temperature through a simple seed-mediated approach. Electron microscopy characterizations indicate that the obtained Ag mesostructures exhibit a textured surface morphology with the flower-like architecture. Moreover, the particle size can be tailored easily in the range of 250–500 nm. For the growth process of the hierarchical Ag mesostructures, it is believed that the self-assembly mechanism is more reasonable rather than the epitaxial overgrowth of Ag seed. The oriented attachment of nanoparticles is revealed during the formation of Ag mesostructures. Single particle surface enhanced Raman spectra (sp-SERS) of crystal violet adsorbed on the hierarchical Ag mesostructures were measured. Results reveal that the hierarchical Ag mesostructures can be highly sensitive sp-SERS substrates with good reproducibility. The average enhancement factors for individual Ag mesostructures are estimated to be about 10{sup 6}.

  1. Inclusive Business - What It Is All About? Managing Inclusive Companies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tea Golja

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Following the challenges we face today, the inclusive business models are future business models through which the Millennium Development Goals can be fostered and strengthen. These are the models which, through their strategic orientation on inclusivity, include low income communities in their value chain. This can be done through combining variety of strategies which all have two common points – recognition of stakeholders and adjustment of the product to the target market. The paper presents the analysis of inclusive markets. Hence, the research results show the dispersion of inclusive businesses worldwide, type of the organization, sector coverage, and contribution to MDGs as well as the particular way of inclusion of low income communities in their value chain. The aim is to present how inclusive business benefits not only the low income societies, but the companies that operate in this way as well.

  2. Using assistive robots to promote inclusive education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Encarnação, P; Leite, T; Nunes, C; Nunes da Ponte, M; Adams, K; Cook, A; Caiado, A; Pereira, J; Piedade, G; Ribeiro, M

    2017-05-01

    This paper describes the development and test of physical and virtual integrated augmentative manipulation and communication assistive technologies (IAMCATs) that enable children with motor and speech impairments to manipulate educational items by controlling a robot with a gripper, while communicating through a speech generating device. Nine children with disabilities, nine regular and nine special education teachers participated in the study. Teachers adapted academic activities so they could also be performed by the children with disabilities using the IAMCAT. An inductive content analysis of the teachers' interviews before and after the intervention was performed. Teachers considered the IAMCAT to be a useful resource that can be integrated into the regular class dynamics respecting their curricular planning. It had a positive impact on children with disabilities and on the educational community. However, teachers pointed out the difficulties in managing the class, even with another adult present, due to the extra time required by children with disabilities to complete the activities. The developed assistive technologies enable children with disabilities to participate in academic activities but full inclusion would require another adult in class and strategies to deal with the additional time required by children to complete the activities. Implications for Rehabilitation Integrated augmentative manipulation and communication assistive technologies are useful resources to promote the participation of children with motor and speech impairments in classroom activities. Virtual tools, running on a computer screen, may be easier to use but further research is needed in order to evaluate its effectiveness when compared to physical tools. Full participation of children with motor and speech impairments in academic activities using these technologies requires another adult in class and adequate strategies to manage the extra time the child with disabilities may

  3. Dissecting children's observational learning of complex actions through selective video displays.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Flynn, Emma; Whiten, Andrew

    2013-10-01

    Children can learn how to use complex objects by watching others, yet the relative importance of different elements they may observe, such as the interactions of the individual parts of the apparatus, a model's movements, and desirable outcomes, remains unclear. In total, 140 3-year-olds and 140 5-year-olds participated in a study where they observed a video showing tools being used to extract a reward item from a complex puzzle box. Conditions varied according to the elements that could be seen in the video: (a) the whole display, including the model's hands, the tools, and the box; (b) the tools and the box but not the model's hands; (c) the model's hands and the tools but not the box; (d) only the end state with the box opened; and (e) no demonstration. Children's later attempts at the task were coded to establish whether they imitated the hierarchically organized sequence of the model's actions, the action details, and/or the outcome. Children's successful retrieval of the reward from the box and the replication of hierarchical sequence information were reduced in all but the whole display condition. Only once children had attempted the task and witnessed a second demonstration did the display focused on the tools and box prove to be better for hierarchical sequence information than the display focused on the tools and hands only. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  4. Auditing SNOMED CT hierarchical relations based on lexical features of concepts in non-lattice subgraphs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cui, Licong; Bodenreider, Olivier; Shi, Jay; Zhang, Guo-Qiang

    2018-02-01

    We introduce a structural-lexical approach for auditing SNOMED CT using a combination of non-lattice subgraphs of the underlying hierarchical relations and enriched lexical attributes of fully specified concept names. Our goal is to develop a scalable and effective approach that automatically identifies missing hierarchical IS-A relations. Our approach involves 3 stages. In stage 1, all non-lattice subgraphs of SNOMED CT's IS-A hierarchical relations are extracted. In stage 2, lexical attributes of fully-specified concept names in such non-lattice subgraphs are extracted. For each concept in a non-lattice subgraph, we enrich its set of attributes with attributes from its ancestor concepts within the non-lattice subgraph. In stage 3, subset inclusion relations between the lexical attribute sets of each pair of concepts in each non-lattice subgraph are compared to existing IS-A relations in SNOMED CT. For concept pairs within each non-lattice subgraph, if a subset relation is identified but an IS-A relation is not present in SNOMED CT IS-A transitive closure, then a missing IS-A relation is reported. The September 2017 release of SNOMED CT (US edition) was used in this investigation. A total of 14,380 non-lattice subgraphs were extracted, from which we suggested a total of 41,357 missing IS-A relations. For evaluation purposes, 200 non-lattice subgraphs were randomly selected from 996 smaller subgraphs (of size 4, 5, or 6) within the "Clinical Finding" and "Procedure" sub-hierarchies. Two domain experts confirmed 185 (among 223) suggested missing IS-A relations, a precision of 82.96%. Our results demonstrate that analyzing the lexical features of concepts in non-lattice subgraphs is an effective approach for auditing SNOMED CT. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  5. Designing Inclusive Systems Designing Inclusion for Real-world Applications

    CERN Document Server

    Clarkson, John; Robinson, Peter; Lazar, Jonathan; Heylighen, Ann

    2012-01-01

    The Cambridge Workshops on Universal Access and Assistive Technology (CWUAAT) are a series of workshops held at a Cambridge University College every two years. The workshop theme: “Designing inclusion for real-world applications” refers to the emerging potential and relevance of the latest generations of inclusive design thinking, tools, techniques, and data, to mainstream project applications such as healthcare and the design of working environments. Inclusive Design Research involves developing tools and guidance enabling product designers to design for the widest possible population, for a given range of capabilities. There are five main themes: •Designing for the Real-World •Measuring Demand And Capabilities •Designing Cognitive Interaction with Emerging Technologies •Design for Inclusion •Designing Inclusive Architecture In the tradition of CWUAAT, we have solicited and accepted contributions over a wide range of topics, both within individual themes and also across the workshop’s scope. ...

  6. Analysis hierarchical model for discrete event systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ciortea, E. M.

    2015-11-01

    The This paper presents the hierarchical model based on discrete event network for robotic systems. Based on the hierarchical approach, Petri network is analysed as a network of the highest conceptual level and the lowest level of local control. For modelling and control of complex robotic systems using extended Petri nets. Such a system is structured, controlled and analysed in this paper by using Visual Object Net ++ package that is relatively simple and easy to use, and the results are shown as representations easy to interpret. The hierarchical structure of the robotic system is implemented on computers analysed using specialized programs. Implementation of hierarchical model discrete event systems, as a real-time operating system on a computer network connected via a serial bus is possible, where each computer is dedicated to local and Petri model of a subsystem global robotic system. Since Petri models are simplified to apply general computers, analysis, modelling, complex manufacturing systems control can be achieved using Petri nets. Discrete event systems is a pragmatic tool for modelling industrial systems. For system modelling using Petri nets because we have our system where discrete event. To highlight the auxiliary time Petri model using transport stream divided into hierarchical levels and sections are analysed successively. Proposed robotic system simulation using timed Petri, offers the opportunity to view the robotic time. Application of goods or robotic and transmission times obtained by measuring spot is obtained graphics showing the average time for transport activity, using the parameters sets of finished products. individually.

  7. Hierarchical effects on target detection and conflict monitoring

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cao, Bihua; Gao, Feng; Ren, Maofang; Li, Fuhong

    2016-01-01

    Previous neuroimaging studies have demonstrated a hierarchical functional structure of the frontal cortices of the human brain, but the temporal course and the electrophysiological signature of the hierarchical representation remains unaddressed. In the present study, twenty-one volunteers were asked to perform a nested cue-target task, while their scalp potentials were recorded. The results showed that: (1) in comparison with the lower-level hierarchical targets, the higher-level targets elicited a larger N2 component (220–350 ms) at the frontal sites, and a smaller P3 component (350–500 ms) across the frontal and parietal sites; (2) conflict-related negativity (non-target minus target) was greater for the lower-level hierarchy than the higher-level, reflecting a more intensive process of conflict monitoring at the final step of target detection. These results imply that decision making, context updating, and conflict monitoring differ among different hierarchical levels of abstraction. PMID:27561989

  8. Programming with Hierarchical Maps

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ørbæk, Peter

    This report desribes the hierarchical maps used as a central data structure in the Corundum framework. We describe its most prominent features, ague for its usefulness and briefly describe some of the software prototypes implemented using the technology....

  9. Conditions Supporting the Inclusion of Children and Teenagers with Physical Disabilities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lelgemann, Reinhard; Singer, Philipp; Walter-Klose, Christian; Lubbeke, Jelena

    2012-01-01

    The article presents the main results of a 2 year research project on appropriate conditions for the inclusion of physically and multiple disabled pupils in German schools. The research project consists of three parts: A synthesis of all national and international empirical studies published during the last 40 years (Walter-Klose, 2012), 84…

  10. ASPECTS OF MOTOR DEVELOPMENT IN CHILDREN WITH CEREBRAL PALSY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Erna Žgur

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Child’s motor development is not an isolated process but it rather involves numerous other developmental aspects, such as cognitive and conative. The research is focused on defining the developmental principles of motor abilities and skills in children with prominent motor deficits who were diagnosed with cerebral palsy (CP. The research compares the motor maturity between two groups of children with CP; the younger group (up to 10 years of age and the older group (10 – 16 years of age. The research included 78 primary school children with different forms of CP (diplegia, hemiplegia, mixed forms, aged between 6 and 16. The discriminant analysis used in the research showed that there is a statistically significant relationship between age and motor maturity in children with CP. The structural matrix confirmed the different hierarchical representation of the motor components (strength, coordination, precision and graphomotor skills for the selected motor model, in relation to children’s age. The function of explosive strength showed significant differences between younger and older children as regards their motor maturity. We can conclude that there is a significant developmental difference between the groups of younger and older children with CP, in relation to their motor maturity (different hierarchical representation, with the most obvious difference in motor ability of explosive strength.

  11. Attitudes of Parents towards Inclusive Education: A Review of the Literature

    Science.gov (United States)

    de Boer, Anke; Pijl, Sip Jan; Minnaert, Alexander

    2010-01-01

    The aim of this study is to review literature about parents' attitudes towards inclusive education. Special attention is paid to parents' attitudes and to the effect of these on the social participation of children with special needs in regular schools. A review of the literature resulted in 10 studies showing that the majority of parents hold…

  12. Pre-service teachers' beliefs about inclusive education in the Netherlands: An exploratory study

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Civitillo, S.; Moor, J.M.H. de; Vervloed, M.P.J.

    2016-01-01

    Teachers' beliefs are crucial to the success of inclusion programmes and reform efforts for children with special educational needs (SEN). Based on this evidence, one hundred and thirty-nine primary pre-service teachers from one training institution in the Netherlands completed an adapted version of

  13. Hierarchical Porous Structures

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Grote, Christopher John [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

    2016-06-07

    Materials Design is often at the forefront of technological innovation. While there has always been a push to generate increasingly low density materials, such as aero or hydrogels, more recently the idea of bicontinuous structures has gone more into play. This review will cover some of the methods and applications for generating both porous, and hierarchically porous structures.

  14. Analyzing security protocols in hierarchical networks

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zhang, Ye; Nielson, Hanne Riis

    2006-01-01

    Validating security protocols is a well-known hard problem even in a simple setting of a single global network. But a real network often consists of, besides the public-accessed part, several sub-networks and thereby forms a hierarchical structure. In this paper we first present a process calculus...... capturing the characteristics of hierarchical networks and describe the behavior of protocols on such networks. We then develop a static analysis to automate the validation. Finally we demonstrate how the technique can benefit the protocol development and the design of network systems by presenting a series...

  15. Hierarchical Analysis of the Omega Ontology

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Joslyn, Cliff A.; Paulson, Patrick R.

    2009-12-01

    Initial delivery for mathematical analysis of the Omega Ontology. We provide an analysis of the hierarchical structure of a version of the Omega Ontology currently in use within the US Government. After providing an initial statistical analysis of the distribution of all link types in the ontology, we then provide a detailed order theoretical analysis of each of the four main hierarchical links present. This order theoretical analysis includes the distribution of components and their properties, their parent/child and multiple inheritance structure, and the distribution of their vertical ranks.

  16. Classroom acoustics as a consideration for inclusive education in South Africa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van Reenen, Coralie; Karusseit, Catherine

    2017-09-08

    It can hardly be disputed that a school environment should be conducive or, at the very least, not prohibitive to effective learning. The provision of fair, equal and barrier-free access to education is referred to as inclusive education. South Africa supports a policy of inclusive schooling, striving to accommodate all children, including those with disabilities, in mainstream schools. This article sets out to prove that noise control in classrooms is a relevant, yet neglected, aspect of inclusive classroom design in South Africa and requires specific attention. The objectives of this study are to: (1) establish the impact that noise has on learners with sensory, language or learning impairments; (2) establish the preferred listening conditions for these learners by examining prior research and guidelines available in other countries; and (3) outline the current South African regulations pertaining to classroom acoustics and assess them against the preferred listening environment. This research was conducted as a systematic review with reference to the South African context. Local and international research and guidelines were used as references, providing an overview and evaluation of data concerning noise and learning. Noise is disadvantageous for learners, particularly those with sensory, language or learning impairments. Research and international guidelines show that the ideal ambient level is 30 dBA - 35 dBA, allowing the achievement of an ideal signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of +15 dB, and the ideal reverberation time is 0.4 s - 0.6 s. Various South African regulations discussed are inconsistent regarding ambient noise level (ranging from 35 dBA - 50 dBA) and say little about reverberation time for classrooms. South African regulations regarding classroom acoustics require revision to ensure inclusion of all learners with disabilities. The current status does not enforce barrier-free environments in mainstream schools for children with sensory, language or

  17. Role Perceptions of School Administration Team Members Concerning Inclusion of Children with Disabilities in Elementary General Schools in Israel

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shani, Michal; Koss, Cathie

    2015-01-01

    In an ideal school, where inclusion is implemented successfully, staff members collaborate and create an inclusive environment in their schools. In order to achieve such a sustainable environment of inclusion, pedagogical, organisational and psychological restructuring should occur, and a strong inclusion-oriented leadership has to be activated.…

  18. Hierarchical composites: Analysis of damage evolution based on fiber bundle model

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mishnaevsky, Leon

    2011-01-01

    A computational model of multiscale composites is developed on the basis of the fiber bundle model with the hierarchical load sharing rule, and employed to study the effect of the microstructures of hierarchical composites on their damage resistance. Two types of hierarchical materials were consi...

  19. Hierarchical cellular designs for load-bearing biocomposite beams and plates

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Burgueno, Rigoberto; Quagliata, Mario J.; Mohanty, Amar K.; Mehta, Geeta; Drzal, Lawrence T.; Misra, Manjusri

    2005-01-01

    Scrutiny into the composition of natural, or biological materials convincingly reveals that high material and structural efficiency can be attained, even with moderate-quality constituents, by hierarchical topologies, i.e., successively organized material levels or layers. The present study demonstrates that biologically inspired hierarchical designs can help improve the moderate properties of natural fiber polymer composites or biocomposites and allow them to compete with conventional materials for load-bearing applications. An overview of the mechanics concepts that allow hierarchical designs to achieve higher performance is presented, followed by observation and results from flexural tests on periodic and hierarchical cellular beams and plates made from industrial hemp fibers and unsaturated polyester resin biocomposites. The experimental data is shown to agree well with performance indices predicted by mechanics models. A procedure for the multi-scale integrated material/structural analysis of hierarchical cellular biocomposite components is presented and its advantages and limitations are discussed

  20. Thermal gradient brine inclusion migration in salt study: gas-liquid inclusions, preliminary model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Olander, D.R.; Machiels, A.J.

    1979-10-01

    Natural salt deposits contain small cubical inclusions of brine distributed through the salt. Temperature gradients, resulting from storing heat-generating wastes in the salt, can cause the inclusions to move through the salt. Prediction of the rate and amount of brine-inclusion migration is necessary for the evaluation of bedded or domed salts as possible media for waste repositories. Inclusions filled exclusively with liquid migrate up the temperature gradient towards the heat source. The solubility of salt in the brine inclusion increases with temperature. Consequently, salt dissolves into the inclusion across the hot surface and crystallizes out at the cold surface. Diffusion of salt within the liquid phase from the hot to the cold faces causes the inclusions to move in the opposite direction. In so doing, they change shape and eventually become rectangular parallelipipeds with a width (dimension perpendicular to the thermal gradient) much larger than the thickness (dimension in the direction of the thermal gradient). The inclusions may also contain a gas phase predominantly consisting of water vapor. These entities are termed two-phase or gas-liquid inclusions. The two-phase inclusions usually migrate down the temperature gradient away from the heat source remaining more-or-less cubical. A two-phase inclusion also forms when an all-liquid inclusion reaches the waste package; upon opening up at the salt-package interface, the brine partially evaporates and the inclusion reseals with some insoluble gas trapped inside. These gas-liquid inclusions proceed to move down the temperature gradient, in the opposite sense of the all-liquid inclusions. The gas-liquid inclusions phenomenon provides a pathway by which radionuclides leached from the wasteform by the brine can be transported away from the waste package and thus might have greater access to the biosphere

  1. Fabrication of Superhydrophobic Surface with Controlled Wetting Property by Hierarchical Particles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, Jianxiong; Liu, Weiwei; Du, Jingjing; Tang, Zengmin; Xu, Lijian; Li, Na

    2015-04-01

    Hierarchical particles were prepared by synthetically joining appropriately functionalized polystyrene spheres of poly[styrene-co-(3-(4-vinylphenyl)pentane-2,4-dione)] (PS-co-PVPD) nanoparticles and poly(styrene-co-chloromethylstyrene) (PS-co-PCMS) microparticles. The coupling reaction of nucleophilic substitution of pendent β-diketone groups with benzyl chloride was used to form the hierarchical particles. Since the polymeric nanoparticles and microparticles were synthesized by dispersion polymerization and emulsion polymerization, respectively, both the core microparticles and the surface nanoparticles can be different size and chemical composition. By means of changing the size of the PS-co-PVPD surface nanoparticles, a series of hierarchical particles with different scale ratio of the micro/nano surface structure were successfully prepared. Moreover, by employing the PS-co-PVPD microparticles and PS-co-PCMS nanoparticles as building blocks, hierarchical particles with surface nanoaprticles of different composition were made. These as-prepared hierarchical particles were subsequently assembled on glass substrates to form particulate films. Contact angle measurement shows that superhydrophobic surfaces can be obtained and the contact angle of water on the hierarchically structured surface can be adjusted by the scale ratio of the micro/nano surface structure and surface chemical component of hierarchical particles.

  2. Discursive Hierarchical Patterning in Law and Management Cases

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lung, Jane

    2008-01-01

    This paper investigates the differences in the discursive patterning of cases in Law and Management. It examines a corpus of 271 Law and Management cases and discusses the kind of information that these two disciplines call for and how discourses are constructed in discursive hierarchical patterns. A discursive hierarchical pattern is a model…

  3. Montessori and Non-Montessori Early Childhood Teachers' Attitudes toward Inclusion and Access

    Science.gov (United States)

    Danner, Natalie; Fowler, Susan A.

    2015-01-01

    Montessori and non-Montessori general education early childhood teachers were surveyed about their attitudes toward including children with disabilities and providing these students access to the curriculum. Both groups reported similar and positive system-wide supports for inclusion within their schools. Montessori teachers reported having less…

  4. Expanding Opportunities to Learn to Support Inclusive Education through Drama-Enhanced Literacy Practices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kilinc, Sultan; Farrand, Kathleen; Chapman, Kathryn; Kelley, Michael; Millinger, Jenny; Adams, Korbi

    2017-01-01

    This study examines how the Early Years Educators at Play (EYEPlay) professional development (PD) programme supported inclusive learning settings for all children, including English language learners and students with disabilities. The EYEPlay PD model is a year-long programme that integrates drama strategies into literacy practices within…

  5. Inclusive Education in Italy: Description and Reflections on Full Inclusion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anastasiou, Dimitris; Kauffman, James M.; Di Nuovo, Santo

    2015-01-01

    Inclusion of students with disabilities when appropriate is an important goal of special education for students with special needs. Full inclusion, meaning no education for any child in a separate setting, is held to be desirable by some, and Italy is likely the nation with an education system most closely approximating full inclusion on the…

  6. Hierarchical modularity in human brain functional networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    David Meunier

    2009-10-01

    Full Text Available The idea that complex systems have a hierarchical modular organization originates in the early 1960s and has recently attracted fresh support from quantitative studies of large scale, real-life networks. Here we investigate the hierarchical modular (or “modules-within-modules” decomposition of human brain functional networks, measured using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI in 18 healthy volunteers under no-task or resting conditions. We used a customized template to extract networks with more than 1800 regional nodes, and we applied a fast algorithm to identify nested modular structure at several hierarchical levels. We used mutual information, 0 < I < 1, to estimate the similarity of community structure of networks in different subjects, and to identify the individual network that is most representative of the group. Results show that human brain functional networks have a hierarchical modular organization with a fair degree of similarity between subjects, I=0.63. The largest 5 modules at the highest level of the hierarchy were medial occipital, lateral occipital, central, parieto-frontal and fronto-temporal systems; occipital modules demonstrated less sub-modular organization than modules comprising regions of multimodal association cortex. Connector nodes and hubs, with a key role in inter-modular connectivity, were also concentrated in association cortical areas. We conclude that methods are available for hierarchical modular decomposition of large numbers of high resolution brain functional networks using computationally expedient algorithms. This could enable future investigations of Simon's original hypothesis that hierarchy or near-decomposability of physical symbol systems is a critical design feature for their fast adaptivity to changing environmental conditions.

  7. Hierarchical Context Modeling for Video Event Recognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Xiaoyang; Ji, Qiang

    2016-10-11

    Current video event recognition research remains largely target-centered. For real-world surveillance videos, targetcentered event recognition faces great challenges due to large intra-class target variation, limited image resolution, and poor detection and tracking results. To mitigate these challenges, we introduced a context-augmented video event recognition approach. Specifically, we explicitly capture different types of contexts from three levels including image level, semantic level, and prior level. At the image level, we introduce two types of contextual features including the appearance context features and interaction context features to capture the appearance of context objects and their interactions with the target objects. At the semantic level, we propose a deep model based on deep Boltzmann machine to learn event object representations and their interactions. At the prior level, we utilize two types of prior-level contexts including scene priming and dynamic cueing. Finally, we introduce a hierarchical context model that systematically integrates the contextual information at different levels. Through the hierarchical context model, contexts at different levels jointly contribute to the event recognition. We evaluate the hierarchical context model for event recognition on benchmark surveillance video datasets. Results show that incorporating contexts in each level can improve event recognition performance, and jointly integrating three levels of contexts through our hierarchical model achieves the best performance.

  8. Listening and empowering crossing the social inclusion and the science in society agendas

    CERN Document Server

    Mignan, Vanessa; Rodari, Paola

    2015-01-01

    This book collects a series of papers originally published in JCOM, the Journal of Science Communication or presented at the PCST 2014 conference They are all related to the project “SiS Catalyst — Children as change agents for science in society”, funded within the framework of the FP7 Mobilisation and Mutual Learning actions. Some of these papers are more focused on case studies, others are more theoretical, but all of them relate to the main objective of the SiS Catalyst project: to cross science in society and social inclusion agendas, focusing on science communication activities that involve children. The collection of papers has been organised into three parts. The first is devoted to the importance of listening to young people in science communication activities. The second part delves deeper into the issue of social inclusion in science in society activities involving direct contact with audiences. The final part indicates some training and activity options that promote the value of child partic...

  9. Bayesian nonparametric hierarchical modeling.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dunson, David B

    2009-04-01

    In biomedical research, hierarchical models are very widely used to accommodate dependence in multivariate and longitudinal data and for borrowing of information across data from different sources. A primary concern in hierarchical modeling is sensitivity to parametric assumptions, such as linearity and normality of the random effects. Parametric assumptions on latent variable distributions can be challenging to check and are typically unwarranted, given available prior knowledge. This article reviews some recent developments in Bayesian nonparametric methods motivated by complex, multivariate and functional data collected in biomedical studies. The author provides a brief review of flexible parametric approaches relying on finite mixtures and latent class modeling. Dirichlet process mixture models are motivated by the need to generalize these approaches to avoid assuming a fixed finite number of classes. Focusing on an epidemiology application, the author illustrates the practical utility and potential of nonparametric Bayes methods.

  10. Hierarchical species distribution models

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hefley, Trevor J.; Hooten, Mevin B.

    2016-01-01

    Determining the distribution pattern of a species is important to increase scientific knowledge, inform management decisions, and conserve biodiversity. To infer spatial and temporal patterns, species distribution models have been developed for use with many sampling designs and types of data. Recently, it has been shown that count, presence-absence, and presence-only data can be conceptualized as arising from a point process distribution. Therefore, it is important to understand properties of the point process distribution. We examine how the hierarchical species distribution modeling framework has been used to incorporate a wide array of regression and theory-based components while accounting for the data collection process and making use of auxiliary information. The hierarchical modeling framework allows us to demonstrate how several commonly used species distribution models can be derived from the point process distribution, highlight areas of potential overlap between different models, and suggest areas where further research is needed.

  11. Hierarchical silica particles by dynamic multicomponent assembly

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wu, Z. W.; Hu, Q. Y.; Pang, J. B.

    2005-01-01

    Abstract: Aerosol-assisted assembly of mesoporous silica particles with hierarchically controllable pore structure has been prepared using cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and poly(propylene oxide) (PPO, H[OCH(CH3)CH2],OH) as co-templates. Addition of the hydrophobic PPO significantly...... influences the delicate hydrophilic-hydrophobic balance in the well-studied CTAB-silicate co-assembling system, resulting in various mesostructures (such as hexagonal, lamellar, and hierarchical structure). The co-assembly of CTAB, silicate clusters, and a low-molecular-weight PPO (average M-n 425) results...... in a uniform lamellar structure, while the use of a high-molecular-weight PPO (average M-n 2000), which is more hydrophobic, leads to the formation of hierarchical pore structure that contains meso-meso or meso-macro pore structure. The role of PPO additives on the mesostructure evolution in the CTAB...

  12. A training and development project to improve services and opportunities for social inclusion for children and young people with autism in Romania.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pasco, Greg; Clark, Bruce; Dragan, Ioana; Kalambayi, Fidelie; Slonims, Vicky; Tarpan, Adelaide Katerine; Wittemeyer, Kerstin

    2014-10-01

    In 2010, the Romanian Angel Appeal Foundation launched a 3-year national training and development programme to develop and deliver a model of diagnostic and therapeutic services aimed at promoting social inclusion for children and young people with autism spectrum disorders. The project adopted a number of strategies aimed at developing knowledge and skills among professionals and increasing awareness in political and public spheres: (a) a three-stage training programme designed to increase knowledge of autism spectrum disorders and promote best practice among professionals working in services providing for children with autism spectrum disorders and their families, on a nationwide basis; (b) two online courses for general practitioners and psychiatrists, with content relating to the identification, diagnosis and treatment of autism spectrum disorders; (c) a total of 40 counselling and assistance centres for people with autism spectrum disorders were launched in partnership with local authorities; (d) a national strategy for social and professional integration of people with autism spectrum disorders developed through consultation with political, statutory and voluntary sector partners; and (e) a nationwide media campaign to raise awareness of the needs of children and young people with autism spectrum disorders that reached over eight million people. The project provides a transferable model to achieve important improvements in the quantity and quality of services on a national level within a brief time frame. © The Author(s) 2014.

  13. Supporting Disability Education through a Combination of Special Schools and Disability-Inclusive Schools in the Pacific Islands

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tones, Megan; Pillay, Hitendra; Carrington, Suzanne; Chandra, Subhas; Duke, Jennifer; Joseph, Rukh Mani

    2017-01-01

    This article reports on a multi-method study of the ways in which special and mainstream schools support the educational needs of children with disabilities in Fiji. The aims of the study were: (1) to identify capacity and functions of special schools to support inclusive mainstream schools for children with disabilities; and (2) to explore the…

  14. Assessment of Differential Item Functioning in Health-Related Outcomes: A Simulation and Empirical Analysis with Hierarchical Polytomous Data

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zahra Sharafi

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Background. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of two methods of detecting differential item functioning (DIF in the presence of multilevel data and polytomously scored items. The assessment of DIF with multilevel data (e.g., patients nested within hospitals, hospitals nested within districts from large-scale assessment programs has received considerable attention but very few studies evaluated the effect of hierarchical structure of data on DIF detection for polytomously scored items. Methods. The ordinal logistic regression (OLR and hierarchical ordinal logistic regression (HOLR were utilized to assess DIF in simulated and real multilevel polytomous data. Six factors (DIF magnitude, grouping variable, intraclass correlation coefficient, number of clusters, number of participants per cluster, and item discrimination parameter with a fully crossed design were considered in the simulation study. Furthermore, data of Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory™ (PedsQL™ 4.0 collected from 576 healthy school children were analyzed. Results. Overall, results indicate that both methods performed equivalently in terms of controlling Type I error and detection power rates. Conclusions. The current study showed negligible difference between OLR and HOLR in detecting DIF with polytomously scored items in a hierarchical structure. Implications and considerations while analyzing real data were also discussed.

  15. Delimiting Inclusive Design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Herriott, Richard

    2014-01-01

    This paper was written as an answer to the question raised by my PhD dissertation on accessibility through user-centred and Inclusive Design (ID) methods: can Inclusive Design be delimited? The literature on Inclusive Design deals almost entrirely with consumer product design and assistive...

  16. Hierarchical classification with a competitive evolutionary neural tree.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Adams, R G.; Butchart, K; Davey, N

    1999-04-01

    A new, dynamic, tree structured network, the Competitive Evolutionary Neural Tree (CENT) is introduced. The network is able to provide a hierarchical classification of unlabelled data sets. The main advantage that the CENT offers over other hierarchical competitive networks is its ability to self determine the number, and structure, of the competitive nodes in the network, without the need for externally set parameters. The network produces stable classificatory structures by halting its growth using locally calculated heuristics. The results of network simulations are presented over a range of data sets, including Anderson's IRIS data set. The CENT network demonstrates its ability to produce a representative hierarchical structure to classify a broad range of data sets.

  17. Learning and digital inclusion: the ELAMP project

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kate D'Arcy

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available The Electronic Learning and Mobility Project (ELAMP was a nationally funded project by the Department for Children, Schools and Families, which ran from 2004 to 2010. The main aim of ELAMP was to improve the education of Traveller children, particularly highly mobile learners. ELAMP focussed upon the use of mobile technology and distance learning to support, enhance and extend young Travellers’ educational and vocational opportunities. This article will reflect upon the learning and technological experiences and opportunities that the ELAMP project provided for Traveller children, young people and their families. In doing so it will critically consider the value of information technology in working with Traveller communities and advancing their educational opportunities. Reviewing ELAMP work will also demonstrate how the use of mobile technology can improve educational outcomes and Traveller families’ digital inclusion. Now that the project has ended, this article will question why we are not using what we learnt from ELAMP to move forward. The author was a tutor on the project who also evaluated the Strand B, Wider Key Skills element of ELAMP for The University of Sheffield between 2008 and 2010, which is the main focus of this particular article.

  18. Social imaginaries and inclusion

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hansen, Janne Hedegaard

    2016-01-01

    that inclusion on the one hand may be seen to be about human rights, solidarity, and democracy, and on the other hand, it is about ensuring the cohesion of neoliberal society by means of every person’s obligation to realize one’s potential through learning, development, and education regardless of one’s needs......, the development of inclusive schools and inclusive learning environments will involve both inclusion and exclusion processes. With this starting point, international educational research knowledge about inclusive schools and inclusive learning environments in general will be related to the fundamental dilemma...

  19. Direct hierarchical assembly of nanoparticles

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, Ting; Zhao, Yue; Thorkelsson, Kari

    2014-07-22

    The present invention provides hierarchical assemblies of a block copolymer, a bifunctional linking compound and a nanoparticle. The block copolymers form one micro-domain and the nanoparticles another micro-domain.

  20. Band structures of two dimensional solid/air hierarchical phononic crystals

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Xu, Y.L.; Tian, X.G. [State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Structure Strength and Vibration, Xi' an Jiaotong University, Xi' an 710049 (China); Chen, C.Q., E-mail: chencq@tsinghua.edu.cn [Department of Engineering Mechanics, AML and CNMM, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084 (China)

    2012-06-15

    The hierarchical phononic crystals to be considered show a two-order 'hierarchical' feature, which consists of square array arranged macroscopic periodic unit cells with each unit cell itself including four sub-units. Propagation of acoustic wave in such two dimensional solid/air phononic crystals is investigated by the finite element method (FEM) with the Bloch theory. Their band structure, wave filtering property, and the physical mechanism responsible for the broadened band gap are explored. The corresponding ordinary phononic crystal without hierarchical feature is used for comparison. Obtained results show that the solid/air hierarchical phononic crystals possess tunable outstanding band gap features, which are favorable for applications such as sound insulation and vibration attenuation.

  1. Debating Inclusion in Synecdoche, New York: A Response to Gresham and MacMillan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ferguson, Dianne L.; Ferguson, Philip M.

    1997-01-01

    A comprehensive review of the debate over the inclusion of children with disabilities in educational programs needs to explore research and issues beyond those considered by F. Gresham and D. MacMillan. Some of those issues are reviewed, focusing on a shift away from the medical deficit model. (SLD)

  2. Impact of Single-Case Pupil Descriptions on Student Teacher Attitudes towards Inclusive Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Röhm, Alexander; Schnöring, Annika; Hastall, Matthias R.

    2018-01-01

    Institutional and individual stigmatization are still major barriers for children with disabilities to access education. Teacher attitudes towards inclusive education play a crucial role in this regard, and are shaped by single-case descriptions from mass media or other sources. Building on exemplification theory and priming, two experiments with…

  3. Mediators of the Risk for Problem Behavior in Children with Language Learning Disabilities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vallance, Denise D.; Cummings, Richard L.; Humphries, Tom

    1998-01-01

    The independent and relative influences of social discourse and social skills on problem behaviors were examined in 50 children with language learning disabilities (LLD) and 50 control children. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that both impaired social discourse skills and poor social skills accounted for the negative effects of LLD on…

  4. Children's Context Inappropriate Anger and Salivary Cortisol

    Science.gov (United States)

    Locke, Robin L.; Davidson, Richard J.; Kalin, Ned H.; Goldsmith, H. Hill

    2009-01-01

    Some children show emotion that is not consistent with normative appraisal of the context and can therefore be defined as context inappropriate (CI). The authors used individual growth curve modeling and hierarchical multiple regression analyses to examine whether CI anger predicts differences in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity, as…

  5. Nearly Cyclic Pursuit and its Hierarchical variant for Multi-agent Systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Iqbal, Muhammad; Leth, John-Josef; Ngo, Trung Dung

    2015-01-01

    The rendezvous problem for multiple agents under nearly cyclic pursuit and hierarchical nearly cyclic pursuit is discussed in this paper. The control law designed under nearly cyclic pursuit strategy enables the agents to converge at a point dictated by a beacon. A hierarchical version of the nea......The rendezvous problem for multiple agents under nearly cyclic pursuit and hierarchical nearly cyclic pursuit is discussed in this paper. The control law designed under nearly cyclic pursuit strategy enables the agents to converge at a point dictated by a beacon. A hierarchical version...

  6. Mathematics learning on geometry for children with autism

    Science.gov (United States)

    Widayati, F. E.; Usodo, B.; Pamudya, I.

    2017-12-01

    The purpose of this research is to describe: (1) the mathematics learning process in an inclusion class and (2) the obstacle during the process of mathematics learning in the inclusion class. This research is a descriptive qualitative research. The subjects were a mathematics teacher, children with autism, and a teacher assistant. Method of collecting data was observation and interview. Data validation technique is triangulation technique. The results of this research are : (1) There is a modification of lesson plan for children with autism. This modification such as the indicator of success, material, time, and assessment. Lesson plan for children with autism is arranged by mathematics teacher and teacher assistant. There is no special media for children with autism used by mathematics teacher. (2) The obstacle of children with autism is that they are difficult to understand mathematics concept. Besides, children with autism are easy to lose their focus.

  7. Automatic Hierarchical Color Image Classification

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jing Huang

    2003-02-01

    Full Text Available Organizing images into semantic categories can be extremely useful for content-based image retrieval and image annotation. Grouping images into semantic classes is a difficult problem, however. Image classification attempts to solve this hard problem by using low-level image features. In this paper, we propose a method for hierarchical classification of images via supervised learning. This scheme relies on using a good low-level feature and subsequently performing feature-space reconfiguration using singular value decomposition to reduce noise and dimensionality. We use the training data to obtain a hierarchical classification tree that can be used to categorize new images. Our experimental results suggest that this scheme not only performs better than standard nearest-neighbor techniques, but also has both storage and computational advantages.

  8. Association between prolonged breast-feeding and early childhood caries: a hierarchical approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nunes, Ana Margarida Melo; Alves, Claudia Maria Coelho; Borba de Araújo, Fernando; Ortiz, Tânia Mara Lopes; Ribeiro, Marizélia Rodrigues Costa; Silva, Antônio Augusto Moura da; Ribeiro, Cecília Claudia Costa

    2012-12-01

    This study was conducted to investigate the association between prolonged breastfeeding and early childhood caries(ECC) with adjustment for important confounders, using hieraschical approach. This retrospective cohort study involved 260 low-income children (18-42 months). The number of decayed teeth was used as a measure of caries. Following a theoretical framework, the hierarchical model was built in a forward fashion, by adding the following levels in succession: level 1: age; level 2: social variables; level 3: health variables; level 4: behavioral variables; level 5: oral hygiene-related variables; level 6: oral hygiene quality measured by visible plaque; and level 7: contamination by mutans streptococci. Sequential forward multiple Poisson regression analysis was employed. Breast-feeding was not a risk factor for ECC after adjustment for some confounders (incidence density ratio, 1.15; 95% confidence interval, 0.84-1.59, P = 0.363). Prolonged breast-feeding was not a risk factor for ECC while age, high sucrose comption between main meals and the quality of oral higiene were associated with disease in children. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

  9. A study of personality in children aged 8-12 years: Comparing self- and partents' ratings

    OpenAIRE

    Quartier, V.; Rossier, J.

    2008-01-01

    This study was designed to investigate personality development with children aged 8 to 12. For this purpose, Children's self-perceptions were compared to parent's ratings. 506 children and their parents completed a selection of 38 questions from the Hierarchical Personality Inventory for Children (HiPIC). Results showed an age-related increase in the structural congruence of children's ratings compared to parents' ratings and a highly significant increase in the reliabilities of both parents'...

  10. Inclusive design in the implementation of projects for schools modernization in Portugal - case studies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lopes, Lígia; Aguiar, Carlos; da Silva, Fernando Moreira

    2012-01-01

    The Project for Schools Modernization taking place in Portugal, with an estimated total investment of 2450 million for the intervention in the first 205 schools, provide the reclassification of 332 secondary schools by 2015. One of the questions we can pose is if the authorities and the teams of architects selected to design these schools considered fundamental for the correctness of architectural barriers within the school and its accessibility the implementation of standards and principles of inclusion of children/teenagers with special needs within their school environment. As most of the projects are already being implemented, the main aim of this paper is to present the outcomes of a comparative analysis and synthesis of six schools located in the northern part of the country. This analysis occurs from the of Participatory Design perspective which appeals to the experience of the disable children to look (or evaluate) the negative and positive factors in terms of physical space, interpreted by inclusive design rules and orientations. Therefore, the evaluation of schools modernization project, and its discussion, is central for the understanding how these children are addressed in projects which are directed at them.

  11. Hierarchical clustering using correlation metric and spatial continuity constraint

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stork, Christopher L.; Brewer, Luke N.

    2012-10-02

    Large data sets are analyzed by hierarchical clustering using correlation as a similarity measure. This provides results that are superior to those obtained using a Euclidean distance similarity measure. A spatial continuity constraint may be applied in hierarchical clustering analysis of images.

  12. Phenotypic variability within the inclusion body spectrum of basophilic inclusion body disease and neuronal intermediate filament inclusion disease in frontotemporal lobar degenerations with FUS-positive inclusions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gelpi, Ellen; Lladó, Albert; Clarimón, Jordi; Rey, Maria Jesús; Rivera, Rosa Maria; Ezquerra, Mario; Antonell, Anna; Navarro-Otano, Judith; Ribalta, Teresa; Piñol-Ripoll, Gerard; Pérez, Anna; Valldeoriola, Francesc; Ferrer, Isidre

    2012-09-01

    Basophilic inclusion body disease and neuronal intermediate filament inclusion disease (NIFID) are rare diseases included among frontotemporal lobar degenerations with FUS-positive inclusions (FTLD-FUS). We report clinical and pathologic features of 2 new patients and reevaluate neuropathologic characteristics of 2 previously described cases, including an early-onset case of basophilic inclusion body disease (aged 38 years) with a 5-year disease course and abundant FUS-positive inclusion bodies and 3 NIFID cases. One NIFID case (aged 37 years) presented with early-onset psychiatric disturbances and rapidly progressive cognitive decline. Two NIFID cases had later onset (aged 64 years and 70 years) and complex neurologic deficits. Postmortem neuropathologic studies in late-onset NIFID cases disclosed α-internexin-positive "hyaline conglomerate"-type inclusions that were positive with 1 commercial anti-FUS antibody directed to residues 200 and 250, but these were negative to amino acids 90 and 220 of human FUS. Early-onset NIFID had similar inclusions that were positive with both commercial anti-FUS antibodies. Genetic testing performed on all cases revealed no FUS gene mutations. These findings indicate that phenotypic variability in NIFID, including clinical manifestations and particular neuropathologic findings, may be related to the age at onset and individual differences in the evolution of lesions.

  13. Static and dynamic friction of hierarchical surfaces.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Costagliola, Gianluca; Bosia, Federico; Pugno, Nicola M

    2016-12-01

    Hierarchical structures are very common in nature, but only recently have they been systematically studied in materials science, in order to understand the specific effects they can have on the mechanical properties of various systems. Structural hierarchy provides a way to tune and optimize macroscopic mechanical properties starting from simple base constituents and new materials are nowadays designed exploiting this possibility. This can be true also in the field of tribology. In this paper we study the effect of hierarchical patterned surfaces on the static and dynamic friction coefficients of an elastic material. Our results are obtained by means of numerical simulations using a one-dimensional spring-block model, which has previously been used to investigate various aspects of friction. Despite the simplicity of the model, we highlight some possible mechanisms that explain how hierarchical structures can significantly modify the friction coefficients of a material, providing a means to achieve tunability.

  14. Hierarchical Bayesian Modeling of Fluid-Induced Seismicity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Broccardo, M.; Mignan, A.; Wiemer, S.; Stojadinovic, B.; Giardini, D.

    2017-11-01

    In this study, we present a Bayesian hierarchical framework to model fluid-induced seismicity. The framework is based on a nonhomogeneous Poisson process with a fluid-induced seismicity rate proportional to the rate of injected fluid. The fluid-induced seismicity rate model depends upon a set of physically meaningful parameters and has been validated for six fluid-induced case studies. In line with the vision of hierarchical Bayesian modeling, the rate parameters are considered as random variables. We develop both the Bayesian inference and updating rules, which are used to develop a probabilistic forecasting model. We tested the Basel 2006 fluid-induced seismic case study to prove that the hierarchical Bayesian model offers a suitable framework to coherently encode both epistemic uncertainty and aleatory variability. Moreover, it provides a robust and consistent short-term seismic forecasting model suitable for online risk quantification and mitigation.

  15. Deep hierarchical attention network for video description

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Shuohao; Tang, Min; Zhang, Jun

    2018-03-01

    Pairing video to natural language description remains a challenge in computer vision and machine translation. Inspired by image description, which uses an encoder-decoder model for reducing visual scene into a single sentence, we propose a deep hierarchical attention network for video description. The proposed model uses convolutional neural network (CNN) and bidirectional LSTM network as encoders while a hierarchical attention network is used as the decoder. Compared to encoder-decoder models used in video description, the bidirectional LSTM network can capture the temporal structure among video frames. Moreover, the hierarchical attention network has an advantage over single-layer attention network on global context modeling. To make a fair comparison with other methods, we evaluate the proposed architecture with different types of CNN structures and decoders. Experimental results on the standard datasets show that our model has a more superior performance than the state-of-the-art techniques.

  16. The Self-Efficacy of Primary Teachers in Supporting the Inclusion of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anglim, Johanna; Prendeville, Paula; Kinsella, William

    2018-01-01

    In the context of a trend towards inclusive practice in Irish primary schools, many teachers feel ill-equipped to cope with this new challenge. Scope exists within the Irish education system to transform mainstream schools into autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) friendly environments. Research into teacher perceptions of inclusion has found that…

  17. Hierarchical Sets: Analyzing Pangenome Structure through Scalable Set Visualizations

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pedersen, Thomas Lin

    2017-01-01

    of hierarchical sets by applying it to a pangenome based on 113 Escherichia and Shigella genomes and find it provides a powerful addition to pangenome analysis. The described clustering algorithm and visualizations are implemented in the hierarchicalSets R package available from CRAN (https...

  18. Multimodal Instruction in Pre-Kindergarten: An Introduction to an Inclusive Early Language Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    Regalla, Michele; Peker, Hilal

    2016-01-01

    During the 2013-2014 school year, a charter school in Central Florida (which will be given the pseudonym "The Unity School") known for its practice of full inclusion launched an unconventional project. The Unity School, which serves children from preschool through grade five, began offering foreign language to all pre-kindergarten…

  19. Factors Related to Pre-Service Teachers' Attitudes towards Inclusion: A Case for Zambia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muwana, Florence Chuzu; Ostrosky, Michaelene M.

    2014-01-01

    Inclusive education has become a global trend in the provision of services for students with disabilities. In Zambia and other developing nations, international initiatives from UNESCO and other nongovernmental organisations have contributed to the consensus that all children have a right to a free and appropriate education and that all students…

  20. Pre-service Teachers' Beliefs about Inclusive Education in the Netherlands: In Exploratory Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Civitillo, Sauro; De Moor, Jan M. H.; Vervloed, Mathijs P. J.

    2016-01-01

    Teachers' beliefs are crucial to the success of inclusion programmes and reform efforts for children with special educational needs (SEN). Based on this evidence, one hundred and thirty-nine primary pre-service teachers from one training institution in the Netherlands completed an adapted version of a measure of beliefs towards inclusive…

  1. What are hierarchical models and how do we analyze them?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Royle, Andy

    2016-01-01

    In this chapter we provide a basic definition of hierarchical models and introduce the two canonical hierarchical models in this book: site occupancy and N-mixture models. The former is a hierarchical extension of logistic regression and the latter is a hierarchical extension of Poisson regression. We introduce basic concepts of probability modeling and statistical inference including likelihood and Bayesian perspectives. We go through the mechanics of maximizing the likelihood and characterizing the posterior distribution by Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods. We give a general perspective on topics such as model selection and assessment of model fit, although we demonstrate these topics in practice in later chapters (especially Chapters 5, 6, 7, and 10 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 10)

  2. Facile synthesis and photocatalytic activity of zinc oxide hierarchical microcrystals

    KAUST Repository

    Xu, Xinjiang

    2013-04-04

    ZnO microcrystals with hierarchical structure have been synthesized by a simple solvothermal approach. The microcrystals were studied by means of X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. Research on the formation mechanism of the hierarchical microstructure shows that the coordination solvent and precursor concentration have considerable influence on the size and morphology of the microstructures. A possible formation mechanism of the hierarchical structure was suggested. Furthermore, the catalytic activity of the ZnO microcrystals was studied by treating low concentration Rhodamine B (RhB) solution under UV light, and research results show the hierarchical microstructures of ZnO display high catalytic activity in photocatalysis, the catalysis process follows first-order reaction kinetics, and the apparent rate constant k = 0.03195 min-1.

  3. Mathematics Achievement by Immigrant Children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gary G. Huang

    2000-05-01

    Full Text Available In this study, I examined academic achievement of immigrant children in the United States, Canada, England, Australia, and New Zealand. Analyzing data from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS, I gauged the performance gaps relating to the generation of immigration and the home language background. I found immigrant children's math and science achievement to be lower than the others only in England, the U.S., and Canada. Non-English language background was found in each country to relate to poor math and science learning and this disadvantage was stronger among native-born children—presumably children of indigenous groups—than among immigrant children. I also examined the school variation in math performance gaps, using hierarchical linear modeling (HLM to each country's data. The patterns in which language- and generation-related math achievement gaps varied between schools are different in the five countries.

  4. Inclusive education in Finland: present and future perspectives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moberg, S; Zumberg, M

    1994-12-01

    The movement to integrate special education students into normal school classes started to develop in Finland in the 1960s. At the same time, the number of students labeled "special" in the Finnish comprehensive school system exploded from 2% to 17% of all school children. Presently, 84% of all special education placements are part-time placements. Special schools and special classes comprise 15% of all special education placements, while full inclusion is only 1% of all special education placements. Some factors affecting the current integration of special students and the development of integration are discussed.

  5. Hierarchical decision making for flood risk reduction

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Custer, Rocco; Nishijima, Kazuyoshi

    2013-01-01

    . In current practice, structures are often optimized individually without considering benefits of having a hierarchy of protection structures. It is here argued, that the joint consideration of hierarchically integrated protection structures is beneficial. A hierarchical decision model is utilized to analyze...... and compare the benefit of large upstream protection structures and local downstream protection structures in regard to epistemic uncertainty parameters. Results suggest that epistemic uncertainty influences the outcome of the decision model and that, depending on the magnitude of epistemic uncertainty...

  6. Recognition in Programmes for Children with Special Needs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marjeta Šmid

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this article is to examine the factors that affect the inclusion of pupils in programmes for children with special needs from the perspective of the theory of recognition. The concept of recognition, which includes three aspects of social justice (economic, cultural and political, argues that the institutional arrangements that prevent ‘parity of participation’ in the school social life of the children with special needs are affected not only by economic distribution but also by the patterns of cultural values. A review of the literature shows that the arrangements of education of children with special needs are influenced primarily by the patterns of cultural values of capability and inferiority, as well as stereotypical images of children with special needs. Due to the significant emphasis on learning skills for academic knowledge and grades, less attention is dedicated to factors of recognition and representational character, making it impossible to improve some meaningful elements of inclusion. Any participation of pupils in activities, the voices of the children, visibility of the children due to achievements and the problems of arbitrariness in determining boundaries between programmes are some such elements. Moreover, aided by theories, the actions that could contribute to better inclusion are reviewed. An effective approach to changes would be the creation of transformative conditions for the recognition and balancing of redistribution, recognition, and representation.

  7. Ionothermal synthesis of hierarchical BiOBr microspheres for water treatment

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhang, Dieqing [The Education Ministry Key Lab of Resource Chemistry and Shanghai Key Laboratory of Rare Earth Functional Materials, Shanghai Normal University, 100 Guilin Road, Shanghai 200231 (China); Department of Chemistry and Institute of Environment, Energy and Sustainability, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong (China); Wen, Meicheng; Jiang, Bo; Li, Guisheng [The Education Ministry Key Lab of Resource Chemistry and Shanghai Key Laboratory of Rare Earth Functional Materials, Shanghai Normal University, 100 Guilin Road, Shanghai 200231 (China); Yu, Jimmy C., E-mail: jimyu@cuhk.edu.hk [Department of Chemistry and Institute of Environment, Energy and Sustainability, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong (China)

    2012-04-15

    Graphical abstract: Hierarchical BiOBr microspheres were prepared from a bromine-containing ionic liquid. The material was found effective for removing heavy metals, degrading organic pollutants and killing bacteria. Highlight: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Ionothermal synthesis of BiOBr microspheres with hierarchical structure. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Efficient mass transfer and excellent light-harvesting ability. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Suitable for removing heavy metals and treatment of organic dyes. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Remarkable photocatalytic bactericidal property. - Abstract: Bismuth oxybromide (BiOBr) micropsheres with hierarchical morphologies have been fabricated via an ionothermal synthesis route. Ionic liquid acts as a unique soft material capable of promoting nucleation and in situ growth of 3D hierarchical BiOBr mesocrystals without the help of surfactants. The as-prepared BiOBr nanomaterials can effectively remove heavy metal ions and organic dyes from wastewater. They can also kill Micrococcus lylae, a Gram positive bacterium, in water under fluorescent light irradiation. Their high adaptability in water treatment may be ascribed to their hierarchical structure, allowing them high surface to volume ratio, facile species transportation and excellent light-harvesting ability.

  8. Ionothermal synthesis of hierarchical BiOBr microspheres for water treatment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang, Dieqing; Wen, Meicheng; Jiang, Bo; Li, Guisheng; Yu, Jimmy C.

    2012-01-01

    Graphical abstract: Hierarchical BiOBr microspheres were prepared from a bromine-containing ionic liquid. The material was found effective for removing heavy metals, degrading organic pollutants and killing bacteria. Highlight: ► Ionothermal synthesis of BiOBr microspheres with hierarchical structure. ► Efficient mass transfer and excellent light-harvesting ability. ► Suitable for removing heavy metals and treatment of organic dyes. ► Remarkable photocatalytic bactericidal property. - Abstract: Bismuth oxybromide (BiOBr) micropsheres with hierarchical morphologies have been fabricated via an ionothermal synthesis route. Ionic liquid acts as a unique soft material capable of promoting nucleation and in situ growth of 3D hierarchical BiOBr mesocrystals without the help of surfactants. The as-prepared BiOBr nanomaterials can effectively remove heavy metal ions and organic dyes from wastewater. They can also kill Micrococcus lylae, a Gram positive bacterium, in water under fluorescent light irradiation. Their high adaptability in water treatment may be ascribed to their hierarchical structure, allowing them high surface to volume ratio, facile species transportation and excellent light-harvesting ability.

  9. BiOCl nanowire with hierarchical structure and its Raman features

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tian Ye; Guo Chuanfei; Guo Yanjun; Wang Qi; Liu Qian

    2012-01-01

    BiOCl is a promising V-VI-VII-compound semiconductor with excellent optical and electrical properties, and has great potential applications in photo-catalysis, photoelectric, etc. We successfully synthesize BiOCl nanowire with a hierarchical structure by combining wet etch (top-down) with liquid phase crystal growth (bottom-up) process, opening a novel method to construct ordered bismuth-based nanostructures. The morphology and lattice structures of Bi nanowires, β-Bi 2 O 3 nanowires and BiOCl nanowires with the hierarchical structure are investigated by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and transition electron microscope (TEM). The formation mechanism of such ordered BiOCl hierarchical structure is considered to mainly originate from the highly preferred growth, which is governed by the lattice match between (1 1 0) facet of BiOCl and (2 2 0) or (0 0 2) facet of β-Bi 2 O 3 . A schematic model is also illustrated to depict the formation process of the ordered BiOCl hierarchical structure. In addition, Raman properties of the BiOCl nanowire with the hierarchical structure are investigated deeply.

  10. On Utmost Multiplicity of Hierarchical Stellar Systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gebrehiwot Y. M.

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available According to theoretical considerations, multiplicity of hierarchical stellar systems can reach, depending on masses and orbital parameters, several hundred, while observational data confirm the existence of at most septuple (seven-component systems. In this study, we cross-match the stellar systems of very high multiplicity (six and more components in modern catalogues of visual double and multiple stars to find among them the candidates to hierarchical systems. After cross-matching the catalogues of closer binaries (eclipsing, spectroscopic, etc., some of their components were found to be binary/multiple themselves, what increases the system's degree of multiplicity. Optical pairs, known from literature or filtered by the authors, were flagged and excluded from the statistics. We compiled a list of hierarchical systems with potentially very high multiplicity that contains ten objects. Their multiplicity does not exceed 12, and we discuss a number of ways to explain the lack of extremely high multiplicity systems.

  11. Hierarchical capillary adhesion of microcantilevers or hairs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu Jianlin; Feng Xiqiao; Xia Re; Zhao Hongping

    2007-01-01

    As a result of capillary forces, animal hairs, carbon nanotubes or nanowires of a periodically or randomly distributed array often assemble into hierarchical structures. In this paper, the energy method is adopted to analyse the capillary adhesion of microsized hairs, which are modelled as clamped microcantilevers wetted by liquids. The critical conditions for capillary adhesion of two hairs, three hairs or two bundles of hairs are derived in terms of Young's contact angle, elastic modulus and geometric sizes of the beams. Then, the hierarchical capillary adhesion of hairs is addressed. It is found that for multiple hairs or microcantilevers, the system tends to take a hierarchical structure as a result of the minimization of the total potential energy of the system. The level number of structural hierarchy increases with the increase in the number of hairs if they are sufficiently long. Additionally, we performed experiments to verify our theoretical solutions for the adhesion of microbeams

  12. Advances in Applications of Hierarchical Bayesian Methods with Hydrological Models

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alexander, R. B.; Schwarz, G. E.; Boyer, E. W.

    2017-12-01

    Mechanistic and empirical watershed models are increasingly used to inform water resource decisions. Growing access to historical stream measurements and data from in-situ sensor technologies has increased the need for improved techniques for coupling models with hydrological measurements. Techniques that account for the intrinsic uncertainties of both models and measurements are especially needed. Hierarchical Bayesian methods provide an efficient modeling tool for quantifying model and prediction uncertainties, including those associated with measurements. Hierarchical methods can also be used to explore spatial and temporal variations in model parameters and uncertainties that are informed by hydrological measurements. We used hierarchical Bayesian methods to develop a hybrid (statistical-mechanistic) SPARROW (SPAtially Referenced Regression On Watershed attributes) model of long-term mean annual streamflow across diverse environmental and climatic drainages in 18 U.S. hydrological regions. Our application illustrates the use of a new generation of Bayesian methods that offer more advanced computational efficiencies than the prior generation. Evaluations of the effects of hierarchical (regional) variations in model coefficients and uncertainties on model accuracy indicates improved prediction accuracies (median of 10-50%) but primarily in humid eastern regions, where model uncertainties are one-third of those in arid western regions. Generally moderate regional variability is observed for most hierarchical coefficients. Accounting for measurement and structural uncertainties, using hierarchical state-space techniques, revealed the effects of spatially-heterogeneous, latent hydrological processes in the "localized" drainages between calibration sites; this improved model precision, with only minor changes in regional coefficients. Our study can inform advances in the use of hierarchical methods with hydrological models to improve their integration with stream

  13. A Hierarchical Dispatch Structure for Distribution Network Pricing

    OpenAIRE

    Yuan, Zhao; Hesamzadeh, Mohammad Reza

    2015-01-01

    This paper presents a hierarchical dispatch structure for efficient distribution network pricing. The dispatch coordination problem in the context of hierarchical network operators are addressed. We formulate decentralized generation dispatch into a bilevel optimization problem in which main network operator and the connected distribution network operator optimize their costs in two levels. By using Karush-Kuhn-Tucker conditions and Fortuny-Amat McCarl linearization, the bilevel optimization ...

  14. Cultural Perspective on Parenting, Trait Emotional Intelligence and Mental Health in Taiwanese Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Ching-Yu; Shen, April Chiung-Tao; Hsieh, Yi-Ping; Feng, Jui-Ying; Wei, Hsi-Sheng; Hwa, Hsiao-Lin; Feng, Joyce Yen

    2017-01-01

    The current study aims to clarify the associations as well as the pathways through which parenting and children's emotional intelligence (EI) may influence children's mental health with a cross-sectional sample of 675 school pupils (fourth grade, mean age = 10.4 years, 310 boy, 356 girls and 9 unidentified) in Taiwan. Hierarchical regression and…

  15. Hierarchical materials: Background and perspectives

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    2016-01-01

    Hierarchical design draws inspiration from analysis of biological materials and has opened new possibilities for enhancing performance and enabling new functionalities and extraordinary properties. With the development of nanotechnology, the necessary technological requirements for the manufactur...

  16. Hierarchical Planning Methodology for a Supply Chain Management

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Virna ORTIZ-ARAYA

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Hierarchical production planning is a widely utilized methodology for real world capacitated production planning systems with the aim of establishing different decision–making levels of the planning issues on the time horizon considered. This paper presents a hierarchical approach proposed to a company that produces reusable shopping bags in Chile and Perú, to determine the optimal allocation of resources at the tactical level as well as over the most immediate planning horizon to meet customer demands for the next weeks. Starting from an aggregated production planning model, the aggregated decisions are disaggregated into refined decisions in two levels, using a couple of optimization models that impose appropriate constraints to keep coherence of the plan on the production system. The main features of the hierarchical solution approach are presented.

  17. Inclusão escolar de crianças e adolescentes com paralisia cerebral: esta é uma realidade possível para todas elas em nossos dias? School inclusion of children and adolescents with cerebral palsy: is this possible for all of them in our days?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lúcia Helena C. dos Santos

    2011-09-01

    Full Text Available OBJETIVO: Descrever a distribuição escolar de um grupo de crianças e adolescentes com paralisia cerebral (PC e analisar o impacto da função motora grossa e outros déficits no processo de inclusão. MÉTODOS: Estudo prospectivo de pacientes do Ambulatório de Paralisia Cerebral da Universidade Federal do Paraná, avaliados em 2005. Pais ou cuidador completaram um questionário com dados relativos a: tipo de escola frequentada, dificuldades do aprendizado e necessidade de suporte psicopedagógico e fonoaudiológico. Os dados obtidos incluíram quem era o cuidador primário, seu nível de escolaridade e renda. As variáveis coletadas dos prontuários foram antecedentes perinatais e pós-natais, classificação topográfica da PC e função motora (Sistema de Classificação Motora Grossa - SCFMG, classificação da fala e presença de epilepsia. RESULTADOS: 105 crianças e adolescentes foram incluídos. A média de idade foi 10,8 anos, 61 (58% masculinos. Dentre as 105 crianças, 97 (92% frequentavam a escola, 36 (34% em classe regular, 7 (6,5% em classe especial e 54 (51% em escola especial. Crianças que frequentavam a escolar regular apresentavam predominantemente SCFMG nível I ou II, hemiplegia, epilepsia ausente ou com bom controle e fala normal ou disartria. Aqueles em escola especial eram crianças com SCFMG níveis III, IV e V, diplegia ou tetraplegia, epilepsia refratária e atraso na fala ou sua ausência. CONCLUSÕES: Até o momento, a inclusão de crianças com PC em escolas regulares parece trazer benefícios para aquelas com hemiplegia, nível I ou II do SCMFG, sem epilepsia e com fala normal.OBJECTIVE: To describe the school distribution of a group of children and adolescents with cerebral palsy (CP and to analyze the impact of gross motor function and other deficits in the inclusion process. METHODS: Prospective study of patients from de Outpatient Clinic for Cerebral Palsy of the Federal University of Paraná, Brazil, in

  18. Hierarchical Factoring Based On Image Analysis And Orthoblique Rotations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stankov, L

    1979-07-01

    The procedure for hierarchical factoring suggested by Schmid and Leiman (1957) is applied within the framework of image analysis and orthoblique rotational procedures. It is shown that this approach necessarily leads to correlated higher order factors. Also, one can obtain a smaller number of factors than produced by typical hierarchical procedures.

  19. Ultrafast Hierarchical OTDM/WDM Network

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hideyuki Sotobayashi

    2003-12-01

    Full Text Available Ultrafast hierarchical OTDM/WDM network is proposed for the future core-network. We review its enabling technologies: C- and L-wavelength-band generation, OTDM-WDM mutual multiplexing format conversions, and ultrafast OTDM wavelengthband conversions.

  20. Properties of the Narrative Scoring Scheme Using Narrative Retells in Young School-Age Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heilmann, John; Miller, Jon F.; Nockerts, Ann; Dunaway, Claudia

    2010-01-01

    Purpose: To evaluate the clinical utility of the narrative scoring scheme (NSS) as an index of narrative macrostructure for young school-age children. Method: Oral retells of a wordless picture book were elicited from 129 typically developing children, ages 5-7. A series of correlations and hierarchical regression equations were completed using…

  1. Fundamental motor skill proficiency is necessary for children's motor activity inclusion

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    José Angelo Barela

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available Motor development is influenced by many factors such as practice and appropriate instruction, provided by teachers, even in preschool and elementary school. The goal of this paper was to discuss the misconception that maturation underlies children's motor skill development and to show that physical education, even in early years of our school system, is critical to promote proficiency and enrolment of children's in later motor activities. Motor skill development, as a curricular focus, has been marginalized in many of our physical education proposal and in doing so, we have not promote motor competence in our children who lack proficiency to engage and to participate in later motor activities such as sport-related or recreational.

  2. The class inclusion question: a case study in applying pragmatics to the experimental study of cognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Politzer, Guy

    2016-01-01

    For more than 70 years, Piaget's class-inclusion task (given, e.g., five asters and three tulips, the child is asked whether "there are more asters or more flowers") has been the object of experimental investigation. Inclusion is of considerable importance for cognitive science as it is a key concept for logical operations and knowledge representation. It is shown that the question can be characterised by a kind of privative ambiguity which is at the source of the younger children's answer, "more asters". A relevance-theoretic explanation of children's interpretation of the question and of the subsequent responses is expounded. This account can explain the effect of all the factors that are known to influence performance (e.g., role of collections, counting, typicality, qualification, syntax, etc.), a review of which is presented. It is further tested experimentally. The development of performance is explained on the basis of the way children disambiguate the question. This study exemplifies the two ways in which pragmatic analysis is pertinent to the study of children's (as well as adults') reasoning and judgement, namely in explaining and predicting participants' comprehension of the statements and questions, and in taking into account attribution processes that occur in the experimental setting.

  3. Facile fabrication of superhydrophobic surfaces with hierarchical structures.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Eunyoung; Lee, Kun-Hong

    2018-03-06

    Hierarchical structures were fabricated on the surfaces of SUS304 plates using a one-step process of direct microwave irradiation under a carbon dioxide atmosphere. The surface nanostructures were composed of chrome-doped hematite single crystals. Superhydrophobic surfaces with a water contact angle up to 169° were obtained by chemical modification of the hierarchical structures. The samples maintained superhydrophobicity under NaCl solution up to 2 weeks.

  4. Hierarchical Multinomial Processing Tree Models: A Latent-Trait Approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Klauer, Karl Christoph

    2010-01-01

    Multinomial processing tree models are widely used in many areas of psychology. A hierarchical extension of the model class is proposed, using a multivariate normal distribution of person-level parameters with the mean and covariance matrix to be estimated from the data. The hierarchical model allows one to take variability between persons into…

  5. Hierarchically nanostructured hydroxyapatite: hydrothermal synthesis, morphology control, growth mechanism, and biological activity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ma MG

    2012-04-01

    Full Text Available Ming-Guo MaInstitute of Biomass Chemistry and Technology, College of Materials Science and Technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, People's Republic of ChinaAbstract: Hierarchically nanosized hydroxyapatite (HA with flower-like structure assembled from nanosheets consisting of nanorod building blocks was successfully synthesized by using CaCl2, NaH2PO4, and potassium sodium tartrate via a hydrothermal method at 200°C for 24 hours. The effects of heating time and heating temperature on the products were investigated. As a chelating ligand and template molecule, the potassium sodium tartrate plays a key role in the formation of hierarchically nanostructured HA. On the basis of experimental results, a possible mechanism based on soft-template and self-assembly was proposed for the formation and growth of the hierarchically nanostructured HA. Cytotoxicity experiments indicated that the hierarchically nanostructured HA had good biocompatibility. It was shown by in-vitro experiments that mesenchymal stem cells could attach to the hierarchically nanostructured HA after being cultured for 48 hours.Objective: The purpose of this study was to develop facile and effective methods for the synthesis of novel hydroxyapatite (HA with hierarchical nanostructures assembled from independent and discrete nanobuilding blocks.Methods: A simple hydrothermal approach was applied to synthesize HA by using CaCl2, NaH2PO4, and potassium sodium tartrate at 200°C for 24 hours. The cell cytotoxicity of the hierarchically nanostructured HA was tested by MTT (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay.Results: HA displayed the flower-like structure assembled from nanosheets consisting of nanorod building blocks. The potassium sodium tartrate was used as a chelating ligand, inducing the formation and self-assembly of HA nanorods. The heating time and heating temperature influenced the aggregation and morphology of HA. The cell viability did

  6. The inclusion of pupils with special educational needs in Early Stimulation age into the regular classroom environment, at Nursery Schools, of an average municipality Vale dos Sinos

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Luciana Cátia Loose Pereira

    2012-03-01

    Full Text Available Inclusive education in Brazil has been widely discussed in all areas of the educational. The inclusion of pupils with special educational needs (SEN in mainstream schools is increasingly frequent, though still many aspects need to be rethought. This work aimed at checking how the subjects with SEN in Early Stimulation age, from zero to three years and 11 months are included into the regular classroom environment, at Nursery Schools, of an average municipality - Vale dos Sinos. This work involved a cross-sectional survey of quantitative and descriptive statistics. The data collection was carried out directly from a structured questionnaire with open and closed questions, directed to all principals of the thirteen Nursery Schools in the referred municipality. From the thirteen schools of the municipality only one did not take part of the research since there was no enrollment of children with special needs there, totalizing 46 children in processes of educational inclusion. From those, twelve children (26.8% were benefited with an Early Stimulation service maintained by the Association of Parents and Friends of Exceptional Children of that referred municipality, Thirty children (65,2% enrolled in school at the initiative of his own family e four children (8% by intervention of the Wakefield council. In this sense, we believe that the professionals of the Early Stimulation have the responsibility of promoting and conveying its importance and, mainly, the benefits of Early Stimulation for the whole development of individuals, as well as its contribution to a process of inclusive education.

  7. MR-AFS: a global hierarchical file-system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Reuter, H.

    2000-01-01

    The next generation of fusion experiments will use object-oriented technology creating the need for world wide sharing of an underlying hierarchical file-system. The Andrew file system (AFS) is a well known and widely spread global distributed file-system. Multiple-resident-AFS (MR-AFS) combines the features of AFS with hierarchical storage management systems. Files in MR-AFS therefore may be migrated on secondary storage, such as roboted tape libraries. MR-AFS is in use at IPP for the current experiments and data originating from super-computer applications. Experiences and scalability issues are discussed

  8. Robust Real-Time Music Transcription with a Compositional Hierarchical Model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pesek, Matevž; Leonardis, Aleš; Marolt, Matija

    2017-01-01

    The paper presents a new compositional hierarchical model for robust music transcription. Its main features are unsupervised learning of a hierarchical representation of input data, transparency, which enables insights into the learned representation, as well as robustness and speed which make it suitable for real-world and real-time use. The model consists of multiple layers, each composed of a number of parts. The hierarchical nature of the model corresponds well to hierarchical structures in music. The parts in lower layers correspond to low-level concepts (e.g. tone partials), while the parts in higher layers combine lower-level representations into more complex concepts (tones, chords). The layers are learned in an unsupervised manner from music signals. Parts in each layer are compositions of parts from previous layers based on statistical co-occurrences as the driving force of the learning process. In the paper, we present the model's structure and compare it to other hierarchical approaches in the field of music information retrieval. We evaluate the model's performance for the multiple fundamental frequency estimation. Finally, we elaborate on extensions of the model towards other music information retrieval tasks.

  9. Hierarchical wave functions revisited

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Li Dingping.

    1997-11-01

    We study the hierarchical wave functions on a sphere and on a torus. We simplify some wave functions on a sphere or a torus using the analytic properties of wave functions. The open question, the construction of the wave function for quasi electron excitation on a torus, is also solved in this paper. (author)

  10. The Effects of Smart Start on Young Children with Disabilities & Their Families. Final Report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Porter, Patricia; Munn, Duncan; Buysse, Virginia; Tyndall, Sabrina

    Smart Start, North Carolina's early childhood initiative, seeks to improve early childhood programs and ensure that all North Carolina children enter school healthy and ready to learn. This study evaluated outcomes related to Smart Start program inclusion of young children with disabilities: (1) access to inclusive programming; (2) quality of…

  11. Children inhibit global information when the forest is dense and local information when the forest is sparse.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krakowski, Claire-Sara; Borst, Grégoire; Vidal, Julie; Houdé, Olivier; Poirel, Nicolas

    2018-09-01

    Visual environments are composed of global shapes and local details that compete for attentional resources. In adults, the global level is processed more rapidly than the local level, and global information must be inhibited in order to process local information when the local information and global information are in conflict. Compared with adults, children present less of a bias toward global visual information and appear to be more sensitive to the density of local elements that constitute the global level. The current study aimed, for the first time, to investigate the key role of inhibition during global/local processing in children. By including two different conditions of global saliency during a negative priming procedure, the results showed that when the global level was salient (dense hierarchical figures), 7-year-old children and adults needed to inhibit the global level to process the local information. However, when the global level was less salient (sparse hierarchical figures), only children needed to inhibit the local level to process the global information. These results confirm a weaker global bias and the greater impact of saliency in children than in adults. Moreover, the results indicate that, regardless of age, inhibition of the most salient hierarchical level is systematically required to select the less salient but more relevant level. These findings have important implications for future research in this area. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. Hierarchically nanostructured hydroxyapatite: hydrothermal synthesis, morphology control, growth mechanism, and biological activity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Ming-Guo

    2012-01-01

    Hierarchically nanosized hydroxyapatite (HA) with flower-like structure assembled from nanosheets consisting of nanorod building blocks was successfully synthesized by using CaCl2, NaH2PO4, and potassium sodium tartrate via a hydrothermal method at 200°C for 24 hours. The effects of heating time and heating temperature on the products were investigated. As a chelating ligand and template molecule, the potassium sodium tartrate plays a key role in the formation of hierarchically nanostructured HA. On the basis of experimental results, a possible mechanism based on soft-template and self-assembly was proposed for the formation and growth of the hierarchically nanostructured HA. Cytotoxicity experiments indicated that the hierarchically nanostructured HA had good biocompatibility. It was shown by in-vitro experiments that mesenchymal stem cells could attach to the hierarchically nanostructured HA after being cultured for 48 hours. Objective The purpose of this study was to develop facile and effective methods for the synthesis of novel hydroxyapatite (HA) with hierarchical nanostructures assembled from independent and discrete nanobuilding blocks. Methods A simple hydrothermal approach was applied to synthesize HA by using CaCl2, NaH2PO4, and potassium sodium tartrate at 200°C for 24 hours. The cell cytotoxicity of the hierarchically nanostructured HA was tested by MTT (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) assay. Results HA displayed the flower-like structure assembled from nanosheets consisting of nanorod building blocks. The potassium sodium tartrate was used as a chelating ligand, inducing the formation and self-assembly of HA nanorods. The heating time and heating temperature influenced the aggregation and morphology of HA. The cell viability did not decrease with the increasing concentration of hierarchically nanostructured HA added. Conclusion A novel, simple and reliable hydrothermal route had been developed for the synthesis of

  13. Inclusive and semi-inclusive analysis from polarised deep-inelastic muon scattering

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kageya, T.

    1999-01-01

    We present new results for the spin-dependent structure function on the proton and for the polarised quark distributions in the nucleon from semi-inclusive spin asymmetries. With the inclusive asymmetry from deep inelastic scattering of polarised muons on polarised protons, it is found that the Ellis-Jaffe sum rule is violated. Using our results for Γ d 1 , the Bjorken sum rule is confirmed with an accuracy of about 15%. From semi-inclusive spin asymmetries and SMC inclusive spin asymmetries, we determine the polarised quark distributions of valence u and d quarks to be positive and negative, respectively, while the non-strange sea distribution to be consistent with zero

  14. Classroom acoustics as a consideration for inclusive education in South Africa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Coralie van Reenen

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Background: It can hardly be disputed that a school environment should be conducive or, at the very least, not prohibitive to effective learning. The provision of fair, equal and barrier-free access to education is referred to as inclusive education. South Africa supports a policy of inclusive schooling, striving to accommodate all children, including those with disabilities, in mainstream schools. This article sets out to prove that noise control in classrooms is a relevant, yet neglected, aspect of inclusive classroom design in South Africa and requires specific attention. Objectives: The objectives of this study are to: (1 establish the impact that noise has on learners with sensory, language or learning impairments; (2 establish the preferred listening conditions for these learners by examining prior research and guidelines available in other countries; and (3 outline the current South African regulations pertaining to classroom acoustics and assess them against the preferred listening environment. Method: This research was conducted as a systematic review with reference to the South African context. Local and international research and guidelines were used as references, providing an overview and evaluation of data concerning noise and learning. Results: Noise is disadvantageous for learners, particularly those with sensory, language or learning impairments. Research and international guidelines show that the ideal ambient level is 30 dBA – 35 dBA, allowing the achievement of an ideal signal-to-noise ratio (SNR of +15 dB, and the ideal reverberation time is 0.4 s – 0.6 s. Various South African regulations discussed are inconsistent regarding ambient noise level (ranging from 35 dBA – 50 dBA and say little about reverberation time for classrooms. Conclusion: South African regulations regarding classroom acoustics require revision to ensure inclusion of all learners with disabilities. The current status does not enforce barrier

  15. Hierarchical partial order ranking

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Carlsen, Lars

    2008-01-01

    Assessing the potential impact on environmental and human health from the production and use of chemicals or from polluted sites involves a multi-criteria evaluation scheme. A priori several parameters are to address, e.g., production tonnage, specific release scenarios, geographical and site-specific factors in addition to various substance dependent parameters. Further socio-economic factors may be taken into consideration. The number of parameters to be included may well appear to be prohibitive for developing a sensible model. The study introduces hierarchical partial order ranking (HPOR) that remedies this problem. By HPOR the original parameters are initially grouped based on their mutual connection and a set of meta-descriptors is derived representing the ranking corresponding to the single groups of descriptors, respectively. A second partial order ranking is carried out based on the meta-descriptors, the final ranking being disclosed though average ranks. An illustrative example on the prioritisation of polluted sites is given. - Hierarchical partial order ranking of polluted sites has been developed for prioritization based on a large number of parameters

  16. Hierarchical control of a nuclear reactor using uncertain dynamics techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rovere, L.A.; Otaduy, P.J.; Brittain, C.R.; Perez, R.B.

    1988-01-01

    Recent advances in the nonlinear optimal control area are opening new possibilities towards its implementation in process control. Algorithms for multivariate control, hierarchical decomposition, parameter tracking, model uncertainties actuator saturation effects and physical limits to state variables can be implemented on the basis of a consistent mathematical formulation. In this paper, good agreement is shown between a centralized and a hierarchical implementation of a controller for a hypothetical nuclear power plant subject to multiple demands. The performance of the hierarchical distributed system in the presence of localized subsystem failures is analyzed. 4 refs., 13 figs

  17. Analytical and numerical studies of creation probabilities of hierarchical trees

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S.S. Borysov

    2011-03-01

    Full Text Available We consider the creation conditions of diverse hierarchical trees both analytically and numerically. A connection between the probabilities to create hierarchical levels and the probability to associate these levels into a united structure is studied. We argue that a consistent probabilistic picture requires the use of deformed algebra. Our consideration is based on the study of the main types of hierarchical trees, among which both regular and degenerate ones are studied analytically, while the creation probabilities of Fibonacci, scale-free and arbitrary trees are determined numerically.

  18. The Contributions of Teachers' Emotional Support to Children's Social Behaviors and Self-Regulatory Skills in First Grade

    Science.gov (United States)

    Merritt, Eileen G.; Wanless, Shannon B.; Rimm-Kaufman, Sara E.; Cameron, Claire; Peugh, James L.

    2012-01-01

    The present observational study used hierarchical linear modeling to examine predictors of children's social and self-regulatory outcomes in first-grade classrooms. Specifically, goals were the following: (1) to explore relations between emotionally supportive teacher-child interactions and children's social behaviors (aggression with peers,…

  19. Hierarchical drivers of reef-fish metacommunity structure.

    Science.gov (United States)

    MacNeil, M Aaron; Graham, Nicholas A J; Polunin, Nicholas V C; Kulbicki, Michel; Galzin, René; Harmelin-Vivien, Mireille; Rushton, Steven P

    2009-01-01

    Coral reefs are highly complex ecological systems, where multiple processes interact across scales in space and time to create assemblages of exceptionally high biodiversity. Despite the increasing frequency of hierarchically structured sampling programs used in coral-reef science, little progress has been made in quantifying the relative importance of processes operating across multiple scales. The vast majority of reef studies are conducted, or at least analyzed, at a single spatial scale, ignoring the implicitly hierarchical structure of the overall system in favor of small-scale experiments or large-scale observations. Here we demonstrate how alpha (mean local number of species), beta diversity (degree of species dissimilarity among local sites), and gamma diversity (overall species richness) vary with spatial scale, and using a hierarchical, information-theoretic approach, we evaluate the relative importance of site-, reef-, and atoll-level processes driving the fish metacommunity structure among 10 atolls in French Polynesia. Process-based models, representing well-established hypotheses about drivers of reef-fish community structure, were assembled into a candidate set of 12 hierarchical linear models. Variation in fish abundance, biomass, and species richness were unevenly distributed among transect, reef, and atoll levels, establishing the relative contribution of variation at these spatial scales to the structure of the metacommunity. Reef-fish biomass, species richness, and the abundance of most functional-groups corresponded primarily with transect-level habitat diversity and atoll-lagoon size, whereas detritivore and grazer abundances were largely correlated with potential covariates of larval dispersal. Our findings show that (1) within-transect and among-atoll factors primarily drive the relationship between alpha and gamma diversity in this reef-fish metacommunity; (2) habitat is the primary correlate with reef-fish metacommunity structure at

  20. A National Early Intervention System as a Strategy to Promote Inclusion and Academic Achievement in Portugal

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vitor Franco

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Early intervention with children at risk or facing developmental problems is a practice defined by three fundamental characteristics: being family-centered, being based on the community and on the child’s life context, and being conducted by a team with transdisciplinary practice. In this paper we wish to present how the SNIPI-National System of Early Intervention, implemented in Portugal over the past 15 years, contributes to promote maximum development and the full inclusion of children up to 6 years of age and works to prevent school failure. The SNIPI covers the entire territory and intends to respond to the needs of children with developmental disorders or those in at risk situations. This community-based early intervention model is linked to the health, education and social care systems, involving the three responsible Ministries. In the present community case study, we present the implementation of this program in the Alentejo region, involving 31 local teams and almost 2500 children. Through the regional structure’s reports and the responses of parents and professionals in impact studies, we demonstrate how the system is established and how it tackles school failure and improves the educational inclusion of these children. The impact of this Early Intervention model has been significant not only on children’s developmental outcomes, but also for the health, education and social care professionals who work in a transdisciplinary perspective, as well as for the families who became more skilled at evaluating the children’s needs and the support provided. This approach to implementing a family-centered Early Intervention program can contribute to full inclusion. It facilitates the transition to schooling based on a non-discriminatory approach and educational achievement by aiding development and an adapted contextualization in pre-school education. This program system introduces significant innovation within the framework of existing

  1. THE SCALE AND PREVALENCE OF INCLUSIVE EDUCATION FOR MINORS IN MOSCOW: THE POSSIBILITIES FOR QUANTITATIVE ASSESSMENT

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Oksana V. Kuchmayeva

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The article is devoted to the problems of assessingthe prevalence of inclusive education. The authors on the issues of statistical accounting of such category of students as children with disabilities, aswell as the educational institutions providing educational services, are assessing the needs in inclusiveeducation. During the analysis the authors usedthe data of statistical accounting, materials of thesample study «Availability of educational services for children with disabilities in the Moscow».

  2. Cultural Perspective on Parenting, Trait Emotional Intelligence and Mental Health in Taiwanese Children

    OpenAIRE

    Huang, Ching Yu; Shen, A.C.T.; Hsieh, Y.P.; Feng, J.Y.; Wei, H.S.; Hwa, H.L.; Feng, J.Y.

    2017-01-01

    The current study aims to clarify the associations as well as the pathways through which parenting and children's emotional intelligence (EI) may influence children's mental health with a cross-sectional sample of 675 school pupils (fourth grade, mean age = 10.4 years, 310 boy, 356 girls and 9 unidentified) in Taiwan. Hierarchical regression and path analyses were used to examine the relationships between parenting styles, children's trait EI, and their psychological symptoms, wit...

  3. Emerging Inclusive Education in the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East: A Review of the Literature

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodriguez, Jacqueline A.; Dieker, Lisa A.

    2018-01-01

    For refugee children with disabilities, international agencies provide largely humanitarian assistance, including education. However, the obstacles associated with refugee existence can impede progress in the movement towards educating children with disabilities in inclusive settings. This literature review summarizes the historical progression…

  4. Resolution of Singularities Introduced by Hierarchical Structure in Deep Neural Networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nitta, Tohru

    2017-10-01

    We present a theoretical analysis of singular points of artificial deep neural networks, resulting in providing deep neural network models having no critical points introduced by a hierarchical structure. It is considered that such deep neural network models have good nature for gradient-based optimization. First, we show that there exist a large number of critical points introduced by a hierarchical structure in deep neural networks as straight lines, depending on the number of hidden layers and the number of hidden neurons. Second, we derive a sufficient condition for deep neural networks having no critical points introduced by a hierarchical structure, which can be applied to general deep neural networks. It is also shown that the existence of critical points introduced by a hierarchical structure is determined by the rank and the regularity of weight matrices for a specific class of deep neural networks. Finally, two kinds of implementation methods of the sufficient conditions to have no critical points are provided. One is a learning algorithm that can avoid critical points introduced by the hierarchical structure during learning (called avoidant learning algorithm). The other is a neural network that does not have some critical points introduced by the hierarchical structure as an inherent property (called avoidant neural network).

  5. Hierarchically structured materials for lithium batteries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xiao, Jie; Zheng, Jianming; Li, Xiaolin; Shao, Yuyan; Zhang, Ji-Guang

    2013-01-01

    The lithium-ion battery (LIB) is one of the most promising power sources to be deployed in electric vehicles, including solely battery powered vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, and hybrid electric vehicles. With the increasing demand for devices of high-energy densities (>500 Wh kg −1 ), new energy storage systems, such as lithium–oxygen (Li–O 2 ) batteries and other emerging systems beyond the conventional LIB, have attracted worldwide interest for both transportation and grid energy storage applications in recent years. It is well known that the electrochemical performance of these energy storage systems depends not only on the composition of the materials, but also on the structure of the electrode materials used in the batteries. Although the desired performance characteristics of batteries often have conflicting requirements with the micro/nano-structure of electrodes, hierarchically designed electrodes can be tailored to satisfy these conflicting requirements. This work will review hierarchically structured materials that have been successfully used in LIB and Li–O 2 batteries. Our goal is to elucidate (1) how to realize the full potential of energy materials through the manipulation of morphologies, and (2) how the hierarchical structure benefits the charge transport, promotes the interfacial properties and prolongs the electrode stability and battery lifetime. (paper)

  6. Inclusive pedagogy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Korsgaard, Morten Timmermann; Skov Mortensen, Stig

    This article will present a case for a shift in perspective in inclusive education research towards a continentally inspired approach. Drawing on the age old distinction between continental and Anglo-American educational research the aim is to flesh out what a shift to a continental approach...... will entail, and why it might be beneficial to research in inclusive education...

  7. An Assessment of Teachers Attitudes and Their Commitment to Inclusive Educational Settings in Bahati Sub-County, Kenya

    OpenAIRE

    Wanderi, Priscilla Gathoni

    2015-01-01

    Education of children with disabilities has shifted from segregated special schools to inclusion in mainstream education schools and classrooms. As people with disabilities challenged the stigmatizing and limiting nature of segregated education, and gave voice to their anger and dissatisfaction, issues of equality of access and educational opportunity gained impetus and integration became center stage. Children with or without disabilities have the same rights to educational opportunities und...

  8. Hierarchical structure of moral stages assessed by a sorting task

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Boom, J.; Brugman, D.; Van der Heijden, P.G.M.

    2001-01-01

    Following criticism of Kohlberg’s theory of moral judgment, an empirical re-examination of hierarchical stage structure was desirable. Utilizing Piaget’s concept of reflective abstraction as a basis, the hierarchical stage structure was investigated using a new method. Study participants (553 Dutch

  9. Supporting Elementary Age Students with Significant Disabilities in General Education Classrooms: Personal Perspectives on Inclusion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Coots, Jennifer J.; Bishop, Kathryn D.; Grenot-Scheyer, Marquita

    1998-01-01

    Findings of a study in which four elementary general-education teachers commented on the inclusion of students with significant disabilities within general-education classrooms indicated that children with disabilities were described and observed as full classroom members. Difficulties were related to designing and implementing appropriate and…

  10. Structural Group-based Auditing of Missing Hierarchical Relationships in UMLS

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Yan; Gu, Huanying(Helen); Perl, Yehoshua; Geller, James

    2009-01-01

    The Metathesaurus of the UMLS was created by integrating various source terminologies. The inter-concept relationships were either integrated into the UMLS from the source terminologies or specially generated. Due to the extensive size and inherent complexity of the Metathesaurus, the accidental omission of some hierarchical relationships was inevitable. We present a recursive procedure which allows a human expert, with the support of an algorithm, to locate missing hierarchical relationships. The procedure starts with a group of concepts with exactly the same (correct) semantic type assignments. It then partitions the concepts, based on child-of hierarchical relationships, into smaller, singly rooted, hierarchically connected subgroups. The auditor only needs to focus on the subgroups with very few concepts and their concepts with semantic type reassignments. The procedure was evaluated by comparing it with a comprehensive manual audit and it exhibits a perfect error recall. PMID:18824248

  11. Hierarchical video summarization based on context clustering

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tseng, Belle L.; Smith, John R.

    2003-11-01

    A personalized video summary is dynamically generated in our video personalization and summarization system based on user preference and usage environment. The three-tier personalization system adopts the server-middleware-client architecture in order to maintain, select, adapt, and deliver rich media content to the user. The server stores the content sources along with their corresponding MPEG-7 metadata descriptions. In this paper, the metadata includes visual semantic annotations and automatic speech transcriptions. Our personalization and summarization engine in the middleware selects the optimal set of desired video segments by matching shot annotations and sentence transcripts with user preferences. Besides finding the desired contents, the objective is to present a coherent summary. There are diverse methods for creating summaries, and we focus on the challenges of generating a hierarchical video summary based on context information. In our summarization algorithm, three inputs are used to generate the hierarchical video summary output. These inputs are (1) MPEG-7 metadata descriptions of the contents in the server, (2) user preference and usage environment declarations from the user client, and (3) context information including MPEG-7 controlled term list and classification scheme. In a video sequence, descriptions and relevance scores are assigned to each shot. Based on these shot descriptions, context clustering is performed to collect consecutively similar shots to correspond to hierarchical scene representations. The context clustering is based on the available context information, and may be derived from domain knowledge or rules engines. Finally, the selection of structured video segments to generate the hierarchical summary efficiently balances between scene representation and shot selection.

  12. Using Lego robots to estimate cognitive ability in children who have severe physical disabilities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cook, Albert M; Adams, Kim; Volden, Joanne; Harbottle, Norma; Harbottle, Cheryl

    2011-01-01

    To determine whether low-cost robots provide a means by which children with severe disabilities can demonstrate understanding of cognitive concepts. Ten children, ages 4 to 10, diagnosed with cerebral palsy and related motor conditions, participated. Participants had widely variable motor, cognitive and receptive language skills, but all were non-speaking. A Lego Invention 'roverbot' was used to carry out a range of functional tasks from single-switch replay of pre-stored movements to total control of the movement in two dimensions. The level of sophistication achieved on hierarchically arranged play tasks was used to estimate cognitive skills. The 10 children performed at one of the six hierarchically arranged levels from 'no interaction' through 'simple cause and effect' to 'development and execution of a plan'. Teacher interviews revealed that children were interested in the robot, enjoyed interacting with it and demonstrated changes in behaviour and social and language skills following interaction. Children with severe physical disabilities can control a Lego robot to perform un-structured play tasks. In some cases, they were able to display more sophisticated cognitive skills through manipulating the robot than in traditional standardised tests. Success with the robot could be a proxy measure for children who have cognitive abilities but cannot demonstrate them in standard testing.

  13. Hierarchical matrices algorithms and analysis

    CERN Document Server

    Hackbusch, Wolfgang

    2015-01-01

    This self-contained monograph presents matrix algorithms and their analysis. The new technique enables not only the solution of linear systems but also the approximation of matrix functions, e.g., the matrix exponential. Other applications include the solution of matrix equations, e.g., the Lyapunov or Riccati equation. The required mathematical background can be found in the appendix. The numerical treatment of fully populated large-scale matrices is usually rather costly. However, the technique of hierarchical matrices makes it possible to store matrices and to perform matrix operations approximately with almost linear cost and a controllable degree of approximation error. For important classes of matrices, the computational cost increases only logarithmically with the approximation error. The operations provided include the matrix inversion and LU decomposition. Since large-scale linear algebra problems are standard in scientific computing, the subject of hierarchical matrices is of interest to scientists ...

  14. Final Report of Optimization Algorithms for Hierarchical Problems, with Applications to Nanoporous Materials

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nash, Stephen G.

    2013-11-11

    The research focuses on the modeling and optimization of nanoporous materials. In systems with hierarchical structure that we consider, the physics changes as the scale of the problem is reduced and it can be important to account for physics at the fine level to obtain accurate approximations at coarser levels. For example, nanoporous materials hold promise for energy production and storage. A significant issue is the fabrication of channels within these materials to allow rapid diffusion through the material. One goal of our research is to apply optimization methods to the design of nanoporous materials. Such problems are large and challenging, with hierarchical structure that we believe can be exploited, and with a large range of important scales, down to atomistic. This requires research on large-scale optimization for systems that exhibit different physics at different scales, and the development of algorithms applicable to designing nanoporous materials for many important applications in energy production, storage, distribution, and use. Our research has two major research thrusts. The first is hierarchical modeling. We plan to develop and study hierarchical optimization models for nanoporous materials. The models have hierarchical structure, and attempt to balance the conflicting aims of model fidelity and computational tractability. In addition, we analyze the general hierarchical model, as well as the specific application models, to determine their properties, particularly those properties that are relevant to the hierarchical optimization algorithms. The second thrust was to develop, analyze, and implement a class of hierarchical optimization algorithms, and apply them to the hierarchical models we have developed. We adapted and extended the optimization-based multigrid algorithms of Lewis and Nash to the optimization models exemplified by the hierarchical optimization model. This class of multigrid algorithms has been shown to be a powerful tool for

  15. Life in Inclusive Classrooms: Storytelling with Disability Studies in Education. Occasional Paper Series 36

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valente, Joseph Michael, Ed.; Danforth, Scot, Ed.

    2016-01-01

    This issue of the Occasional Papers Series aims to draw attention to the use of storytelling as a medium for provoking dialogue about inclusive classrooms and school communities. It offers readers stories of classroom life that provide insights into understanding the complexities that make up the lives of children with disabilities, their…

  16. Neuropsychological study of FASD in a sample of American Indian children: processing simple versus complex information.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aragón, Alfredo S; Kalberg, Wendy O; Buckley, David; Barela-Scott, Lindsey M; Tabachnick, Barbara G; May, Philip A

    2008-12-01

    Although a large body of literature exists on cognitive functioning in alcohol-exposed children, it is unclear if there is a signature neuropsychological profile in children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD). This study assesses cognitive functioning in children with FASD from several American Indian reservations in the Northern Plains States, and it applies a hierarchical model of simple versus complex information processing to further examine cognitive function. We hypothesized that complex tests would discriminate between children with FASD and culturally similar controls, while children with FASD would perform similar to controls on relatively simple tests. Our sample includes 32 control children and 24 children with a form of FASD [fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) = 10, partial fetal alcohol syndrome (PFAS) = 14]. The test battery measures general cognitive ability, verbal fluency, executive functioning, memory, and fine-motor skills. Many of the neuropsychological tests produced results consistent with a hierarchical model of simple versus complex processing. The complexity of the tests was determined "a priori" based on the number of cognitive processes involved in them. Multidimensional scaling was used to statistically analyze the accuracy of classifying the neurocognitive tests into a simple versus complex dichotomy. Hierarchical logistic regression models were then used to define the contribution made by complex versus simple tests in predicting the significant differences between children with FASD and controls. Complex test items discriminated better than simple test items. The tests that conformed well to the model were the Verbal Fluency, Progressive Planning Test (PPT), the Lhermitte memory tasks, and the Grooved Pegboard Test (GPT). The FASD-grouped children, when compared with controls, demonstrated impaired performance on letter fluency, while their performance was similar on category fluency. On the more complex PPT trials (problems 5 to

  17. Inclusive Design for Assistive Technology

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Herriott, Richard

    2014-01-01

    Objectives/focus/background: Design for Assistive Technology (AT) requires a special focus on user-requirements during product development. Inclusive Design theory and methodology thus has been relevant to AT design processes. Research in AT design has both drawn from and added to the ID knowledge...... the question of whether AT design processes fit neatly into a model created for a different context . Semi-structured interviews were carried out with eight/nine designers of assistive technology. This provided raw data concerning the processes used by the designers in a range of products including...... a wheelchair for children, a washbasin system, a rollator and breathing apparatus for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder. The interviews conducted showed that there was required a different emphasis in the means by which users´ requirements were incorporated into the design process...

  18. Organization of excitable dynamics in hierarchical biological networks.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mark Müller-Linow

    Full Text Available This study investigates the contributions of network topology features to the dynamic behavior of hierarchically organized excitable networks. Representatives of different types of hierarchical networks as well as two biological neural networks are explored with a three-state model of node activation for systematically varying levels of random background network stimulation. The results demonstrate that two principal topological aspects of hierarchical networks, node centrality and network modularity, correlate with the network activity patterns at different levels of spontaneous network activation. The approach also shows that the dynamic behavior of the cerebral cortical systems network in the cat is dominated by the network's modular organization, while the activation behavior of the cellular neuronal network of Caenorhabditis elegans is strongly influenced by hub nodes. These findings indicate the interaction of multiple topological features and dynamic states in the function of complex biological networks.

  19. Hierarchical Control for Multiple DC-Microgrids Clusters

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Shafiee, Qobad; Dragicevic, Tomislav; Vasquez, Juan Carlos

    2014-01-01

    DC microgrids (MGs) have gained research interest during the recent years because of many potential advantages as compared to the ac system. To ensure reliable operation of a low-voltage dc MG as well as its intelligent operation with the other DC MGs, a hierarchical control is proposed in this p......DC microgrids (MGs) have gained research interest during the recent years because of many potential advantages as compared to the ac system. To ensure reliable operation of a low-voltage dc MG as well as its intelligent operation with the other DC MGs, a hierarchical control is proposed...

  20. Hierarchical MAS based control strategy for microgrid

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Xiao, Z.; Li, T.; Huang, M.; Shi, J.; Yang, J.; Yu, J. [School of Information Science and Engineering, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091 (China); Xiao, Z. [School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Western Catchment Area, 639798 (Singapore); Wu, W. [Communication Branch of Yunnan Power Grid Corporation, Kunming, Yunnan 650217 (China)

    2010-09-15

    Microgrids have become a hot topic driven by the dual pressures of environmental protection concerns and the energy crisis. In this paper, a challenge for the distributed control of a modern electric grid incorporating clusters of residential microgrids is elaborated and a hierarchical multi-agent system (MAS) is proposed as a solution. The issues of how to realize the hierarchical MAS and how to improve coordination and control strategies are discussed. Based on MATLAB and ZEUS platforms, bilateral switching between grid-connected mode and island mode is performed under control of the proposed MAS to enhance and support its effectiveness. (authors)