Assessing the effect of drought severity on height-for-age z-score in Kenyan children: a secondary analysis

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Kate Lillepold, BScH

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Background: Globally, droughts are occurring more regularly and are having negative effects on population health, particularly in countries such as Kenya, where agriculture is a primary driver of the economy and a source of subsistence for many communities. Children are particularly susceptible to weather-related shocks. Previous research has shown an association between drought and cross-sectional indicators of malnutrition, such as stunting. In this study, we explored various longitudinal and spatial analysis approaches to evaluating the effect of drought on height-for-age z-scores (HAZ over time and space among young children in Kenya. Methods: Using anthropometric data from three georeferenced Kenyan Demographic and Health Surveys (KDHS and the self-calibrated Palmer Drought Severity Index, we developed multivariate linear regression and spatial lag and error models (with Moran's I calculations to investigate the association between drought severity and HAZ in children aged 0–5 years. Initial covariates included age of the child, sex, maternal age, height and education, wealth index, urban or rural location, and size at birth. We then did multilevel and geographically weighted regression modelling using frequentist or Bayesian methods and with inclusion of household-level covariates, such as livelihood zones. To assess the effect of changes in drought severity on child HAZ over time, KDHS data from 2003, 2008–09, and 2014 were analysed with spatiotemporal modelling. Findings: Preliminary results from the multivariate linear model showed a negative, non-significant association between drought severity and HAZ among Kenyan children in 2014 (β=0·033, p=0·101; however, there was a significant interaction between drought severity and age (β=–0·002, p<0·0007. The spatial lag model gave similar results. Other variables associated with HAZ included wealth index, age, sex, maternal education, and maternal height. Global Moran's I

Challenges and coping strategies of parents of children with autism on the Kenyan coast.

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Gona, Joseph K; Newton, Charles R; Rimba, Kenneth K; Mapenzi, Rachel; Kihara, Michael; Vijver, Fonns V; Abubakar, Amina

2016-01-01

Research on the challenges of raising a child with autism is mostly conducted in Europe, North America and Australia, and has revealed that parents have to come to terms with living with a lifelong developmental disability. In addition, parents are faced with numerous concerns, such as caring burdens, poor prognosis, and negative public attitudes. Virtually no research has been conducted in Africa on this subject. Thirty-seven interviews and eight focus group discussions were conducted with parents of children with autism and professionals in regular contact with these parents from rural and urban counties of the Kenyan coast. The study investigated challenges faced by parents and how they cope with those challenges. A purposive-convenience sampling procedure was used in selecting the study participants. A digital recorder was used to record all the interviews and focus group discussions. Transcriptions were done in Swahili, translated into English, and then imported to the NVivo software program for content analysis. The results indicate that parents of children with autism on the Kenyan coast experience common challenges including stigma, lack of appropriate treatment, financial and caring burdens regardless of their religious and cultural backgrounds. Coping strategies applied by parents comprised problem-focused aspects that involve diet management and respite care, and emotion-focused aspects that consist of beliefs in supernatural powers, prayers and spiritual healing. This qualitative study reveals a range of challenges that could have significant impact when caring for a child with autism. Coping strategies applied by parents target the physical health of the child and the psychological wellbeing of the parent. Consideration of these outcomes is vital as they could impact the initiation of a community-based rehabilitation service delivery in rural settings where parents play an active role.

Street children turn to sex-work to survive.

Science.gov (United States)

1995-08-01

The Kenyan government currently deports tourists who are caught with child prostitutes and charges the children with prostitution. A harder treatment of foreigners caught with child prostitutes may soon emerge. The Undugu Society in Kenya, an organization working with street children, welcomes such changes. It teaches children practical skills, e.g., tailoring and carpentry. The Society has four schools and sponsors 1000 children to attend school or workshops. It sends social workers into the slums to counsel and gain the trust of street children as well as to encourage them to attend workshops. The Society has workshops on HIV transmission and emphasizes behavior change rather than condom use. Kenyan law prohibits adults from having sex with a child less than 18 years old. Juvenile courts deal with children caught engaging in solicitation of customers and/or prostitution. Children found guilty go to children's homes for rehabilitation into mainstream society. More and more countries of sex-tourists are punishing tourists who engage in sexual intercourse with minors in Kenya. Fear that high-profile cases will harm the multi-million-dollar tourist industry as well as lack of state resources makes Kenya reluctant to prosecute tourists. In 1994, most of Nairobi's 40,000 street children were engaged in prostitution. The leading centers of child prostitution are all tourist areas: Nairobi, Mombasa, Malindi, Lamu, and Diani. 80% of pornographic material in Kenya features children. Kenyan taxi drivers, tour guides, and hotel workers serve as middlemen in child prostitution. Urban poverty forces many children on to the streets. Rural children sent to urban areas to work as maids or servants in a rich house are often sexually abused. They then escape to the streets. Many child prostitutes come from poor families and have low literacy and no practical skills. AIDS orphans also become prostitutes to survive.

`No One Should Destroy the Forest': Using photo-based vignette interviews to understand Kenyan teachers' views of the environment

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Quigley, Cassie F.; Miller, Zachary D.; Dogbey, James; Che, S. Megan; Hallo, Jeffrey

2014-11-01

In the midst of the current environmental crisis, scientists, academics, authors, and politicians worldwide are urging citizens to create sustainable communities. However, there is little capability to build a sustainable society without an informed, active, and engaged populous. This requires more than just environmentally knowledgeable citizens. It requires a society that understands the principles of the environment and can also exemplify them in daily life. In order to create a more environmentally literate world, there has been a push for environmental education integrated into schools. This qualitative study sought to examine Kenyan teachers' perspectives on the human-nature interaction by conducting vignette focus-group interviews. It is a subject not widely explored but vital for conservation not only in this area, but also other areas that seek to have an ecological informed populous. The vignettes were created using photographs and explanations of the photographs that the participants collected and emailed to the authors. For the focus-group vignette interviews, there were a total of 55 participants (30 females and 25 males). After InVivo analysis, we had 6 codes (resentment, pride, perils, blame, pragmatism, and self-interested) within 3 major themes. This study has implications for informing science education to combat these traditions of subjecting students to a science curriculum that demotes Kenyan cultural heritage and lifestyle. By incorporating local knowledge such as the ideas discussed in this paper into Kenyan science education, Kenyans can reach one of most challenging objectives of education, which is to produce children who are fundamentally aware of their environment.

``I Have Been Given the Power to Teach. The Children Understand Me Very Well.'' The Social and Academic Impact of Deaf Teacher Training in Kenya

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Johnstone, Christopher; Corce, Heidi

2010-02-01

Kenya has 41 Deaf schools that serve children from Class 1 through secondary school. These schools are all characterised by the fact that they have very few teachers who are fluent in Kenyan sign language. In order to meet the needs of schools and to provide employment opportunities for Deaf Kenyan adults, a small non-governmental organisation identified Deaf secondary school students for training. They received two years of teacher training free of charge. Most have since been awarded teaching contracts by the Kenyan Teacher Service Commission or local school boards. This article reports on results from a preliminary study of the social and academic impacts of this innovation. Results indicate that Deaf teachers are inspirational in the classroom, represent a significant resource for their school communities and are preferred by Deaf students. A follow-up study on the relative learning gains of Deaf students when taught by Deaf teachers is planned once relevant data are available.

The Status and Roles of Ghanaian and Kenyan Women: Implications for Fertility Behavior.

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Germain, Adrienne; Smock, Audrey

Kenya and Ghana provide interesting case studies of the theory that women who have access to roles other than mother and whose status does not depend largely or solely on the number of children they bear will have fewer children. Kenyan and Ghanaian women have among the highest desired and actual fertility in the world. They also, relatively…

Health implications of chronic hepatosplenomegaly in Kenyan school-aged children chronically exposed to malarial infections and Schistosoma mansoni

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wilson, Shona; Vennervald, Birgitte J; Kadzo, Hilda

2010-01-01

Hepatosplenomegaly among school-aged children in sub-Saharan Africa is highly prevalent. Two of the more common aetiological agents of hepatosplenomegaly, namely chronic exposure to malaria and Schistosoma mansoni infection, can result in similar clinical presentation, with the liver and spleen...... being chronically enlarged and of a firm consistency. Where co-endemic, the two parasites are thought to synergistically exacerbate hepatosplenomegaly. Here, two potential health consequences, i.e. dilation of the portal vein (indicative of increased portal pressure) and stunting of growth, were...... with hepatosplenomegaly. Children who presented with hepatosplenomegaly had the lowest height-for-age Z-scores. This study shows that hepatosplenomegaly associated with chronic exposure to malaria and schistosomiasis is not a benign symptom amongst school-aged children but has potential long-term health consequences....

Teachers' Perceptions of Communication Needs of Deaf Children in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Communication has been identified as one of the greatest areas of difficulty for the deaf. Both the receptive and expressive communication pose barriers in almost all aspects of life of the deaf. This study endeavors to examine teachers' perceptions of communication needs of deaf children in Kenyan school system.

The October 2011 Kenyan invasion of Somalia

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Olsen, Gorm Rye

2018-01-01

-Kenyan origin who pursued their own interests. Security and economic concerns did play a role, while the paper dismisses that the invasion can be understood as a consequence of the Kenyan government pursuing an ‘international image management strategy’. Theoretically, the paper concludes that ‘Western’ theories...

The Teaching of English Idioms in Kenyan Secondary Schools: Difficulties and Effective Strategies

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Moses Gatambuki Gathigia

2016-04-01

Full Text Available The acquisition of idiomatic expressions is one of the primary challenges to learners of English as a Second Language (ESL in multilingual contexts such as Kenya; yet, the learners are expected to use these expressions in their writing. The study on which this paper is based sought to assess the teaching of English idiomatic expressions in Kenyan secondary schools with a view to establishing the challenges teachers face in teaching the expressions and, thereafter, proposing effective strategies that can be applied for effective teaching of English idioms to ESL speakers.  Ten teachers of English from both rural and urban secondary schools in Kenya were interviewed to find out the actual practices in their classrooms, the difficulties they face, and the effective strategies they employ for successful teaching of English idioms. The data collected were qualitatively analyzed. First, the study notes that it is possible to infer semantic relations between the literal sense of individual parts of an idiom and its meaning when interpreting compositional idioms. Second, there is incongruity between form and meaning when dealing with non compositional idioms since their semantic interpretation cannot be retrieved by means of their constituent parts. The study concludes that an understanding of the etymology of idioms can improve the comprehension and retention of idioms. The study recommends that idioms should be taught effectively in schools because the acquisition of idioms by learners will be an important indicator of their mastery of the English language. Keywords: Idiomatic expressions, semantic relations, compositional idioms, non compositional idioms

Work–Family Balance Choices of Women Working in Kenyan Universities

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Gladys Muasya

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The proportion of women working in the formal sector in Sub-Saharan Africa has increased in recent years. The kinship networks are weakening, leading to a decline in the traditional forms of support for child care and housework. This study examined the work–family balance options of women working in Kenyan universities within the context of changing national domestic workers’ legislation. Data were collected by use of surveys in two universities. Results showed that as the cost of hiring domestic workers increased, women became indifferent in their choice between employing domestic workers and using daycare centers. Women with older children who employed day domestic workers were more likely to use daycare centers than women with younger children who employed live-in domestic workers. Women with young children in preschool and primary school found their universities less accommodating in helping them balance work and family demands. Employers perceived that the domestic workers’ legislation led to a drop in morale among domestic workers, and demands of pay raises as they became choosier and more inclined to search for better paying employers. It also resulted in a shift of work–family balance strategy for women who opted to hire domestic workers on an “as-needed” or “weekend basis.” Some women stopped hiring them altogether and instead started taking their young children to daycare centers. Cost and affordability determined the use of domestic workers. These women suggested that their employers should increase their job flexibility and put up subsidized daycare centers.

Malaria and Chikungunya Detected Using Molecular Diagnostics Among Febrile Kenyan Children.

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Waggoner, Jesse; Brichard, Julie; Mutuku, Francis; Ndenga, Bryson; Heath, Claire Jane; Mohamed-Hadley, Alisha; Sahoo, Malaya K; Vulule, John; Lefterova, Martina; Banaei, Niaz; Mukoko, Dunstan; Pinsky, Benjamin A; LaBeaud, A Desiree

2017-01-01

In sub-Saharan Africa, malaria is frequently overdiagnosed as the cause of an undifferentiated febrile illness, whereas arboviral illnesses are presumed to be underdiagnosed. Sera from 385 febrile Kenyan children, who presented to 1 of 4 clinical sites, were tested using microscopy and real-time molecular assays for dengue virus (DENV), chikungunya virus (CHIKV), malaria, and Leptospira . Malaria was the primary clinical diagnosis for 254 patients, and an arboviral infection (DENV or CHIKV) was the primary diagnosis for 93 patients. In total, 158 patients (41.0%) had malaria and 32 patients (8.3%) had CHIKV infections. Compared with real-time polymerase chain reaction, microscopy demonstrated a percent positive agreement of 49.7%. The percentage of malaria cases detected by microscopy varied significantly between clinical sites. Arboviral infections were the clinical diagnosis for patients on the Indian Ocean coast (91 of 238, 38.2%) significantly more often than patients in the Lake Victoria region (2 of 145, 1.4%; P < .001). However, detection of CHIKV infections was significantly higher in the Lake Victoria region (19 of 145 [13.1%] vs 13 of 239 [5.4%]; P = .012). The clinical diagnosis of patients with an acute febrile illness, even when aided by microscopy, remains inaccurate in malaria-endemic areas, contributing to inappropriate management decisions.

Direct and self-reported measures of physical activity and sedentary behaviours by weight status in school-aged children: results from ISCOLE-Kenya.

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Muthuri, Stella K; Wachira, Lucy-Joy M; Onywera, Vincent O; Tremblay, Mark S

2015-01-01

Previous work has shown little association between self-report and directly measured physical activity. The objective of this study was to investigate the relationships between self-reported and directly assessed measures of physical activity and sedentary time by weight status in Kenyan children. Direct assessment of body weight, physical activity and sedentary time of 563 children was collected through anthropometry and accelerometry, while self-reported assessment was achieved by administering a questionnaire. Under/healthy weight children had significantly higher directly measured mean daily minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) compared to overweight/obese children (39 vs 20 minutes); had lower mean weekend-day minutes of sedentary time (346 vs 365 minutes); had a higher proportion who met accepted physical activity guidelines (15.3% vs 2.6%); and a higher number reported using active transportation to/from school (49.2% vs 32.4%). Self-reported time spent outside before and after school and active transport to/from school were significantly associated with mean weekday minutes of MVPA (r-value range = 0.12-0.36), but only for the under/healthy weight children. The results of this study found a number of differences in the accumulation of MVPA and sedentary time by weight status and weak-to-moderate correlations between self-report and direct measures of weekday and weekend-day physical activity among the under/healthy weight children.

Transformations in Kenyan Science Teachers' Locus of Control: The Influence of Contextualized Science and Emancipated Student Learning

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Anderson, D.; Nashon, S.; Namazzi, E.; Okemwa, P.; Ombogo, P.; Ooko, S.; Beru, F.

2015-01-01

This study investigated Kenyan science teachers' pedagogical transformations, which manifested as they enacted and experienced a reformed contextualized science curriculum in which students' learning experiences were critical catalysts of teacher change. Twelve high school teachers voluntarily participated in the study and were interviewed about…

Kenyan women's literature from a post-colonial perspective: six ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Kenyan Women's Literature from Postcolonial Feminist Perspective: Six Stories .... cultural, and legal rights; equal treatment in the law, education, and the workplace; ... and works has spanned by now four generations of Kenyan women writers, .... the entire short story production by women writers in the previous decades.

Fatherhood in Kenyan Ethnic Communities: Implication for Child Development

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Lasser, Jon; Fite, Kathleen; Wadende, Akinyi P.

2011-01-01

This article reviews the traditional and evolving constructions of fatherhood in Kenyan society, with an emphasis on fatherhood's impact on child development outcomes. Western influence and increased access to technology have changed the role of the Kenyan father, and in turn affected his role in the family. Special attention is given to…

Kenyan and Ethiopian distance runners: what makes them so good?

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Wilber, Randall L; Pitsiladis, Yannis P

2012-06-01

Since the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, Kenyan and Ethiopian runners have dominated the middle- and long-distance events in athletics and have exhibited comparable dominance in international cross-country and road-racing competition. Several factors have been proposed to explain the extraordinary success of the Kenyan and Ethiopian distance runners, including (1) genetic predisposition, (2) development of a high maximal oxygen uptake as a result of extensive walking and running at an early age, (3) relatively high hemoglobin and hematocrit, (4) development of good metabolic "economy/efficiency" based on somatotype and lower limb characteristics, (5) favorable skeletal-muscle-fiber composition and oxidative enzyme profile, (6) traditional Kenyan/Ethiopian diet, (7) living and training at altitude, and (8) motivation to achieve economic success. Some of these factors have been examined objectively in the laboratory and field, whereas others have been evaluated from an observational perspective. The purpose of this article is to present the current data relative to factors that potentially contribute to the unprecedented success of Kenyan and Ethiopian distance runners, including recent studies that examined potential links between Kenyan and Ethiopian genotype characteristics and elite running performance. In general, it appears that Kenyan and Ethiopian distance-running success is not based on a unique genetic or physiological characteristic. Rather, it appears to be the result of favorable somatotypical characteristics lending to exceptional biomechanical and metabolic economy/efficiency; chronic exposure to altitude in combination with moderate-volume, high-intensity training (live high + train high), and a strong psychological motivation to succeed athletically for the purpose of economic and social advancement.

A Student-Led Global Health Education Initiative: Reflections on the Kenyan Village Medical Education Program

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John, Christopher; Asquith, Heidi; Wren, Tom; Mercuri, Stephanie; Brownlow, Sian

2016-01-01

The Kenyan Village Medical Education Program is a student-led global health initiative that seeks to improve health outcomes in rural Kenya through culturally appropriate health education. The month-long program, which is organised by the Melbourne University Health Initiative (Australia), is conducted each January in southern rural Kenya. Significance for public health The Kenyan Village Medical Education (KVME) Program is a student-led global health initiative that involves exploring well-established strategies for the prevention of disease through workshops that are conducted in southern rural Kenya. These workshops are tailored to the unique needs and circumstances of rural Kenyan communities, and are delivered to community leaders, as well as to adults and children within the wider community. Aside from the KVME Program’s emphasis on reducing the burden of preventable disease through health education, the positive impact of the KVME Program on the Program’s student volunteers also deserves consideration. Throughout the month-long KVME Program, student volunteers are presented with opportunities to develop their understanding of cultural competency, the social and economic determinants of health, as well as the unique challenges associated with working in resource-poor communities. Importantly, the KVME Program also represents an avenue through which global health leadership can be fostered amongst student volunteers. PMID:27190974

Length of Coronary Sinus in a Black Kenyan Population: Correlation ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The aim of the current study was to determine the length of coronary sinus among black Kenyans. Coronary sinuses of seventy-four hearts (43 males and 31 females) of adult age range (20-70years) black Kenyans obtained during autopsy were studied at the Department of Human Anatomy, University of Nairobi, Kenya.

Triggers and Characteristics of the 2007 Kenyan Electoral Violence

OpenAIRE

Stefan Dercon; Roxana Gutiérrez-Romero

2010-01-01

Following the 2007 disputed Kenyan Presidential election unprecedented levels of violence erupted across the country adding to the history of troubled elections in Africa. This paper offers quantitative and qualitative evidence on the incidence, impacts and issues that triggered electoral violence. Using two surveys conducted before and after the election we find that one out of three Kenyans were affected by the violence regardless of their ethnicity and wealth. The chances of being a victim...

The Assessment of Systemic Risk in the Kenyan Banking Sector

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Hong Fan

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The present paper aims to assess the systemic risk of the Kenyan banking system. We propose a theoretical framework to reveal the time evolution of the systemic risk using sequences of financial data and use the framework to assess the systemic risk of the Kenyan banking system that is regarded as the largest in the East and Central African region. Firstly, we estimate the bilateral exposures matrix using aggregate financial data on loans and deposits from annual reports and analyze the interconnectedness in the market using network centrality measures. Next, we extend the Eisenberg–Noe method to a multiperiod setting to the systemic risk of the Kenyan banking system, in which the multiperiod includes the dynamic evolutions of the Kenyan banking system of every bank and the structure of the interbank network system. We apply this framework to assess dynamically the systemic risk of the Kenyan banking system between 2009 and 2015. The main findings are the following. The theoretical network analysis using network centrality measures showed several banks displaying characteristics of systematically important banks (SIBs. The theoretical default analysis showed that a bank suffering a basic default will trigger a contagious default that caused several other banks in the sector to go bankrupt. Further stress test proved that the KCB bank theoretically caused a few contagious defaults due to an unusually high interconnectedness. This methodology can contribute by being part of monitoring system of the Central Bank of Kenya (regulatory body as well as the implementation of policies (such as bank-internal stress tests that assist in preventing default contagion.

Game theoretic considerations for Kenyan health governance ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Game theoretic considerations for Kenyan health governance. ... theoretic considerations in their practice in order to achieve market-driven competition ... Key words: Game theory, social capital, good governance, health policy, health systems.

Factors of children's school readiness

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Ljubica Marjanovič Umek

2006-12-01

Full Text Available The purpose of the study was to examine the effect of preschool on children's school readiness in connection with their intellectual abilities, language competence, and parents' education. The sample included 219 children who were 68 to 83 months old and were attending the first year of primary school. Children were differentiated by whether or not they had attended preschool before starting school. Children's intellectual ability was determined using Raven's Coloured Progressive Matrices (CPM; Raven, Raven, & Court, 1999, language competence using the Lestvice splošnega govornegarazvoja–LJ (LSGR–LJ, Scales of General Language Development; Marjanovič Umek, Kranjc, Fekonja in Bajc, 2004, and school readiness with the Preizkus pripravljenosti za šolo (PPŠ, Test of School Readiness; Toličič, 1986. The results indicate that children's intellectual ability and language competence have a high predictive value for the school readiness — they explained 51% of the variance in children's scores on the PPŠ. Preschool enrollment has a positive effect on school readiness for children whose parents have a low level of education, but not for those whose parents are highly educated.

Phase II trial of isotonic fluid resuscitation in Kenyan children with severe malnutrition and hypovolaemia

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Boga Mwanamvua

2010-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Children with severe malnutrition who develop shock have a high mortality. Contrary to contemporaneous paediatric practice, current guidelines recommend use of low dose hypotonic fluid resuscitation (half-strength Darrows/5% dextrose (HSD/5D. We evaluated the safety and efficacy of this guideline compared to resuscitation with a standard isotonic solution. Methods A Phase II randomised controlled, safety and efficacy trial in Kenyan children aged over 6 months with severe malnutrition and shock including children with severe dehydration/shock and presumptive septic shock (non-diarrhoeal shock. Eligible children were randomised to HSD/5D or Ringer's Lactate (RL. A maximum of two boluses of 15 ml/kg of HSD/5D were given over two hours (as recommended by guidelines while those randomised to RL received 10 ml/kg aliquots half hourly (maximum 40 ml/kg. Primary endpoint was resolution of shock at 8 and 24 hours. Secondary outcomes included resolution of acidosis, adverse events and mortality. Results 61 children were enrolled: 41 had shock and severe dehydrating diarrhoea, 20 had presumptive septic shock; 69% had decompensated shock. By 8 hours response to volume resuscitation was poor with shock persisting in most children:-HSD/5D 15/22 (68% and RL14/25 (52%, p = 0.39. Oliguria was more prevalent at 8 hours in the HSD/5D group, 9/22 (41%, compared to RL-3/25 (12%, p = 0.02. Mortality was high, HSD/5D-15/26(58% and RL 13/29(45%; p = 0.42. Most deaths occurred within 48 hours of admission. Neither pulmonary oedema nor cardiogenic failure was detected. Conclusions Outcome was universally poor characterised by persistence of shock, oliguria and high case fatality. Isotonic fluid was associated with modest improvement in shock and survival when compared to HSD/5D but inconclusive due to the limitations of design and effectiveness of either resuscitation strategy. Although isotonic fluid resuscitation did not result in cardiogenic heart

Challenges of Implementing E-Learning in Kenya: A Case of Kenyan Public Universities

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Tarus, John K.; Gichoya, David; Muumbo, Alex

2015-01-01

In this paper, we discuss the challenges experienced by Kenyan public universities in implementation of e-learning and recommend possible solutions towards its successful implementation. In the last few years, most Kenyan public universities have adopted e-learning as a new approach to teaching and learning. However, the implementation challenges…

Phylogenetic relationship among Kenyan sorghum germplasms ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Mr Kiboi

phylogenetic relationships based on 10 DNA fragments at AltSB loci with SbMATE, ORF9 and MITE primers. .... estimate the overall genetic diversity in Kenyan sorghum lines: Cheprot et al. 3529 ..... EARN project and Generation Challenge (GCP), ... genetics and molecular biology of plant aluminum resistance and toxicity.

Disaster Risk Management - The Kenyan Challenges

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Nabutola, W.

2009-04-01

Keywords: natural disasters; man-made disasters; terrorist attacks; land slides; disaster policies and legislations; fire; earthquakes; hurricanes; soil erosion; disaster research policy; Preamble: "Risk does not begin and end on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. The vastness of the subject matter is daunting. Risk touches on the most profound aspects of psychology, mathematics, statistics and history. The literature is monumental; each day's headlines bring many new items of interest. But I know we are not unique, everywhere in the world risks abound." "AGAINST THE GODS the remarkable story of risk" by Peter L. Bernstein, 1998 The real challenge is what can we, as a nation do to avert, prevent them, or in the unfortunate event that they occur, how can we mitigate their impact on the economy? Introductory remarks: Disaster in Kenya, as indeed anywhere else, is not one of those happenings we can wish away. It can strike anywhere any time. Some of it is man-made but most of it is natural. The natural are sometimes induced by man in one way or another. For example, when we harvest trees without replacing them, this diminishes the forest cover and can lead to soil erosion, whose advanced form is land slides. Either way disasters in their different forms and sizes present challenges to the way we live our lives or not, perhaps, even how we die. Disasters in our country have reached crisis stage. ‘In Chinese language, crisis means danger, but it also means opportunity' Les Brown, motivational speaker in "the power of a larger vision" Why I am interested Whereas Kenya experiences man made and natural disasters, there are more sinister challenges of the man-made variety. These loom on the horizon and, from time to time raise their ugly heads, taking many Kenyan lives in their wake, and property destroyed. These are post election violence and terrorist attacks, both related to politics, internal and external. In January 2008, soon after presidential and national

Disaster Risk Management - The Kenyan Challenge

Science.gov (United States)

Nabutola, W.; Scheer, S.

2009-04-01

Keywords: natural disasters; man-made disasters; terrorist attacks; land slides; disaster policies and legislations; fire; earthquakes; hurricanes; soil erosion; disaster research policy; Preamble: "Risk does not begin and end on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. The vastness of the subject matter is daunting. Risk touches on the most profound aspects of psychology, mathematics, statistics and history. The literature is monumental; each day's headlines bring many new items of interest. But I know we are not unique, everywhere in the world risks abound." "AGAINST THE GODS the remarkable story of risk" by Peter L. Bernstein, 1998 The real challenge is what can we, as a nation do to avert, prevent them, or in the unfortunate event that they occur, how can we mitigate their impact on the economy? Introductory remarks: Disaster in Kenya, as indeed anywhere else, is not one of those happenings we can wish away. It can strike anywhere any time. Some of it is man-made but most of it is natural. The natural are sometimes induced by man in one way or another. For example, when we harvest trees without replacing them, this diminishes the forest cover and can lead to soil erosion, whose advanced form is land slides. Either way disasters in their different forms and sizes present challenges to the way we live our lives or not, perhaps, even how we die. Disasters in our country have reached crisis stage. ‘In Chinese language, crisis means danger, but it also means opportunity' Les Brown, motivational speaker in "the power of a larger vision" Why I am interested Whereas Kenya experiences man made and natural disasters, there are more sinister challenges of the man-made variety. These loom on the horizon and, from time to time raise their ugly heads, taking many Kenyan lives in their wake, and property destroyed. These are post election violence and terrorist attacks, both related to politics, internal and external. In January 2008, soon after presidential and national

The Kenyan indigenous languages and the mass media ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

vernacular mass media and the Kenyan indigenous languages. ... African indigenous languages had, "against all odds", survived as media of communication ..... regulations should, of course, primarily ensure quality and ethical journalism.

Parents' and professionals' perceptions on causes and treatment options for Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD in a multicultural context on the Kenyan Coast.

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Joseph K Gona

Full Text Available To explore parents' and professionals' perceived causes and treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD on the Kenyan Coast.In-depth interviews and focus group discussions using guiding questions were utilized in data collection. One hundred and three participants, who included parents of children with ASD, special needs teachers, clinicians, and social workers from diverse cultural background, participated in this study. The interviews and focus groups were recorded, transcribed verbatim and then translated to English. Themes were generated using content analysis.Preternatural causes were mentioned and included evil spirits, witchcraft, and curses. Biomedical causes comprised infections, drug abuse, birth complications, malnutrition, and genetic related problems. Treatment varied from traditional and spiritual healing to modern treatment in health facilities, and included consultations with traditional healers, offering prayers to God, and visits to hospitals.The results suggest that regardless of cultural backgrounds, people on the Kenyan Coast have similar views on perceived causes and treatment of ASD. These findings provide valuable conceptual understanding for professionals when planning and implementing community based rehabilitation interventions targeting children with ASD within a local context.

Sexual practices among western Kenyan youth

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AA Egal

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Universally the importance of proper sex behaviors and development amongst youngsters is well recognized and documented. Nations and communities are committed to detecting early sexual misbehaviors, amongst others in growing children, in order to foster sound societies. Concomitantly, some of the so-called “remote areas”, which are far from the political centers, seem to have less attention from the national resources. In practice, most of the social problems are detected in these “remote areas”. In this context, a survey questionnaire was conducted among 217 randomly selected school-age children in 15 sub-locations in Kisamu, in western Kenya. The main goals were to create awareness among school-going children regarding safe sex and sexually transmitted diseases and to explore the existing sexual behaviors in the research area. Statistical analysis on the research question revealed that primary school children begin their first sexual activity at as early as six years while older secondary school pupils start at around the age of eight and half. Out-ofschool children indicated that they started their first sexual activities at the age of 10. Similarly, when asked about the frequency of sexual engagement in the year before, the frequency was higher among schoolchildren than those out of school. These findings raised a serious fundamental question on the effectiveness of the existing child protection policies in schools in the research areas. Therefore, all stakeholders should review school protection mechanisms where special care could be given to primary schools, where the impact is most serious.

Kenyan Women's Literature from Postcolonial Feminist Perspective ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Kenyan Women's Literature from Postcolonial Feminist Perspective: Six Stories by Storymoja Writers. ... Journal of Language, Technology & Entrepreneurship in Africa ... days been struggling against many social ailments that have been gnawing at post-colonial societies since and even before the days of decolonization.

School performance and school behavior of children affected by AIDS in China

Science.gov (United States)

Tu, Xiaoming; Lv, Yunfei; Li, Xiaoming; Fang, Xiaoyi; Zhao, Guoxiang; Lin, Xiuyun; Hong, Yan; Zhang, Liying; Stanton, Bonita

2009-01-01

It is generally recognized that the AIDS epidemic will have a negative effect on the orphans’ school education. However, few studies have been carried out to examine the school performance and school behavior of AIDS orphans and vulnerable children (children living with HIV-infected parents). Using both self-report and teacher evaluation data of 1625 children from rural central China, we examined the impact of parental HIV/AIDS on children's school performances (academic marks, educational expectation, and student leadership) and school behaviors (e.g., aggression, shy/anxious and assertive social skills). Results indicate that AIDS orphans and vulnerable children had disadvantages in school performances in comparison to their peers from the same community who did not experience AIDS-related death and illness in their family (comparison children). AIDS orphans had the lowest academic marks based on the reports of both children and teachers. Educational expectation was significantly lower among AIDS orphans and vulnerable children than comparison children from teacher's perspective. AIDS orphans were significantly more likely to demonstrate aggressive, impulsive and anxious behaviors than non-orphans. Moreover, orphans have more learning difficulties. Vulnerable children were also at a disadvantage on most measures. The data suggest that a greater attention is needed to the school performance and behavior of children affected by AIDS. The findings also indicate that AIDS relief and assistance program for children should go beyond the school attendance and make efforts to improve their school performance and education aspiration. PMID:20107622

Primary school children\\'s perspectives on common diseases and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: Existing school health programmes in Uganda target children above five years for de-worming, oral hygiene and frequent vaccination of girls of reproductive age. Objective:To assess primary school children\\'s perspectives on common diseases they experience and medicines used in order to suggest reforms ...

Effects of e-banking on growth of customer base in kenyan banks

OpenAIRE

Okibo, Bichanga Walter; Wario, Ali Yattani

2014-01-01

The study highlights the effects of E-banking services on growth of customer base in Kenyan banks for over the last five years. It addresses issues that affect effective utilization of E-banking facilities by customers. The study generally investigates how lack of technological know-how, illiteracy, unreliability, and transaction limits has hindered growth of on-line customer base in Kenyan banks. E-banking provides enormous benefits to consumers in terms of time saving and cost of transactio...

Increasing coverage and decreasing inequity in insecticide-treated bed net use among rural Kenyan children.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abdisalan M Noor

2007-08-01

Full Text Available Inexpensive and efficacious interventions that avert childhood deaths in sub-Saharan Africa have failed to reach effective coverage, especially among the poorest rural sectors. One particular example is insecticide-treated bed nets (ITNs. In this study, we present repeat observations of ITN coverage among rural Kenyan homesteads exposed at different times to a range of delivery models, and assess changes in coverage across socioeconomic groups.We undertook a study of annual changes in ITN coverage among a cohort of 3,700 children aged 0-4 y in four districts of Kenya (Bondo, Greater Kisii, Kwale, and Makueni annually between 2004 and 2006. Cross-sectional surveys of ITN coverage were undertaken coincidentally with the incremental availability of commercial sector nets (2004, the introduction of heavily subsidized nets through clinics (2005, and the introduction of free mass distributed ITNs (2006. The changing prevalence of ITN coverage was examined with special reference to the degree of equity in each delivery approach. ITN coverage was only 7.1% in 2004 when the predominant source of nets was the commercial retail sector. By the end of 2005, following the expansion of heavily subsidized clinic distribution system, ITN coverage rose to 23.5%. In 2006 a large-scale mass distribution of ITNs was mounted providing nets free of charge to children, resulting in a dramatic increase in ITN coverage to 67.3%. With each subsequent survey socioeconomic inequity in net coverage sequentially decreased: 2004 (most poor [2.9%] versus least poor [15.6%]; concentration index 0.281; 2005 (most poor [17.5%] versus least poor [37.9%]; concentration index 0.131, and 2006 with near-perfect equality (most poor [66.3%] versus least poor [66.6%]; concentration index 0.000. The free mass distribution method achieved highest coverage among the poorest children, the highly subsidised clinic nets programme was marginally in favour of the least poor, and the commercial

Homework particularities for small school children.

Science.gov (United States)

Beiusanu, Corina; Vlaicu, Brigitha

2013-01-01

The present study was centered on the particularities of the duration of preparing homework, taking breaks during homework preparation, and the way the breaks should take place for small school children. The study has been done on a sample of 235 small school children from Oradea, 114 boys and 121 girls, between the ages 7 and 10 years old, using an anonymous questioner, with 41 items, which investigates the lifestyle of the small school children. The duration of homework preparation it is significantly more reduced for the school children in 1st grade in comparison with the ones in 3 grade (p lunch. Half of the children from grades I-IV prepare their homework with no break. A very small number of children spend their homework break time in a healthy manner, while the rest prefer to play computer games (46.95%) or to watch television (46.08%). More than half of the schoolchildren need 1-2 hours at home to prepare their homework. Most of the school children prepare their homework after lunch, in an optimal interval of time. Half of the questioned children prepare their homework with no break. Those who are taking breaks prefer activities which get the children even more tired, therefore being non-hygienic methods of spending homework breaks.

Parents’ and Professionals’ Perceptions on Causes and Treatment Options for Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) in a Multicultural Context on the Kenyan Coast

Science.gov (United States)

Gona, Joseph K.; Rimba, Kenneth; Mapenzi, Rachel; Kihara, Michael

2015-01-01

Objective To explore parents’ and professionals’ perceived causes and treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) on the Kenyan Coast. Methods In-depth interviews and focus group discussions using guiding questions were utilized in data collection. One hundred and three participants, who included parents of children with ASD, special needs teachers, clinicians, and social workers from diverse cultural background, participated in this study. The interviews and focus groups were recorded, transcribed verbatim and then translated to English. Themes were generated using content analysis. Results Preternatural causes were mentioned and included evil spirits, witchcraft, and curses. Biomedical causes comprised infections, drug abuse, birth complications, malnutrition, and genetic related problems. Treatment varied from traditional and spiritual healing to modern treatment in health facilities, and included consultations with traditional healers, offering prayers to God, and visits to hospitals. Conclusions The results suggest that regardless of cultural backgrounds, people on the Kenyan Coast have similar views on perceived causes and treatment of ASD. These findings provide valuable conceptual understanding for professionals when planning and implementing community based rehabilitation interventions targeting children with ASD within a local context. PMID:26267668

Does school breakfast benefit children's educational performance?

Science.gov (United States)

Fernald, L; Ani, C C; Grantham-mcgregor, S

1997-09-01

This article reviews several research studies on the impact of the lack of breakfast among students. Recent data reveal that about 20% of Nigerian children were wasted or had weight-for-height measurements under the 5th percentile of the US National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) standard. In Ghana, 41% of children were underweight or had a weight-for-age under -2 standard deviations of the NCHS standards. In Tanzania, about 34% of children were underweight. Many more students in Africa are attending school, but many are leaving primary school early or failing secondary school examinations. It is argued that poor nutritional status affects children's ability to learn. Research reveals several hypotheses about how breakfast affects children's cognition, behavior, and school performance. Children may not attend school at all due to the inability to purchase food to eat at school, or insufficient food resources at home to provide sufficient energy to walk long distances to school. In four studies, two in the USA and the others in Peru and Jamaica, findings reveal that when undernourished children missed breakfast, they performed worse in tests of cognition. Adequately nourished children's performance was unaffected by missing breakfast. A study in four Jamaican schools found that children had more creative ideas when they received a breakfast for 2 weeks than when they did not receive breakfast. Two Swedish studies found that children with a high-calorie breakfast improved in cognition compared to those receiving a low-calorie breakfast. One study found that children in well-equipped classrooms paid more attention in class after having breakfast. Children in overcrowded classes and poorly equipped schools were less likely to pay attention after breakfast. Long-term effects are less well studied, but findings clearly support the benefits of breakfast.

Which Way for the Kenyan Manufacturing Firms?

African Journals Online (AJOL)

User

2011-07-21

Jul 21, 2011 ... Indexed African Journals Online: www.ajol.info. An International ... In this paper, firm level panel data for Kenyan manufacturing sector is used ... profits abroad. ... 2. the national income or growth accounting approach which uses .... TFP = productivity measured as value added i.e. total output minus value of.

School Administrators' Perceptions of Factors that Influence Children's Active Travel to School

Science.gov (United States)

Price, Anna E.; Pluto, Delores M.; Ogoussan, Olga; Banda, Jorge A.

2011-01-01

Background: Increasing children's active travel to school may be 1 strategy for addressing the growing prevalence of obesity among school age children. Using the School Travel Survey, we examined South Carolina school district leaders' perceptions of factors that influence elementary and middle school students walking to school. Methods: Frequency…

School absence and its effect on school performance for children born with orofacial clefts.

Science.gov (United States)

Bell, Jane; Raynes-Greenow, Camille; Turner, Robin; Bower, Carol; Dodson, Alan; Hancock, Kirsten; Nassar, Natasha

2017-07-17

School absence is associated with lower performance on standardized tests. Children born with orofacial clefts (OFC) are likely to have more absence than children without OFC; however, school absence for children with OFC has not been quantified. We aimed to describe school absence and its relationship with school performance for children with and without OFC. Population-based record-linked cohort study of children (402 with OFC, 1789 without OFC) enrolled in schools in Western Australia, 2008 to 2012. We compared median school absence rates using Wilcoxon rank tests, and investigated the impact of school absence on standardized scores from reading, numeracy, and writing tests, using multivariable models fitted by generalized estimating equations. In Semester 1, at each primary school year level, children without OFC and children with cleft lip only or cleft palate only had similar median absence rates (approximately 1 week). Children with cleft lip and palate had significantly higher absence rates in Years 4 to 6 (between 1 and 2 weeks). During secondary school, median absence rates were higher (2 weeks) for all children, but not statistically different between children with and without OFC. Higher absence was significantly associated with lower standardized reading, numeracy, and writing scores. However, having a cleft of any type had little influence on the association between absence and test scores. School absence affected school performance for all children. Absence did not differentially disadvantage children born with OFC, suggesting current practices to identify and support children with OFC are minimizing effects of their absence on school performance. Birth Defects Research 109:1048-1056, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

School Perceptions of Children Raised by Grandparents

Science.gov (United States)

Edwards, Oliver W.

2018-01-01

Increasing numbers of children raised by grandparents are students in schools. Their substitute family structure and precursors to the emergence of this family structure have implications for the children's school performance. Research suggests teachers view these children as at risk for difficult school functioning. The aforementioned judgment is…

Children's rights and school psychology: children's right to participation.

Science.gov (United States)

Lansdown, Gerison; Jimerson, Shane R; Shahroozi, Reza

2014-02-01

The Convention on the Rights of the Child detailed an international imperative to fulfilling, protecting, and respecting the rights of every child. In particular, the Convention set out a clear mandate for guaranteeing opportunities for children to be heard on all matters of concern to them. The attainment of these goals involves respecting and valuing children as active participants in the educational process. If fully implemented, the right of children to express views and have them taken seriously, throughout the school environment, would represent one of the most profound transformations in moving towards a culture of respect for children's rights, for their dignity and citizenship, and for their capacities to contribute significantly towards their own well-being. These values and principles are consistent with those of the school psychology profession, thus, school psychologists are encouraged to be at the Center of the process advocating and actualizing the Convention in schools throughout the world. Copyright © 2014 Society for the Study of School Psychology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Critical Success Factors for Franchised Restaurants Entering the Kenyan Market

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Lucy Gikonyo

2015-10-01

Full Text Available In today’s globalized world, businesses look to expand to have a global presence. Restaurant businesses have expanded internationally using franchising. This study sought to determine the critical success factors (CSFs of a franchised restaurant system entering the Kenyan market from the franchisors’ perspective. It sought to establish how franchisors define, identify, and evaluate success. This study provides a theoretical framework that helps to understand the background of why organizations seek to expand using franchising method and consequently the CSFs of franchised restaurants entering the Kenyan market. The study used qualitative methodology with the use of in-depth interviews for collecting data. The results yielded CSFs from the franchisors’ perspective. As revealed by the study, the CSFs include brand power/concept, competitive environment, government policies, distance management, cultural appeal, excellent selection of franchisees, good site/location selection, good relationship with the franchisees, and proper contract management. These findings can be used by restaurant franchises that seek to establish successful businesses in the Kenyan market and other similar regional markets. The Africa franchise partners may also find some useful information from this article as they seek to set up the Franchise Association of Kenya. Other franchise businesses may also benefit from some aspects of the study.

A Review of the Participation of Disabled Persons in the Labour Force: The Kenyan Context

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Opini, Bathseba M.

2010-01-01

This paper presents a review of the challenges that disabled people experience in participating in the Kenyan labour market. It draws on existing literature and on a narrative of the experiences of one disabled academic in a Kenyan university to highlight some of the forms of discrimination that disabled people have to cope with in their…

Migrant Preschool Children's School Readiness and Early Elementary School Performance

Science.gov (United States)

Tavassolie, Tanya; López, Claudia; De Feyter, Jessica; Hartman, Suzanne C.; Winsler, Adam

2018-01-01

Little is known about the early educational performance of children in migrant farmworker families. The authors examined the school readiness and early school success of 289 four-year-old preschool children of migrant families attending Redlands Christian Migrant Association centers. Children's school readiness was assessed and public school…

Sun Protection Among New Zealand Primary School Children.

Science.gov (United States)

Gage, Ryan; Leung, William; Stanley, James; Reeder, Anthony; Mackay, Christina; Smith, Moira; Barr, Michelle; Chambers, Tim; Signal, Louise

2017-12-01

Schools are an important setting for raising skin cancer prevention awareness and encouraging sun protection. We assessed the clothes worn and shade used by 1,278 children in eight schools in the Wellington region of New Zealand. These children were photographed for the Kids'Cam project between September 2014 and March 2015 during school lunch breaks. Children's mean clothing coverage (expressed as a percentage of body area covered) was calculated. Data on school sun-safety policies were obtained via telephone. Mean total body clothing coverage was 70.3% (95% confidence interval = 66.3%, 73.8%). Body regions with the lowest mean coverage were the head (15.4% coverage), neck (36.1% coverage), lower arms (46.1% coverage), hands (5.3% coverage), and calves (30.1% coverage). Children from schools with hats as part of the school uniform were significantly more likely to wear a hat (52.2%) than children from schools without a school hat (2.7%). Most children (78.4%) were not under the cover of shade. Our findings suggest that New Zealand children are not sufficiently protected from the sun at school. Schools should consider comprehensive approaches to improve sun protection, such as the provision of school hats, sun-protective uniforms, and the construction of effective shade.

Pre-school education and school maturity of children from socially disadvantaged backgrounds

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Panajotis Cakirpaloglu

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The adaptability of children to the school environment and their potential to succeed there is closely linked to the development of their cognitive and social skills. These are primarily linked to personal factors -physical maturity as well as mental or emotional maturity and the environment in which those children grow up. This fact is evident in children growing up in disadvantageous socio-economic conditions. In general the school readiness of children from socially-disadvantaged backgrounds is affected by the specific environment, the primary family and a number of other factors. A significant support of psychosocial development and successful adaptability at the start of the compulsory education is the preschool education, especially for children growing up in disadvantageous socio-economic conditions. The presented study focused on the effect of pre-school education on school readiness in first grade children. 24 children from socially disadvantaged environment were tested twice - for first time shortly after the beginning of their first grade and for the second time before the end of the first grade. The children were then divided into two groups - those who attended pre-school education and those who started school without any pre-school education programme. The attendance thus made the independent variable in the research design. There were three research questions - what is the impact of pre-school education on: Q1: general cognitive functioning (tested using the Intelligence Image Scale, Q2: on the ability to acquire the reading skills (tested using the Reversal test by Edfeldt and Q3 on the social maturity of the children (tested using the Vineland scale of adaptive behaviour The results of the study suggest that pre-school education has significant effect on social skills and this effect increases during the first year. The reading skills were better in children who attended the pre-school education however this impact decreases

Active transport among Czech school-aged children

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Jan Pavelka

2012-09-01

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Active transport is a very important factor for increasing the level of physical activity in children, which is significant for both their health and positive physical behaviour in adult age. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to establish the proportion of Czech children aged 11 to 15 who select active transport to and from school and, at the same time, describe socio-economic and socio-demographic factors influencing active transport to and from school among children. METHODS: To establish the socio-demographic factors affecting active transport, data of a national representative sample of 11 to 15 year-old elementary school children in the Czech Republic (n = 4,425. Research data collection was performed within an international research study called Health Behaviour in School Aged Children in June 2010. Statistical processing of the results was made using a logistic regression analysis in the statistical programme IBM SPSS v 20. RESULTS: Active transport to and from school is opted for in the Czech Republic by approximately 2/3 of children aged 11 to 15. Differences between genders are not statistically significant; most children opting for active transport are aged 11 (69%. An important factor increasing the probability of active transport as much as 16 times is whether a child's place of residence is in the same municipality as the school. Other factors influencing this choice include BMI, time spent using a computer or a privateroom in a family. A significant factor determining active transport by children is safety; safe road crossing, opportunity to leave a bicycle safely at school, no fear of being assaulted on the way or provision of school lockers where children can leave their items. CONCLUSIONS: Active transport plays an important role in increasing the overall level of physical activity in children. Promotion of active transport should focus on children who spend more time using a computer; attention should also be

Comparative genetics of alcoholism in the Kenyan populations ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Hepatic alcohol dehydrogenase and aldehyde dehydrogenase are major enzymes in the metabolism of exogenous ethanol. These enzymes are polymorphic and are involved in alcohol drinking and risk of alcoholism in some world populations. Three hundred and seventy one samples of hair root lyzates from five Kenyan ...

Variant anatomy of renal arteries in a Kenyan population.

Science.gov (United States)

Ogeng'o, Julius A; Masaki, Charles O; Sinkeet, Simeon R; Muthoka, Johnstone M; Murunga, Acleus K

2010-01-01

Variant anatomy of renal arteries is important in renal transplant, vascular reconstruction, and uroradiological procedures. The variations show ethnic and population differences. Data from Africans are scarce and altogether absent for Kenyans. To describe patterns of origin, trajectories and branching of renal arteries in a Kenyan population. Descriptive cross-sectional study conducted in the Department of Human Anatomy, University of Nairobi. Three hundred and fifty six kidneys from 178 cadavers and postmortem specimens were used in the study. Aorta, renal arteries and kidneys were exposed by dissection. Number, trajectories, level of branching, number of branches and point of entry into the kidney were recorded. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 16.0, and presented using macrographs, tables, and bar charts. Additional arteries occurred in 14.3% of the cases. In 82.4% of these, there was one additional artery. Fifty nine point five per cent of the double renal arteries were parallel and 7.1% crossed. Of the 305 single arteries, 76.4% showed hilar, 21.6% prehilar and 2% intraparenchymal branching. In the hilar branching, ladder type was present in 65% and fork type in 35%. Bifurcation and trifurcation were present in 59.6% and 33.1% respectively. Polar arteries were present in 16.9% cases. Over 14% of the Kenyan population may have additional renal arteries while more than 20% show early branching. Several trajectories and hilar branching patterns exist which renal transplant surgeons and radiologists should be aware of to avoid inadvertent vascular injury.

The Effect of Free Primary Education Policy on Late School Entry in Urban Primary Schools in Kenya

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Ngware, Moses W.; Oketch, Moses; Ezeh, Alex C.; Mutisya, Maurice

2013-01-01

Late school entry is driven by several factors, one of the key ones being the cost barrier to schooling. Policies such as free primary education (FPE) that advocate for universal coverage are therefore partly aimed at removing the cost barrier. The Kenyan Government, like many in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), introduced FPE in 2003 with the aim of…

The cost of uncomplicated childhood fevers to Kenyan households: implications for reaching international access targets

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Noor Abdisalan M

2006-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Fever is the clinical hallmark of malaria disease. The Roll Back Malaria (RBM movement promotes prompt, effective treatment of childhood fevers as a key component to achieving its optimistic mortality reduction goals by 2010. A neglected concern is how communities will access these new medicines promptly and the costs to poor households when they are located in rural areas distant to health services. Methods We assemble data developed between 2001 and 2002 in Kenya to describe treatment choices made by rural households to treat a child's fever and the related costs to households. Using a cost-of-illness approach, we estimate the expected cost of a childhood fever to Kenyan households in 2002. We develop two scenarios to explore how expected costs to households would change if more children were treated at a health care facility with an effective antimalarial within 48 hours of fever onset. Results 30% of uncomplicated fevers were managed at home with modern medicines, 38% were taken to a health care facility (HCF, and 32% were managed at home without the use of modern medicines. Direct household cash expenditures were estimated at $0.44 per fever, while the total expected cost to households (cash and time of an uncomplicated childhood fever is estimated to be $1.91. An estimated mean of 1.42 days of caretaker time devoted to each fever accounts for the majority of household costs of managing fevers. The aggregate cost to Kenyan households of managing uncomplicated childhood fevers was at least $96 million in 2002, equivalent to 1.00% of the Kenyan GDP. Fewer than 8% of all fevers were treated with an antimalarial drug within 24 hours of fever onset, while 17.5% were treated within 48 hours at a HCF. To achieve an increase from 17.5% to 33% of fevers treated with an antimalarial drug within 48 hours at a HCF (Scenario 1, children already being taken to a HCF would need to be taken earlier. Under this scenario, direct cash

The Kenyan meat sector Opportunities for Dutch agribusiness

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bergevoet, R.H.M.; Engelen, A.

2014-01-01

This study identifies opportunities for the Dutch agribusiness sector (industry as well as research and education) in Kenyan meat value chains at all levels. It can serve as a background document for Dutch agro-food business companies as well as other stakeholders. At the moment there is increased

Parent emotional expressiveness and children's self-regulation: Associations with abused children's school functioning

Science.gov (United States)

Haskett, Mary E.; Stelter, Rebecca; Proffit, Katie; Nice, Rachel

2012-01-01

Objective Identifying factors associated with school functioning of abused children is important in prevention of long-term negative outcomes associated with school failure. The purpose of this study was to examine the degree to which parent emotional expressiveness and children's self-regulation predicted early school behavior of abused children. Methods The sample included 92 physically abused children ages 4-7 and one of their parents (95.7% mothers). Parents completed a measure of their own emotional expressiveness, and parents and teachers provided reports of children's self-regulatory skills. Children's school functioning was measured by observations of playground aggression and teacher reports of aggression and classroom behavior. Results Parents’ expression of positive and negative emotions was associated with various aspects of children's self-regulation and functioning in the school setting. Links between self-regulation and children's school adjustment were robust; poor self-regulation was associated with higher aggression and lower cooperation and self-directed behavior in the classroom. There was minimal support for a mediating role of children's self-regulation in links between parent expressiveness and children's behavior. Practice implications Findings point to the relevance of parent emotional expressivity and children's self-regulatory processes in understanding physically abused children's functioning at the transition to school. Although further research is needed, findings indicate that increasing parental expression of positive emotion should be a focus in treatment along with reduction in negativity of abusive parents. Further, addressing children's self-regulation could be important in efforts to reduce aggression and enhance children's classroom competence. PMID:22565040

Families with School-Age Children

Science.gov (United States)

Christensen, Kathleen; Schneider, Barbara; Butler, Donnell

2011-01-01

Most working parents face a common dilemma--how to care for their children when they are not in school but the parents are at work. In this article Kathleen Christensen, Barbara Schneider, and Donnell Butler describe the predictable and unpredictable scheduling demands school-age children place on working couples and single working parents. The…

GHANAIAN AND KENYAN ENTREPRENEURS: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THEIR MOTIVATIONS, SUCCESS CHARACTERISTICS AND PROBLEMS

OpenAIRE

HUNG MANH CHU; CYNTHIA BENZING; CHARLES MCGEE

2007-01-01

Three hundred and fifty-six entrepreneurs from Kenya and Ghana were surveyed to determine their motivation for business ownership, variables contributing to their business success, and the problems they encountered. Kenyan and Ghanaian entrepreneurs indicated that increasing their income and creating jobs for themselves were leading factors motivating them to become business owners. Hard work and good customer service were cited by both Kenyan and Ghanaian business owners as critical for thei...

Exploring the school attendance of children with epilepsy

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Karina Piccin Zanni

2009-12-01

Full Text Available The childhood epilepsy is a chronic disease that can have an impact in various spheres of life of the child, including academic performance and school attendance. This study aimed to describe and compare the school attendance of children with epilepsy who attend mainstream and special schools. Participants were 56 children aged between 7 and 14 years who attended regular or special schools located in two Brazilian cities of medium size. To collect the information we used two instruments: Data sheet of identification and characterization of the child and Data sheet to record the attendance school. The results showed that children in special schools had higher rates of absenteeism compared to students in regular schools. Additionally, we observed that these children use more drugs and have implications on health more severe than children in regular schools. Thus, it is the childhood epilepsy as a disease complex that brings substantial effects on various areas of children’s lives by reinforcing the need for studies that might expand the knowledge to and the experiences associated with the education of these children.

The Socialization of Home-Schooled Children in Rural Utah

OpenAIRE

Mecham, Neil A.

2004-01-01

Concern over the social development of children who are home schooled has caused parents and educators to question the wisdom of this practice. A review of home-schooling research has not revealed whether a difference exists between the social skills of homeschooled children and children who attend public schools. This study explored the socialization of home-schooled children by comparing Social Skills Rating System scores of home-schooled children with the scores of their mothers and a comp...

Children's perceptions of school-based violence.

Science.gov (United States)

Gumpel, T P; Meadan, H

2000-09-01

An important first step in understanding school-based violence is understanding children's subjective perceptions of the phenomena. Understanding these perceptions is likely to be a major factor in determining the integrity of both prevalence and intervention studies. We investigated how elementary and secondary aged children perceived school-based violence. A sample of 979 children from a nested random sample of elementary (grades 3-6) and middle school (grades 7-8) classrooms in Jerusalem participated in this study. To understand children's perception of school violence, we used an instrument composed of 19 dichotomous items, each presenting a one-line description of a behaviour, which the respondent would define as either 'intentionally harmful' or not. Eighth graders were significantly less likely to label the behaviours described as violent compared to all other grades; and seventh graders were less likely as compared to third, fourth and fifth graders; also, some between-gender differences were found. The respondents often view the behaviours described as intentional and aggressive; this finding should serve as an impetus to widen the scope of school-based violence interventions to include these behaviours, especially for younger children.

Families with school-age children.

Science.gov (United States)

Christensen, Kathleen; Schneider, Barbara; Butler, Donnell

2011-01-01

Most working parents face a common dilemma--how to care for their children when they are not in school but the parents are at work. In this article Kathleen Christensen, Barbara Schneider, and Donnell Butler describe the predictable and unpredictable scheduling demands school-age children place on working couples and single working parents. The authors assess the potential capacity of schools to help meet the needs of working families through changes in school schedules and after-school programs and conclude that the flexibility parents need to balance family-work responsibilities probably cannot be found in the school setting. They argue that workplaces are better able than schools to offer the flexibility that working parents need to attend to basic needs of their children, as well as to engage in activities that enhance their children's academic performance and emotional and social well-being. Two types of flexible work practices seem especially well suited to parents who work: flextime arrangements that allow parents to coordinate their work schedules with their children's school schedules, and policies that allow workers to take short periods of time off--a few hours or a day or two-to attend a parent-teacher conference, for example, or care for a child who has suddenly fallen ill. Many companies that have instituted such policies have benefited through employees' greater job satisfaction and employee retention. Yet despite these measured benefits to employers, workplaces often fall short of being family friendly. Many employers do not offer such policies or offer them only to employees at certain levels or in certain types of jobs. Flexible work practices are almost nonexistent for low-income workers, who are least able to afford alternative child care and may need flexibility the most. Moreover the authors find that even employees in firms with flexible practices such as telecommuting may be reluctant to take advantage of them, because the workplace culture

An after-school exercise program improves fitness, and body composition in elementary school children.

Science.gov (United States)

Carrel, Aaron L; Logue, Julie; Deininger, Heidi; Clark, R Randall; Curtis, Vanessa; Montague, Paul; Baldwin, Sharon

2011-07-01

Reduced cardiovascular fitness (CVF) is a risk factor for obesity and cardiovascular disease. It has previously shown that a school-based fitness curriculum can improve CVF, and other health indicators in middle school aged children. Whether an afterschool program improves CVF and other health markers in elementary-school children is unresolved. The objective of this study was therefore to determine whether an on-site afterschool-based fitness program improves body composition, cardiovascular fitness level, in elementary school children. 80 elementary school children were evaluated in a "fitness-oriented" afterschool program managed by the local YMCA. Children underwent evaluation of cardiovascular fitness by maximal VO 2 treadmill testing and body composition by dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA), at baseline (prior to the school-year) and again at end of the school year. Findings revealed that, at baseline, children had a mean age of 8.8 years, BMI of 18.7± 3, with a maximal VO 2 of 40.03 ± 7.6 ml/kg/min, and percent body fat of 28.7 ± 7%. After a 9-month intervention, children maximal VO 2 increased to 44.8 ± 7.5 ml/kg/min (p=0.04) and percent body fat decreased to 25.8 ± 6.2% (p=0.033). The study concluded that on-site afterschool programming focusing on fitness improved body composition and cardiovascular fitness, in elementary school children. Combined with prior studies, these data demonstrate that afterschool-based fitness curricula can benefit both obese and non-obese children. It was therefore recommended that, partnerships with schools to promote fitness even outside of school time should be a part of a school approach to improving children's health.

Jungle Juice: Knowledge and Usage Among Kenyan Surgical Teams

African Journals Online (AJOL)

usage of jungle juice on patients in Kenyan public hospitals. Objectives: To .... and the management of the selected institutions ... given to 10kg child indicated that none of the surgeons ... 38(5.8%); burn surgery 37(5.6%); dentistry 24(3.6%).

Bullying in public secondary schools in Nairobi, Kenya | Ndetei ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: The prevalence and frequency of bullying in Nairobi public secondary schools in particular and in Kenyan schools in general is not known. Knowledge of the extent of the problem is essential in developing effective interventions. Aim: To study the prevalence and frequency of bullying in Nairobi public ...

Correlates of disclosure of sexual violence among Kenyan youth.

Science.gov (United States)

Boudreau, Courtney L; Kress, Howard; Rochat, Roger W; Yount, Kathryn M

2018-05-01

Sexual violence (SV) against children is a global health and human rights issue that can have short and long-term consequences for health and wellbeing. Disclosing SV increases the likelihood that children can access health and protective services and receive psychosocial support. Research in high-income countries has found that child SV survivors are more likely to disclose when they are girls/women, experience fewer SV events, and experience SV perpetrated by a stranger. No studies have examined correlates of SV disclosure in Kenya. The objective of this research was to assess the correlates of disclosing SV among Kenyan youth ages 13-24 who reported an SV experience before age 18. In 2010, the Kenya Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Development, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Division of Violence Prevention, the UNICEF Kenya Country Office, and the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) conducted a national survey of violence against children. These data were used to conduct weighted logistic regression analyses to determine which factors were correlated with reporting SV disclosure. Among the 27.8% of girls/women and 14.5% of boys/men who reported SV before age 18, 44.6% of girls/women and 28.2% of boys/men reported to have disclosed the experience. In weighted logistic regression analysis, the odds of disclosure were lower among survivors who were boys/men and among survivors who reported more SV events, and higher when any perpetrator was a family member. More context-specific research on SV disclosure among young people is needed globally. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

morphology of the anterior clinoid process in a select kenyan ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2018-02-28

Feb 28, 2018 ... obtained from the Departments of Human Anatomy in three Kenyan Universities. Caroticoclinoid foramen ... oculomotor nerve and inferomedially to the internal carotid artery ... Skulls with erupted third molars. Submitted 10th ...

SCHOOL AND OUT-OF-SCHOOL PHYSICAL ACTIVITY OF CHILDREN IN RURAL AREAS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Robert Podstawski

2014-08-01

Full Text Available Purpose : The aim of the study was to assess the level of school and out-of-school physical activity of children living in rural area at the early stage of their education. Material : The research was conducted in 2009 at primary school in Świętajno (a village. The study group consisted of 42 girls and 44 boys from the 1 st, 2 nd and 3 rd grade of primary school, aged 7-10. The children were chosen by means of a purposeful selection and surveyed by a questionnaire consisting of five open-ended and five closed-ended questions. Results : The research showed that the children living in the rural area at the early stage of their education eagerly participated in the classes of physical education held at school. The most popular physical activities among the children included: games and plays with the ball and other equipment, running, gymnastics (among girls and matches and competitions (among boys. The outdoor physical activities in which the children were involved outside of school were spontaneous and unorganized including mainly cycling, roller-skating, skating or skiing. Conclusions : A marginal percentage of children participated in out-of-school sports trainings or other physical education-oriented classes (e.g. swimming lessons. A relatively high percentage of children devoted a great deal of their free time to watching television, DVDs or playing on the computer.

Democracy, Ethics and Social Justice: Implications for Secondary School Leadership in Kenya

Science.gov (United States)

Jwan, Julius O.; Kisaka, Sella T.

2017-01-01

Principals in Kenyan schools are required to adopt democratic school leadership practises as part of the government policy. Adopting an interpretive case study, this paper set out to explore the application of democracy, ethics and social justice in secondary schools in Kenya. The study was in two phases. Phase one: twelve school principals were…

Diagnostic performance of Schistosoma real-time PCR in urine samples from Kenyan children infected with Schistosoma haematobium

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Vinkeles Melchers, Natalie V. S.; van Dam, Govert J.; Shaproski, David

2014-01-01

treatment. METHODOLOGY: Previously collected urine samples (N = 390) from 114 preselected proven parasitological and/or clinical S. haematobium positive Kenyan schoolchildren were analyzed by a Schistosoma internal transcribed spacer-based real-time PCR after 14 years of storage. Pre-treatment day......, respectively. Based on the 'gold standard', PCR showed high sensitivity (>92%) as compared to >31% sensitivity for microscopy, both pre- and post-treatment. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Detection and quantification of Schistosoma DNA in urine by real-time PCR was shown to be a powerful and specific diagnostic...

Parental Divorce and Children's Schooling in Rural Malawi.

Science.gov (United States)

Chae, Sophia

2016-12-01

A growing body of literature has examined the impact of different types of family structures on children's schooling in sub-Saharan Africa. These studies have investigated how living arrangements, gender of the household head, parental death, and paternal migration are related to schooling. Although many sub-Saharan African countries have high divorce rates, very few studies have explored the impact of parental divorce on children's schooling. The present study uses three waves of data from the Malawi Longitudinal Study of Families and Health (MLSFH) to investigate the effect of parental divorce on children's schooling and the possible mechanisms driving this relationship. Unlike prior studies, this study uses child-level fixed-effects models to control for selection into divorce. Results show that parental divorce is associated with lower grade attainment and a larger schooling gap, defined as the number of years a child is behind in school (among children currently attending school). Although no association exists between parental divorce and current school attendance, girls affected by divorce are significantly less likely to be attending school. Differences in economic resources, maternal coresidence, or maternal psychological well-being do not explain the relationship between parental divorce and children's schooling.

Maternal Parenting Styles, School Involvement, and Children's School Achievement and Conduct in Singapore

Science.gov (United States)

Stright, Anne Dopkins; Yeo, Kim Lian

2014-01-01

This study examined the roles of children's perceptions of maternal parenting styles (warmth, psychological control, and behavioral control) and maternal involvement in school-focused parenting practices (home-based involvement, home-school conferencing, and school-based involvement) predicting children's school achievement and conduct in…

Safety of the malaria vaccine candidate, RTS,S/AS01E in 5 to 17 month old Kenyan and Tanzanian Children.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

John Lusingu

2010-11-01

Full Text Available The malaria vaccine candidate, RTS,S/AS01(E, showed promising protective efficacy in a trial of Kenyan and Tanzanian children aged 5 to 17 months. Here we report on the vaccine's safety and tolerability. The experimental design was a Phase 2b, two-centre, double-blind (observer- and participant-blind, randomised (1∶1 ratio controlled trial. Three doses of study or control (rabies vaccines were administered intramuscularly at 1 month intervals. Solicited adverse events (AEs were collected for 7 days after each vaccination. There was surveillance and reporting for unsolicited adverse events for 30 days after each vaccination. Serious adverse events (SAEs were recorded throughout the study period which lasted for 14 months after dose 1 in Korogwe, Tanzania and an average of 18 months post-dose 1 in Kilifi, Kenya. Blood samples for safety monitoring of haematological, renal and hepatic functions were taken at baseline, 3, 10 and 14 months after dose 1. A total of 894 children received RTS,S/AS01(E or rabies vaccine between March and August 2007. Overall, children vaccinated with RTS,S/AS01(E had fewer SAEs (51/447 than children in the control group (88/447. One SAE episode in a RTS,S/AS01(E recipient and nine episodes among eight rabies vaccine recipients met the criteria for severe malaria. Unsolicited AEs were reported in 78% of subjects in the RTS,S/AS01(E group and 74% of subjects in the rabies vaccine group. In both vaccine groups, gastroenteritis and pneumonia were the most frequently reported unsolicited AE. Fever was the most frequently observed solicited AE and was recorded after 11% of RTS,S/AS01(E doses compared to 31% of doses of rabies vaccine. The candidate vaccine RTS,S/AS01(E showed an acceptable safety profile in children living in a malaria-endemic area in East Africa. More data on the safety of RTS,S/AS01(E will become available from the Phase 3 programme.

Achievement and School Behavior among Children with Epilepsy.

Science.gov (United States)

Matthews, Wendy S.; And Others

1983-01-01

Compared the school behavior of 15 epileptic children with that of diabetic and healthy children. The epileptic children were more likely to attribute the success or failure of their school performance to unknown sources of control, and to hold less positive feelings about school and their own self-worth. (Author)

Diet intake and endurance performance in Kenyan runners

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Dirk Lund

2004-01-01

Training and competing at elite as well as sub-elite level requires an optimal functioning of the body. This review looks at the case of the Kenyan runners, who consume a relatively high-quality diet based on vegetable sources with maize and kidney beans as the staple foods. The diet is high in c...

Implementing Children's Human Rights Education in Schools

Science.gov (United States)

Covell, Katherine; Howe, R. Brian; McNeil, Justin K.

2010-01-01

Evaluations of a children's rights education initiative in schools in Hampshire, England--consistent with previous research findings--demonstrate the effectiveness of a framework of rights for school policy, practice, and teaching, for promoting rights-respecting attitudes and behaviors among children, and for improving the school ethos. The value…

FOOD HABIT AMONG ELEMENTARY SCHOOL CHILDREN IN URBAN BOGOR

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Evy Damayanthi

2012-03-01

Full Text Available 800x600 Normal 0 false false false IN X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";} Food habit strongly predicts individual nutritional status. It is largely influenced by family food habit and family socioeconomic, partly by nutrition education learning in the school.  Objectives of this study were to analyze elementary school children eating habit and examine whether it relates to family socioeconomic and nutritional status. One hundred elementary school children, and their mother, from one school in urban Bogor were chosen purposively according to SIBERMAS Program criteria (i.e. grade 4th and 5th, morning school, having UKS program and not having canteen. Self administered, structured pre-coded questionnaire were used to collect the data. Nutritional status was assessed using weight and height, and body mass index for age (BAZ and height for age (HAZ were then calculated using AnthroPlus software developed by WHO (2009. School children were 8-11 years old (mean 9.37 + 0.66 years, more girls (54%, and mostly had normal nutritional status using both indexes (72% for BAZ and 95% for HAZ. School children were commonly from middle class as indicated by father education (sarjana and mother (senior high school.  Almost all school children (99% knew breakfast was important and 81% of them ate breakfast. Only 32% school children brought lunch box everyday although 92% stated their habit to bring lunch box to school. Buying snack in school was also common among school children. Generally school children ate rice 3 times a day (2.95 + 0.97 with fish, meat, chicken (2.47 + 1.14, tempe and

School Playground Facilities as a Determinant of Children's Daily Activity: A Cross-Sectional Study of Danish Primary School Children

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Glen; Bugge, Anna; El-Naaman, Bianca

2012-01-01

This study investigates the influence of school playground facilities on children's daily physical activity.......This study investigates the influence of school playground facilities on children's daily physical activity....

Intestinal parasitic infection among school children.

Science.gov (United States)

Shakya, B; Shrestha, S; Madhikarmi, N L; Adhikari, R

2012-01-01

Intestinal parasitosis is a major public health problem of developing countries, children being major victims. Higher prevalence has been reported among school children, mostly in hilly regions of Nepal. This study aims at assessing prevalence of intestinal parasitosis among school children of a school in a border town of Nepal and the associated factors. Fecal samples from the students were examined by direct smear technique and result was correlated with their socioeconomic status and hygienic behavior. The chi-square test was used for analytical assessment. The prevalence rate was 13.9%, girls being highly infected (19.1%) than boys (10.3%) (P>0.05). Entamoeba histolytica (36.0%) was the commonest parasite followed by A. lumbricoides (28.0%). The highest positive rate was found among children of 5 years and less age (29.2%) and least among those above 12 years (5.3%) (P>0.05). Those from family size 5 and less than 5 were least infected (10.5%). Children of illiterate parents (16.7%) and farmers (17.1%) were more infected than literate ones and non-farmers (P>0.05). 8.7% of positive children had multi-parasitic infection. Children drinking untreated water (15.0%) were more infected than those drinking treated water (5.5%) (P>0.05). Intestinal parasitic infection was found among 17% school children. Awareness on infectious diseases, improving hygiene, and application of supportive programs for parents to elevate socioeconomic conditions may reduce the burden of infection.

Understanding the school 'climate': secondary school children and climate change

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kovacs, Susan; Bernier, Sandrine; Blanchet, Aymeric; Derkenne, Chantal; Clement, Florence; Petitjean, Leslie

2012-01-01

This interdisciplinary study analyzes the production, circulation and reception of messages on climate change in secondary schools in France. The objective is to understand how political and educational policy initiatives influence the ways in which schools contribute to creating youngsters' perceptions and opinions about climate change. In order to study the conditions of production and reception of information about climate change, a survey was conducted in four French secondary schools, in the 'Bas Rhin' and 'Nord' departments, and local political actors in each department were interviewed. The cross disciplinary analytical and methodological approach uses the tools of sociological inquiry, information science, and political science: questionnaires and interviews were conducted with members of the educational and governmental communities of each school and department, semiotic and discursive analyses of corpuses of documents were carried out, in order to characterize documents used by students and teachers at school or in more informal contexts; the nature and extent of the relations between the political contexts and school directives and programs were also discussed. This interdisciplinary approach, combining sociological, communicational, and political methods, was chosen in response to the hypothesis that three types of variables (social, communicational and political) contribute to the structuring and production of messages about climate change in schools. This report offers a contextualized overview of activities developed within the four secondary schools to help sensitize children to the risks associated with climate change. A study of the networks of individuals (teachers, staff, members of associations, etc.) created in and around the school environment is presented. The degree of involvement of these actors in climate change programs is analyzed, as it is related to their motives and objectives, to the school discipline taught, and to the position

Dropout of Children from schools in Nepal

OpenAIRE

Wagle, Dhirendra

2012-01-01

Nepal, a developing country of the south-asian region has bigger problem of children not completing the full cycle of basic education. In other words, large number of children dropout of schools, especially in the primary and secondary level of schooling. Especially, the situation is worse for those of the backward and socially disadvantaged populations and of the rural and the remote areas. Being in this frame, this study focused on the reasons of dropout of children from schools and the pos...

School Psychologists' Role Concerning Children with Chronic Illnesses in Schools

Science.gov (United States)

Barraclough, Camille; Machek, Greg

2010-01-01

The authors examined the role of school psychologists in working with children with chronic illnesses in the schools. A total of 300 practicing school psychologists in public schools, drawn from the National Association of School Psychologists membership directory, completed a standard mail survey. The survey solicited information on (a) graduate…

Before the Looking Glass: An Informed Questions Paper on Kenyan Politics

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Alsace, Juan A

2003-01-01

Political scientist Angelique Haugerud has lived or worked in Kenya for 25 years and posits that those seeking even a shallow understanding of Kenyan politics must first appreciate the role of "baraza...

School accidents to children: time to act.

Science.gov (United States)

Maitra, A

1997-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To describe the profile of injuries sustained by children in school accidents and suggest preventive measures. DESIGN: A five month prospective study of children attending an urban accident and emergency (A&E) department. SUBJECTS: 500 children who sustained injuries in school due to a variety of activities. RESULTS: 10 and 12 year old pupils suffered most injuries in school grounds/playgrounds, on concrete, or on grass/soil surfaces due to random activities resulting in striking or being struck by objects/persons, tripping or slipping, and sports (mainly football); 65.5% of these activities were not supervised and 67.4% occurred "out of lessons"; 22% sustained fractures or dislocations, 28.2% needed follow up treatment, and 1.4% were admitted. CONCLUSIONS: Injuries to children in school are a cause for concern. Effective preventive measures should concentrate on (a) specific target areas using schemes based on individual school, and (b) establishing a credible system of monitoring of their effectiveness. Images Figure 1 Figure 2 PMID:9248914

Overweight and school performance among primary school children: the PIAMA birth cohort study.

Science.gov (United States)

Veldwijk, Jorien; Fries, Marieke C E; Bemelmans, Wanda J E; Haveman-Nies, Annemien; Smit, Henriëtte A; Koppelman, Gerard H; Wijga, Alet H

2012-03-01

The aim of this study was to assess the association between overweight and school performance among primary school children prospectively and including a broad range of potential confounding factors. In addition it was investigated what factors mediate this association. For this purpose, data of 2,159 12-year-old children who participated in the Prevention and Incidence of Asthma and Mite Allergy (PIAMA) birth cohort study were used. Two indicators of school performance were parental reported when children were 12 years of age and included (i): the score on a standardized achievement test that Dutch children have to complete at the end of their primary education (Cito)-test and (ii): the teacher's advice regarding a child's potential performance level in secondary education. Children's height and weight were measured by a trained research assistant at the age of 8 and by their parents at the age of 12. Overweight was defined using age and gender specific cut-off points. Multivariate regression analyses were performed to assess the association between overweight and school performance. Besides, both confounder and mediation analyses were conducted. Results showed lower Cito-test scores and lower teacher's school-level advice among overweight children. These associations were no longer significant when adjusting for parental educational level, skipping breakfast, and screen time. This study found no independent association between overweight and school performance among primary school children. Results showed strong confounding by parental educational level.

Registered Indian Children's School Success and Intergenerational Effects of Residential Schooling in Canada

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sacha Senécal

2010-05-01

Full Text Available Using the 2006 Aboriginal Peoples Survey, this study investigates factors associated with school success (as perceived by parents among off-reserve Registered Indian children aged 6 to 14 in Canada. Holding other factors constant, Registered Indian children were more likely to be doing well at school if they were living in households with high income, were living in adequately maintained dwellings, or spoke an Aboriginal language at home. Boys and older children, on the other hand, were less likely to be doing well at school, as were children who were living in larger households, experienced food insecurity, or had parents who attended residential school. Mediation analyses revealed that the negative intergenerational effect of parental residential schooling on children’s school success was partially attributable to household characteristics or economic status. Indeed, former residential school attendees were found to be more likely to live in households with a lower income, live in larger households, and report that their family had experienced food insecurity. These characteristics were, in turn, found to be negatively associated with children’s school success.

Hypothesis: Impregnated school uniforms reduce the incidence of dengue infections in school children.

Science.gov (United States)

Wilder-Smith, A; Lover, A; Kittayapong, P; Burnham, G

2011-06-01

Dengue infection causes a significant economic, social and medical burden in affected populations in over 100 countries in the tropics and sub-tropics. Current dengue control efforts have generally focused on vector control but have not shown major impact. School-aged children are especially vulnerable to infection, due to sustained human-vector-human transmission in the close proximity environments of schools. Infection in children has a higher rate of complications, including dengue hemorrhagic fever and shock syndromes, than infections in adults. There is an urgent need for integrated and complementary population-based strategies to protect vulnerable children. We hypothesize that insecticide-treated school uniforms will reduce the incidence of dengue in school-aged children. The hypothesis would need to be tested in a community based randomized trial. If proven to be true, insecticide-treated school uniforms would be a cost-effective and scalable community based strategy to reduce the burden of dengue in children. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Social games with pre-school children

OpenAIRE

Tomažin, Maja

2013-01-01

The aim of the thesis Social games with pre-school children is to present social games as one of the work methods for relational learning. The theoretical part defines the social development of pre-school children and focuses on social skills that begin to emerge in the preschool period and of course social games. The purpose of social games is active learning, meaning they provide concrete situations, through which children actively learn as well as use social skills and express their views ...

School outcomes of children with special health care needs.

Science.gov (United States)

Forrest, Christopher B; Bevans, Katherine B; Riley, Anne W; Crespo, Richard; Louis, Thomas A

2011-08-01

To examine the associations between having a special health care need and school outcomes measured as attendance, student engagement, behavioral threats to achievement, and academic achievement. A total of 1457 children in the fourth through sixth grades from 34 schools in 3 school districts and their parents provided survey data; parents completed the Children With Special Health Care Needs Screener. School records were abstracted for attendance, grades, and standardized achievement test scores. Across 34 schools, 33% of children screened positive for special health care needs. After adjusting for sociodemographic and school effects, children with special health care needs had lower motivation to do well in school, more disruptive behaviors, and more frequent experiences as a bully victim. They experienced significantly lower academic achievement, as measured by grades, standardized testing, and parental-assessed academic performance. These findings were observed for children who qualified as having a special health care need because they had functional limitations attributed to a chronic illness or a behavioral health problem but not for those who qualified only because they took prescription medications. Specific subgroups of children with special health care needs are at increased risk for poor school outcomes. Health and school professionals will need to collaborate to identify these children early, intervene with appropriate medical and educational services, and monitor long-term outcomes.

School Outcomes of Children With Special Health Care Needs

Science.gov (United States)

Bevans, Katherine B.; Riley, Anne W.; Crespo, Richard; Louis, Thomas A.

2011-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To examine the associations between having a special health care need and school outcomes measured as attendance, student engagement, behavioral threats to achievement, and academic achievement. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS: A total of 1457 children in the fourth through sixth grades from 34 schools in 3 school districts and their parents provided survey data; parents completed the Children With Special Health Care Needs Screener. School records were abstracted for attendance, grades, and standardized achievement test scores. RESULTS: Across 34 schools, 33% of children screened positive for special health care needs. After adjusting for sociodemographic and school effects, children with special health care needs had lower motivation to do well in school, more disruptive behaviors, and more frequent experiences as a bully victim. They experienced significantly lower academic achievement, as measured by grades, standardized testing, and parental-assessed academic performance. These findings were observed for children who qualified as having a special health care need because they had functional limitations attributed to a chronic illness or a behavioral health problem but not for those who qualified only because they took prescription medications. CONCLUSIONS: Specific subgroups of children with special health care needs are at increased risk for poor school outcomes. Health and school professionals will need to collaborate to identify these children early, intervene with appropriate medical and educational services, and monitor long-term outcomes. PMID:21788226

Harambee narratives: A rhetorical framing of the Kenyan trade union movement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Collins Ogutu Miruka

2015-08-01

Full Text Available This paper analyses discourse on trade unionism contained in the coverage of Labour Day (May 1 celebrationsinone leading Kenyan daily national newspaper, The East African Standard, from 1966 to 2013. I assess slightly over fortyarticles qualitativelyusing rhetorical criticism. This is done by looking at topics addressed, characterizations of unions as well as major actors such as union leaders, workers, and political leaders. I chose rhetoricalcriticism of a news media corpusin order to explore how diverse power relations have been transformed into mechanisms that keep the Kenyan labour movement tolerable to the government of the day. The research identifies themes surfaced by and in the news coverage. The paper shows how diverse power relations are colonized and articulated into more general mechanisms that keeps the industrial population governable with minimal disruptions.

The role of foreign and indigenous languages in primary schools ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This article investigates the use of English and other African languages in Kenyan primary schools. English is a .... For a long time, the issue of the medium of instruction, in especially primary schools, has persisted in spite of .... mother tongue, they use this language for spoken classroom interaction in order to bring about.

The Role of School Principals in Shaping Children's Values.

Science.gov (United States)

Berson, Yair; Oreg, Shaul

2016-12-01

Instilling values in children is among the cornerstones of every society. There is wide agreement that beyond academic teaching, schools play an important role in shaping schoolchildren's character, imparting in them values such as curiosity, achievement, benevolence, and citizenship. Despite the importance of this topic, we know very little about whether and how schools affect children's values. In this large-scale longitudinal study, we examined school principals' roles in the development of children's values. We hypothesized that relationships exist between principals' values and changes in children's values through the mediating effect of the school climate. To test our predictions, we collected data from 252 school principals, 3,658 teachers, and 49,401 schoolchildren. A multilevel structural-equation-modeling analysis yielded overall support for our hypotheses. These findings contribute to understanding the development of children's values and the far-reaching impact of leaders' values. They also demonstrate effects of schools on children beyond those on academic achievement.

Methylphenidate use and school performance among primary school children: a descriptive study.

Science.gov (United States)

van der Schans, Jurjen; Çiçek, Rukiye; Vardar, Sefike; Bos, Jens Hj; de Vries, Tjalling W; Hoekstra, Pieter J; Hak, Eelko

2017-03-29

There is no conclusive evidence that stimulants have beneficial effects on major associated outcome parameters, particularly school performance. We assessed the differences in school performance among children using methylphenidate at the end of primary school in relation to various parameters of methylphenidate use. We linked children from a pharmacy prescription database with standardized achievement test results at the end of primary school. We explored differences in test scores between current methylphenidate users versus never users and methylphenidate users who stopped treatment at least 6 months before the test, early versus late starters, different dosage of methylphenidate, and concurrent antipsychotic or asthma treatment. Out of the 7736 children, 377 (4.9%) children were treated with methylphenidate at the time of the test. After adjusting for confounders the methylphenidate users (532.58 ± .48) performed significantly lower on the test than never users (534.72 ± .11). Compared with late starters of methylphenidate treatment (536.94 ± 1.51) we found significantly lower test scores for the early starters (532.33 ± .50). Our study indicates that children using methylphenidate still perform less at school compared to their peers. Our study also suggests that earlier start of methylphenidate treatment is associated with a lower school performance compared to children starting later with the treatment. This result could either indicate a limited effect of long term treatment or a more strongly affected group of early starters.

Refractive Errors in Primary School Children in Nigeria | Faderin ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The study was carried out to determine the prevalence of refractive errors in primary school children in the Nigerian Army children school. Bonny Camp, Lagos, Nigeria. A total of 919 pupils from two primary schools (one private school and one public school) were screened. The schools and classes were selected using ...

The Concept of Human Dignity in German and Kenyan ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

... of the concept of human dignity in German and Kenyan constitutional law. We base our analysis on decisions of the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany, in particular its take on life imprisonment and its 2006 decision concerning the shooting of hijacked airplanes, and on a close reading of the Constitution of Kenya.

Sleep Habits of Elementary and Middle School Children in South Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

Surani, Salim; Hesselbacher, Sean; Surani, Saherish; Sadasiva, Sreevidya; Surani, Zoya; Surani, Sara S; Khimani, Amina; Subramanian, Shyam

2015-01-01

Background. Sleep difficulties, including insufficient sleep and inadequate sleep hygiene, have been prevalent among children. Sleep deprivation can lead to poor grades, sleepiness, and moodiness. We undertook this study to assess the prevalence of sleep abnormalities among elementary and middle school students in South Texas and how the groups compare with one another. Method. After approval from the appropriate school district for a sleep education program, a baseline survey was taken of elementary and middle school students, using the Children's Sleep Habit Questionnaire-Sleep Self-Report Form, which assessed the domains of bedtime resistance, sleep onset delay, sleep anxiety, sleep duration, night awakening, and daytime sleepiness. Results. The survey was completed by 499 elementary and 1008 middle school children. Trouble sleeping was reported by 43% in elementary school, compared with 29% of middle school children. Fifty percent of middle school children did not like sleeping, compared with 26% in elementary school. Bedtime resistance, sleep onset delay, and nighttime awakening were more common among elementary school students. Daytime sleepiness was more common among the middle school children when compared to elementary school children. Conclusions. Sleep abnormalities are present in elementary school children with changes in sleep habits into middle school.

Bringing Nature to Schools to Promote Children's Physical Activity.

Science.gov (United States)

Sharma-Brymer, Vinathe; Bland, Derek

2016-07-01

Physical activity (PA) is essential for human health and wellbeing across all age, socioeconomic, and ethnic groups. Engagement with the natural world is a new defining criterion for enhancing the benefits of PA, particularly for children and young people. Interacting with nature benefits children's social and emotional wellbeing, develops resilience, and reduces the risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus across all population groups. Governments around the world are now recognizing the importance of children spending more active time outdoors. However, children's outdoor activities, free play, and nature-related exploration are often structured and supervised by adults due to safety concerns and risks. In this context, schools become more accessible and safe options for children to engage in PA outdoors with the presence of nature features. Research on school designs involving young children has revealed that children prefer nature-related features in school environments. Affordances in nature may increase children's interest in physically active behaviors. Given that present school campuses are designed for operational efficiency and economic reasons, there is a need to re-design schools responding to the positive role of nature on human health. If schools were re-designed to incorporate diverse natural features, children's PA and consequent health and wellbeing would likely improve markedly.

Health status of school children during questionnaire survey in Ogun ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

that school children in Ogun State do not perceive themselves to be healthy and suggest the use of school health questionnaire to assess and identify common health problems in school children. Keywords: School-age children, common health problems, questionnaire, Nigeria. Nigerian Journal of Parasitology Vol.

Kenyan purple tea anthocyanins ability to cross the blood brain ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

... demonstration that Kenyan purple tea ACNs can cross the BBB, reinforcing the brain's antioxidant capacity. Hence, there is need to study ACNs as suitable candidates for dietary supplements that could support antioxidant capacity in the brain and have potential to provide neuroprotection in neurodegenerative conditions.

Lunchbox contents of Australian school children: room for improvement.

Science.gov (United States)

Sanigorski, A M; Bell, A C; Kremer, P J; Swinburn, B A

2005-11-01

In light of the increasing prevalence of obesity in children and the potential of schools as a setting for intervention, we aimed to identify the main foods and beverages consumed at primary school and to determine differences in consumption patterns between children who used the school canteen and those who did not. Cross-sectional survey of school foods in 1681 5-12 y old children, 2003-2004. Barwon South-Western region of Victoria, Australia. The school food provided an average (+/-s.e.m.) of 3087+/-26 kJ. Bread was the most frequently consumed food and contributed 20% of total energy at school, biscuits 13%, fruit 10%, muesli/fruit bars 8%, packaged snacks 7%, and fruit juice/cordial 6%. About 10% of children used the school canteen and these children obtained more total energy and more energy from cakes, fast foods and soft drink than noncanteen users (Pjunk food'). Fruit intake in primary schools seems reasonably high but could be targeted for further increase as part of promoting a healthy diet. Of concern, however, are the excessive amounts of energy-dense foods in school lunchboxes. These should be considered a priority for health promotion efforts along with reducing the consumption of sweetened drinks. These measures are urgently needed to improve the school-based diets of Australian children and attempt to curb the increasing prevalence of childhood obesity.

From Past to Present: How Memories of School Shape Parental Views of Children's Schooling

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Miller, Kyle

2015-01-01

Internationally, there is growing interest in children's transition to school and their readiness for formal education. Parents' memories of school offer important insights into children's preparation for school and how families view schools; however, few studies consider the influence of educational histories. To address this gap, a sample of 24…

Availability of school health services for young children.

Science.gov (United States)

Heneghan, A M; Malakoff, M E

1997-10-01

A survey to assess availability of school health services was distributed to 221 directors of Schools of the 21st Century, an educational model that provides integrated services to children and families. Of this distribution, 126 (57%) surveys were returned; 88% of respondents reported they provided some type of school health services for their students; 75% of schools had access to school nursing services, yet only 33% had a school nurse on-site; 50% had less than daily access to a school nurse. Despite a high reported prevalence of physical and mental health problems, other services such as acute care, nutrition counseling, dental screenings, or mental health services were provided less frequently. Barriers perceived as problematic for schools providing health services included inadequate funding, limited parental awareness, and opposition by school or community members. Respondents believed transportation, limited financial resources, and inadequate health insurance were barriers to care for children and families. Among this sample of schools, school health services varied in availability and comprehensiveness. Educators, health providers, and parents must work together to provide improved school health services for children.

An investigation of school violence through Turkish children's drawings.

Science.gov (United States)

Yurtal, Filiz; Artut, Kazim

2010-01-01

This study investigates Turkish children's perception of violence in school as represented through drawings and narratives. In all, 66 students (12 to 13 years old) from the middle socioeconomic class participated. To elicit children's perception of violence, they were asked to draw a picture of a violent incident they had heard, experienced, or witnessed. Children mostly drew pictures of violent events among children (33 pictures). Also, there were pictures of violent incidents perpetrated by teachers and directors against children. It was observed that violence influenced children. Violence was mostly depicted in school gardens (38 pictures), but there were violent incidents everywhere, such as in classrooms, corridors, and school stores as well. Moreover, it was found that brute force was the most referred way of violence in the children's depictions (38 pictures). In conclusion, children clearly indicated that there was violence in schools and they were affected by it.

School Guidance and Counseling in Kenya: Historical Development, Current Status, and Future Prospects

Science.gov (United States)

Wambu, Grace W.; Fisher, Teresa A.

2015-01-01

Despite the government's emphasis on guidance and counseling program implementation in Kenyan schools and a rapid increase in the number of trained school counselors, lack of standardized training curriculums, ethical standards, counseling models, and role ambiguity persist. This article reviews the historical development of guidance and…

Schools, Schooling, and Children's Support of Their Aging Parents.

Science.gov (United States)

Brauner-Otto, Sarah R

2009-10-01

Intergenerational transfers play an important role in individuals' lives across the life course. In this paper I pull together theories on intergenerational transfers and social change to inform our understanding of how changes in the educational context influence children's support of their parents. By examining multiple aspects of a couple's educational context, including husbands' and wives' education and exposure to schools, this paper provides new information on the mechanisms through which changes in social context influence children's support of their parents. Using data from a rural Nepalese area I use multilevel logistic regression to estimate the relationship between schooling, exposure to schools, and the likelihood of couples giving to their parents. I find that both schooling and exposure to schools itself have separate, opposite effects on support of aging parents. Higher levels of schooling for husbands was associated with a higher likelihood of having given support to husbands' parents. On the other hand, increased exposure to schools for husbands and wives was associated with a lower likelihood of having given to wives' parents. Findings constitute evidence that multiple motivations for intergenerational support exist simultaneously and are related to social context through different mechanisms.

Academic performance of school children with behavioural ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Introduction: Behavioural disorders can have a negative influence on the academic performance of school children. There are no similiar published is no known studies in Nigeria. Objective: To compare the academic performance of primary school children with behavioural disorders with that of their controls. Methods: A ...

Perceived competence and school adjustment of hearing impaired children in mainstream primary school settings.

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Hatamizadeh, N; Ghasemi, M; Saeedi, A; Kazemnejad, A

2008-11-01

Although educational main streaming of children with special needs formally began in Iran since 1992 there is little information whether hearing impaired children feel competent in regular schools. To determine the perceived competence and school adjustment of hearing impaired children in mainstream primary school settings, the self-perception profile was administered to 60 mainstreamed hard of hearing children and 60 classmates with normal hearing matched for gender by a single interviewer. The instrument comprised 28 items, 23 of which were similar to those of 'adapted test Image for children with cochlear implants' asking children about their feelings about their own cognitive, physical, socio-emotional and communication competence and school adjustment. The Cronbach alpha coefficient for the instrument was 0.93. Hard of hearing children rated their competence significantly poorer than their hearing classmates for all domains. Mean differences for the five domains ranged from 0.48 (for physical competence) to 0.90 (for school adjustment) on a scale of 1-4. There were no significant differences between girls' and boys' competence, in either the hearing or the hearing impaired groups. Classifying overall scores for perceived competence into four groups ('poor competence', 'low competence', 'moderate competence' and 'high competence'), 23.4% of hearing impaired children but none of the hearing classmates rated themselves as having low or poor competence. On the other hand 85% of hearing children and only 18.3% of hearing impaired children rated themselves as highly competent. We suggest that periodical assessments of mainstreamed children might help to identify those children who are having difficulty adapting to their environment.

Coronary artery disease and symptoms of depression in a Kenyan ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Coronary artery disease and symptoms of depression in a Kenyan population. ... death. Little is known about the co-morbidity of heart disease and depression in Africa. Objective: To describe the prevalence of depression in Black Africans with and without. Coronary Artery Disease as documented on coronary angiography ...

"My Child has Cerebral Palsy": Parental Involvement and Children's School Engagement.

Science.gov (United States)

Pereira, Armanda; Moreira, Tânia; Lopes, Sílvia; Nunes, Ana R; Magalhães, Paula; Fuentes, Sonia; Reoyo, Natalia; Núñez, José C; Rosário, Pedro

2016-01-01

Engaged students tend to show school-committed behaviors (e.g., attend classes, get involved with the learning process), high achievement, and sense of belonging. However, students with disabilities are prone to show a lack of engagement with school due to the specific difficulties they have to handle. In fact, children with disabilities are likely to show poor participation in school when compared with children without disabilities. This poor involvement is related to their low autonomy to participate in the school activities, which, in turn, results in low school engagement. Parents play a crucial role in their children's education. Parental involvement in school activities promotes autonomous behaviors and, consequently, school engagement. In fact, extant literature has shown close relationships between parental involvement, school engagement, and academic performance. Yet, parental involvement in school activities of children with Cerebral Palsy (CP) has received little direct attention from researchers. These children tend to display lower participation due to the motor, or cognitive, impairments that compromise their autonomy, and have a high likelihood to develop learning disabilities, with special incidences in reading and arithmetic. Therefore, our aim is twofold, to understand the parental styles; and how the perceived parental involvement in school activities is related to their children school engagement. Hence, 19 interviews were conducted with one of the parents of 19 children with CP. These interviews explored the school routines of children and the perceived involvement of parents in those routines. Additionally, children filled out a questionnaire on school engagement. Results show that the majority of the parents were clustered in the Autonomy Allowance and Acceptance and Support parental style, and the majority of their children were perceived as autonomous. Moreover, about a half of the children reported a high level of school engagement

Sleep Habits of Elementary and Middle School Children in South Texas

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Salim Surani

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Background. Sleep difficulties, including insufficient sleep and inadequate sleep hygiene, have been prevalent among children. Sleep deprivation can lead to poor grades, sleepiness, and moodiness. We undertook this study to assess the prevalence of sleep abnormalities among elementary and middle school students in South Texas and how the groups compare with one another. Method. After approval from the appropriate school district for a sleep education program, a baseline survey was taken of elementary and middle school students, using the Children’s Sleep Habit Questionnaire-Sleep Self-Report Form, which assessed the domains of bedtime resistance, sleep onset delay, sleep anxiety, sleep duration, night awakening, and daytime sleepiness. Results. The survey was completed by 499 elementary and 1008 middle school children. Trouble sleeping was reported by 43% in elementary school, compared with 29% of middle school children. Fifty percent of middle school children did not like sleeping, compared with 26% in elementary school. Bedtime resistance, sleep onset delay, and nighttime awakening were more common among elementary school students. Daytime sleepiness was more common among the middle school children when compared to elementary school children. Conclusions. Sleep abnormalities are present in elementary school children with changes in sleep habits into middle school.

Intrinsic, identified, and controlled types of motivation for school subjects in young elementary school children.

Science.gov (United States)

Guay, Frédéric; Chanal, Julien; Ratelle, Catherine F; Marsh, Herbert W; Larose, Simon; Boivin, Michel

2010-12-01

There are two approaches to the differential examination of school motivation. The first is to examine motivation towards specific school subjects (between school subject differentiation). The second is to examine school motivation as a multidimensional concept that varies in terms of not only intensity but also quality (within school subject differentiation). These two differential approaches have led to important discoveries and provided a better understanding of student motivational dynamics. However, little research has combined these two approaches. This study examines young elementary students' motivations across school subjects (writing, reading, and maths) from the stance of self-determination theory. First, we tested whether children self-report different levels of intrinsic, identified, and controlled motivation towards specific school subjects. Second, we verified whether children self-report differentiated types of motivation across school subjects. Participants were 425 French-Canadian children (225 girls, 200 boys) from three elementary schools. Children were in Grades 1 (N=121), 2 (N=126), and 3 (N=178). Results show that, for a given school subject, young elementary students self-report different levels of intrinsic, identified, and controlled motivation. Results also indicate that children self-report different levels of motivation types across school subjects. Our findings also show that most differentiation effects increase across grades. Some gender effects were also observed. These results highlight the importance of distinguishing among types of school motivation towards specific school subjects in the early elementary years.

Predicting Malaria's Changing Course | IDRC - International ...

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

2010-12-09

Dec 9, 2010 ... James Sang of the Kenyan government's Malaria Control Unit says the disease hits ... During the 1998 epidemic, almost four times more school-aged children caught ... This gave birth to the current phase of the project.

Parent-school relationships and children's academic and social outcomes in public school pre-kindergarten.

Science.gov (United States)

Powell, Douglas R; Son, Seung-Hee; File, Nancy; San Juan, Robert R

2010-08-01

Two dimensions of parent-school relationships, parental school involvement and parents' perceptions of teacher responsiveness to child/parent, were examined in state-funded pre-kindergarten classrooms in a large urban school district. Children's social and academic outcomes were individually assessed in the fall and spring. Hierarchical Linear Modeling analyses revealed that parental school involvement positively predicted children's social skills (d=.55) and mathematics skills (d=.36), and negatively predicted problem behaviors (d=.47). Perceived teacher responsiveness to child/parent was positively related to children's early reading (d=.43), and social skills (d=.43), and negatively to problem behaviors (d=.61). All analyses controlled for quality of teacher interaction with children in the classroom, parental home involvement, parental education level, and child race/ethnicity. Copyright 2010 Society for the Study of School Psychology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

SHORT COMMUNICATION: Status of Physical Fitness Index (PFI % and Anthropometric Parameters in Residential School Children Compared to Nonresidential School Children

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Jyoti P Khodnapur

2012-07-01

Full Text Available Background: Physical fitness is the prime criterion for survival, to achieve any goal and to lead a healthy life. Effect of exercise to have a good physical fitness is well known since ancient Vedas. Physical fitness can be recorded by cardiopulmonary efficiency test like Physical Fitness Index (PFI % which is a powerful indicator of cardiopulmonary efficiency. Regular exercise increases PFI by increasing oxygen consumption. Residential school children are exposed to regular exercise and nutritious food under the guidance. Aims and Objectives: Our study is aimed to compare the physical fitness index status and anthropometric parameters in Residential Sainik (n=100 school children compared to Non-Residential (n=100 school children (aged between 12-16 years of Bijapur. Material and Methods: PFI was measured by Harvard Step Test [1]. TheAnthropometrical parameters like Height (cms, Weight (Kg, Body Surface Area (BSA in sq.mts, Body Mass Index (BMI in Kg/m2, Mid Arm Circumference (cms, Chest Circumference (cms and Abdominal Circumference (cms were recorded. Results: Mean score of PFI(%, Height(cms, Weight(Kg, BSA(sq.mts, BMI(Kg/m2, Mid Arm Circumference(cms, Chest Circumference (cms and Abdominal Circumference (cms were significantly higher (p=0.000 in Residential school children compared to Non Residential school children. In conclusion regular exercise and nutritious diet under the guidance increases the physical fitness and growth in growing children.

International School Children's Health Needs: School Nurses' Views in Europe

Science.gov (United States)

Hansson, Annika; Clausson, Eva; Janlov, Ann-Christin

2012-01-01

Rapid globalization and the integration of national economies have contributed to the sharp rise in enrollment in international schools. How does this global nomadism affect international school children and their individual health needs? This study attempts to find an answer by interviewing 10 school nurses, with varying degrees of experience in…

Sleep, school performance, and a school-based intervention among school-aged children: a sleep series study in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Shenghui; Arguelles, Lester; Jiang, Fan; Chen, Wenjuan; Jin, Xingming; Yan, Chonghuai; Tian, Ying; Hong, Xiumei; Qian, Ceng; Zhang, Jun; Wang, Xiaobin; Shen, Xiaoming

2013-01-01

Sufficient sleep during childhood is essential to ensure a transition into a healthy adulthood. However, chronic sleep loss continues to increase worldwide. In this context, it is imperative to make sleep a high-priority and take action to promote sleep health among children. The present series of studies aimed to shed light on sleep patterns, on the longitudinal association of sleep with school performance, and on practical intervention strategy for Chinese school-aged children. A serial sleep researches, including a national cross-sectional survey, a prospective cohort study, and a school-based sleep intervention, were conducted in China from November 2005 through December 2009. The national cross-sectional survey was conducted in 8 cities and a random sample of 20,778 children aged 9.0±1.61 years participated in the survey. The five-year prospective cohort study included 612 children aged 6.8±0.31 years. The comparative cross-sectional study (baseline: n = 525, aged 10.80±0.41; post-intervention follow-up: n = 553, aged 10.81±0.33) was undertaken in 6 primary schools in Shanghai. A battery of parent and teacher reported questionnaires were used to collect information on children's sleep behaviors, school performance, and sociodemographic characteristics. The mean sleep duration was 9.35±0.77 hours. The prevalence of daytime sleepiness was 64.4% (sometimes: 37.50%; frequently: 26.94%). Daytime sleepiness was significantly associated with impaired attention, learning motivation, and particularly, academic achievement. By contrast, short sleep duration only related to impaired academic achievement. After delaying school start time 30 minutes and 60 minutes, respectively, sleep duration correspondingly increased by 15.6 minutes and 22.8 minutes, respectively. Moreover, intervention significantly improved the sleep duration and daytime sleepiness. Insufficient sleep and daytime sleepiness commonly existed and positively associated with the impairment of

Sleep, school performance, and a school-based intervention among school-aged children: a sleep series study in China.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shenghui Li

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Sufficient sleep during childhood is essential to ensure a transition into a healthy adulthood. However, chronic sleep loss continues to increase worldwide. In this context, it is imperative to make sleep a high-priority and take action to promote sleep health among children. The present series of studies aimed to shed light on sleep patterns, on the longitudinal association of sleep with school performance, and on practical intervention strategy for Chinese school-aged children. METHODS AND FINDINGS: A serial sleep researches, including a national cross-sectional survey, a prospective cohort study, and a school-based sleep intervention, were conducted in China from November 2005 through December 2009. The national cross-sectional survey was conducted in 8 cities and a random sample of 20,778 children aged 9.0±1.61 years participated in the survey. The five-year prospective cohort study included 612 children aged 6.8±0.31 years. The comparative cross-sectional study (baseline: n = 525, aged 10.80±0.41; post-intervention follow-up: n = 553, aged 10.81±0.33 was undertaken in 6 primary schools in Shanghai. A battery of parent and teacher reported questionnaires were used to collect information on children's sleep behaviors, school performance, and sociodemographic characteristics. The mean sleep duration was 9.35±0.77 hours. The prevalence of daytime sleepiness was 64.4% (sometimes: 37.50%; frequently: 26.94%. Daytime sleepiness was significantly associated with impaired attention, learning motivation, and particularly, academic achievement. By contrast, short sleep duration only related to impaired academic achievement. After delaying school start time 30 minutes and 60 minutes, respectively, sleep duration correspondingly increased by 15.6 minutes and 22.8 minutes, respectively. Moreover, intervention significantly improved the sleep duration and daytime sleepiness. CONCLUSIONS: Insufficient sleep and daytime sleepiness

Study protocol: can a school gardening intervention improve children's diets?

Science.gov (United States)

Christian, Meaghan S; El Evans, Charlotte; Conner, Mark; Ransley, Joan K; Cade, Janet E

2012-04-26

The current academic literature suggests there is a potential for using gardening as a tool to improve children's fruit and vegetable intake. This study is two parallel randomised controlled trials (RCT) devised to evaluate the school gardening programme of the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Campaign for School Gardening, to determine if it has an effect on children's fruit and vegetable intake. Trial One will consist of 26 schools; these schools will be randomised into two groups, one to receive the intensive intervention as "Partner Schools" and the other to receive the less intensive intervention as "Associate Schools". Trial Two will consist of 32 schools; these schools will be randomised into either the less intensive intervention "Associate Schools" or a comparison group with delayed intervention. Baseline data collection will be collected using a 24-hour food diary (CADET) to collect data on dietary intake and a questionnaire exploring children's knowledge and attitudes towards fruit and vegetables. A process measures questionnaire will be used to assess each school's gardening activities. The results from these trials will provide information on the impact of the RHS Campaign for School Gardening on children's fruit and vegetable intake. The evaluation will provide valuable information for designing future research in primary school children's diets and school based interventions. ISRCTN11396528.

Aspects of the manufacture and consumption of Kenyan traditional fermented beverages

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nout, M.J.R.

1981-01-01

This study was aimed at providing fundamental information con ern ing the manufacture, composition, and consumption of the major Kenyan traditional fermented beverages.

In Chapter 1, the reader is introduced to Kenya, its population and climate, and several aspects of its agriculture

Bullying experience in primary school children

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Farah Aulia

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Bullying is still a significant problem today. Bullying occurs starting from the primary level up to college. The impact of the bullying on victims can be a lonely, difficult to adjust, insecurity, low self-esteem, depression and the worst is suicide. The earlier effort to detect bullying experienced by children will be able to prevent long-term effects caused. This study was conducted on 258 students of class 4-5 primary school in Yogyakarta. Data was collected through open-ended questionnaires associated with feelings and experiences of bullying in schools both as perpetrators and victims. The result showed that students feel negative emotions associated with bullying at school and most children experience bullying at school with a variety of forms, ranging from physical, verbal and relational from peers at school. These findings have implications related to the effort to do the school to help students cope with the impact of bullying experienced.

Glucose homeostasis in children with falciparum malaria: precursor supply limits gluconeogenesis and glucose production

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dekker, E.; Hellerstein, M. K.; Romijn, J. A.; Neese, R. A.; Peshu, N.; Endert, E.; Marsh, K.; Sauerwein, H. P.

1997-01-01

To evaluate glucose kinetics in children with falciparum malaria, basal glucose production and gluconeogenesis and an estimate of the flux of the gluconeogenic precursors were measured in Kenyan children with uncomplicated falciparum malaria before (n = 11) and during infusion of alanine (1.5

Perceptions of Elementary School Children's Parents Regarding Sexuality Education

Science.gov (United States)

Fisher, Christine M.; Telljohann, Susan K.; Price, James H.; Dake, Joseph A.; Glassman, Tavis

2015-01-01

This study examined the preferences of parents of elementary school-aged children regarding when sexuality topics should be discussed in school and at home. The survey was mailed to a national random sample of parents of elementary school age children. Overall, 92% of parents believed that sexuality education should be taught in schools.…

Renewing Marketing Strategy in Kenyan Automobile Industry

OpenAIRE

Kalliokuusi, Miriam

2013-01-01

This thesis studies how to renew existing marketing strategies for case company; in so doing, the thesis fulfills its main objective. Company X, a market leader in the Kenyan automobile sector and has various well-known brands under their corporate umbrella. The automobile industry in Kenya has faced some hardship with steady decline in sales in the last couple of years and Mercedes-Benz as a brand suffered under the circumstances. One major cause of the drop in sales is due to the influx of ...

The importance of working memory for school achievement in primary school children with intellectual or learning disabilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Maehler, Claudia; Schuchardt, Kirsten

2016-11-01

Given the well-known relation between intelligence and school achievement we expect children with normal intelligence to perform well at school and those with intelligence deficits to meet learning problems. But, contrary to these expectations, some children do not perform according to these predictions: children with normal intelligence but sub-average school achievement and children with lower intelligence but average success at school. Yet, it is an open question how the unexpected failure or success can be explained. This study examined the role of working memory sensu Baddeley (1986) for school achievement, especially for unexpected failure or success. An extensive working memory battery with a total of 14 tasks for the phonological loop, the visual-spatial sketchpad and central executive skills was presented in individual sessions to four groups of children differing in IQ (normal vs. low) and school success (good vs. poor). Results reveal that children with sub-average school achievement showed deficits in working memory functioning, irrespective of intelligence. By contrast, children with regular school achievement did not show deficits in working memory, again irrespective of intelligence. Therefore working memory should be considered an important predictor of academic success that can lead both to unexpected overachievement and failure at school. Individual working memory competencies should be taken into account with regard to diagnosis and intervention for children with learning problems. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

FLAT FEET OF DHE CHILDREN IN PRE-SCHOOL AGE

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Admira Koničanin

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Subjekt : Of this research are flat feet of the children of both sexes in pre-school age children Aim : Of the research is confirm wheter is exists or flat feel of the children of both sexes in pre-school age.

Children's Mental Health and School Success

Science.gov (United States)

DeSocio, Janiece; Hootman, Janis

2004-01-01

An integrative review of literature was undertaken to examine the impact of children's mental health on their school success. The literature confirmed a confluence of problems associated with school performance and child and adolescent mental health. Poor academic functioning and inconsistent school attendance were identified as early signs of…

A Second Chance to Dream: Initiating ODeL in Secondary School Re-Entry Programs for Young Adult Secondary School Dropouts the Case of Mumias District, Western Kenya

Science.gov (United States)

Musita, Richard; Ogange, Betty O.; Lugendo, Dorine

2018-01-01

The Kenyan education system has very limited re-entry options for learners who drop out before attaining secondary school certificate. It is very difficult to access training and or secure a job that requires at least secondary school education. This study examined the prospects of initiating Open and Distance e-Learning(ODeL) in re-entry…

Helping Nevada School Children Become Sun Smart

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

This podcast features Christine Thompson, Community Programs Manager at the Nevada Cancer Coalition, and author of a recent study detailing a school-based program to help Nevada school children establish healthy sun safety habits and decrease UV exposure. Christine answers questions about her research and what impact her what impact the program had on children's skin health.

Parental School Involvement in Relation to Children's Grades and Adaptation to School

Science.gov (United States)

Tan, Edwin T.; Goldberg, Wendy A.

2008-01-01

From an ecological perspective, it is important to examine linkages among key settings in the child's life. The current study focuses on parents' involvement in children's education both at school and at home. Ninety-one families with school-aged children (91 fathers and 91 mothers) participated in a survey study assessing the levels of parental…

Health and school outcomes during children's transition into adolescence.

Science.gov (United States)

Forrest, Christopher B; Bevans, Katherine B; Riley, Anne W; Crespo, Richard; Louis, Thomas A

2013-02-01

Normative biopsychosocial stressors that occur during entry into adolescence can affect school performance.As a set of resources for adapting to life's challenges, good health may buffer a child from these potentially harmful stressors. This study examined the associations between health (measured as well-being, functioning, symptoms, and chronic conditions) and school outcomes among children aged 9-13 years in 4th-8th grades. We conducted a prospective cohort study of 1,479 children from 34 schools followed from 2006 to 2008. Survey data were obtained from children and their parents, and school records were abstracted. Measures of child self-reported health were dichotomized to indicate presence of a health asset. Outcomes included attendance, grade point average, state achievement test scores, and child-reported school engagement and teacher connectedness. Both the transition into middle school and puberty had independent negative influences on school outcomes. Chronic health conditions that affected children's functional status were associated with poorer academic achievement. The number of health assets that a child possessed was positively associated with school outcomes. Low levels of negative stress experiences and high physical comfort had positive effects on teacher connectedness, school engagement, and academic achievement, whereas bullying and bully victimization negatively affected these outcomes. Children with high life satisfaction were more connected with teachers, more engaged in schoolwork, and earned higher grades than those who were less satisfied. As children enter adolescence, good health may buffer them from the potentially negative effects of school and pubertal transitions on academic success. Copyright © 2013 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

BODY MASS STATUS AMONG PRIMARY SCHOOL GOING CHILDREN

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Kashmala khan

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Background: School going children is important part of our society. Their growth, development and body weight is of utmost significance and presents general health status of a community and nation as a whole. For the assessment of nutritional status WHO Asian cuts-off BMI for age recommended BMI less than 18.5 kg/m considered underweight, 18.5-24.9 normal weight, more than 25 overweight. The objective of this study is to access body mass status among primary school going children of Hyderabad. Methods: The study design was cross sectional study in which different school of Hyderabad were selected to collect data (semi government and private sector.This study has assessed the body mass index between 7-14 years old age group of both genders of primary school going children of Hyderabad. BMI has calculated with the help of weight and height of the body. Result: In this study out of 100 children 10%were 7-8 year old 20% were 9-10 year old, 20% were 11-12year old and 30% were 13-14 year old. The analysis shows 80% were underweight (below 18.5, 18% were normal weight (18.5-24.9 and only 2% overweight (above 25 according to the Asian cut-off value of BMI for Asian children. When it was analyzed by gender 62% of the boys and 18% of the girls were underweight, 6% of boys and 12% out of girls were normal weight, 2% of the boys were overweight no girl found overweight in the study. In the above study 80% found underweight, 18% normal weight, 2% overweight. Conclusion: Under nutrition among the school going children is currently a health problem faced by Hyderabad school going children. There is need to be taken address these problems in order to prevent nation from nutritional deficiency among school going children and buildup a strong and healthy nation in future.

Comparison of home fortification with two iron formulations among Kenyan children: Rationale and design of a placebo-controlled non-inferiority trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Teshome, Emily M; Otieno, Walter; Terwel, Sofie R; Osoti, Victor; Demir, Ayşe Y; Andango, Pauline E A; Prentice, Andrew M; Verhoef, Hans

2017-09-01

Home fortification powders containing iron and other micronutrients have been recommended by World Health Organisation to prevent iron deficiency anaemia in areas of high prevalence. There is evidence, however, that home fortification at this iron dose may cause gastrointestinal adverse events including diarrhoea. Providing a low dose of highly absorbable iron (3 mg iron as NaFeEDTA) may be safer because the decreased amount of iron in the gut lumen can possibly reduce the burden of these adverse effects whilst resulting in similar or higher amounts of absorbed iron. To show non-inferiority of home fortification with 3 mg iron as NaFeEDTA compared with 12.5 mg iron as encapsulated ferrous fumarate, with haemoglobin response as the primary outcome. 338 Kenyan children aged 12-36 months will be randomly allocated to daily home fortification with either: a) 3 mg iron as NaFeEDTA (experimental treatment), b) 12.5 mg iron as encapsulated ferrous fumarate (reference), or c) placebo. At baseline, after 30 days of intervention and within 100 days post-intervention, blood samples will be assessed for primary outcome (haemoglobin concentration), iron status markers, Plasmodium parasitaemia and inflammation markers. Urine and stool samples will be assessed for hepcidin concentrations and inflammation, respectively. Adherence will be assessed by self-reporting, sachet counts and by an electronic monitoring device. If daily home fortification with a low dose of iron (3 mg NaFeEDTA) has similar or superior efficacy to a high dose (12.5 mg ferrous fumarate) then it would be the preferred choice for treatment of iron deficiency anaemia in children.

The father and the schooling of children

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Geraldo Romanelli

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Several studies have been investigating the relationship between families and school. Those studies, especially in the field of Sociology of education seek to describe and analyse family-school relationships to contribute to the improvement of knowledge about the schooling process of children, adolescents and young people. However, survey results about the schooling process and the relationship between family and school, published in books by academics or scientific journals in the fields of education, sociology, anthropology and psychology, show that studies considering the father figure tend to be scarce. This article focuses on the construction of fatherhood, in an attempt to discuss its representations, seeking to contribute and clarify the reasons for the relative scarcity of analyses about the father's role in studies about the family and the children's schooling process.

Salt intake and eating habits of school-aged children.

Science.gov (United States)

Ohta, Yuko; Iwayama, Keiko; Suzuki, Hirotoshi; Sakata, Satoko; Hayashi, Shinichiro; Iwashima, Yoshio; Takata, Akira; Kawano, Yuhei

2016-11-01

Salt restriction is important for the prevention and treatment of hypertension; however, salt consumption is still high in Japan. Improvements in dietary habits, including salt reduction in childhood, may contribute to the prevention of hypertension. The aim of the present study was to investigate the salt intake of school-aged children and the relationship between their diet diary and actual salt intake. The subjects comprised 580 schoolchildren (471 elementary school pupils and 109 junior high school pupils) who wanted to evaluate their salt intake in Kuji, a northeast coastal area in Japan. We estimated salt intake using spot urine samples and a formula. Lifestyle was assessed using a questionnaire. We also evaluated the salt intake and the lifestyles of 440 parents. The estimated salt intakes of elementary school pupils, junior high school pupils and their parents were 7.1±1.5, 7.6±1.5 and 8.0±1.7 g per day, respectively. The proportion of lower-grade children who achieved the recommended salt intake was low. In the multivariate analysis, the estimated salt intake of school-aged children correlated with their age, estimated salt intake of their parents and the menu priorities of the household. The estimated salt intake of the parents was associated with female gender, obesity, age and the habitual consumption of bread and noodles. In conclusion, the estimated salt intake of school-aged children positively correlated with the estimated salt intake of their parents, and the proportion of lower-grade children who achieved the recommended salt intake was low. Guidance on salt restriction for children and their parents may reduce the salt intake of school-aged children.

Woman for President? 'Alternative' future in the works of Kenyan ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The study comes to a conclusion that the aim of these authors was not to create another 'trivial utopia', but to draw a picture of a possible and accomplishable future which may serve as a motivation for the reading public. Keywords: African female leadership, African literature, Kenyan women writers, utopian visions of the ...

Children's body mass index, participation in school meals, and observed energy intake at school meals

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Mackelprang Alyssa J

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Data from a dietary-reporting validation study with fourth-grade children were analyzed to investigate a possible relationship of body mass index (BMI with daily participation in school meals and observed energy intake at school meals, and whether the relationships differed by breakfast location (classroom; cafeteria. Methods Data were collected in 17, 17, and 8 schools during three school years. For the three years, six, six, and seven of the schools had breakfast in the classroom; all other schools had breakfast in the cafeteria. Information about 180 days of school breakfast and school lunch participation during fourth grade for each of 1,571 children (90% Black; 53% girls was available in electronic administrative records from the school district. Children were weighed and measured, and BMI was calculated. Each of a subset of 465 children (95% Black; 49% girls was observed eating school breakfast and school lunch on the same day. Mixed-effects regression was conducted with BMI as the dependent variable and school as the random effect; independent variables were breakfast participation, lunch participation, combined participation (breakfast and lunch on the same day, average observed energy intake for breakfast, average observed energy intake for lunch, sex, age, breakfast location, and school year. Analyses were repeated for BMI category (underweight/healthy weight; overweight; obese; severely obese using pooled ordered logistic regression models that excluded sex and age. Results Breakfast participation, lunch participation, and combined participation were not significantly associated with BMI or BMI category irrespective of whether the model included observed energy intake at school meals. Observed energy intake at school meals was significantly and positively associated with BMI and BMI category. For the total sample and subset, breakfast location was significantly associated with BMI; average BMI was larger for

Voices of Children, Parents and Teachers: How Children Cope with Stress during School Transition

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Wong, Mun

2015-01-01

This study explores how children's perceptions of stress factors and coping strategies are constructed over time. Children were interviewed before and after they made the transition from preschool to primary school. This study also explores teachers' and parental strategies in helping children to cope with stress at school. The sample included 53…

Socio-cultural determinants of health-seeking behaviour on the Kenyan coast: a qualitative study.

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Amina Abubakar

Full Text Available Severe childhood illnesses present a major public health challenge for Africa, which is aggravated by a suboptimal response to the child's health problems with reference to the health-seeking behaviour of the parents or guardians. We examined the health-seeking behaviour of parents at the Kenyan coast because understanding impediments to optimal health-seeking behaviour could greatly contribute to reducing the impact of severe illness on children's growth and development.Health-seeking behaviour, and the factors influencing this behaviour, were examined in two traditional communities. We held in-depth interviews with 53 mothers, fathers and caregivers from two rural clinics at the Kenyan Coast. Biomedical medicine (from health facilities and purchased over the counter was found to be the most popular first point of treatment. However, traditional healing still plays a salient role in the health care within these two communities. Traditional healers were consulted for various reasons: a attribution of causation of ill-health to supernatural sources, b chronic illness (inability of modern medicine to cure the problem and c as prevention against possible ill-health. In developing an explanatory model of decision-making, we observed that this was a complex process involving consultation at various levels, with elders, but also between both parents, depending on the perceived nature and chronicity of the illness. However, it was reported that fathers were the ultimate decision makers in relation to decisions concerning where the child would be taken for treatment.Health systems need to see traditional healing as a complementary system in order to ensure adequate access to health care. Importantly, fathers also need to be addressed in intervention and education programs.

Plasmodium falciparum, anaemia and cognitive and educational performance among school children in an area of moderate malaria transmission: baseline results of a cluster randomized trial on the coast of Kenya.

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Halliday, Katherine E; Karanja, Peris; Turner, Elizabeth L; Okello, George; Njagi, Kiambo; Dubeck, Margaret M; Allen, Elizabeth; Jukes, Matthew C H; Brooker, Simon J

2012-05-01

Studies have typically investigated health and educational consequences of malaria among school-aged children in areas of high malaria transmission, but few have investigated these issues in moderate transmission settings. This study investigates the patterns of and risks for Plasmodium falciparum and anaemia and their association with cognitive and education outcomes on the Kenyan coast, an area of moderate malaria transmission. As part of a cluster randomised trial, a baseline cross-sectional survey assessed the prevalence of and risk factors for P. falciparum infection and anaemia and the associations between health status and measures of cognition and educational achievement. Results are presented for 2400 randomly selected children who were enrolled in the 51 intervention schools. The overall prevalence of P. falciparum infection and anaemia was 13.0% and 45.5%, respectively. There was marked heterogeneity in the prevalence of P. falciparum infection by school. In multivariable analysis, being male, younger age, not sleeping under a mosquito net and household crowding were adjusted risk factors for P. falciparum infection, whilst P. falciparum infection, being male and indicators of poor nutritional intake were risk factors for anaemia. No association was observed between either P. falciparum or anaemia and performance on tests of sustained attention, cognition, literacy or numeracy. The results indicate that in this moderate malaria transmission setting, P. falciparum is strongly associated with anaemia, but there is no clear association between health status and education. Intervention studies are underway to investigate whether removing the burden of chronic asymptomatic P. falciparum and related anaemia can improve education outcomes. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

School Reintegration for Children and Adolescents with Cancer: The Role of School Psychologists

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Harris, Mekel S.

2009-01-01

As a result of advancements in medical expertise and technology, children and adolescents diagnosed with cancer now have opportunities to participate in many typical activities, including school. To some extent, school reintegration reflects positive adjustment to their illness. Nevertheless, children and adolescents with cancer may experience…

Prevalence of iodine deficiency among school children and access ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Prevalence of iodine deficiency among school children and access to iodized salt in Zambia. ... African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development ... It was carried out in 2011 and entailed determining the urinary iodine concentration (UIC) among 1, 283 school children from 30 selected schools and the amount ...

Online schools and children with special health and educational needs: comparison with performance in traditional schools.

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Thompson, Lindsay A; Ferdig, Rick; Black, Erik

2012-04-30

In the United States, primary and secondary online schools are institutions that deliver online curricula for children enrolled in kindergarten through 12th grade (K-12). These institutions commonly provide opportunities for online instruction in conjunction with local schools for students who may need remediation, have advanced needs, encounter unqualified local instructors, or experience scheduling conflicts. Internet-based online schooling may potentially help children from populations known to have educational and health disadvantages, such as those from certain racial or ethnic backgrounds, those of low socioeconomic status, and children with special health care needs (CSHCN). To describe the basic and applied demographics of US online-school users and to compare student achievement in traditional versus online schooling environments. We performed a brief parental survey in three states examining basic demographics and educational history of the child and parents, the child's health status as measured by the CSHCN Screener, and their experiences and educational achievement with online schools and class(es). Results were compared with state public-school demographics and statistical analyses controlled for state-specific independence. We analyzed responses from 1971 parents with a response rate of 14.7% (1971/13,384). Parents of online-school participants were more likely to report having a bachelor's degree or higher than were parents of students statewide in traditional schools, and more of their children were white and female. Most notably, the prevalence of CSHCN was high (476/1971, 24.6%) in online schooling. Children who were male, black, or had special health care needs reported significantly lower grades in both traditional and online schools. However, when we controlled for age, gender, race, and parental education, parents of CSHCN or black children reported significantly lower grades in online than in traditional schooling (adjusted odds ratio [a

ANTHROPOMETRIC, GAIT AND STRENGTH CHARACTERISTICS OF KENYAN DISTANCE RUNNERS

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Pui W. Kong

2008-12-01

Full Text Available This study intended to take a biomechanical approach to understand the success of Kenyan distance runners. Anthropometric, gait and lower extremity strength characteristics of six elite Kenyan distance runners were analyzed. Stride frequency, relative stride length and ground contact time were measured at five running speeds (3.5 - 5.4 m/s using a motion capture system. Isometric knee extension and flexion torques were measured at six angles and hamstrings and quadriceps (H:Q ratios at three angular velocities were determined using an isokinetic dynamometer. These runners were characterized by a low body mass index (20.1 ± 1.8 kg·m- 2, low percentage body fat (5.1 ± 1.6% and small calf circumference (34.5 ± 2.3 cm. At all running speeds, the ground contact time was shorter (p < 0.05 during right (170 - 212 ms compared to left (177 - 220 ms foot contacts. No bilateral difference was observed in other gait or strength variables. Their maximal isometric strength was lower than other runners (knee extension: 1.4 - 2.6 Nm·kg-1, knee flexion: 1.0 - 1.4 Nm·kg-1 but their H:Q ratios were higher than athletes in other sports (1.03 ± 0.51 at 60o/s, 1.44 ± 0.46 at 120o/s, 1.59 ± 0.66 at 180o/s. The slim limbs of Kenyan distance runners may positively contribute to performance by having a low moment of inertia and thus requiring less muscular effort in leg swing. The short ground contact time observed may be related to good running economy since there is less time for the braking force to decelerate forward motion of the body. These runners displayed minor gait asymmetry, though the difference may be too small to be practically significant. Further investigations are needed to confirm whether the bilateral symmetry in strength and high H:Q ratios are related to genetics, training or the lack of injuries in these runners

Imagination, Waldorf, and critical literacies: Possibilities for transformative education in mainstream schools

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Monica Shank

2016-07-01

Full Text Available In the face of transmission-oriented national curricula, this study explores possibilities for claiming space for imagination, as ‘the most powerful and energetic of learning tools’ (Egan 1986, in early childhood education in mainstream Kenyan schools. Drawing from Egan’s work on imagination and Cummins’ Nested Pedagogical Orientations framework, this study interrogates the indispensable role of imagination in transformative education, as well as its utility in the ‘transmission’ of the government curriculum. This study draws insights from an initiative integrating imaginative, Waldorf-inspired pedagogies into mainstream pre-primary and early primary classrooms to explore how imagination-based pedagogies, including storytelling, creative play, poems and verses, drawing and painting, can support the development of critical literacies in young children.

Health status of school children in rural area of coastal Karnataka

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Muralidhar M Kulkarni

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Children are the foundation of a strong and healthy nation. Morbidity among school-going children adversely affects their normal growth and development and hence is a major public health concern. School health program was started as an important component of total health care delivery system in the country with a purpose of addressing the health needs of children. Aim: To assess the morbidity pattern and nutritional status among school children. Materials and Methods: Study design: A cross-sectional study. Study period: 1-year from 1 st July 2012 to 30 th June 2013. Study setting: 14 schools with a total strength of 909 children in a rural area of coastal Karnataka. Data collection: Health examination of the school children was carried out by a trained team. Data regarding anthropometric measurements, refractory error, medical problems and minor ailments were collected using a predesigned proforma. Results: A total of 797 children were examined. Dental caries was the most common ailment observed in 31.86% of children 43.32% of the children were underweight, 53.03% were normal, and 3.65% were overweight for age. Conclusion: The school health program provides a good opportunity to screen, identify and impart education regarding health related issues. The common morbidities found were dental caries, pallor, upper respiratory tract infection and refractory error. Overweight was also observed in the school children and needs to be addressed. There is a scope of providing comprehensive school health services by incorporating dental care.

A tuberculin skin test survey among Ghanaian school children.

Science.gov (United States)

Addo, Kennedy Kwasi; van den Hof, Susan; Mensah, Gloria Ivy; Hesse, Adukwei; Bonsu, Christian; Koram, Kwadwo Ansah; Afutu, Felix Kwami; Bonsu, Frank Adae

2010-01-26

Ghana has not conducted a national tuberculin survey or tuberculosis prevalence survey since the establishment of the National Tuberculosis Control Programme. The primary objective of this study was therefore to determine the prevalence of tuberculin skin sensitivity in Ghanaian school children aged 6-10 years in 8 out of 10 regions of Ghana between 2004 and 2006. Tuberculin survey was conducted in 179 primary schools from 21 districts in 8 regions. Schools were purposively selected so as to reflect the proportion of affluent private and free tuition public schools as well as the proportion of small and large schools. Of the 24,778 children registered for the survey, 23,600 (95.2%) were tested of which 21,861 (92.6%) were available for reading. The age distribution showed an increase in numbers of children towards older age: 11% of the children were 6 years and 25%, 10 years. Females were 52.5% and males 47.5%. The proportion of girls was higher in all age groups (range 51.4% to 54.0%, p < 0.001). BCG scar was visible in 89.3% of the children. The percentage of children with a BCG scar differed by district and by age. The percentage of children with a BCG scar decreased with increasing age in all districts, reflecting increasing BCG vaccination coverage in Ghana in the last ten years. The risk of tuberculosis infection was low in the northern savannah zones compared to the southern coastal zones. Using a cut-off of 15 mm, the prevalence of infection ranged from 0.0% to 5.4% and the Annual Risks of Tuberculosis Infection 0.0% to 0.6%. There was an increase in the proportion of infected children after the age of 7 years. Children attending low and middle-class schools had a higher risk of infection than children attending upper-class schools. Tuberculosis infection is still a public health problem in Ghana and to monitor the trend, the survey needs to be repeated at 5 years interval.

child maltreatment among elementary school children in jimma town

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Tekeste

Child Maltreatment Among Elementary School Children. Indryas L. 1. ORIGINAL ... of child maltreatment. KEY WORDS: School children, child maltreatment, child abuse. ..... and teachers in teaching, counseling and prevention of sexual ...

Friendships and social interactions of school-aged children with migraine.

Science.gov (United States)

Vannatta, K; Getzoff, E A; Gilman, D K; Noll, R B; Gerhardt, C A; Powers, S W; Hershey, A D

2008-07-01

We set out to evaluate the friendships and social behaviour of school-aged children with migraine. Concern exists regarding the impact of paediatric migraine on daily activities and quality of life. We hypothesized that children with migraine would have fewer friends and be identified as more socially sensitive and isolated than comparison peers. Sixty-nine children with migraine participated in a school-based study of social functioning. A comparison sample without migraine included classmates matched for gender, race and age. Children with migraine had fewer friends at school; however, this effect was limited to those in elementary school. Behavioural difficulties were not found. Middle-school students with migraine were identified by peers as displaying higher levels of leadership and popularity than comparison peers. Concern may be warranted about the social functioning of pre-adolescent children with migraine; however, older children with migraine may function as well as or better than their peers.

Structural borrowing: The case of Kenyan Sign Language (KSL) and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Kenyan Sign Language (KSL) is a visual gestural language used by members of the deaf community in Kenya. Kiswahili on the other hand is a Bantu language that is used as the national language of Kenya. The two are world's apart, one being a spoken language and the other a signed language and thus their “… basic ...

Empathy, Altruism, and Moral Development in Home Schooled Children

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Kingston, Skylar T.; Medlin, Richard G.

2005-01-01

The purpose of the present study was to compare empathy, altruism, moral reasoning, and prosocial behavior in home schooled children and children attending public schools, and to assess attitudes toward religion and values in their parents. Homeschooling parents were more concerned with teaching their children their values and religious beliefs,…

Epidemiologic survey of eye in Cangzhou school children

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Li-Dong Yang

2014-05-01

Full Text Available AIM:To investigate the common ocular diseases in school children age of 6 to 14 years old in Cangzhou, Hebei, China and find the relative risk factors. METHODS:From March 2011 to October 2012, 20 schools including 1 and 6 grade school children were randomly selected as survey venues by Cangzhou Eye Hosipital. Then, 3 150 people as the selected residents were enrolled, which was figured out through the random cluster sampling procedure. Every participant completed questionnaire, and a series of examination. SPSS 16.0 was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS:Totally 3 150 residents finally took part in this study.(1There were 2672 eyes suffered lower vision CONCLUSION:The rate of low vision in school children is higher, among these the rate of myopia is the highest. All these result suggested: Family and community should pay sufficient attention to conduct children's eye health and prepare a balanced behaviour, to prevent the occurrence of ophthalmopathy.

Adverse health effects of experiencing food insecurity among Greenlandic school children

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Niclasen, B.; Petzold, M.; Schnohr, C. W.

2013-01-01

Background. In vulnerable populations, food security in children has been found to be associated with negative health effects. Still, little is known about whether the negative health effects can be retrieved in children at the population level. Objective. To examine food insecurity reported...... by Greenlandic school children as a predictor for perceived health, physical symptoms and medicine use. Design. The study is based on the Greenlandic part of the Health Behavior in School-aged Children survey. The 2010 survey included 2,254 students corresponding to 40% of all Greenlandic school children...... in Grade 5 through 10. The participation rate in the participating schools was 65%. Food insecurity was measured as going to bed or to school hungry because there was no food at home. Results. Boys, the youngest children (11-12 year-olds), and children from low affluence homes were at increased risk...

Effectiveness of a school-based multicomponent intervention on children nutritional status among primary school children in bangkok, thailand

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chawla, N.; Panza, A.; Kumar, R.

2017-01-01

Childhood obesity has become a major public health issue today. The prevalence of obesity and overweight is increasing in both adult and children. Childhood obesity in Thailand has more than doubled since the 1960s and a recent study reported that overweight and obesity in Thai is the 5th highest in Asia. The present study objective is to evaluate the effectiveness of a life skills multicomponent school-based intervention on children's nutritional status. Methods: A quasi-experimental design was conducted in two-groups (control and intervention schools) on 453 students attending grade levels 4-5 in Bangkok. Two schools were selected for control, and two schools for intervention groups. The intervention included education, dietary, physical activity, food-environment, school built-environment, and life skills components. Outcomes were measured at baseline and post-treatment measured after 6 months. Results: The intervention group had significant improvements in healthier practice (+1.5 mean difference, p=0.048) on dietary habits and physical activity, lowered cholesterol levels (-2.43 mean, p=0.019), and higher HDL levels (+4.06 p=0.028) as compared to control. A higher reduction of overweight individuals among the intervention group over the intervention period was observed. Physical activity and consumption of vegetable increased while consumption of high-caloric snacks and fasts food decreased in children after the intervention. Conclusion: Childhood overweight and obesity is a serious public health problem based on its increasing rates and the associated health risks. This study indicated that multidisciplinary approach on school-based interventions is likely most effective to prevent children becoming overweight in long term. More research should be conducted on school-based intervention with longer intervention periods with higher sustainability. (author)

A School Reentry Program for Chronically Ill Children.

Science.gov (United States)

Worchel-Prevatt, Frances F.; Heffer, Robert W.; Prevatt, Bruce C.; Miner, Jennifer; Young-Saleme, Tammi; Horgan, Daniel; Lopez, Molly A.; Frankel, Lawrence; Rae, William A.

1998-01-01

Describes a school reintegration program aimed at overcoming the numerous psychological, physical, environmental, and family-based deterrents to school reentry for chronically ill children. The program uses a systems approach to children's mental health with an emphasis on multiple aspects of the child's environment (i.e., family, medical…

Does school mobility place elementary school children at risk for lower math achievement? The mediating role of cognitive dysregulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Friedman-Krauss, Allison H; Raver, C Cybele

2015-12-01

Children growing up in poverty have a higher likelihood of exposure to multiple forms of adversity that jeopardize their chances of academic success. The current paper identifies school mobility, or changing schools, as 1 such poverty-related risk. Using a sample of low-income, predominantly ethnic-minority children (n = 381) in Chicago, this study tests the hypothesis that repeatedly changing schools during the 5-year period between Head Start (preschool) and third grade is a potent predictor of children's math achievement in fourth grade and that children's cognitive dysregulation serves as a mechanism through which school mobility may negatively affect children's math achievement. Hierarchical linear models controlling for baseline child and family characteristics (including children's early math and dysregulation measured during Head Start) revealed an inverse relation between the number of times low-income children changed schools between preschool and third grade and children's math achievement on state standardized tests in fourth grade. Furthermore, frequently changing schools (3 or 4 school changes over the same time period) was positively associated with teacher-reported cognitive dysregulation in third grade and negatively associated with children's math achievement in fourth grade. Evidence for the role of children's cognitive dysregulation as a partial statistical mediator was found for the relation between frequently changing schools and math achievement, even after accounting for baseline risk. Results are discussed in terms of school policies, practices, and intervention strategies to prevent the disruptive and potentially stressful experiences of school mobility for young, low-income children. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Sowing Seeds for Healthier Diets: Children's Perspectives on School Gardening.

Science.gov (United States)

Nury, Edris; Sarti, Asia; Dijkstra, Coosje; Seidell, Jacob C; Dedding, Christine

2017-06-25

School gardening programmes are among the most promising interventions to improve children's vegetable intake. Yet, low vegetable intake among children remains a persistent public health challenge. This study aimed to explore children's perspectives, experiences, and motivations concerning school gardening in order to better understand and increase its potential for health promotion. Using participant observation and semi-structured interviews, we provided 45 primary schoolchildren (9-10 years) from Amsterdam, who participated in a comprehensive year-round school gardening programme, the opportunity to share their experiences and ideas on school gardening. Children particularly expressed enjoyment of the outdoor gardening portion of the programme as it enabled them to be physically active and independently nurture their gardens. Harvesting was the children's favourite activity, followed by planting and sowing. In contrast, insufficient gardening time and long explanations or instructions were especially disliked. Experiencing fun and enjoyment appeared to play a vital role in children's motivation to actively participate. Children's suggestions for programme improvements included more autonomy and opportunities for experimentation, and competition elements to increase fun and variety. Our results indicate that gaining insight into children's perspectives allows matching school gardening programmes more to children's wishes and expectations, thereby potentially enhancing their intrinsic motivation for gardening and vegetable consumption.

Reciprocal associations between interpersonal and values dimensions of school climate and peer victimization in elementary school children.

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Leadbeater, Bonnie; Sukhawathanakul, Paweena; Smith, David; Bowen, François

2015-01-01

We examine longitudinal relations among children's and parents' reports of peer victimization and their perceptions of school climate dimensions reflecting school interpersonal relationships (relationships among children and their teachers and peers, and of parents and principals) and values (fairness and equity of access to resources). Children were in Grades 3 and 4 at Time 1 (Mage = 9.32, SDage = .74; 49% boys). Bidirectional influences of school climate and reports of peer victimization were investigated in path models across grade (Time 1 to Time 2) and within a grade (Time 2 to Time 3). Child and parent reports of school climate dimensions showed considerable stability. Hypothesized reciprocal relationships between each of the school climate dimensions and peer victimization were significant. Child-reported frequency of parent involvement in school activities was associated with lower levels of peer victimization within a school year. Parent perceptions of involvement in school activities and the schools' connection with the community were unrelated to the children's reports of peer victimization. Children's negative cognitions or "worldviews" coupled with peer victimization may fuel problems with school connectedness, safety, and help seeking. Findings shed light on possible pathways for reducing peer victimization by leveraging specific aspects of the social climate within schools.

Narrative learning through life: Kenyan teachers' life-stories and narrative learning, and what this means for their relation to the teaching profession

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dahl, Kari Kragh Blume

2015-01-01

This article explores four Kenyan primary school teachers’ life-stories and narrative learning through living and telling stories about their lives from 2000 to 2011, and what this means for their relation to the teaching profession. Evidence suggests that narrative learning manifests as altered...... professionalism ‘in’ and ‘through’ the stories teachers tell about their lives and depends on ruptures in lived life, followed by periods of transition in life-stories. Teachers also learned narratively by recounting their life-stories. Thus, narrative learning is an important learning site and a resource...... for professional development in addition to pre-service teacher education....

Cellular telephone use among primary school children in Germany

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boehler, Eva; Schuez, Joachim

2004-01-01

Background: There is some concern about potential health risks of cellular telephone use to children. We assessed data on how many children own a cellular telephone and on how often they use it in a population-based sample. Methods: We carried out a cross-sectional study among children in their fourth elementary school year, with a median-age of 10 years. The study was carried out in Mainz (Germany), a city with about 200,000 inhabitants. The study base comprised all 37 primary schools in Mainz and near surroundings. Altogether, 1933 children from 34 primary schools took part in the survey (participation rate of 87.8%). Results: Roughly a third of all children (n = 671, 34.7%) reported to own a cellular telephone. Overall, 119 (6.2%) children used a cellular telephone for making calls at least once a day, 123 (6.4%) used it several times a week and 876 (45.3%) children used it only once in a while. The remaining 805 (41.6%) children had never used a cellular telephone. The probability of owning a cellular telephone among children was associated with older age, being male, having no siblings, giving full particulars to height and weight, more time spent watching TV and playing computer games, being picked up by their parents from school by car (instead of walking or cycling) and going to bed late. The proportion of cellular telephone owners was somewhat higher in classes with more children from socially disadvantaged families. Conclusions: Our study shows that both ownership of a cellular telephone as well as the regular use of it are already quite frequent among children in the fourth grade of primary school. With regard to potential long-term effects, we recommend follow-up studies with children

Sowing Seeds for Healthier Diets : Children's Perspectives on School Gardening

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nury, Edris; Sarti, Asia; Dijkstra, Coosje; Seidell, Jacob C; Dedding, Christine

2017-01-01

School gardening programmes are among the most promising interventions to improve children's vegetable intake. Yet, low vegetable intake among children remains a persistent public health challenge. This study aimed to explore children's perspectives, experiences, and motivations concerning school

[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.

Improper nutrition and diseases in pre-school children

OpenAIRE

Panova, Gordana; Taseva, Lence; Sumanov, Gorgi; Dzidrova, Violeta

2017-01-01

For healthy generation it is healthy and orderly development from early childhood. It needs proper nutrition, proper care and personal hygiene. Early childhood is the most vulnerable period in the development stage of man. Improper diet and disease in children from pre-school age are a problem for both children and parents. It is therefore important to undertake measures for proper nutrition and prevention of diseases. Described as improper diet affects children from pre-school...

Methylphenidate use and school performance among primary school children : a descriptive study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Schans, Jurjen; Cicek, Rukiye; Vardar, Sefike; Bos, Jens H. J.; de Vries, Tjalling W.; Hoekstra, Pieter J.; Hak, Eelko

2017-01-01

Background: There is no conclusive evidence that stimulants have beneficial effects on major associated outcome parameters, particularly school performance. We assessed the differences in school performance among children using methylphenidate at the end of primary school in relation to various

How do children travel to school in urban India? A cross-sectional study of 5,842 children in Hyderabad.

Science.gov (United States)

Tetali, Shailaja; Edwards, P; Roberts, G V S Murthy I

2016-10-19

Millions of children travel to school every day in India, yet little is known about this journey. We examined the distribution and determinants of school travel in Hyderabad, India. We conducted a cross-sectional survey using a two-stage stratified cluster sampling design. School travel questionnaires were used to collect data from children aged 11-14 years, attending private, semi-private and government funded schools in Hyderabad. We used Google Earth to estimate the distance from home to school for each child and modelled the relationship between distance to school and mode of travel, adjusting for confounders. Forty five of the 48 eligible schools that were selected agreed to participate, providing a total sample of 5842 children. The response rate was 99 %. Most children walked (57 %) or cycled (6 %) to school but 36 % used motorised transport (mostly bus). The proportion using motorised transport was higher in children attending private schools (41 %) than in those attending government schools (24 %). Most (90 %) children lived within 5km of school and 36 % lived within 1km. Greater distance to school was strongly associated with the use of motorised transport. Children living close to school were much more likely to walk or cycle. Most children in Hyderabad walk (57 %) or cycle (6 %) to school. If these levels are to be maintained, there is an urgent need to ensure that walking and cycling are safe and pleasant. Social policies that decrease distances to school could have a large impact on road traffic injuries, air pollution, and physical activity levels.

How do children travel to school in urban India? A cross-sectional study of 5,842 children in Hyderabad

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Shailaja Tetali

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Millions of children travel to school every day in India, yet little is known about this journey. We examined the distribution and determinants of school travel in Hyderabad, India. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional survey using a two-stage stratified cluster sampling design. School travel questionnaires were used to collect data from children aged 11–14 years, attending private, semi-private and government funded schools in Hyderabad. We used Google Earth to estimate the distance from home to school for each child and modelled the relationship between distance to school and mode of travel, adjusting for confounders. Results Forty five of the 48 eligible schools that were selected agreed to participate, providing a total sample of 5842 children. The response rate was 99 %. Most children walked (57 % or cycled (6 % to school but 36 % used motorised transport (mostly bus. The proportion using motorised transport was higher in children attending private schools (41 % than in those attending government schools (24 %. Most (90 % children lived within 5km of school and 36 % lived within 1km. Greater distance to school was strongly associated with the use of motorised transport. Children living close to school were much more likely to walk or cycle. Conclusions Most children in Hyderabad walk (57 % or cycle (6 % to school. If these levels are to be maintained, there is an urgent need to ensure that walking and cycling are safe and pleasant. Social policies that decrease distances to school could have a large impact on road traffic injuries, air pollution, and physical activity levels.

Christianity in Early Kenyan Novels: Ngugi Wa Thiong'o's Weep Not ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

In light of this, we read the two novels as attempts by the writer to project the trauma caused by and the tensions of Christianity among the colonized subjects as important influences in the formation and development of (post)colonial Kenyan subjects. Key Words: Ngugi Wa Thiong'o, Christianity, postcolonial, subjects.

After-school programs for low-income children: promise and challenges.

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Halpern, R

1999-01-01

Children's out-of-school time, long a low-level source of public concern, has recently emerged as a major social issue. This, in turn, has heightened interest in the heterogeneous field of after-school programs. This article provides a profile of after-school programs for low-income children, focusing on supply and demand, program emphases, and program sponsors and support organizations. It also discusses the major challenges facing the field in the areas of facilities, staffing, and financing. Details and examples are drawn from the ongoing evaluation of a specific after-school program initiative called MOST (Making the Most of Out-of-School Time), which seeks to strengthen after-school programs in Boston, Chicago, and Seattle. Looking ahead, the article highlights the pros and cons of options for increasing coverage to reach more low-income children, strengthening programs, expanding funding, and articulating an appropriate role for after-school programs to fill in the lives of low-income children.

34 CFR 300.129 - State responsibility regarding children in private schools.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... schools. 300.129 Section 300.129 Education Regulations of the Offices of the Department of Education... STATES FOR THE EDUCATION OF CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES State Eligibility Children in Private Schools § 300.129 State responsibility regarding children in private schools. The State must have in effect...

Vulnerable children speak out: voices from one rural school in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The study recommends some strategies by which the Swaziland Ministry of Education and Training, the community, and the school can make collaborative and coordinated efforts aimed at enhancing vulnerable children's quality of schooling experiences. Keywords: Children; Schooling; Rural; Vulnerability; Education; ...

Birth Order and Maladaptive Behavior in School-Aged Children.

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Carmichael, Karla D.

Drawing on Alfred Adler's theories on the effect of birth order on maladaptive behavior in children, this study focused on the relationship between birth order and the referral to counseling of school-aged children with maladaptive disorder. School-aged children (N=217) with academic or behavioral problems, ages 5 to 18, were referred to the staff…

Philosophy of education and the Africanization of secondary school ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The essence of restructuring and Africanizing secondary school curriculum to accommodate the attributes of Kenyan philosophy of education together with African philosophical thinking is inevitable not only in Kenya, but also in the entire continent of Africa. Ministry of Education Science and Technology (MoEST, 2004: 21) ...

Foods in schools: Children with diabetes can make wise meal choices

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Students, parents, and school staff often believe there are no healthful foods available in schools for children with diabetes. This paper explains modern school food environments and how children with diabetes can eat school foods. National School Lunch Program meals usually consist of an entree, t...

Association between Subjective School Adaptation and Life Skills in Elementary School Children with Chronic Diseases.

Science.gov (United States)

Aoji, Yurina; Miyai, Nobuyuki

2016-01-01

In this study, we investigated the association between subjective school adaptation and life skills in elementary school children with chronic diseases. A cross-sectional sample of children with chronic diseases (n=76), who were being treated as pediatric outpatients and who were in the 4th to 6th grade of public elementary schools, was selected. The subjects completed a self-administered questionnaire that comprised an Adaptation Scale for School Environments on Six Spheres (ASSESS) and life skills scales for self-management and stress coping strategies. Structural equation modeling was conducted to identify the inter-relationship between subjective school adaptation and life skills. Compared with the gender- and schoolyear-matched healthy controls (n=380), a large number of children with chronic diseases had low scores on the measure of interpersonal relationship in school. From the structural equation modeling, the subscales "friend's support" and "victimized relationship" in interpersonal relationship were two of the factors closely related to subjective adaptation of learning as well as school satisfaction in the children with chronic diseases. Furthermore, the "decision-making" and "goal-setting" components of self-management skills demonstrated positive contributions to the adaptation of learning and interpersonal relationship either directly affected by the skills themselves or through the affirmative effects of stress coping strategies. These results suggest that life skills education, focusing on self-management and stress coping strategies along with support to improve interpersonal relationships, is effective in promoting subjective school adaptation and leads to increased school satisfaction in children with chronic diseases.

The Effect of Preschool on Children's School Readiness

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Marjanovic Umek, Ljubica; Kranjc, Simona; Fekonja, Urska; Bajc, Katja

2008-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of preschool on children's school readiness in connection with their intellectual abilities, language competence and parents' education. The sample included 219 children from 68 to 83 months old attending the first year of primary school, differentiated by whether or not they had attended…

Creativity, Emotional Intelligence, and School Performance in Children

Science.gov (United States)

Hansenne, Michel; Legrand, Jessica

2012-01-01

Previous studies have shown that both creativity and emotional intelligence (EI) were related to children school performance. In this study, we investigated the incremental validity of EI over creativity in an elementary school setting. Seventy-three children aged from 9 to 12 years old were recruited to participate in the study. Verbal and…

Critical Success Factors for Franchised Restaurants Entering the Kenyan Market

OpenAIRE

Lucy Gikonyo; Adele Berndt; Joseph Wadawi

2015-01-01

In today’s globalized world, businesses look to expand to have a global presence. Restaurant businesses have expanded internationally using franchising. This study sought to determine the critical success factors (CSFs) of a franchised restaurant system entering the Kenyan market from the franchisors’ perspective. It sought to establish how franchisors define, identify, and evaluate success. This study provides a theor...

High blood pressure in school children: prevalence and risk factors

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Rivers Patrick A

2006-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of high blood pressure (HBP and associated risk factors in school children 8 to 13 years of age. Methods Elementary school children (n = 1,066 were examined. Associations between HBP, body mass index (BMI, gender, ethnicity, and acanthosis nigricans (AN were investigated using a school based cross-sectional study. Blood pressure was measured and the 95th percentile was used to determine HBP. Comparisons between children with and without HBP were utilized. The crude and multiple logistic regression adjusted odds ratios were used as measures of association. Results Females, Hispanics, overweight children, and children with AN had an increased likelihood of HBP. Overweight children (BMI ≥ 85th percentile and those with AN were at least twice as likely to present with HBP after controlling for confounding factors. Conclusion Twenty one percent of school children had HBP, especially the prevalence was higher among the overweight and Hispanic group. The association identified here can be used as independent markers for increased likelihood of HBP in children.

Effects of School Gardening Lessons on Elementary School Children's Physical Activity and Sedentary Time.

Science.gov (United States)

Rees-Punia, Erika; Holloway, Alicia; Knauft, David; Schmidt, Michael D

2017-12-01

Recess and physical education time continue to diminish, creating a need for additional physical activity opportunities within the school environment. The use of school gardens as a teaching tool in elementary science and math classes has the potential to increase the proportion of time spent active throughout the school day. Teachers from 4 elementary schools agreed to teach 1 math or science lesson per week in the school garden. Student physical activity time was measured with ActiGraph GT3X accelerometers on 3 garden days and 3 no-garden days at each school. Direct observation was used to quantify the specific garden-related tasks during class. The proportion of time spent active and sedentary was compared on garden and no-garden days. Seventy-four children wore accelerometers, and 75 were observed (86% participation). Children spent a significantly larger proportion of time active on garden days than no-garden days at 3 of the 4 schools. The proportion of time spent sedentary and active differed significantly across the 4 schools. Teaching lessons in the school garden may increase children's physical activity and decrease sedentary time throughout the school day and may be a strategy to promote both health and learning.

Measuring fitness of Kenyan children with polyparasitic infections using the 20-meter shuttle run test as a morbidity metric.

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Amaya L Bustinduy

2011-07-01

Full Text Available To date, there has been no standardized approach to the assessment of aerobic fitness among children who harbor parasites. In quantifying the disability associated with individual or multiple chronic infections, accurate measures of physical fitness are important metrics. This is because exercise intolerance, as seen with anemia and many other chronic disorders, reflects the body's inability to maintain adequate oxygen supply (VO(2 max to the motor tissues, which is frequently linked to reduced quality-of-life in terms of physical and job performance. The objective of our study was to examine the associations between polyparasitism, anemia, and reduced fitness in a high risk Kenyan population using novel implementation of the 20-meter shuttle run test (20mSRT, a well-standardized, low-technology physical fitness test.Four villages in coastal Kenya were surveyed during 2009-2010. Children 5-18 years were tested for infection with Schistosoma haematobium (Sh, malaria, filaria, and geohelminth infections by standard methods. After anthropometric and hemoglobin testing, fitness was assessed with the 20 mSRT. The 20 mSRT proved easy to perform, requiring only minimal staff training. Parasitology revealed high prevalence of single and multiple parasitic infections in all villages, with Sh being the most common (25-62%. Anemia prevalence was 45-58%. Using multiply-adjusted linear modeling that accounted for household clustering, decreased aerobic capacity was significantly associated with anemia, stunting, and wasting, with some gender differences.The 20 mSRT, which has excellent correlation with VO(2, is a highly feasible fitness test for low-resource settings. Our results indicate impaired fitness is common in areas endemic for parasites, where, at least in part, low fitness scores are likely to result from anemia and stunting associated with chronic infection. The 20 mSRT should be used as a common metric to quantify physical fitness and compare sub

Prevalence of dental caries among school children of Bharatpur city, India.

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Ingle, Navin Anand; Dubey, Harsh Vardhan; Kaur, Navpreet; Gupta, Rahul

2014-01-01

Healthy teeth and oral tissues and the need for oral health care are important for any section of society. Dental caries is an infectious microbial disease of multifactorial origin in which diet, host, and microbial flora interacts over a period of time in such a way so as to encourage demineralization of the tooth enamel with resultant caries formation. Dental caries, the product of man's progress towards civilization, has a very high morbidity potential and thus, is coming into focus of the mankind. To assess the prevalence of dental caries among 12-15 year old government and private school children of Bharatpur city. This was a cross-sectional study carried out on total 1400 school children, of which 700 school children were from government schools and 700 were from private schools. Simple random sampling methodology was used to select the sample. The subjects were examined for dental caries according to WHO 1997 assessment form. Significant Caries Index was also used to assess the prevalence of dental caries. The prevalence of dental caries was found higher among government school children, that is, 53%, when compared to private school children, that is, 47% and this difference was found to be statistically significant. The mean decayed, missing, and filled teeth were found to be higher in government school children (7.61 ± 2.86) as compared to private school children (4.76 ± 2.42). Dental caries was found to be the major public health problems among both the government and private school children of Bharatpur city, which need immediate attention. Regular dental checkups and practice of routine oral hygiene procedures will enable them to lead a healthier life.

Views of School Counselors and Social Service Workers on the Role of School in the Protection of Children in Care

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Davut ELMACI

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this research is to determine the views of the school counselors and social service workers about the role of the school in the protection of children in care. The participants of the research, designed as qualitative research, composed of the school counselors working at primary schools where children in care attend in the TR83 region (Amasya, Çorum, Samsun, and Tokat and the social service workers in the same region. In this scope, interviews were conducted with 11 school counselors and 12 social service workers. Research findings show that the role of school is beneficial for socializing children in care. The main problems encountered in fulfilling the current role of the school in the protection of children in care are; behavioral problems of children in care, inadequate communication between the school and the social service institution, the past problems that the children in care experienced, the school staff’s lack of knowledge about children in care and labeling. According to the research results, it is beneficial to raise awareness of school administrators and teachers about child protection and to establish an effective cooperation between school and social service institution.

Poly-helminth infection in east guatemalan school children

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William C Sorensen

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Soil transmitted helminths (STH remain a global public health concern in spite of occasional dosing campaigns. Aims: To determine baseline prevalence and intensity of STH infection in east Guatemalan school children, and describe the associated epidemiology of anemia, stunting, and wasting in this population. Setting and design: Ten schools in Izabal province (eastern Guatemala were identified, and 1,001 school children were selected for this study. Half of the schools were used as clinical testing sites (blood and stool. Materials and Methods: Anthropometric measures were collected from all children. Over 300 children were tested for anemia and 229 for helminth infection. Ova and parasite specimens were examined via Direct, Kato Katz, and McMaster techniques. Hemoglobin was measured from venipuncture following the hemacue system. Statistical analysis: Correlation between infection intensities and growth indicators were examined. Chi Square or t tests were used for bivariate analysis. Multiple logistic regression was performed on significant variables from bivariate techniques. Results: Over two-thirds of school children were positive for infection by any STH. Prevalence of Hookworm was 30%; Ascaris, 52%; and Trichuris, 39%, most as low-intensity infection. Over half of the children were co-infected. In bivariate analysis, anemia was significantly associated with polyparasitism. Conclusions: For a Guatemalan child who experiences a unit decrease in hemoglobin, one expects to see a 24% increase in the odds of being infected with STH, controlling for age, sex, lake proximity, and growth characteristics. Infection with more than one STH, despite low intensity, led to a significant decrease in hemoglobin.

Chinese Children's Perceived School Satisfaction: The Role of Contextual and Intrapersonal Factors

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Hui, Eadaoin K. P.; Sun, Rachel C. F.

2010-01-01

This study investigated the contribution of school contextual factors and intrapersonal factors to school satisfaction among a sample of Hong Kong Chinese primary school children. A total of 760 children completed the School Satisfaction Subscale of the Multidimensional Life Satisfaction Scale for Children along with self-report measures of…

Comparison of home fortification with two iron formulations among Kenyan children: Rationale and design of a placebo-controlled non-inferiority trial

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Emily M. Teshome

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Home fortification powders containing iron and other micronutrients have been recommended by World Health Organisation to prevent iron deficiency anaemia in areas of high prevalence. There is evidence, however, that home fortification at this iron dose may cause gastrointestinal adverse events including diarrhoea. Providing a low dose of highly absorbable iron (3 mg iron as NaFeEDTA may be safer because the decreased amount of iron in the gut lumen can possibly reduce the burden of these adverse effects whilst resulting in similar or higher amounts of absorbed iron. Objective: To show non-inferiority of home fortification with 3 mg iron as NaFeEDTA compared with 12.5 mg iron as encapsulated ferrous fumarate, with haemoglobin response as the primary outcome. Design: 338 Kenyan children aged 12–36 months will be randomly allocated to daily home fortification with either: a 3 mg iron as NaFeEDTA (experimental treatment, b 12.5 mg iron as encapsulated ferrous fumarate (reference, or c placebo. At baseline, after 30 days of intervention and within 100 days post-intervention, blood samples will be assessed for primary outcome (haemoglobin concentration, iron status markers, Plasmodium parasitaemia and inflammation markers. Urine and stool samples will be assessed for hepcidin concentrations and inflammation, respectively. Adherence will be assessed by self-reporting, sachet counts and by an electronic monitoring device. Conclusion: If daily home fortification with a low dose of iron (3 mg NaFeEDTA has similar or superior efficacy to a high dose (12.5 mg ferrous fumarate then it would be the preferred choice for treatment of iron deficiency anaemia in children. Keywords: Adherence, Anaemia, Child, Preschool, Dietary supplements, Iron, Non-inferiority, Fortification

HOARSENESS AMONG SCHOOL-AGE CHILDREN

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Robert Šifrer

2004-02-01

Full Text Available Background. The prevalence of dysphonia in schoolchildren has been reported to be from 7.1% to 23.3% and in adolescents from 0 to 80%. In Slovenia, the study on prevalence of dysphonia in schoolchildren has not been performed yet.Methods. The voice samples of 100 4th-graders and 102 8thgraders of elementary school were recorded. A lay judge and a professional assessed independently degree of hoarseness in the voice samples. One to three months after the recording, the dysphonic children were invited to an otorhinolaryngologic examination in order to find out the cause of dysphonia. All children and their parents answered the questionnaires on illnesses and vocal habits that might cause hoarseness. The prevalence of these unfavourable factors was compared between the group of children with long lasting hoarseness and the children without it.Results. At voice samples’ recording there were 34.2% dysphonic children. One to three months later, there were still 14.9% children with hoarse voice. The most frequent causes for acute dysphonia were acute respiratory infection and exacerbation of chronic laryngitis. The most frequent causes for persistent dysphonia were allergic catarrhal laryngitis, muscle tension dysphonia with or without vocal nodules and mutational voice disorder. The fast speaking rate appeared to be characteristic for children with long lasting dysphonia.Conclusions. Dysphonia in school-age children is the result of diseases of upper respiratory tract and/or functional voice disorders. Both causes of dysphonia could be successfully treated if they are detected early and the children are advised to see an otorhinolaryngologist. Adolescence is an ideal period for treatment of functional voice disorders. It is also the period when the children must decide for their future profession.

MIGRANT CHILDREN IN CALIFORNIA SCHOOLS, A 1961 SURVEY OF SCHOOLS SERVING CHILDREN OF SEASONAL FARM WORKERS.

Science.gov (United States)

NANCE, AFTON D.

ENROLLMENT, ATTENDANCE, CLASS SIZE, NUMBER OF TEACHERS EMPLOYED, ADEQUACY OF FACILITIES, AND PROBLEMS RELATED TO THE EDUCATION OF CHILDREN OF MIGRANT WORKERS WERE THE CONCERNS OF A 1961 SURVEY OF SCHOOLS SERVING CHILDREN OF SEASONAL FARM WORKERS. QUESTIONNAIRES WERE SENT TO THE SUPERINTENDENTS OF 105 CALIFORNIA DISTRICTS ENROLLING THE MOST MIGRANT…

School Absenteeism Among Children Living With Smokers

Science.gov (United States)

Winickoff, Jonathan P.; Rigotti, Nancy A.

2011-01-01

OBJECTIVE: Involuntary tobacco smoke exposure causes substantial morbidity in children. We hypothesized that children exposed to tobacco smoke in the home would have increased school absenteeism with associated costs due to lost caregiver wages/time. METHODS: We analyzed data on health and absenteeism among schoolchildren aged 6 to 11 years identified in the 2005 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). We used multivariate models to assess the relationships between adult-reported household smoking and child health and school absenteeism. Analyses were adjusted for children's and parents' demographic and socioeconomic characteristics. The value of lost caregiver time was estimated by using self-reported employment and earnings data in the NHIS and publicly available time-use data. RESULTS: Children living with 1 or ≥2 adults who smoked in the home had 1.06 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.54–1.55) and 1.54 (95% CI: 0.95–2.12) more days absent from school per year, respectively, than children living with 0 smokers in the home. Living with ≥2 adults who smoked in the home was associated with increased reports of having ≥3 ear infections in the previous 12 months (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 2.65 [95% CI: 1.36–5.16]) and having a chest cold in the 2 weeks before interview (aOR: 1.77 [95% CI: 1.03–3.03]) but not with having vomiting/diarrhea in the previous 2 weeks (aOR: 0.93 [95% CI: 0.45–1.89]). Caregivers' time tending children absent from school was valued at $227 million per year. CONCLUSIONS: Tobacco smoke exposure has significant consequences for children and families above and beyond child morbidity, including academic disadvantage and financial burden. PMID:21890826

Nocturnal enuresis among primary school children

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Hasan Mohamed Aljefri

2013-01-01

Full Text Available To determine the prevalence and personal and family risk factors for nocturnal enuresis (NE among primary school children in Al-Mukalla City, Yemen, we conducted a cross-sectional survey using a self-administered, three-part structured questionnaire involving 832 school children aged 6 - 15 years between 2007 and 2008. We assessed participants′ socio-demographic factors, family characteristics and factors related to the presence of NE. The mean age of the children was 11.5 (±2.7 years. The overall prevalence of NE was 28.6%, with a predominance of girls, and the prevalence decreased with increasing age (P 0.002 and a higher number of siblings (P = 0.01. Our findings reveal a high prevalence of NE among children in Al-Mukalla City, Yemen, with a higher prevalence in girls than in boys compared with the other studies. Sleep pattern, stressful life events, family history of NE, large family size and more children in the household may act as a risk factor for NE.

Children With Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus: Self-Management Experiences in School.

Science.gov (United States)

de Cássia Sparapani, Valéria; Liberatore, Raphael D R; Damião, Elaine B C; de Oliveira Dantas, Isa R; de Camargo, Rosangela A A; Nascimento, Lucila C

2017-08-01

Children with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) need to perform self-management activities at school and in other environments. Learning about their experiences at school is crucial to assist them in this challenging task. Qualitative interviews were conducted with children with T1DM, aged between 7 and 12. A scenario was created and puppets were used during the interviews to help the participating children to communicate about school, daily routines, and experiences in diabetes management. Data were collected over a period of 1 year and analyzed according to content analysis procedures. Nineteen children, 13 boys and 6 girls, at the mean age of 9.8 ± 1.8 years and mean time since diagnosis of 3.3 years, participated in the study. Three themes were identified: lack of information on T1DM, diabetes self-care at school, and support received by the children. The study provides useful information to understand the children's experiences in managing the disease at school. The partnership between school staff, health teams, children with T1DM, and their families need to be enhanced to promote appropriate strategies that improve the management of diabetes in this setting. © 2017, American School Health Association.

Food-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis in Japanese elementary school children.

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Manabe, Tetsuharu; Oku, Norihiro; Aihara, Yukoh

2018-04-01

In 2012, we clarified that the prevalence of food-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis (FDEIA) was 0.018% in junior-high students in Yokohama, Japan. Furthermore, although different from FDEIA, one student who had completed oral immunotherapy developed anaphylaxis during exercise after eating causative food. There have been few large-scale epidemiological studies of FDEIA, however, in elementary school children, therefore we conducted an epidemiological study in elementary school children in Yokohama to clarify the frequency and characteristic of FDEIA. We sent a questionnaire regarding the occurrence of FDEIA to all 348 public elementary school nurses in Yokohama. We also compared the results with those for junior-high school that we previously reported. We excluded those children with a past history of immediate food allergy who had achieved desensitization status after oral immunotherapy, from FDEIA, and instead defined them as having desensitization status and exercise-induced anaphylaxis (DEIA). Of 348 school nurses, 317 responded (91.1%). Overall, eight of 170 146 children were diagnosed with FDEIA, which was significantly lower than the prevalence in junior-high school students (0.0047% vs 0.018%, P = 0.0009). The causative foods were wheat (n = 4), and soy, fruit, crustaceans, and squid (n = 1 each). Four children had DEIA and the causative foods were wheat and milk (n = 2 each). Multiple episodes occurred in five children with FDEIA and in three children with DEIA. FDEIA was far less common in elementary school than in junior-high school, and wheat was the major causative food. The new appearance of DEIA was notable. Decreasing episode recurrence remains an issue that needs to be resolved. © 2018 Japan Pediatric Society.

Eating Behavior and Attitude toward School Lunches in Elementary School Children

OpenAIRE

嶋田, さおり; 若林, 良和; 西村, 栄恵; 逸見, 幾代

2015-01-01

We conducted a survey of the eating habits of children in elementary schools that work actively in food education and take advantage of local products, and analyzed the trends in eating behavior and the attitude toward school lunches in each grade. The results of this study are summarized as follows: 1. 88.1% of children eat breakfast every day: second graders represent the highest percentage at 97.1% and sixth graders the lowest at 83.7%. The most common reason for not eating breakfast was "...

Sleep, School Performance, and a School-Based Intervention among School-Aged Children: A Sleep Series Study in China

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Shenghui; Arguelles, Lester; Jiang, Fan; Chen, Wenjuan; Jin, Xingming; Yan, Chonghuai; Tian, Ying; Hong, Xiumei; Qian, Ceng; Zhang, Jun; Wang, Xiaobin; Shen, Xiaoming

2013-01-01

Background Sufficient sleep during childhood is essential to ensure a transition into a healthy adulthood. However, chronic sleep loss continues to increase worldwide. In this context, it is imperative to make sleep a high-priority and take action to promote sleep health among children. The present series of studies aimed to shed light on sleep patterns, on the longitudinal association of sleep with school performance, and on practical intervention strategy for Chinese school-aged children. Methods and Findings A serial sleep researches, including a national cross-sectional survey, a prospective cohort study, and a school-based sleep intervention, were conducted in China from November 2005 through December 2009. The national cross-sectional survey was conducted in 8 cities and a random sample of 20,778 children aged 9.0±1.61 years participated in the survey. The five-year prospective cohort study included 612 children aged 6.8±0.31 years. The comparative cross-sectional study (baseline: n = 525, aged 10.80±0.41; post-intervention follow-up: n = 553, aged 10.81±0.33) was undertaken in 6 primary schools in Shanghai. A battery of parent and teacher reported questionnaires were used to collect information on children’s sleep behaviors, school performance, and sociodemographic characteristics. The mean sleep duration was 9.35±0.77 hours. The prevalence of daytime sleepiness was 64.4% (sometimes: 37.50%; frequently: 26.94%). Daytime sleepiness was significantly associated with impaired attention, learning motivation, and particularly, academic achievement. By contrast, short sleep duration only related to impaired academic achievement. After delaying school start time 30 minutes and 60 minutes, respectively, sleep duration correspondingly increased by 15.6 minutes and 22.8 minutes, respectively. Moreover, intervention significantly improved the sleep duration and daytime sleepiness. Conclusions Insufficient sleep and daytime sleepiness commonly existed and

Senior Secondary School Children's Understanding of Plant Nutrition

Science.gov (United States)

Mosothwane, Modise

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to assess children's understanding of plant nutrition. The research was done on a sample of secondary school pupils in the age range of 16 to 19 years in two senior secondary schools in Botswana. The sample contained 137 senior secondary pupils all in their final year of study. These children were above average…

Determinants Of Under Nutrition Among School Age Children In A ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: Malnutrition is a major public health concern affecting a significant number of school age children influencing their health, growth and development, and school academic performance. Objective: To establish the determinants of under nutrition among school age children between 6-12 years in a low-income ...

Including Children Dependent on Ventilators in School.

Science.gov (United States)

Levine, Jack M.

1996-01-01

Guidelines for including ventilator-dependent children in school are offered, based on experience with six such students at a New York State school. Guidelines stress adherence to the medical management plan, the school-family partnership, roles of the social worker and psychologist, orientation, transportation, classroom issues, and steps toward…

School playground facilities as a determinant of children's daily activity

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Glen; Bugge, Anna; Hermansen, Bianca

2012-01-01

This study investigates the influence of school playground facilities on children's daily physical activity.......This study investigates the influence of school playground facilities on children's daily physical activity....

Screening urinalysis for proteinuria in school children

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Partini P. Trihono

2001-10-01

Full Text Available Although asymptomatic proteinuria in children is uncommon, long-term follow-up of children who have persistent proteinuria reveals that they face risks to have significant glomerular changes followed by decreasing kidney function. Since 1970’s urine screening program for asymptomatic hematuria and proteinuria in schoolchildren has been conducted regularly in some countries. So far such program has never been implemented in Jakarta. As a part of The Community Health Program of the Medical School, University of Indonesia, this epidemiologic study aimed especially to look at the urine abnormalities among schoolchildren. The target population was children in grades III, IV and V of 4 elementary schools in Eastern Jakarta. Four hundred and forty nine children (217 boys and 232 girls were enrolled in this study, held during school time in August 1999. Their mean age was 9.35 (SD 1.2 years. Data collected were history of illness, physical examination, and complete urinalysis using a dipstick method. Proteinuria was found in 30 (6.8% children, which in repeated urinalyses were determined as orthostatic in 2 (0.4%, transient in 20 (4.5%, and persistent proteinuria in 6 (1.4% children. Three out of 6 children with persistent proteinuria also had hematuria. One child with persistent proteinuria was considered as having urinary tract infection. We conclude that the incidence of asymptomatic proteinuria in schoolchildren is not high, but because of significant risks that they face, a long-term follow up of them is indicated.

Immigrant parents' perceptions of school environment and children's mental health and behavior.

Science.gov (United States)

Hamilton, Hayley A; Marshall, Lysandra; Rummens, Joanna A; Fenta, Haile; Simich, Laura

2011-06-01

Research has increasingly identified the perception of school environment as an influential factor in children's lives. There has been sparse research attention, however, on the potential importance of parents' perceptions of school environment on child adjustment. This study examined the relationship between parents' perceptions of school environment and children's emotional and behavioral problems. Data were derived from the New Canadian Children and Youth Study, a study of the children (aged 4-6 and 11-13) of immigrant parents. Analyses focused on a subsample of Mainland Chinese, Hong Kong Chinese, and Filipino immigrants in a large metropolitan area. Parental perception of school environment was negatively associated with physical aggression in children even after controlling for child age and gender, parental characteristics, family functioning, and aspects of acculturation. In contrast, parental perception was not significantly related to symptoms of emotional distress in children. There were some ethnic differences in perception of school environment. Parental perception of school environment is important to the well-being of the children of immigrant parents, and reinforces the relevance of initiatives to improve the dynamics between parents and schools. © 2011, American School Health Association.

Effects of school-based deworming on hemoglobin level, growth development and school performance of primary school children in North Sumatera

Science.gov (United States)

Pasaribu, A. P.; Angellee, J.; Pasaribu, S.

2018-03-01

Worm infestation is mainly caused by soil-transmitted helminths (STH) infecting one-third of the world’s population, where the most affected are primary school children. This chronic, long-lasting infection can affect the growth aspects in children. A school-based deworming is one of the treatments recommended by WHO to counterattack worm infection in primary school children. To evaluate the effect of school-based deworming on the hemoglobin level, growth and school performance of primary school children, an open randomized clinical trial was conducted on 165 targeted populations in SukaKaro village, North Sumatra; 156 of which were then chosen based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. The samples’ feces- sampling, hemoglobin level, and growth chart data were recorded on the first day of study before any treatment was given. They were then divided into two groups; the first group of 80 samples did not receive any treatment, while the second group of 76 samples received 400mg of albendazole as part of a school-based deworming program. The samples were being followed up after sixth months of study. In conclusion, albendazole is able to improve the hemoglobin level, growth development, and school performance of the samples, although there were no significant differences between the two groups.

INCIDENCE OF STUTTERING IN SCHOOL-AGE CHILDREN WITH DOWN SYNDROME

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Nevzeta SALIHOVIĆ

2012-03-01

Full Text Available The main purpose of this study was to examine the incidence (frequency and stuttering severity in the school-age children with Down syndrome. The sample was consisted of 37 school-age children with Down syndrome, both male and female. The study was conducted in the following institutions: Institute of Special Education and Rehabilitation for Children with Intellectual Disabilities "Mjedenica"; Centre for Education, Training and Employment of Mentally Retarded Children, Children with Autism and Cerebral palsy "Vladimir Nazor" in Sarajevo; Primary School of Special Education „Zenica“; Primary school "Kovačići" Sarajevo; "Association of United Civic Actions – DUGA" in Sarajevo; and The Association "Be my friend" in Ilijaš. All of the subjects were individually examined. The results showed that 13,51 % of the children with Down syndrome stuttered, and the total result of stuttering severity indicates a moderate stuttering. These results show that children with Down syndrome should be enrolled intensively in speech therapy in order to help them overcome their stuttering, to facilitate their everyday communication and to teach them how to cope with stuttering.

School Bus Transportation of Children With Special Health Care Needs.

Science.gov (United States)

O'Neil, Joseph; Hoffman, Benjamin D

2018-05-01

School systems are responsible for ensuring that children with special needs are safely transported on all forms of federally approved transportation provided by the school system. A plan to provide the most current and proper support to children with special transportation needs should be developed by the Individualized Education Program team, including the parent, school transportation director, and school nurse, in conjunction with physician orders and recommendations. With this statement, we provide current guidance for the protection of child passengers with specific health care needs. Guidance that applies to general school transportation should be followed, inclusive of staff training, provision of nurses or aides if needed, and establishment of a written emergency evacuation plan as well as a comprehensive infection control program. Researchers provide the basis for recommendations concerning occupant securement for children in wheelchairs and children with other special needs who are transported on a school bus. Pediatricians can help their patients by being aware of guidance for restraint systems for children with special needs and by remaining informed of new resources. Pediatricians can also play an important role at the state and local level in the development of school bus specifications. Copyright © 2018 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

School-Based Primary School Sexuality Education for Migrant Children in Beijing, China

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Wenli; Su, Yufen

2014-01-01

In May 2007, Beijing Normal University launched a programme of school-based sexuality education for migrant children in Xingzhi Primary School in Beijing. Over the past seven years, the project team has developed a school-based sexuality education curriculum using the "International Technical Guidance on Sexuality Education" published by…

Screening 5 and 6 year-old children starting primary school for development and language.

Science.gov (United States)

Yılmaz, Deniz; Bayar-Muluk, Nuray; Bayoğlu, Birgül; İdil, Aysun; Anlar, Banu

2016-01-01

Beginning school is an important milestone for children. Children's readiness for school involves cognitive, physical, and emotional development. Certain school programs allow children to start first grade after 66 months of age, together with 72 month-old children. In order to estimate school readiness, we screened children before starting first grade and compared their school performance according to their age and socio-demographic characteristics. Marmara School Readiness, Denver II developmental screening, and language assessment tests were applied. Language delays were more frequent and school readiness test scores were lower in the younger group compared to older children. However, school achievement did not differ between the two age groups. Preschool education, parental income and education affected performance in most tests. Preschool screening seems effective in detecting children with lower than average developmental skills, and the school system may provide a practical opportunity for providing support to those children.

The domestic turn : business processing outsourcing and the growing automation of Kenyan organisations

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mann, L.E.; Graham, M.

2015-01-01

After observing the growth of the Indian and Filipino Business Processing Outsourcing sectors, Kenyan policy-makers and managers made substantial investments in international internet infrastructure and BPO marketing campaigns. While observers continue to discuss the sector in terms of its

Barriers to children walking and biking to school--United States, 1999.

Science.gov (United States)

2002-08-16

Physical activity is an important part of a healthy lifestyle; however, many children in the United States do not meet recommended levels of physical activity. Although walking and biking to school can increase physical activity among children, motor-vehicle traffic and other factors can make these activities difficult. The majority of U.S. children do not walk or bike to school, approximately one third ride a school bus, and half are driven in a private vehicle. Less than one trip in seven is made by walking or biking. To examine why the majority of children do not walk or bike to school, CDC analyzed data from the national HealthStyles Survey. This report summarizes the results of that analysis, which indicate that long distances and dangerous motor-vehicle traffic pose the most common barriers to children walking and biking to school. Public health and community-based efforts that encourage walking and biking to school should address these barriers.

Nutritional status of in-school children and its associated factors in Denkyembour District, eastern region, Ghana: comparing schools with feeding and non-school feeding policies.

Science.gov (United States)

Kwabla, Mavis Pearl; Gyan, Charlotte; Zotor, Francis

2018-01-12

Childhood malnutrition still remains a major public health problem impacting negatively on the academic aptitude of school-aged children (SAC) particularly in limited resource countries. The Government of Ghana in collaboration with the Dutch Government introduced the school feeding programme (SFP) to boost the nutritional status of SAC in the country. This study sought to compare the nutritional status of SAC enrolled in schools with the SFP and SAC enrolled in schools without the SFP in place for the purpose of identifying which group has the higher rate of malnutrition. A multi-stage sampling was used to select 359 SAC between 5 and 12 years who are enrolled in primary one to six. Twelve public schools were selected, of which 6 schools benefit from the SFP and the other six do not. Anthropometric measurements were conducted for the subjects and SPSS version 20.0 was used for data entry and analysis. Chi square test was carried out to determine the difference between the two groups of schools. Of the total of 359 subjects, 55.1% were from schools that do not implement the SFP and 44.9% were from schools that implement the SFP. The prevalence of stunting among children in schools on the SFP was 16.2% compared with 17.2% among children in schools that do not implement the SFP. The prevalence of thinness was two times higher (9.3%) among children in schools on the SFP than in children in schools that do not implement the SFP (4.6%) (p = 0.028). The prevalence of overweight among children in schools on the SFP was 1.9% and 0.0% for children in schools that do not implement the SFP. Sub district, sex, age of pupil, area of residence and community type were significantly associated with stunting (p = 0.002), (p = 0.008), (p = 0.008), (p schools on SFP than in children in schools without SFP. An evaluation of the implementation of the school feeding programme is recommended for future studies.

Nutritional status of children on the National School Nutrition ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background. School feeding programmes are intended to alleviate short-term hunger, improve nutrition and cognition of children, and provide incomes to families. Objectives. To assess the nutritional status of children receiving meals provided by the National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP) in Capricorn Municipality, ...

Refractive errors in school children in Onitsha, Nigeria | Nwosu ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Refractive errors in school children in Onitsha, Nigeria. ... Abstract. Objectives: To determine the incidence and pattern of ametropia among school children. Materials and ... The cooperation of parents and teachers is vital in identifying and treating this modifiable cause of poor academic performance and learning difficulties.

School Personnel Responses to Children Exposed to Violence

Science.gov (United States)

Kenemore, Thomas; Lynch, John; Mann, Kimberly; Steinhaus, Patricia; Thompson, Theodore

2010-01-01

Authors explored the experiences of school personnel in their responses to children's exposure to violence. Thirty-one school personnel, including administrators, teachers, counselors, school social workers, and psychologists, were interviewed to obtain data on their experiences related to violence exposure in their schools and the surrounding…

Non-Overweight and Overweight Children's Physical Activity during School Recess

Science.gov (United States)

Ridgers, Nicola D.; Saint-Maurice, Pedro F.; Welk, Gregory J.; Siahpush, Mohammad; Huberty, Jennifer L.

2014-01-01

Objective: Little research has investigated children's physical activity levels during school recess and the contribution of recess to school day physical activity levels by weight status. The aims of this study were to examine non-overweight and overweight children's physical activity levels during school recess, and examine the contribution of…

Through our children's eyes--the public health impact of the vision screening requirements for Indiana school children.

Science.gov (United States)

Marshall, Edwin C; Meetz, Richard E; Harmon, L'erin L

2010-02-01

The vision screening of preschool and school children is a widely accepted procedure to detect vision problems that can interfere with learning. The Indiana General Assembly requires the annual vision screening with the Modified Clinical Technique (MCT) of all children upon their enrollment in either kindergarten or the first grade, with the exception of schools that apply for and receive waivers to conduct only a distance Snellen chart screening. In association with the Indiana State Department of Health, the Indiana University School of Optometry conducted an analysis of statewide school screening data on 36,967 grade 1 children from 139 of the 294 Indiana school corporations that submitted data for the 2000-2001 school year to examine differences in referral rate by screening method, the socioeconomic status of children screened, and academic performance. The MCT was used by 125 of the school corporations, and some other technique was used by 14 school corporations. Significant differences were seen when comparing the mean referral rates of school corporations that conduct the MCT against school corporations that do not conduct the MCT (P = 0.001) and in the rate of referral by median family income of the children screened (P = 0.050). A median family income of $46,500 was identified as the level at which the income-specific difference in referral rates ceased to be significant (P = 0.074). In spite of an observed tendency toward a higher referral rate for children who performed below average on the standardized Indiana Statewide Testing for Educational Progress Plus (ISTEP+) exam, results were found to be not significant (P = 0.116) when comparing the percentage of grade 1 children referred to an eye care provider in 2000-2001 with their percentages of passing both the English/language arts and mathematics components of the 2002-2003 ISTEP+ exam (in grade 3). Schools using the highly sensitive and specific MCT identified more visually at-risk children than

Adverse health effects of experiencing food insecurity among Greenlandic school children

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Birgit Niclasen

2013-08-01

Full Text Available Background. In vulnerable populations, food security in children has been found to be associated with negative health effects. Still, little is known about whether the negative health effects can be retrieved in children at the population level. Objective. To examine food insecurity reported by Greenlandic school children as a predictor for perceived health, physical symptoms and medicine use. Design. The study is based on the Greenlandic part of the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children survey. The 2010 survey included 2,254 students corresponding to 40% of all Greenlandic school children in Grade 5 through 10. The participation rate in the participating schools was 65%. Food insecurity was measured as going to bed or to school hungry because there was no food at home. Results. Boys, the youngest children (11–12 year-olds, and children from low affluence homes were at increased risk for food insecurity. Poor or fair self-rated health, medicine use last month and physical symptoms during the last 6 months were all more frequent in children reporting food insecurity. Controlling for age, gender and family affluence odds ratio (OR for self-rated health was 1.60 (95% confidence interval (CI 1.23–2.06 (p<0.001, for reporting physical symptoms 1.34 (95% CI 1.06–1.68 (p=0.01 and for medicine use 1.79 (95% CI 1.42–2.26 (p<0.001. Stratification on age groups suggested that children in different age groups experience different health consequences of food insecurity. The oldest children reported food insecurity less often and experienced less negative health effects compared to the younger children. Conclusions. All 3 measures of health were negatively associated to the occurrence of food insecurity in Greenlandic school children aged 11–17. Food security must be seen as a public health issue of concern, and policies should be enforced to prevent food poverty particularly among boys, younger school children and children from low affluence

School Bus Safety: What Can Our Schools Do to Protect Our Children?

Science.gov (United States)

Dargan, Thomas J.; Silverstone, Adam H.

2014-01-01

School districts and school bus contractors are entrusted with the most important of all road users--our nation's children. In the wake of recent newsworthy accidents and attention grabbing headlines regarding unfit bus drivers, claims premised upon school bus accidents have become increasingly tangential and, in turn, personal injury attorneys…

9620 DIETARY ADEQUACY OF RURAL SCHOOL CHILDREN ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Mimi

to reduced mental and physical development of children, hence delayed ... of health and neurocognitive performance of school-age children [2]. ..... Patrick H and TA Nicklas A review of family and social determinants of ... Physiology and.

Evaluation of hearing ability in Danish children at the time of school start and at the end of school

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gissel, S.; Mortensen, Jens Tølbøll; Juul, S.

2002-01-01

Since previous studies have shown reduced hearing ability in children and adolescents at school start, this study was undertaken to evaluate the hearing ability in Danish children at the time of start and end of school. Children starting school in 1977, 1987, and 1997 from four minor municipalities...... in North Jutland County, Denmark were evaluated for hearing ability by a review of 1,605 school health records. We found a higher prevalence of impaired hearing ability in children who started school 1987 and 1997 compared to those who started school 1977. Reduced hearing was typically at high frequencies....... At the end of school, hearing ability of the year group 1977 was just as poor as for the year group 1987. Whether reduced hearing can influence the learning abilities of these children should be evaluated by further studies including information on the exposure to noise....

Southeast Asian refugee children: a school-based mental health intervention.

Science.gov (United States)

Fox, Patricia G; Rossetti, Jeanette; Burns, Kenneth R; Popovich, Judith

2005-09-01

One particular focus of refugee studies in the United States has been the violence experience of Southeast Asian (S.E.A.) refugee children and its impact on mental health and school adaptation. Although virtually all researchers have found that the children have high rates of depression and/or post-traumatic stress disorder, findings concerning successful school adaptation have been inconclusive. Even so, concern has been generated on how to best meet the children's mental health needs. The purpose of our study was to provide an eight-week school-based program that was designed to reduce depression symptoms of S.E.A. refugee children. Specifically, this collaborative program addressed refugee adaptation issues, children's culture and the development of coping skills. All of the children were screened for depression using the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI). Analysis of CDI data revealed that children's depression scores had a significant decrease between screening times 1 (approximately one month before the intervention) and 2 (fourth week of the intervention), 1 and 3 (eighth week of the intervention) and 1 and 4 (one month following the intervention). Globally, culturally sensitive mental health school-based programs may be an appropriate intervention to assist immigrant and refugee children in making a successful adaptation to host countries.

School-age children development

Science.gov (United States)

... such a reading disability Stressors, such as bullying Mental health issues, such as anxiety or depression If you suspect any of these in your child, talk to your child's teacher or health care provider. LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT Early school-age children should be able to use simple, ...

Labour Management on Contemporary Kenyan Cut Flower Farms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Riisgaard, Lone; Gibbon, Peter

2014-01-01

This paper describes the labour management system applied since around 2005 on farms accounting for the bulk of the output of the Kenyan cut flower sector, and provides an analysis of the foundations of this system. Using categories drawn from convention theory, this system is characterized...... in terms of specific approaches to hiring, training and promotion; labour retention; work organization and worker deployment; payment systems and supervision, as well as to collective bargaining. In convention theory terms, the combination of approaches identified in Kenya embodies a mixture of ‘industrial...

Field Guide to Marine Ecology of Kenyan Coast.

OpenAIRE

2000-01-01

This guide introduces you to a model of Kenyan coast: from sandy shore across a lagoon of shallow water with sea grass and coral garden, out to the flinging reef where the waves break and the coral rises like a wall from the depths of the ocean. The beach and lagoon are in a marine park where shells, plants, fish and other marine life is protected. In the marine ecosystem here there are 6 habitats, which have their own plants and animals that adapted to the particular environment.

Household-level Social Capital in Cameroon and Children's Schooling

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This article examines household-level social capital as a determinant of children's schooling using a cross-sectional data of the 2001 Cameroon Household Survey. Reduced form demand equations of schooling for the entire sample, male and female children are estimated separately. Results indicate that parent's ...

Frequency of bedwetting among primary school children in Benha ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Objectives: The overall objective was health promotion of school children, and the specific objectives were: to determine the frequency and risk factors of nocturnal enuresis (NE) among school children in Qaluobia governorate Egypt, and to examine its associations with behavioral and emotional problems. Subjects and ...

The role of executive function in children's competent adjustment to middle school.

Science.gov (United States)

Jacobson, Lisa A; Williford, Amanda P; Pianta, Robert C

2011-01-01

Executive function (EF) skills play an important role in children's cognitive and social functioning. These skills develop throughout childhood, concurrently with a number of developmental transitions and challenges. One of these challenges is the transition from elementary into middle-level schools, which has the potential to significantly disrupt children's academic and social trajectories. However, little is known about the role of EF in children's adjustment during this transition. This study investigated the relation between children's EF skills, assessed both before and during elementary school, and sixth grade academic and social competence. In addition, the influences of the type of school setting attended in sixth grade on children's academic and behavioral outcomes were examined. EF assessed prior to and during elementary school significantly predicted sixth grade competence, as rated by teachers and parents, in both academic and social domains, after controlling for background characteristics. The interactions between type of school setting and EF skills were significant: Parents tended to report more behavioral problems and less regulatory control in children with weaker EF skills who were attending middle school. In contrast, teachers reported greater academic and behavioral difficulty in students with poorer EF attending elementary school settings. In conclusion, children's performance-based EF skills significantly affect adjustment to the academic and behavioral demands of sixth grade, with parent report suggesting greater difficulty for children with poorer EF in settings where children are provided with less external supports (e.g., middle school).

Helping Mixed Heritage Children Develop "Character and Resilience" in Schools

Science.gov (United States)

Lewis, Kirstin

2016-01-01

Recent UK government policy suggests that all schools have a key role to play in building "character and resilience" in children. This article draws on data from a wider research project, exploring the school experiences of mixed White/Black Caribbean and mixed White/Black African children in two London secondary schools. Because data…

School performance in cholesteatoma-operated children in Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Djurhuus, Bjarki; Hansen, Tom Giedsing; Pedersen, Jacob Krabbe

2016-01-01

Cholesteatoma in childhood had no long-term effect on school performance for the majority who completed lower secondary school. Aim To investigate whether individuals operated on for cholesteatoma in childhood have impaired school performance in adolescence. Methods All children born in Denmark...... between 1986-1991 with cholesteatoma surgery performed before the age of 15 years were included (cholestetaoma group). A control group consisting of a 5% random sample of all children born in Denmark during the same period was used for comparison. Final marks (average, mathematics, Danish, and English...

Nutritional Status And Its Association With Diabetes Mellitus In School Children, India

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Muninarayana C

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Background: Poor health and nutrition may impair both the growth and intellectual development of school children. Incidence of malnutrition related childhood diabetes mellitus has increased and continues to be on the rise.Objectives: To assess the nutritional status by anthropometry and to screen for diabetes by capillary blood examination of school children. Design: Longitudinal study Setting: The study was carried out at Sri R.L.Jalappa Central School, Kolar from August 2008 to December 2009. Methods: All the school children were interviewed with pre-designed and pre-tested proforma. Height, Weight was measured by standard procedures. The nutritional status was analysed by Body Mass Index (BMI for age. The school children were also screened for diabetes mellitus by Finger stick capillary random plasma glucose testing. The children were followed up for any major medical problems during the study period.Participants: All the students studying in the school during study period.Results: Mean height and weight of children were found comparable to the ICMR pooled data. However, compared to NCHS standards and affluent Indian children the mean height and weight were found to be much inferior at all ages. According to BMI for age as per NCHS most of the children were undernourished (79.2% and 3 children (0.6% were overweight. Out of 495 children screened for diabetes 14 children had hyperglycaemia (>160mg/dl. These 14 children were further tested by oral glucose tolerance test and found to have normal blood sugars levels. During the follow up two undernourished children developed diabetes mellitus. Conclusion: The magnitude of malnutrition among school going children was found to be 79%. During the follow up two undernourished children developed diabetes mellitus, hence under nutrition was associated with diabetes mellitus.

Children stories about primary schools: sceneries and (autobiographic research challenges

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria da Conceição Passeggi

2014-01-01

Full Text Available This study deals with 4-10 year-old children stories and analyses how they portrait their experiences at school. It is the outcome of an inter-institutional research project performed at schools in Natal, São Paulo, Recife, Niterói and Boa Vista. To collect data, we opted for conversations of children in groups of five, who would share a conversation with a little alien whose planet lacked schools. The analyses revealed consensus and tensions between scholar cultu - re and childhood cultures, which affect the way children play and learn, make friends or not, remain children or not. When narrating, the child redefines his/her experience and contributes to seize the primary school as a place where he/she becomes (or not a citizen.

SUCCES AT SCHOOL IN VISUALLY IMPAIRED CHILDREN

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Stanika DIKIC

1998-04-01

Full Text Available The research included 200 visually impaired children of primary school during the period from 1992 to 1996. By means of adequate instruments we have tested the relation between the success at school of partially seeing children and hyperkinetic behavior, active and passive vocabulary richness, visuo-motoric coordination and the maturity of handwriting. Besides the already known factors (intellectual level, specific learning disturbances, emotional and neurotic disturbances, cultural deprivation, the success in class depends very much on the intensity of hyperkinetic behavior as well as its features: unstable attention, impulsiveness and hyperactivity. Visual-motor coordination eye-hand and the maturity of handwriting have a strong influence on their success at school.

Multilevel Analyses of School and Children's Characteristics Associated with Physical Activity

Science.gov (United States)

Gomes, Thayse Natacha; dos Santos, Fernanda K.; Zhu, Weimo; Eisenmann, Joey; Maia, José A. R.

2014-01-01

Background: Children spend most of their awake time at school, and it is important to identify individual and school-level correlates of their physical activity (PA) levels. This study aimed to identify the between-school variability in Portuguese children PA and to investigate student and school PA correlates using multilevel modeling. Methods:…

Anemia and associated factors among school-age children in Cape ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Anemia is a problem affecting a large group of school children in sub-Saharan Africa, contributing to morbidity in this region. In Cape Verde the magnitude of anemia in school-age children is unknown. The study aimed to assess the prevalence of anemia and associated factors among children in Cape Verde. The data are ...

Children as Researchers in Primary Schools: Choice, Voice and Participation

Science.gov (United States)

Bucknall, Sue

2012-01-01

"Children as Researchers in Primary Schools" is an innovative and unique resource for practitioners supporting children to become "real world" researchers in the primary classroom. It will supply you with the skills and ideas you need to implement a "children as researchers" framework in your school that can be adapted for different ages and…

Children who commute to school unaccompanied have greater autonomy and perceptions of safety.

Science.gov (United States)

Herrador-Colmenero, Manuel; Villa-González, Emilio; Chillón, Palma

2017-12-01

We explored the rates of children who actively commuted to school, both accompanied and unaccompanied, and identified their safety perceptions. This cross-sectional study focused on 745 children, aged 6-12 years, from public schools in the Spanish Granada region. They completed a questionnaire, providing personal data, their school grade, safety perceptions, whether they were accompanied to school and how they travelled to school. We analysed how active commuters were accompanied to school by age group and assessed the associations between safety perceptions and whether or not they were accompanied. Children aged 10-12 years were more likely to travel to school unaccompanied, more likely to travel actively and had better safety perceptions than younger children. We also found differences in how active commuters between 10 and 12 years and children aged 6-7 and 8-9 years (all p safety issues than accompanied children (p safety perceptions than other children in this sample of children aged 6-12. ©2017 Foundation Acta Paediatrica. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Peer Dynamics among Marquesan School-Aged Children.

Science.gov (United States)

Martini, Mary

This research describes an observation study of 100 children, ages 9-13 years, on the island of 'Ua Pou, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia. The children were in a French government boarding school in the main valley of the island. Complex, sophisticated group processes among the Marquesan children were observed. The role structures of the group…

Media and the 2013 Kenyan election

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gustafsson, Jessica

2016-01-01

In March 2013, Kenya held its first election after the post-election violence (PEV) in 2008, which media were blamed for contributing to by partisan reporting and hate speech. Prior to the 2013 election, several organizations worked to raise awareness of the negative consequences of hate speech...... and the need of responsible journalism. This article sheds light on how Kenyan journalists perceived their role and evaluated their own reporting of the 2013 election and whether they were influenced by the experience of the PEV. The article shows how the experience of the PEV became a reference point when...... discussing the election reporting and the role of journalists. Several journalists admitted that important issues were avoided due to fear of steering up emotions....

Shorter Ground Contact Time and Better Running Economy: Evidence From Female Kenyan Runners.

Science.gov (United States)

Mooses, Martin; Haile, Diresibachew W; Ojiambo, Robert; Sang, Meshack; Mooses, Kerli; Lane, Amy R; Hackney, Anthony C

2018-06-25

Mooses, M, Haile, DW, Ojiambo, R, Sang, M, Mooses, K, Lane, AR, and Hackney, AC. Shorter ground contact time and better running economy: evidence from female Kenyan runners. J Strength Cond Res XX(X): 000-000, 2018-Previously, it has been concluded that the improvement in running economy (RE) might be considered as a key to the continued improvement in performance when no further increase in V[Combining Dot Above]O2max is observed. To date, RE has been extensively studied among male East African distance runners. By contrast, there is a paucity of data on the RE of female East African runners. A total of 10 female Kenyan runners performed 3 × 1,600-m steady-state run trials on a flat outdoor clay track (400-m lap) at the intensities that corresponded to their everyday training intensities for easy, moderate, and fast running. Running economy together with gait characteristics was determined. Participants showed moderate to very good RE at the first (202 ± 26 ml·kg·km) and second (188 ± 12 ml·kg·km) run trials, respectively. Correlation analysis revealed significant relationship between ground contact time (GCT) and RE at the second run (r = 0.782; p = 0.022), which represented the intensity of anaerobic threshold. This study is the first to report the RE and gait characteristics of East African female athletes measured under everyday training settings. We provided the evidence that GCT is associated with the superior RE of the female Kenyan runners.

Local environment and social factors in primary school children's afterschool commute in China

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

John Zacharias

2017-09-01

Full Text Available The rapid decline in young children's active commutes to and from school has prompted investigations into ways to raise activity levels. The period after school is recognized as very important in the daily activity regime of primary school children. In this study, we examine the relative effects of local environmental factors and socio-economic status on children's after-school commute mode choice. Environmental factors are pedestrian priority streets, street intersection density, motorways, shops, and play spaces. Property values are used as a proxy for income. Twenty-four school districts are selected using intersection density and motorway length as criteria. All children's exit behaviors were film-recorded on October weekdays and extracted as four choices–alone, in a group of children, on foot with a parent or guardian, on e-bike driven by an adult. A multinomial logistic regression reveals that gated communities, higher priced housing, motorways and bus stops are associated with children accompanied by adults. The presence of pedestrian streets is associated with children travelling alone and in groups. Greater travel distance is also associated with parents accompanying children on foot or on e-bike. The amount of play space is associated with children leaving school in groups. Overall, social and environmental factors are influential in the independent travel of primary school children after the school day ends in south China.

Bullying at school: Agreement between caregivers' and children's perception.

Science.gov (United States)

Durán, Lucas G; Scherñuk Schroh, Jordán C; Panizoni, Estefanía P; Jouglard, Ezequiel F; Serralunga, M Gabriela; Esandi, M Eugenia

2017-02-01

Bullying at school is usually kept secret from adults, making them unaware of the situation. To describe caregivers' and children's perception and assess their agreement in terms of bullying situations. Cross-sectional study in children aged 8-12 years old attending public schools and their caregivers. The questionnaire on preconceptions of intimidation and bullying among peers (PRECONCIMEI) (child/caregiver version) was used. Studied outcome measures: Scale of bullying, causes of bullying, child involvement in bullying, communication in bullying situations. Univariate and bivariate analyses were done and agreement was estimated using the Kappa index. A total of 529 child/caregiver dyads participated. Among caregivers, 35% stated that bullying occurred in their children's schools. Among children, 133 (25%) admitted to being involved: 70 (13%) were victims of bullying, 40 (8%) were bullies, and 23 (4%) were bullied and perpetrated bullying. Among the 63 caregivers of children who admitted to be bullies, 78% did not consider their children capable of perpetrating bullying. Among children who were bullied or who both suffered bullying and bullied others, 69.9% (65/93) indicated that "if they were the victims of bullying, they would tell their family." However, 89.2% (83/93) of caregivers considered that their children would tell them if they were ever involved in these situations. Agreement was observed in terms of a positive communication (Kappa = -0.04) between 62.6% (57/91) of the child/caregiver dyads school bullying. Disagreement was observed between children and their caregivers in relation to the frequency and communication of bullying situations. Few caregivers whose children admitted to being involved in these situations believed it was a possibility. Sociedad Argentina de Pediatría

Time in bed, quality of sleep and school functioning of children.

Science.gov (United States)

Meijer, A M; Habekothé, H T; Van Den Wittenboer, G L

2000-06-01

This study describes the relationship of time in bed and quality of sleep with concentration and functioning at school. Neurotic and psychosomatic symptoms have been used as control variables. The sample consisted of 449 Dutch children in the seventh and eighth grades of elementary school. The age of the children varied between 9 y 5 mo and 14 y 5 mo. Seven schools participated in the research, with a total of 18 classes. The results indicated that 43% of the children had difficulty getting up in the morning. Furthermore, 15% of the children reported sleep problems and 25% did not feel rested at school. Time in bed and sleep quality show no relationship with concentration. Sleep quality, feeling rested at school and less distinct bedtimes were clearly related to school functioning. Another result was that children who had no difficulty getting up displayed more achievement motivation. Being open to the teacher's influence and achievement motivation depended mainly on sleep characteristics. Not getting bored at school, self-image as a pupil and control over aggressive behaviour were also influenced by gender, age, neuroticism and neurosomaticism.

Musculoskeletal pain and backpack usage among school children in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: School children travel to and from school on daily basis. Active transportation such as walking, running and cycling contribute significantly to the increase in physical activity, health, and wellbeing in children. However, there has been a growing concern on the effect of carrying heavy backpack on the health of ...

Stressors of School-age Children With Allergic Diseases: A Qualitative Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Iio, Misa; Hamaguchi, Mana; Nagata, Mayumi; Yoshida, Koichi

2018-05-08

Most studies of stress in children with chronic diseases have been geared toward parents and caregivers have not considered allergic diseases together. This study aimed to identify the stressors associated with allergic diseases in Japanese school-age children. Stressors associated with allergic diseases of 11 school-age children (seven boys and four girls; age range: 9-12 years) were investigated using semi-structured interviews. In the qualitative thematic analysis of stressors about allergic diseases, two themes: allergic disease-specific stressors and common stressors in chronic diseases, and 12 categories were identified. A thematic map was applied to four domains of stressor: physiological factors, psychological factors, social factors, and environmental factors. The results showed that school-age children with allergic diseases have a variety of stressors. Future studies should aim to develop an allergic disease-specific stress management program with school-age children. In children with allergic diseases, not only is stress management in daily life important, but also stress management for disease-specific matters to control the symptoms and maintain mental health. Stress management should be supported for school-age children with allergic diseases. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effects of Divorce on Children, Traits of Resiliency and School Intervention.

Science.gov (United States)

Ackerman, Betty J.

Gaining an awareness of the needs of children of divorce and how children achieve resilience should help students become well-adjusted and productive. This paper explores ways in which school systems and school counselors can meet the needs of these children. It portrays the effects of divorce on children by drawing on the literature, observations…

Occupational pesticide exposure among Kenyan agricultural workers : an epidemiological and public health perspective

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ohayo - Mitoko, G.J.A.

1997-01-01

This study was part of the Kenyan component of a multi-centre epidemiologic survey, the East African Pesticides Project. The general objective was to assess the health hazards posed by pesticide handling, storage and use in agricultural estates and small farms in selected rural

Reducing Children's Exposure to School Bus Diesel Exhaust in One School District in North Carolina

Science.gov (United States)

Mazer, Mary E.; Jacobson Vann, Julie C.; Lamanna, Beth F.; Davison, Jean

2014-01-01

Children who are exposed to diesel exhaust from idling school buses are at increased risk of asthma exacerbation, decreased lung function, immunologic reactions, leukemia, and increased susceptibility to infections. Policies and initiatives that aim to protect school children from the harmful effects of exposure to diesel exhaust range from…

Evaluation of hearing ability in Danish children at the time of school start and at the end of school

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gissel, S.; Mortensen, Jens Tølbøll; Juul, S.

2002-01-01

Since previous studies have shown reduced hearing ability in children and adolescents at school start, this study was undertaken to evaluate the hearing ability in Danish children at the time of start and end of school. Children starting school in 1977, 1987, and 1997 from four minor municipalities....... At the end of school, hearing ability of the year group 1977 was just as poor as for the year group 1987. Whether reduced hearing can influence the learning abilities of these children should be evaluated by further studies including information on the exposure to noise....

Semivolatile compounds in schools and their influence on cognitive performance of children.

Science.gov (United States)

Hutter, Hans-Peter; Haluza, Daniela; Piegler, Kathrin; Hohenblum, Philipp; Fröhlich, Marina; Scharf, Sigrid; Uhl, Maria; Damberger, Bernhard; Tappler, Peter; Kundi, Michael; Wallner, Peter; Moshammer, Hanns

2013-08-01

WHO's Children's Environment and Health Action Plan for Europe (CEHAPE) focuses on improvements of indoor environments where children spend most of their time. To investigate the relationship between school indoor air pollutants and cognitive performance in elementary school children, a multidisciplinary study was planned in all-day schools in Austria. In a cross-sectional study (LuKi study: Air and Children) indoor air pollutants were monitored in nine elementary all-day schools in urban and rural regions of Austria. In addition, school dust and suspended particulates (PM10, PM2.5) were measured, focusing on semivolatile compounds (e.g. phthalates, phosphororganic compounds [POC]). Health status and environmental conditions were determined by parents' questionnaire, cognitive function was measured by Standard Progressive Matrices (SPM). Overall, 596 children (6-8 years of age) were eligible for the study. Cognitive tests were performed in 436 children. Analysis showed significant correlations of tris(2-chlorethyl)-phosphate (TCEP) in PM10 and PM2.5 and school dust samples with cognitive performance. Cognitive performance decreased with increasing concentrations of TCEP. Furthermore, cognitive function decreased significantly with increasing CO2 levels. POC are widely used as plasticizers, flame retardants and floor sealing. This is the first report of a correlation between TCEP in indoor air samples and impairment of cognitive performance in school children. As a precautionary measure, it is recommended to prohibit the use of toxic chemicals and those suspected of a toxic potential in children's environments such as schools.

"We Are Never Invited": School Children Using Collage to Envision Care and Support in Rural Schools

Science.gov (United States)

Khanare, Fumane P.; de Lange, Naydene

2017-01-01

The voices of school children who are orphaned and vulnerable are more often than not missing from conversations about their care and support at school. In a rural ecology this is even more so the case. This article draws on a study with school children in rural KwaZulu-Natal and explores their constructions of care and support in the age of HIV…

Physiological and molecular analysis of selected Kenyan maize lines for aluminum tolerance

Science.gov (United States)

Aluminum (Al) toxicity is an important limitation to maize production in many tropical and sub-tropical acid soil areas. The aim of this study was to survey the variation in Al tolerance in a panel of maize lines adapted for Kenya and look for novel sources of Al tolerance. 112 Kenyan maize accessio...

Psychosocial functioning and stress-processing of children with asthma in the school context: differences and similarities with children without asthma.

Science.gov (United States)

Röder, Irma; Kroonenberg, Pieter M; Boekaerts, Monique

2003-01-01

To characterize children with asthma by their stress processing at school and their psychosocial functioning. To establish similarities and differences between children with and without asthma. Participants were 79 children with asthma and 359 children without asthma (ages 8-12). Children completed questionnaires on stress processing and their well-being at school. Parents filled in a questionnaire on behavior problems, and teachers provided data on school performance and absence rate. Children with asthma had higher scores on absence rates, teacher-rated well-being, internalizing behavior problems, occurrence of "rejection by peers," and use of aggression when coping with "problems with school work." However, using discriminant analyses, the groups could not reliably be distinguished from one another by these variables. Children with asthma are similar to other children with regard to their stress processing at school and their psychosocial functioning. The value of conducting multivariate analysis over several univariate tests is underscored.

Prevalence of Parasomnia in School aged Children in Tehran

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Morteza Naserbakht

2011-06-01

Full Text Available "nObjectives: Parasomnias can create sleep disruption; in this article we assessed parasomnias in school-aged children in Tehran. "nMethods: In spring 2005, a total of 6000 sleep questionnaires were distributed to school-aged children in 5 districts of Tehran (Iran. A modified Pediatrics sleep questionnaire with 34 questions was used. "nResults: Parasomnias varied from 0.5% to 5.7% among the subjects as follows: 2.7% sleep talking, 0.5% sleepwalking, 5.7% bruxism, 2.3% enuresis, and nightmare 4%. A group of children showed parasomnias occasionally- this was 13.1% for sleep talking, 1.4% for sleepwalking, 10.6% for bruxism, 3.1% for enuresis and 18.4% for nightmares. "nConclusion: A high proportion of children starting school suffer from sleep problems. In many cases this is a temporary, developmentally related phenomenon, but in 6% of the children the disorder is more serious and may be connected with various stress factors and further behavioral disturbances.

Day care for pre-school children.

Science.gov (United States)

Zoritch, B; Roberts, I; Oakley, A

2000-01-01

The debate about how, where and by whom young children should be looked after is one which has occupied much social policy and media attention in recent years. Mothers undertake most of the care of young children. Internationally, out-of-home day-care provision ranges widely. These different levels of provision are not simply a response to different levels of demand for day-care, but reflect cultural and economic interests concerning the welfare of children, the need to promote mothers' participation in paid work, and the importance of socialising children into society's values. At a time when a decline in family values is held responsible for a range of social problems, the day-care debate has a special prominence. To quantify the effects of out-of-home day-care for preschool children on educational, health and welfare outcomes for children and their families. Randomised controlled trials of day-care for pre-school children were identified using electronic databases, hand searches of relevant literature, and contact with authors. Studies were included in the review if the intervention involved the provision of non-parental day care for children under 5 years of age, and the evaluation design was that of a randomised or quasi-randomised controlled trial. A total of eight trials were identified after examining 920 abstracts and 19 books. The trials were assessed for methodological quality. Day-care increases children's IQ, and has beneficial effects on behavioural development and school achievement. Long-term follow up demonstrates increased employment, lower teenage pregnancy rates, higher socio-economic status and decreased criminal behaviour. There are positive effects on mothers' education, employment and interaction with children. Effects on fathers have not been examined. Few studies look at a range of outcomes spanning the health, education and welfare domains. Most of the trials combined non-parental day-care with some element of parent training or education

Processes and conditions underlying the link between shyness and school adjustment among Turkish children.

Science.gov (United States)

Bayram Özdemir, Sevgi; Cheah, Charissa S L; Coplan, Robert J

2017-06-01

This study examined the underlying processes and conditions that contribute to the school adjustment of shy children in Turkey, where children's interpersonal relationships in social settings and academic achievement are highly emphasized. First, we examined the unique mediating roles of children's feelings of social anxiety, depressive symptoms, and loneliness in the associations between shyness and indices of school outcomes (academic achievement and school liking/avoidance). Second, we explored the moderating role of children's peer acceptance in these associations. Fourth- and fifth-grade children (N = 599; M age  = 10.11 years, SD = 0.65; 48% girls) provided information on shyness, social anxiety, depressive symptoms, loneliness, and school liking/avoidance. Head teachers in each classroom reported on students' academic performance. The peer nomination method was used to assess children's peer relationships. Results revealed that when children displayed shy behaviours, they reported more depressive symptoms that were, in turn, associated with poorer academic performance, less school liking, and higher school avoidance. Moreover, shyness negatively predicted school liking at low levels of peer acceptance, suggesting that difficulties in peer relationships increased shy children's risk of school dissatisfaction. Overall, our findings support the importance of the interpersonal relationship context for children's adjustment within the Turkish cultural context. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? Shy children have difficulties initiating and maintaining social interactions, which put them at risk for a wide range of socio-emotional difficulties. Shy children have poor academic performance and experience school adjustment difficulties in North America. What does this study add? Shyness is an important risk factor for poorer academic performance and adjustment among children in Turkey. The association between shyness and

Neighbourhood ethnic diversity buffers school readiness impact in ESL children.

Science.gov (United States)

Puchala, Chassidy; Vu, Lan T H; Muhajarine, Nazeem

2010-01-01

Contextual factors, as measured by neighbourhood characteristics, shape the experiences children have and affect their "school readiness", i.e., whether they are well or poorly prepared for the transition from home to kindergarten. This study assessed the independent effects of individual and neighbourhood factors on school readiness; specifically, it examined whether and to what degree neighbourhood factors modified children's language ability and thus their school readiness in a population of children in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. The study included all children attending kindergarten in 2001, 2003 and 2005 in Saskatoon. School readiness and child characteristics were measured by the Early Development Instrument (EDI). The EDI measures child development at school commencement in five domains: physical health and well-being, social competence, emotional maturity, cognitive and language development, and communication skills and general knowledge. Data from the 2001 Census were used to characterize Saskatoon's neighbourhoods. Multilevel modeling examined the independent and buffering or exacerbating effects of individual and neighbourhood factors on the relation between English as a Second Language (ESL) status in children and EDI domain scores. ESL children had significantly lower scores on all EDI domains compared with non-ESL children. Certain factors (e.g., younger age, male, Aboriginal status, having special needs) were significantly related to lower readiness in terms of the emotional maturity, and communication skills and general knowledge domains. Importantly, children who lived in neighbourhoods that were highly transient (with a higher proportion of residents who had moved in the previous year) had lower EDI scores on both domains, and those in neighbourhoods with lower rates of employment had lower EDI scores on communication skills and general knowledge. Neighbourhood ethnic diversity mitigated the negative impact of ESL status on school readiness for both

The Effects of Low Birth Weight on School Performance and Behavioral Outcomes of Elementary School Children in Oman

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M. Mazharul Islam

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Objectives: Our study aimed to examine the effects of low birth weight (LBW on the school performance and behavior of elementary school children in Oman. Methods: Data were gathered through a cross-sectional survey of nine elementary schools from the Muscat and A’Dhahirah regions. The study utilized a unique database created by linking information from the children’s health cards and current academic and behavioral performance records. Information on children’s performance in various areas such as language, mathematics, science, information technology, sports, and behavior were obtained from the school registers. Birth weight (BW and selected sociodemographic data were obtained from the copy of their health cards kept by each school. A total of 542 elementary school children aged 7–11 years, who had completed grades 2–4, were surveyed.  Results: Data from the school register revealed a very high rate (17.7% of LBW and, overall, 12% of the children exhibited below average performance on selected outcome measures. The below average school performance varied from 5–17% across the six selected areas of school performance. The highest rate of below average performance was observed in science (17%, followed by arithmetic and language (16% each. BW showed significant differential effects on school performance and behavioral outcomes, which remained significant after controlling for the effect of potential confounders. It was found that LBW children were 2–6 times more likely to have poorer school performance in all areas than their normal BW peers. Conclusion: Early intervention programs or special care for LBW children in school could be an effective means of improving educational outcomes and the behavior of these children. Attempts should be made to reduce or prevent poor pregnancy outcomes, which, in turn, would reduce the cost of the health, education, and social services systems.

49 CFR 372.103 - Motor vehicles employed solely in transporting school children and teachers to or from school.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... school children and teachers to or from school. 372.103 Section 372.103 Transportation Other Regulations... Exemptions § 372.103 Motor vehicles employed solely in transporting school children and teachers to or from school. The exemption set forth in 49 U.S.C. 13506(a)(1) shall not be construed as being inapplicable to...

Intervention Strategies for School Age Children.

Science.gov (United States)

D'Entremont, Denise Morel

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is a relatively new diagnostic label. As more physicians become familiar with the diagnosis of this syndrome, schools will begin to see children with the label FAS and Fetal Alcohol Effects (FAE). Children with FAS often do not pick up skills from their environment as easily as some of their peers. They often need to…

The Development of Reading Skills in Kindergarten Influence of Parental Beliefs about School Readiness, Family Activities, and Children's Attitudes to School

Science.gov (United States)

Jung, Eunjoo

2016-01-01

Children's early home learning experiences are important influences on children's adjustment and achievement in the early years of school. This study explores the relationships between parental beliefs about school readiness, family engagement in home learning activities, on children's attitudes to school as reported by parents, and children's…

Helping Nevada School Children Become Sun Smart

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

2017-11-28

This podcast features Christine Thompson, Community Programs Manager at the Nevada Cancer Coalition, and author of a recent study detailing a school-based program to help Nevada school children establish healthy sun safety habits and decrease UV exposure. Christine answers questions about her research and what impact her what impact the program had on children’s skin health.  Created: 11/28/2017 by Preventing Chronic Disease (PCD), National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP).   Date Released: 11/28/2017.

Association between parents' attitudes and behaviors toward children's visual care and myopia risk in school-aged children.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Shuang; Yang, Lihua; Lu, Benlin; Wang, Hexin; Xu, Ting; Du, Dandan; Wu, Shiqing; Li, Xiuxiu; Lu, Meixia

2017-12-01

The purpose of this survey was to determine the association of parents' attitudes and behaviors toward children's visual care with myopia risk in school-aged children.A total of 894 parents of school-aged children were investigated in primary and middle schools in the central and noncentral urban area in Wuhan through stratified cluster random sampling on July, 2015. We analyzed the association by the generalized linear mixed model.The results indicated that children with parents' high expectations of 1.5 or higher on their vision exhibited a decreased risk of myopia compared with 1.0 and 0.5 or lower (OR = 0.49, 95%CI = 0.36-0.67). Children whose parents only paid attention to their vision in junior and senior school and in primary school had an increased myopia risk than that in preschool (OR = 2.12, 95%CI = 1.01-4.45, and OR = 3.11, 95%CI = 1.28-7.58, respectively). Children whose parents ensured for their sufficient sleep had a decreased myopia risk (OR = 0.45, 95%CI = 0.24-0.85). Compared with children whose parents who never adjusted electronic devices' parameters, the odds ratio of sometimes was 0.49 (95%CI = 0.31-0.79), often 0.53 (95%CI = 0.33-0.85), and always 0.44 (95%CI = 0.26-0.75), respectively.Parents' attitudes and behaviors toward children's visual care are significantly associated with the myopia risk in school-aged children. Consequently, efforts should be made to educate parents on how they protect children's vision and reduce their risk of myopia. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.

Supporting Language in Schools: Evaluating an Intervention for Children with Delayed Language in the Early School Years

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Wendy; Pring, Tim

2016-01-01

Extensive evidence exists that many children who experience early socio-economic disadvantage have delayed language development. These delays have been shown to exist when children start school and appear to persist through their education. Interventions that can help these children are desirable to ease the difficulties they have in school and to…

Serious shortcomings in the management of children with anaphylaxis in Scottish schools.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kirsty E Rankin

2006-08-01

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: The United Kingdom incidence of anaphylaxis has increased very sharply over the last decade, with the highest rates of hospital admissions occurring in school-aged children. This raises concerns about the extent to which schools are aware of approaches to the prevention and treatment of anaphylaxis. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We undertook a national postal survey of 250 Scottish schools enquiring about approaches to managing children considered to be at risk of anaphylaxis. We obtained responses from 148 (60% schools, 90 (61% of which reported having at least one at risk child. Most (80% schools with children considered to be at risk reported having personalised care plans and invariably reported having at least one member of staff trained in the emergency treatment of anaphylaxis. Access to adrenaline was available on-site in 97% of these schools. However, significantly fewer schools without children considered to be at risk reported having a trained member of staff (48%, p < 0.001, with access to adrenaline being very poor (12%, p < 0.001. Overall, 59% of respondents did not feel confident in their school's ability to respond in an emergency situation. CONCLUSIONS: Most schools with children considered to be at risk of anaphylaxis report using personal care plans and having a member of staff trained in the use of, and with access to, adrenaline. The picture is, however, less encouraging in schools without known at risk children, both in relation to staff training and access to adrenaline. The majority of schools with at risk children have poorly developed strategies for preventing food-triggered anaphylaxis reactions. There is a need for detailed national guidelines for all schools, which the Scottish Executive must now ensure are developed and implemented.

Organization of school health education in obesity in children

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joanna Woźniak-Holecka

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Abnormal body weight poses a risk of the development of various health disorders, having a negative impact on the quality and length of life. The prevalence of overweight and obesity among European children is estimated to be 10–20%. In Poland this figure reaches 18%. A war on the epidemic obesity waged from the youngest age of the child is a strategy that brings long-term health benefits for the entire population. Apart from the family, the school is the second important educational environment responsible for conducting health education activities among children and teenagers. School health education programs should be implementing by teachers in collaboration with other school staff, parents and the broadly understood local community. Comprehensive health education aiming at combating obesity should cover the entire population of school children and teenagers, with special attention given to high risk groups. The school, undertaking health education activities aimed at preventing abnormal body weight, should implement nationwide programs for the prevention of obesity, and should also pursue its own health education program based on its curriculum. In most cases, development of obesity at children results from improper eating habits and insufficient physical activity, and therefore school health education programs aimed at the prevention of overweight and obesity should focus on these two most important modifiable risk factors of abnormal body weight.

Childhood Fears, Neurobehavioral Functioning and Behavior Problems in School-Age Children

Science.gov (United States)

Kushnir, Jonathan; Sadeh, Avi

2010-01-01

The objective is to examine underlying associations between childhood fears, behavior problems and neurobehavioral functioning (NBF) in school-age children. Healthy, regular school children (N = 135), from second, fourth and sixth grade classes were assessed. Data regarding children's fears and behavioral problems were obtained with the Revised…

Unhealthy Behaviours of School Children

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Valeria LAZA

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Aim: The objective of the study was to ascertain nutritional customs of pupils in grade schools.Material and Method: Anonymous questionnaires were done to a sample of 380 children, aged 10 to 14, in 20 fourth-to eight grade classes from 2 schools in Cluj-Napoca: one from down-town, the other one from a poorer neighbourhood.Results: Almost half of students revealed to have an irregular diet. In the last month, some of them did not have enough food or money to buy it (much of them come from the poorer neighbourhood. In this latest school, a triple percent of children have a vegetable diet (no meat, in fact. The obsession to lose weight and the irregular diet has conducted to lose appetite in over 30% of girls. About 60% take vitamins or nutritional supplements. Social status as well as the irregular diet is reflected in general status: over one third feel sad, alone, useless or cry without any reason. Some of the pupils which have problems with daily food supply, think the life is hard and do not worth to live it.Conclusions: There is a wide diversity in nutritional customs of children. Some of them are due to inappropriate nutritional knowledge or a wrong perception of being on fashion as well as to social status. Although the economic conditions are difficult to change, we consider that nutrition education should still be a part of health teaching.

Anti-bacterial efficacy of alcoholic hand rubs in the Kenyan market, 2015

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Missiani Ochwoto

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Hand hygiene is known to be effective in preventing hospital and community-acquired infections. The increasing number of hand sanitizer brands in Kenyan hospitals and consumer outlets is of concern. Thus the main aim of this study was to evaluate the anti-bacterial efficacy and organoleptic properties of these hand sanitizers in Kenya. Methods This was an experimental, laboratory-based study of 14 different brands of hand sanitizers (coded HS1-14 available in various retail outlets and hospitals in Kenya. Efficacy was evaluated using standard non-pathogenic Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922, Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923 and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 27853 as per the European Standard (EN. The logarithmic reduction factors (RF were assessed at baseline and after treatment, and log reduction then calculated. Ten and 25 healthy volunteers participated in the efficacy and organoleptic studies respectively. Results Four (28.6% hand sanitizers (HS12, HS9, HS13 and HS14 showed a 5.9 reduction factor on all the three bacteria strains. Seven (50% hand sanitizers had efficacies of <3 against all the three bacteria strains used. Efficacy on E. Coli was higher compared to the other pathogens. Three hand sanitizers were efficacious on one of the pathogens and not the other. In terms of organoleptic properties, gel-based formulations were rated far higher than the liquid based formulations brands. Conclusion Fifty percent (50% of the selected hand sanitizers in the Kenyan market have efficacy that falls below the World Health Organization (WHO and DIN EN 1500:2013. Of the 14 hand sanitizers found in the Kenyan market, only four showed efficacies that were comparable to the WHO-formulation. There is a need to evaluate how many of these products with <3 efficacy that have been incorporated into the health system for hand hygiene and the country’s policy on regulations on their usage.

[Overweight in primary school-age children. Prevalence and risk factors].

Science.gov (United States)

Funk, M B; Bausback-Schomakers, S; Hanschmann, K M; Gerhards, B; Kuhn, K; Krackhardt, B

2015-10-01

Various studies show that pre-school age is a sensitive period for the development of overweight and obesity. During a longitudinal study between 2010 and 2013, the municipal health authority (city of Frankfurt) in cooperation with the university children's hospital investigated the development of weight in children aged 5 to 8. The weight and height of a collective of 5720 children were measured (2010/11). In addition, nutritional and exercise habits, as well as media consumption was documented for 4758 children through a questionnaire during the school enrolment procedure. The weight and height of 3481 children were measured again in the second grade (2012/13). Over a period of 24 months, the percentage of overweight (not obese) children increased from 7.5 to 9.4 % and that of obese children from 4.5 to 5.0 %. 164 of 2818 children with a normal initial weight (5.8 %) changed to percentile class overweight or obese. 79 of 260 children who were initially overweight, not obese (30 %), changed to the group of normal weight, but only 4 out of 156 obese children (3 %). Increased TV consumption (> 1 h per day), availability of their own television, lack of physical activity, and consumption of high-calorie drinks were risk factors for the development of overweight during the primary school age. 72 % of parents of overweight children and 22 % of obese children falsely classified their children as normal weight. Targeted education about the risk of obesity in the primary school age and offers for early intervention should be established in the healthcare services concerned.

Racial Residential Segregation of School-Age Children and Adults: The Role of Schooling as a Segregating Force

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Ann Owens

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Neighborhoods are critical contexts for children’s well-being, but differences in neighborhood inequality among children and adults are understudied. I document racial segregation between neighborhoods among school-age children and adults in 2000 and 2010 and find that though the racial composition of children’s and adults’ neighborhoods is similar, exposure to own-age neighbors varies. Compared with adults’ exposure to other adults, children are exposed to fewer white and more minority, particularly Hispanic, children. This is due in part to compositional differences, but children are also more unevenly sorted across neighborhoods by race than adults. One explanation for higher segregation among children is that parents consider school options when making residential choices. Consistent with this hypothesis, I find that school district boundaries account for a larger proportion of neighborhood segregation among children than among adults. Future research on spatial inequality must consider the multiple contexts differentially contributing to inequality among children and adults.

The awesome Asthma School Days Program: educating children, inspiring a community.

Science.gov (United States)

Meurer, J R; McKenzie, S; Mischler, E; Subichin, S; Malloy, M; George, V

1999-02-01

Program planners developed an educational program to improve the health of children with asthma in grades three to five in Milwaukee (Wis.) Public Schools. During 1997-1998, 1,400 students from 74 elementary schools participated in the Awesome Asthma School Days education program. In a cross-sectional survey, about 40% of children reported play interrupted and sleep disturbed by asthma, more than 50% of children reported exposure to smoke in their home, most children lacked asthma self-care tools, and most children with persistent symptoms did not use an anti-inflammatory inhaler. The educational program improved students' expectations about normal play and sleep and improved their understanding of asthma. Leaders in Milwaukee used the survey results to develop a community action plan. The educational program, surveys, community partnerships, and strategic plans can be replicated in other schools.

Semivolatile compounds in schools and their influence on cognitive performance of children

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Hans-Peter Hutter

2013-08-01

Full Text Available Objectives: WHO's Children's Environment and Health Action Plan for Europe (CEHAPE focuses on improvements of indoor environments where children spend most of their time. To investigate the relationship between school indoor air pollutants and cognitive performance in elementary school children, a multidisciplinary study was planned in all-day schools in Austria. Materials and Methods: In a cross-sectional study (LuKi study: Air and Children indoor air pollutants were monitored in nine elementary all-day schools in urban and rural regions of Austria. In addition, school dust and suspended particulates (PM10, PM2.5 were measured, focusing on semivolatile compounds (e.g. phthalates, phosphororganic compounds [POC]. Health status and environmental conditions were determined by parents' questionnaire, cognitive function was measured by Standard Progressive Matrices (SPM. Results: Overall, 596 children (6-8 years of age were eligible for the study. Cognitive tests were performed in 436 children. Analysis showed significant correlations of tris(2-chlorethyl-phosphate (TCEP in PM10 and PM2.5 and school dust samples with cognitive performance. Cognitive performance decreased with increasing concentrations of TCEP. Furthermore, cognitive function decreased significantly with increasing CO2 levels. Conclusions: POC are widely used as plasticizers, flame retardants and floor sealing. This is the first report of a correlation between TCEP in indoor air samples and impairment of cognitive performance in school children. As a precautionary measure, it is recommended to prohibit the use of toxic chemicals and those suspected of a toxic potential in children's environments such as schools.

Visiting Again? Subjective Well-Being of Children in Elementary School and Repeated Visits to School Health Nurses

Science.gov (United States)

Leaver, Cynthia A.

2014-01-01

Background: Children with vague complaints are without chronic illness, and who repeatedly visit the school nurse may be at risk for limited academic success. This study compares student reports of subjective well-being between children who do and do not repeatedly visit the school nurse with vague complaints. Methods: Children in grades 4 through…

Body Composition and Cardiovascular Health in School-aged children

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Klakk, Heidi

2013-01-01

. Methods This study is based on prospective data from 10 public schools, six intervention and four control schools matched according to the uptake area of the schools and socio-economic position of the parents. Intervention schools provided four additional PE lessons per week, where as control schools...... continued as usual (two PE lessons per week). A total of 1507 children (intervention n=773, control n=734) attending pre-school to the 4th grade in 2008 were invited to participate in the CHAMPS study-DK and 1218 (81%) children and their parents accepted. Height, weight, waist circumference, DXA scans......, Cardio respiratory fitness (CRF), blood pressure, pubertal stage and fasting blood samples were obtained at baseline (2008) and follow-up (2010). Information on parental education level, household income and birth weight were collected from questionnaires during the first school year. Results...

Pedometer-determined physical activity patterns in a segmented school day among Hong Kong primary school children

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Yang Gao

2015-06-01

Conclusion: The findings provide a better understanding of PA patterns and the contribution of the distinct segments within a school day to children's PA. This information may assist in developing more effective, appropriate, and timely school-based PA interventions for children in Hong Kong.

Vision screening in primary school children in Kegbara-Dere, a rural ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: Visual impairment causes significant ocular morbidity in children and has been known to affect their performance at school. Majority of children with impaired vision livein developing countries, where there is a dearth of eye care facilities. Aim: To determine the proportion of school children with ocular disorders ...

Physical Activity Behavior Patterns during School Leisure Time in Children

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Chad Smith

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Optimizing physical activity (PA in children is paramount to attenuate the incidence of chronic disease and to improve social and cognitive health. Limited research exists examining the observed PA patterns during school leisure times in children from the U.S. The purpose of this study was to examine the observed PA patterns of children during three school leisure times: before school, during lunch, and after school. The SOPLAY instrument was used to observe PA during the three leisure times across six weeks at four elementary schools in the U.S. Observer PA counts were stratified by sex, PA intensity (sedentary, walking, and very active, and leisure time. Multi-level models were employed to examine the effect of leisure time and PA intensity on observer PA counts, adjusting for day and school-level clustering. Lunch displayed the greatest number of counts for sedentary, walking, and very active PA intensities (p 0.05. After school displayed the fewest counts for walking and very active PA in both sexes (p < 0.05. An emphasis should be placed on increasing walking and very active PA intensities before school and during lunch in girls and after school in both sexes. Keywords: after school, before school, lunch, SOPLAY, systematic observation

Ocular morbidity prevalence among school children in Shimla, Himachal, North India.

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Gupta, Madhu; Gupta, Bhupinder P; Chauhan, Anil; Bhardwaj, Ashok

2009-01-01

Data on eye diseases among school children is not readily available. Considering the fact that one-third of India's blind lose their eyesight before the age of 20 years and many of them are under five when they become blind, early detection and treatment of ocular morbidity among children is important. To estimate the prevalence of ocular morbidity among school children of age 6-16 years. Government and private coeducational schools in urban area of Shimla. Cross-sectional. Government and private coeducational schools selected by stratified random sampling. About 1561 school children, studying in elementary through secondary class in these schools were examined from August 2001 to January 2002 in Shimla. A doctor did visual acuity and detailed ophthalmic examination. The Chi-square test was used to test differences in proportions. Differences were considered to be statistically significant at the 5% level. Prevalence of ocular morbidity was 31.6% (CI=29.9-32.1%), refractive errors 22% (CI=21.1-22.8%), squint 2.5% (CI=2.4-2.6%), color blindness 2.3% (CI=2.2-2.4%), vitamin A deficiency 1.8 % (CI=1.7-1.9%), conjunctivitis 0.8% (CI=0.79-0.81%). Overall prevalence of ocular morbidity in government and private schools did not show any statistical significant difference. Prevalence of conjunctivitis was significantly (P< 0.5) more in government schools. A high prevalence of ocular morbidity among high-school children was observed. Refractive errors were the most common ocular disorders.

Bullying victimization among 13 til 15 year old school children

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Due, Pernille; Holstein, Bjørn Evald

2008-01-01

AIM: to examine the prevalence of bullying victimization in 66 countries and territories from five continents based on data from two large international surveys: the 2001/2 Health Behavior in School-aged Children survey (HBSC) and the Global School-based Students Health Survey (GSHS). The surveys...... provide nationally representative, cross-sectional information on 13-15-year-old school children (N = 218,104). OUTCOME MEASURES: Bullying victimization, once or more within the past 2 months (HBSC)/30 days (GSHS). RESULTS: On average, 32.1% of the children were bullied at school at least once within...... the past 2 months in countries involved in the HBSC study and 37.4% of children were bullied at least one day within the past 30 days in countries involved in the GSHS study. In both surveys, a large variation in prevalence was found across countries. The lowest prevalence in the GSHS survey was observed...

Personality traits as predictors of children's social adjustment to school entry

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Maja Zupančič

2008-04-01

Full Text Available Contemporaneous and longitudinal predictive relations between three blocks of predictors and measures of children's social adjustment (social competence, internalizing and externalizing behaviour after the school entry were investigated. The first block of predictors captures expressions of child personality dimensions as perceived by pre-school teachers/assistant school teachers, the second block contains parental education and self-evaluations of parenting in mothers and fathers of the target children, and the third block refers to children's pre-school attendance prior to school entry. Using the Social Competence and Behavior Evaluation Scale, school teachers reported on firstgraders' social adjustment. The Inventory of Child Individual Differences was employed to assess personality when the target children were 3, 4, 5, and 6 years old, while at ages 3 and 6 their parents filled-in the Family Environment Questionnaire to provide self-reports on parenting. The blocks of predictors jointly explain a relatively large portion of variance in firstgraders' social adjustment both contemporaneously and longitudinally. Personality characteristics significantly predict all of the criteria measures, while family environment and pre-school attendance explain additional variance in internalizing behaviour (depressive, anxious, isolated, and dependent behaviour, over and above the contribution of personality. Perceptions of children's conscientiousness-openness at the beginning of the school year as well as through early childhood and of their agreeableness in preschool predict teacher ratings of the firstgraders' social competence. Externalizing behaviour (angry, aggressive, egotistical and oppositional behaviour was consistently predicted by low conscientiousness-openness, extraversion-emotional stability, and low agreeableness. Finally, low conscientiousness-openness in school, low extraversion-emotional stability in preschool, maternal inefficient

A tuberculin skin test survey among Ghanaian school children

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Bonsu Christian

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Ghana has not conducted a national tuberculin survey or tuberculosis prevalence survey since the establishment of the National Tuberculosis Control Programme. The primary objective of this study was therefore to determine the prevalence of tuberculin skin sensitivity in Ghanaian school children aged 6-10 years in 8 out of 10 regions of Ghana between 2004 and 2006. Methods Tuberculin survey was conducted in 179 primary schools from 21 districts in 8 regions. Schools were purposively selected so as to reflect the proportion of affluent private and free tuition public schools as well as the proportion of small and large schools. Results Of the 24,778 children registered for the survey, 23,600 (95.2% were tested of which 21,861 (92.6% were available for reading. The age distribution showed an increase in numbers of children towards older age: 11% of the children were 6 years and 25%, 10 years. Females were 52.5% and males 47.5%. The proportion of girls was higher in all age groups (range 51.4% to 54.0%, p Conclusion Tuberculosis infection is still a public health problem in Ghana and to monitor the trend, the survey needs to be repeated at 5 years interval.

Muscular and Cardiorespiratory Fitness in Homeschool versus Public School Children.

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Kabiri, Laura S; Mitchell, Katy; Brewer, Wayne; Ortiz, Alexis

2017-08-01

The growth and unregulated structure of homeschooling creates an unknown population in regard to muscular and cardiorespiratory fitness. The purpose of this research was to compare muscular and cardiorespiratory fitness between elementary school aged homeschool and public school children. Homeschool children ages 8-11 years old (n = 75) completed the curl-up, 90° push-up, and Progressive Aerobic Capacity Endurance Run (PACER) portions of the FitnessGram to assess abdominal and upper body strength and endurance as well as cardiorespiratory fitness. Comparisons to public school children (n = 75) were made using t tests and chi-square tests. Homeschool children showed significantly lower abdominal (t(148) = -11.441, p fitness by total PACER laps (t(108) = 0.879, p = .381) or estimated VO 2max (t(70) = 1.187, p = .239; χ 2 (1) = 1.444, p = .486). Homeschool children showed significantly lower levels of both abdominal and upper body muscular fitness compared with their age and gender matched public school peers but no difference in cardiorespiratory fitness.

HEALTH STATUS OF CHILDREN UNDER SCHOOL HEALTH SERVICES IN DOIWALA BLOCK, DEHRADUN

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Rakesh Kakkar

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Background -The introduction of school health services in India dates back to 1909, when school children in the city of Baroda were given the first medical examination. School Health programme ,promoting basic check up of school children for a variety of health related problems, is a systematic effort in raising awareness about health issues among school children and their families. Good health increases enrollment and reduces absenteeism. It also ensures attendance of the poorest and most disadvantaged children to school, many of whom are girls. Aim- To study the morbidity status of the school children & elicit relationship of healthy habits with morbidity pattern. Study Type- Observational study Methodology- A cross sectional survey to find out the morbidity pattern was conducted on 757 school children (340 boys and 417girls, aged 5-16 years studying in class I-VIII in five different schools of Doiwala, Dehradun under Rural Health training centre, Rajeev Nagar. Results- Overall students attendance was 78.2%. Clinical anaemia was higher in Girls (46.7% as compared to Boys (34.1%. Worm infestation was higher in boys (65.1% as compared to Girls(57.3%. Over all abnormal Visual acquity(8.5% or eye abnormality (14% was noticed among study subjects. Dental Caries (53.1% and dermatitis (16.3% were more in boys. Healthy habits like daily bathing (82.6%, daily teeth brushing (61.1%, mouth rinsing after meal (53% and hair clean/combed (80.2% were more in girls as compared to boys while trimmed nail was equally (55% noticed among both the groups. Conclusion- Morbidities found amongst students are basically due to low awareness & negligent behaviour about personal hygiene are the key areas of concern and by active involvement of school teachers improvement in personal hygiene of school children and reduction in related morbidities can be achieved.

HEALTH STATUS OF CHILDREN UNDER SCHOOL HEALTH SERVICES IN DOIWALA BLOCK, DEHRADUN

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Rakesh Kakkar

2012-02-01

Full Text Available Background -The introduction of school health services in India dates back to 1909, when school children in the city of Baroda were given the first medical examination. School Health programme ,promoting basic check up of school children for a variety of health related problems, is a systematic effort in raising awareness about health issues among school children and their families. Good health increases enrollment and reduces absenteeism. It also ensures attendance of the poorest and most disadvantaged children to school, many of whom are girls. Aim- To study the morbidity status of the school children & elicit relationship of healthy habits with morbidity pattern. Study Type- Observational study Methodology- A cross sectional survey to find out the morbidity pattern was conducted on 757 school children (340 boys and 417girls, aged 5-16 years studying in class I-VIII in five different schools of Doiwala, Dehradun under Rural Health training centre, Rajeev Nagar. Results- Overall students attendance was 78.2%. Clinical anaemia was higher in Girls (46.7% as compared to Boys (34.1%. Worm infestation was higher in boys (65.1% as compared to Girls(57.3%. Over all abnormal Visual acquity(8.5% or eye abnormality (14% was noticed among study subjects. Dental Caries (53.1% and dermatitis (16.3% were more in boys. Healthy habits like daily bathing (82.6%, daily teeth brushing (61.1%, mouth rinsing after meal (53% and hair clean/combed (80.2% were more in girls as compared to boys while trimmed nail was equally (55% noticed among both the groups. Conclusion- Morbidities found amongst students are basically due to low awareness & negligent behaviour about personal hygiene are the key areas of concern and by active involvement of school teachers improvement in personal hygiene of school children and reduction in related morbidities can be achieved.

ATTITUDES OF HEALTHY CHILDREN PARENTS TOWARDS HANDICAPPED CHILDREN AT THE PRE-SCHOOL AGE

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Ruzica KERAMICIEVA

1997-03-01

Full Text Available Since the 1970-ties, in the USA and Western and Eastern Europe, the model of segregated education has been abandoned, and nowadays the handicapped children attend regular schools all together with other healthy pupils. This , so called Integrative Pedagogy, proceeds from the mental hygiene aspects according to which the restrictive environment in special schools has not been a favorable one for the development of those children.The integrational process of these children in preschool institutions and schools has rather been difficult due to a number of reasons. As one of them, already mentioned and found in literature , has been the negative attitude of non-handicapped children parents towards those handicapped in their development.The problem of this research is to check and test the attitude of healthy children parents towards handicapped children at preschool age. This research shall also tend to analyze the origin of the such attitudes i. e. , whether they have been a result of an insufficient information and ignorance of the obstacles during development, or been produced by imitation of the environment, or due to an empathy, or even because of the fear that “ such a thing better never enter their home”, etc.We sincerely believe that, revealing the above parents’ attitudes and their origin, would certainly bring finding ways of their successful socialization and making the integrational process of handicapped children with their normal mates in preschool institutions easier.

No More Bullying: An Analysis of Primary School Children's Drawings of School Bullying

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Slee, Phillip T.; Skrzypiec, Grace

2016-01-01

Bullying in schools is an international problem impacting negatively on children's well-being. Children's drawings can provide an insight into their emotional states. There is little published literature that uses children's drawings to gain better understandings of the nature and impact of bullying. We report two studies using indicators of…

Dietary patterns and nutritional status of pre-school children in Nairobi

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Objective: To determine the dietary patterns and nutritional status of pre-school children in Nairobi, Kenya. Design: A cross-sectional study. Setting: Pre-schools in Nairobi, Kenya. Subjects: Three hundred and four pre-school children (149 males and 155 females) aged three to five years were assessed. Results: About 96% ...

Children's early child care and their mothers' later involvement with schools.

Science.gov (United States)

Crosnoe, Robert; Augustine, Jennifer March; Huston, Aletha C

2012-01-01

Theory and policy highlight the role of child care in preparing children for the transition into school. Approaching this issue in a different way, this study investigated whether children's care experiences before this transition promoted their mothers' school involvement after it, with the hypothesized mechanism for this link being the cultivation of children's social and academic skills. Analyses of 1,352 children (1 month-6 years) and parents in the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development revealed that mothers were more involved at their children's schools when children had prior histories of high-quality nonparental care. This pattern, which was fairly stable across levels of maternal education and employment, was mediated by children's academic skills and home environments. © 2012 The Authors. Child Development © 2012 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

School-based sleep education program improves sleep and academic performance of school-age children.

Science.gov (United States)

Gruber, Reut; Somerville, Gail; Bergmame, Lana; Fontil, Laura; Paquin, Soukaina

2016-05-01

The objective of this study was to develop and evaluate the effectiveness of a school-based sleep education program aimed at improving the sleep and academic performance of school-age children. Using a community-based participatory research approach, we created a school-based sleep education program, "Sleep for Success"™ (SFS), composed of four distinct modules that addressed the children, their family and community, the school staff, and decision makers within the school setting. Implementation was carried out in three elementary schools. Seventy-one students participated in the evaluation of the program. The effectiveness of the SFS program was evaluated using non-randomized controlled before-and-after study groups (intervention and control) assessed over two time points (pre- and post-program implementation). Before (baseline) and after implementation, sleep and academic performance were measured using actigraphy and report card marks, respectively. In the intervention group, true sleep was extended by 18.2 min per night, sleep efficiency improved by 2.3%, and sleep latency was shortened by 2.3 min, and report card grades in mathematics and English improved significantly. No changes were noted in the control group. Participation in the sleep education program was associated with significant improvements in children's sleep and academic performance. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

[Water-pipe tobacco smoking among school children in Israel: frequencies, habits, and attitudes].

Science.gov (United States)

Varsano, Shabtai; Ganz, Irit; Eldor, Naomi; Garenkin, Mila

2003-11-01

Tobacco smoking via a water-pipe (Nargile) is a new phenomena among school children in Israel in recent years. Water-pipe tobacco has the potential for nicotine addiction, for other smoking-related damages and for drug abuse. Our primary goal was to characterize the frequencies of water-pipe smoking among school children in Israel, its distribution according to age, gender, habits and attitudes. The secondary goal was to compare its use to cigarette smoking among these school children. A self-reported questionnaire was distributed among 388 school children (ages 12-18 years old) in grades A, and C, of middle schools and grade B of high schools in a central region of Israel. The questionnaires were answered unanimously and the process was conducted in classes by the school teacher and by nursing school students. Among all school children in this study, 41% smoke a water-pipe at various frequencies. Of all the children, 22% smoke at least every weekend. Water-pipe smoking was 3 times more frequent than cigarette smoking and was almost equally distributed among both genders, but girls were heavier smokers than boys, of either water pipe or cigarette smoking. Six percent of water-pipe smokers add psychoactive drugs or alcohol to the tobacco. The main reasons for water-pipe smoking were the pleasure achieved and the intimacy that it adds to the youngsters' meetings. Ninety percent of all the school children believe that water-pipe smoking is not healthy, but at least 50% believes it is less harmful than cigarettes. According to school children that smoke water-pipes at least every weekend, 40% of their parents are current or ex-smokers of water-pipes, in contrast with 10% of parents to non-smoking children and about a quarter of the children who smoke also do so together with their parents. Tobacco smoking via water-pipes is a very common phenomena among middle and high school children in Israel. Girls are heavier smokers and adding drugs or alcohol to water

Mental Health Problems in a School Setting in Children and Adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Schulte-Körne, Gerd

2016-03-18

10-20% of children and adolescents have a mental health problem of some type. Manifestations such as attention deficits, cognitive disturbances, lack of motivation, and negative mood all adversely affect scholastic development. It is often unclear what factors associated with school affect children's mental development and what preventive measures and interventions at school might be effective. This review is based on systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and randomized and non-randomized controlled trials that were retrieved by a selective search in the PubMed, PsycInfo, and Google Scholar databases. The prevalence of hyperkinetic disorder is 1-6%. Its main manifestations are motor hyperactivity, an attention deficit, and impulsive behavior. Learning disorders such as dyscalculia and dyslexia affect 4-6% of children each, while 4-5% of children and adolescents suffer from depression, which is twice as prevalent in girls as in boys. Mental health problems increase the risk of repeating a grade, truancy, and dropping out of school. The risk of developing an internalizing or externalizing mental health problem can be lessened by changes in the school environment and by the implementation of evidencebased school programs. Physicians, in collaboration with school social workers and psychologists, should help teachers recognize and contend with mental health problems among the children and adolescents whom they teach, to enable the timely detection of stress factors at school and the initiation of the necessary measures and aids. In particular, the school-entrance examination and screening for risk factors at school can make a positive contribution. Evidence-based preventive programs should be implemented in schools, and beneficial changes of the school environment should be a further goal.

Perspectives of South African school children on HIV/AIDS, and the ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

AIDS education programmes and messages to fit the needs of the young people in their care. Keywords: attitudes, children and youth, developmental phases, health knowledge, misconceptions, myths, school children, school health education

Rational-Emotive Assessment of School-Aged Children.

Science.gov (United States)

DiGiuseppe, Raymond

1990-01-01

Focuses on assessment of emotions and irrational beliefs in Rational-Emotive Therapy with school-aged children. Argues that, for children to understand and agree to process of disputing irrational beliefs, practitioner first assesses individual child's emotional vocabulary, his/her understanding of relationship between disturbed emotion and…

How do children at special schools and their parents perceive their HRQoL compared to children at open schools?

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Ramma Lebogang

2010-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background There has been some debate in the past as to who should determine values for different health states for economic evaluation. The aim of this study was to compare the Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL in children attending open schools (OS and children with disabilities attending a special school (SS and their parents in Cape Town South Africa. Methods The EQ-5D-Y and a proxy version were administered to the children and their parents were requested to fill in the EQ-5D-Y proxy version without consultation with their children on the same day. Results A response rate of over 20% resulted in 567 sets of child/adult responses from OS children and 61 responses from SS children. Children with special needs reported more problems in the "Mobility" and "Looking after myself" domains but their scores with regard to "Doing usual activities", "Pain or discomfort" and "Worried, sad or unhappy" were similar to their typically developing counterparts. The mean Visual Analogue Scale (VAS score of SS children was (88.4, SD18.3, range 40-100 which was not different to the mean score of the OS respondents (87.9, SD16.5, range 5-100. The association between adult and child scores was fair to moderate in the domains. The correlations in VAS scores between Open Schools children and female care-givers' scores significant but low (r = .33, p Discussion It would appear that children with disabilities do not perceive their HRQoL to be worse than their able bodied counterparts, although they do recognise their limitations in the domains of "Mobility" and "Doing usual activities". Conclusions This finding lends weight to the argument that valuation of health states by children affected by these health states should not be included for the purpose of economic analysis as the child's resilience might result in better values for health states and possibly a correspondingly smaller resource allocation. Conversely, if HRQoL is to be used as a clinical

Evidence-Based Family-School Interventions with Preschool Children

Science.gov (United States)

Bates, Stacey L.

2005-01-01

Fifteen studies of family-school interventions with preschool children conducted between 1980 and 2002, and published in peer-reviewed journals, were reviewed and evaluated according to the criteria developed by the Task Force on Evidence-Based Intervention in School Psychology (Division 16 and Society for the Study of School Psychology Task…

Prevalence and associated determinants of malaria parasites among Kenyan children.

Science.gov (United States)

Sultana, Marufa; Sheikh, Nurnabi; Mahumud, Rashidul Alam; Jahir, Tania; Islam, Ziaul; Sarker, Abdur Razzaque

2017-01-01

Approximately 80% of deaths attributed to malaria worldwide occurred mainly in Africa in 2015. Kenya is one of the major malaria endemic countries, making malaria the leading public health concern in this country. This study intended to document the prevalence of malaria and determine associated factors including socioeconomic status among children aged 6 months to 14 years in Kenya. This study analyzed the secondary data extracted from the 2015 Kenya Malaria Indicator Survey (KMIS), a cross-sectional country representative survey. Associations of demographic, socioeconomic, community-based, and behavioral factors with the prevalence of malaria in children were analyzed using multivariable logistic regression analysis. Data from 7040 children aged 6 months to 14 years were analyzed. The prevalence of malaria showed an upward trend in terms of age, with the highest prevalence among children aged 11-14 years. Prevalence was also higher among rural children (10.16%) compared to urban children (2.93%), as well as poor children (11.05%) compared to rich children (3.23%). The likelihood of having malaria was higher among children aged 10-14 years (AOR = 4.47, 95% CI = 3.33, 6.02; P level of the household head (AOR = 1.15, 95% CI = 1.08, 2.25; P knowledge in practice to control the malaria burden in Kenya. Furthermore, this study suggests that improving the information available through the mass media and introducing behavior change communication and intervention program specifically for those of poor socioeconomic status will help to reduce malaria cases.

Understanding low uptake of mass treatment for intestinal schistosomiasis among school children

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Muhumuza, Simon; Olsen, Annette; Nuwaha, Fred

2015-01-01

among school children is low and to suggest strategies for improved uptake. This was a cross-sectional qualitative study in which 24 focus group discussions and 15 key informant interviews were conducted 2 months after MDA. The focus group discussions were held with school children in twelve primary...... schools and the key informant interviews were held with school teachers, sub-county health assistants and the District Vector Control Officer. The study shows that the low uptake of praziquantel among school children is a result of a complex interplay between individual, interpersonal, institutional......, yet many parents cannot meet the cost of a daily meal due to the prevailing poverty in the area. It is concluded that strategies to improve uptake of praziquantel among school children need to be multi-pronged addressing not only the preparation and motivation of teachers and health education...

Prevalence of Refractive errors in Primary school children in a rural ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Prevalence of Refractive errors in Primary school children in a rural community in Ebonyi state of Nigeria. ... PROMOTING ACCESS TO AFRICAN RESEARCH ... However, no previous vision screening study among primary schools children ...

Recurrent Respiratory Infections and Psychological Problems in Junior School Children

Science.gov (United States)

Kelmanson, Igor A.

2015-01-01

Background: Recurrent respiratory infections (RRI) are among most common diseases in school-aged children. Little is known about possible associations between RRI and children psychological well-being. Aim: To study possible associations between RRI in junior school pupils and their emotional/behavioural characteristics. Methods: The RRI group…

Determinants of School Enrolment of Children in Slums of Varanasi

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Pallavi Nayak

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Education plays a vital role to developing a nation. In India, urban slums constituting about 22.6% of the urban population are the poor and socially disadvantaged. This slum community is least concerned for school enrolment of their children inspite of the fact that primary education is compulsory and is free in public schools. In urban areas schools available are mostly of private sector that are not free and beyond affordability to slums; government and corporation schools are few, but beyond reach. Motive of the parents is to involve children in income generating activities and the girls are more deprived of school enrolment in poorer society. Objectives: 1 assess the enrolment status of slum children and 2 determine the factors influencing school enrolment.Methodology: The data was collected during 2011-12 from 15 randomly selected slums out of 227 in which a total of 893 families were contacted and mothers with children aged 5-15 years interrogated. In addition to child history on age, sex and school enrolment, the family background characteristics were e.g. religion, caste, and family size as well as age, education and occupation of both mother & father were recorded.Results: Out of 1145 children, male and female equal represented; mostly (90.9% were Hindus and half were SC/ST class. About 30% father and 57.2% mothers were illiterate; about half fathers were unskilled-worker and 96.0% mother’s house wife. Overall 31.3% children were not enrolled and were decreasing from 49.2% to 24.3% to 21.4% in the age groups 5-6, 7-9 and 10-15 years respectively. Enrolment was poor in Muslims (50.0% compared to Hindus (29.4%; enrolment was similar irrespective of child sex among Hindus, but in Muslims 62.5% male and 35.4% female children were only enrolled. Similar was the situation as one move from SC/ST (67.6% to OBC (73.4% and general caste (77.9%. Education of father and mother had significant role to enrolment but not the age and

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

Translingualism, Kenyan Hip-Hop and Emergent Ethnicities: Implications for Language Theory and Pedagogy

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Milu, Esther

2018-01-01

This article reports on preliminary findings of three prominent Kenyan hip-hop artists, Jua Cali, Abbas Kubaff, and Nazizi Hirji, as they theorize and construct emergent ethnicities vis-à-vis their translingual practices. Using in-depth phenomenological interviews, observations of their everyday language use, and analysis of their language choices…

Prevalence of hearing loss among primary school children in Mbarara, Uganda.

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Basañez, Irving; Nakku, Doreen; Stangl, Susan; Wanna, George B

2015-12-01

Hearing loss in children is a common entity worldwide. We examined the prevalence and etiology of hearing loss among primary school children in Mbarara, Uganda. Cross-sectional study in primary school children aged 5-14 was performed to determine the prevalence of hearing loss. Ugandan primary school children were screened for disabling hearing loss (threshold >30dB) and confirmatory audiometry was performed on those who failed the screening. There were 639 children screened. Thirty-five (5.5%) of children screened failed and were referred for further testing. Two children were lost to follow-up. The percentage of children with true hearing loss was 3.1%. The incidence of failed hearing screening and hearing loss in Mbarara, Uganda is similar to other populations. Hearing loss is a significant problem in Uganda and efforts should be made for primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention of hearing loss. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Children Writing Ethnography: Children's Perspectives and Nomadic Thinking in Researching School Classrooms

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Hohti, Riikka

2016-01-01

This article makes a connection between narrative ethnography, childhood studies and new materialist theories in studying children's perspective on school. It presents "children writing ethnography" as an approach based on complexity and involving participatory research. The question of "what is happening in the classroom" is…

How accurate are parental responses concerning their fourth-grade children's school-meal participation, and what is the relationship between children's body mass index and school-meal participation based on parental responses?

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Paxton-Aiken Amy E

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background This article investigated (1 parental response accuracy of fourth-grade children's school-meal participation and whether accuracy differed by children's body mass index (BMI, sex, and race, and (2 the relationship between BMI and school-meal participation (based on parental responses. Methods Data were from four cross-sectional studies conducted from fall 1999 to spring 2003 with fourth-grade children from 13 schools total. Consent forms asked parents to report children's usual school-meal participation. As two studies' consent forms did not ask about lunch participation, complete data were available for breakfast on 1,496 children (51% Black; 49% boys and for lunch on 785 children (46% Black; 48% boys. Researchers compiled nametag records (during meal observations of meal participation on randomly selected days during children's fourth-grade school year for breakfast (average nametag days across studies: 7-35 and for lunch (average nametag days across studies: 4-10 and categorized participation as "usually" (≥ 50% of days or "not usually" ( Results Concerning breakfast participation and lunch participation, 74% and 92% of parents provided accurate responses, respectively. Parental response accuracy was better for older children for breakfast and lunch participation, and for Black than White children for lunch participation. Usual school-meal participation was significantly related to children's BMI but in opposite directions -- positively for breakfast and inversely for lunch. Conclusions Parental response accuracy of children's school-meal participation was moderately high; however, disparate effects for children's age and race warrant caution when relying on parental responses. The BMI results, which showed a relationship between school-meal participation (based on parental responses and childhood obesity, conflict with results from a recent article that used data from the same four studies and found no significant

The relation between maternal work hours and cognitive outcomes of young school-aged children

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Künn-Nelen, A.C.; de Grip, A.; Fouarge, D.

2013-01-01

This paper is the first that analyzes the relation between maternal work hours and the cognitive outcomes of young school-going children. When children attend school, the potential time working mothers miss out with their children, is smaller than when children do not yet attend school. At the same

Children's Behavioral Adjustment in Pre-Primary Schools in Tanzania : A Multilevel Approach

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Shavega, Theresia J.; Brugman, Daniel; van Tuijl, Cathy

2014-01-01

Research Findings: The present study concerns children's behavioral adjustment in the context of pre-primary schools in Tanzania. Twenty teachers and 320 children from 20 pre-primary schools participated in the study. Teacher-child relationships, children's behavioral adjustment, and teachers'

Ocular morbidity prevalence among school children in Shimla, Himachal, North India

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Gupta Madhu

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Data on eye diseases among school children is not readily available. Considering the fact that one-third of India′s blind lose their eyesight before the age of 20 years and many of them are under five when they become blind, early detection and treatment of ocular morbidity among children is important. Aim: To estimate the prevalence of ocular morbidity among school children of age 6-16 years. Settings: Government and private coeducational schools in urban area of Shimla. Design: Cross-sectional Materials and Methods: Government and private coeducational schools selected by stratified random sampling. About 1561 school children, studying in elementary through secondary class in these schools were examined from August 2001 to January 2002 in Shimla. A doctor did visual acuity and detailed ophthalmic examination. Statistical analysis: The Chi-square test was used to test differences in proportions. Differences were considered to be statistically significant at the 5% level. Results: Prevalence of ocular morbidity was 31.6% (CI=29.9-32.1%, refractive errors 22% (CI=21.1-22.8%, squint 2.5% (CI=2.4-2.6%, color blindness 2.3% (CI=2.2-2.4%, vitamin A deficiency 1.8 % (CI=1.7-1.9%, conjunctivitis 0.8% (CI=0.79-0.81%. Overall prevalence of ocular morbidity in government and private schools did not show any statistical significant difference. Prevalence of conjunctivitis was significantly (P< 0.5 more in government schools. Conclusion: A high prevalence of ocular morbidity among high-school children was observed. Refractive errors were the most common ocular disorders.

Prevalence of Childhood Mental Disorders Among School Children of Kashmir Valley.

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Paul, Mohd Altaf; Khan, Waheeda

2018-03-05

Prevalence of mental disorders among children is affected by armed conflict and same is true in protracted conflict of Kashmir, where the ongoing conflict has affected mental health of children badly. In order to understand mental health condition of school going children, the present study was designed to study the nature and prevalence of mental disorders among school children in Kashmir valley. The present study employed multi-stage sampling and multi-informant reporting of mental health problems in children. A sample of 1000 school children was taken from 12 schools of Shopian district through systematic random sampling method. Data was collected at different levels of screening by using Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) (Teacher form) and Mini International Neuropsychiatric Inventory (MINI-Kid). Socio-demographic data sheet was included to gather relevant information. The prevalence rates of mental disorders among school children were presented at different levels of screening. It was found to be 27.1% based on SDQ and 22.2% when assessed by MINI-Kid at second level of screening. The most commonly found mental disorders were of anxiety (8.5%), followed by mood disorders (6.3%) and then behavioural disorders (4.3%). Percentage of schoolgoing children with mental disorders in Kashmir is much more than in other states of India. The political conflict in the state and lack of mental health facilities give rise to high prevalence rates of mental disorders and warrant our urgent attention.

Family Resources in Two Generations and School Readiness among Children of Teen Parents

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Fomby, Paula; James-Hawkins, Laurie; Mollborn, Stefanie

2015-01-01

Overall, children born to teen parents experience disadvantaged cognitive achievement at school entry compared to children born to older parents. However, within this population there is variation, with a significant fraction of teen parents’ children acquiring adequate preparation for school entry during early childhood. We ask whether the family background of teen parents explains this variation. We use data on children born to teen mothers from three waves of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort (N~700) to study the association of family background with children's standardized reading and mathematics achievement scores at kindergarten entry. When neither maternal grandparent has completed high school, children's scores on standardized assessments of math and reading achievement are one-quarter to one-third of a standard deviation lower compared to families where at least one grandparent finished high school. This association is net of teen mothers’ own socioeconomic status in the year prior to children's school entry. PMID:26806989

Role development of nurses for technology-dependent children attending mainstream schools in Japan.

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Shimizu, Fumie; Suzuki, Machiko

2015-04-01

To describe the role development of nurses caring for medical technology-dependent children attending Japanese mainstream schools. Semi-structured interviews with 21 nurses caring for technology-dependent children were conducted and analyzed using the modified grounded theory approach. Nurses developed roles centered on maintaining technology-dependent children's physical health to support children's learning with each other, through building relationships, learning how to interact with children, understanding the children and the school community, and realizing the meaning of supporting technology-dependent children. These findings support nurses to build relationships of mutual trust with teachers and children, and learn on the job in mainstream schools. © 2015, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The Recreational Activities of Hearing-impaired Children of a Young School Age

OpenAIRE

Šrámková, Markéta

2007-01-01

In my diploma work I would like to focus on theme of spending free time in school for hearing impaired children (age 6-12) . The work has two parts. In the first one - theoretical- literary - I will describe types of spending free time of deaf and hard of hearing children different enviroments : family, school, out of school. In the second one -practical research - I will focus on the profile of school for hearing impaired children. I would like to touch the problem of activities (during the ...

Construction environment education development activity for children pre-school

OpenAIRE

MA. TRAN THI THUY NGA; MA. PHAM THI YEN

2015-01-01

Education motor development contribute to the comprehensive development of pre-school children. Building educational environment for young athletes develop in pre-school is one of many issues of concern in the current stage of pre-school education in Vietnam.

Predictors of intestinal parasitosis in school children of Kashmir: a prospective study.

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Singh, Charanjit; Zargar, Showkat Ali; Masoodi, Ibrahim; Shoukat, Abid; Ahmad, Bilal

2010-01-01

To identify the factors associated with intestinal parasitosis in rural and urban school children of Kashmir. Single fresh stool samples from rural and urban school children in three age groups: a) 5 to intestinal helminths. Concentration methods were used if egg count was low. 274 stool samples from rural school children and 240 samples were taken from urban school children respectively. 214 (46.7%) students had stool tests positive for parasitosis. Ascariasis was the most prevalent parasitosis (28%) followed by Giardiasis (7%), Trichuriasis( 5%) and Taeniasis( 4%). There was higher prevalence of parasitosis among rural orphanage children compared to urban orphanage students (76% vs. 48% p parasitosis compared to those who were using tap water. 202 students were found to have poor personal hygiene and parasitosis was higher in them compared to students with good personal hygiene (p intestinal infestation besides socio economic status. Regular deworming programmes need to be adopted at school level especially in 8-11 years old children to check the surge of intestinal parasites and their subsequent morbidities.

The Phonemic Awareness Skills of Cochlear Implant Children and Children with Normal Hearing in Primary School

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Aliakbar Dashtelei

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Objectives: Phonemic awareness skills have a significant impact on children speech and language. The purpose of this study was investigating the phonemic awareness skills of children with cochlear implant and normal hearing peers in primary school. Methods: phonemic awareness subscales of phonological awareness test were administered to 30 children with cochlear implantation at the first to sixth grades of primary school and 30 children with normal hearing who were matched in age with cochlear implant group. All of children were between 6 to 11 years old. Children with cochlear implant had at least 1 to 2 years of implant experience and they were over 5 years when they receive implantation. Children with cochlear implant were selected from Special education centers in Tehran and children with normal hearing were recruited from primary schools in Tehran. The phonemic awareness skills were assessed in both groups. Results: The results showed that the Mean scores of phonemic awareness skills in cochlear implant children were significantly lower than children with normal hearing (P<.0001. Discussion: children with cochlear implant, despite Cochlear implantation prosthesis, had lower performance in phonemic awareness when compared with normal hearing children. Therefore, due to importance of phonemic awareness skills in learning of literacy skills, and defects of these skills in children with cochlear implant, these skills should be assessed carefully in children with cochlear implant and rehabilitative interventions should be considered.

Children's peer violence perpetration and victimization: Prevalence and associated factors among school children in Afghanistan.

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Julienne Corboz

Full Text Available Child peer violence is a global problem and seriously impacts children's physical and psychological health, and their education outcomes. There are few research studies on children's peer violence available in South Asian countries, particularly in Afghanistan. This paper describes the prevalence of children's peer violence perpetration and victimization and associated factors among school children in Afghanistan.A total of 770 children were recruited into a baseline study conducted as part of an intervention evaluation in 11 schools (seven girls' and four boys' schools. All children were interviewed with a questionnaire developed for the study. The main outcome is a three-level peer violence variable consisting of (a no violence, (b victimization only, or (c perpetration (with or without victimization. Peer violence victimization was measured through the Multidimensional Peer-Victimization Scale, and peer violence perpetration was measured through an adjusted version of the same scale with wording changed to measure perpetration.49.7% of boys and 43.3% of girls reported having experienced more than one instance of violence victimization in the past month, and 31.7% of boys and 17.6% of girls disclosed perpetration of more than one instance of violence in the past month, with considerable overlap found between experience of victimization and perpetration, particularly among boys. Multinomial models of factors associated with peer violence show that for boys, food insecurity was associated with perpetration of peer violence but not with victimization, and experiencing corporal punishment at school in the last month was significantly associated with both peer victimization and perpetration. For girls, food insecurity, more depressive symptoms and experiencing any beating at home were associated with both violence victimization and perpetration. Having a disability was associated with victimization only, and having witnessed their father fighting

Children's peer violence perpetration and victimization: Prevalence and associated factors among school children in Afghanistan.

Science.gov (United States)

Corboz, Julienne; Hemat, Osman; Siddiq, Wahid; Jewkes, Rachel

2018-01-01

Child peer violence is a global problem and seriously impacts children's physical and psychological health, and their education outcomes. There are few research studies on children's peer violence available in South Asian countries, particularly in Afghanistan. This paper describes the prevalence of children's peer violence perpetration and victimization and associated factors among school children in Afghanistan. A total of 770 children were recruited into a baseline study conducted as part of an intervention evaluation in 11 schools (seven girls' and four boys' schools). All children were interviewed with a questionnaire developed for the study. The main outcome is a three-level peer violence variable consisting of (a) no violence, (b) victimization only, or (c) perpetration (with or without victimization). Peer violence victimization was measured through the Multidimensional Peer-Victimization Scale, and peer violence perpetration was measured through an adjusted version of the same scale with wording changed to measure perpetration. 49.7% of boys and 43.3% of girls reported having experienced more than one instance of violence victimization in the past month, and 31.7% of boys and 17.6% of girls disclosed perpetration of more than one instance of violence in the past month, with considerable overlap found between experience of victimization and perpetration, particularly among boys. Multinomial models of factors associated with peer violence show that for boys, food insecurity was associated with perpetration of peer violence but not with victimization, and experiencing corporal punishment at school in the last month was significantly associated with both peer victimization and perpetration. For girls, food insecurity, more depressive symptoms and experiencing any beating at home were associated with both violence victimization and perpetration. Having a disability was associated with victimization only, and having witnessed their father fighting and

Perceptions of children: low academic performance, school and family

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Gabriela Maffei Moreira-Malagolli

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Seizing children's perceptions is a challenge for family members, teachers and researchers. Aware of this, this article was the result of three researches developed in the years 2006 and 2010 and aims to appropriate discourses of children / students of the 4th grade / 5th year of Elementary School to understand how they conceived and experienced situations of low performance School. From the Bioecological Perspective of Human Development, semi-structured interviews with children were organized. The results showed that the children who participated in the three studies understood the family as a point of support, support and affection. They recognized the figure of the teacher, highlighting the affective relationship they had with her. In addition, they also revealed feeling guilty about their learning difficulties, expressing anguish and sadness. Attention must be paid to the child's educational trajectory in order to prevent the child from reaching the 5th grade with lags or even to acquire the idea that the course of schooling is painful.

Pattern of otological diseases in school going children of Kathmandu valley

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Adhikari, Prakash

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Ear disease in children is a major public health concern in developing countries. In spite of availability of potent antibiotics, severe life threatening complications of ear diseases can occur. Objective: This study was done to find out the prevalence of different types of otological disease in school going children of Kathmandu valley. Method: This is prospective study among 1245 school children aged between 5-12 years in the time period of June 2007 - May 2008. Students were randomly selected from 4 different schools of Kathmandu valley. All these children were interviewed, examined otoscopically and findings were noted in the performa. Informed consent was taken from guardians to participate in this study. Statistical analysis was done using frequency and percentage. Results: Out of 1245 children, 64.0% were male and 36.0% female children. The most common otological diseases were wax (60.6%, followed by chronic suppurative otitis media (5.7% and otitis media with effusion (3.7%. In CSOM, there was 85.9% tubotympanic type. Overall otological diseases were present in 75.7% children. Conclusion: There is a high prevalence of otological diseases in school going children of Kathmandu valley. Health education, improvement of socioeconomic status and health facilities will be helpful in reducing the prevalence of otological diseases.

How Home Gets to School: Parental Control Strategies Predict Children's School Readiness

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Walker, Aimee Kleisner; MacPhee, David

2011-01-01

At-risk families' control style (autonomy support and coercive control) was examined in relation to children's school readiness; children's social skills and mastery motivation were hypothesized mediating variables. In two different, low-income samples from diverse ethnic backgrounds, one preschool sample recruited from Head Start (N = 199) and a…

Predisposing, Reinforcing and Enabling Predictors of Middle School Children's After-School Physical Activity Participation

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King, Kristi M.; Ogletree, Roberta J.; Fetro, Joyce V.; Brown, Stephen L.; Partridge, Julie A.

2011-01-01

Children's participation in after-school physical activity can attenuate the overweight and obesity rates among rural, low socioeconomic status (SES) children. Children's individual determination, as well as social and environmental factors, can influence their behaviors. Purpose: The purposes of this study were to determine if a difference…

The pediatric daytime sleepiness scale (PDSS): sleep habits and school outcomes in middle-school children.

Science.gov (United States)

Drake, Christopher; Nickel, Chelsea; Burduvali, Eleni; Roth, Thomas; Jefferson, Catherine; Pietro, Badia

2003-06-15

To develop a measure of daytime sleepiness suitable for middle-school children and examine the relationship between daytime sleepiness and school-related outcomes. Self-report questionnaire. Four hundred fifty, 11- to 15-year-old students, from grades 6, 7, and 8 of a public middle school in Dayton, Ohio. A pediatric daytime sleepiness questionnaire was developed using factor analysis of questions regarding sleep-related behaviors. Results of the sleepiness questionnaire were then compared across other variables, including daily sleep patterns, school achievement, mood, and extracurricular activities. Factor analysis on the 13 questions related to daytime sleepiness yielded 1 primary factor ("pediatric daytime sleepiness"; 32% of variance). Only items with factor loadings above .4 were included in the final sleepiness scale. Internal consistency (Chronbach's alpha) for the final 8-item scale was .80. Separate one-way analyses of variance and trend analyses were performed comparing pediatric daytime sleepiness scores at the 5 different levels of total sleep time and academic achievement. Participants who reported low school achievement, high rates of absenteeism, low school enjoyment, low total sleep time, and frequent illness reported significantly higher levels of daytime sleepiness compared to children with better school-related outcomes. The self-report scale developed in the present work is suitable for middle-school-age children and may be useful in future research given its ease of administration and robust psychometric properties. Daytime sleepiness is related to reduced educational achievement and other negative school-related outcomes.

Risk Factors of Anaemia Among Rural School Children in Kenitra ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Objective: To determine the prevalence of anaemia and factors associated with iron deficiency among school children in rural Kenitra, Morocco. Methods: 295 students between 6 and 16 years old composed the study group. The level of haemoglobin was measured in a group of 295 school children. The iron status was ...

Prevalence of bullying and victimization among children in early elementary school: Do family and school neighbourhood socioeconomic status matter?

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Jansen Pauline W

2012-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Bullying and victimization are widespread phenomena in childhood and can have a serious impact on well-being. Children from families with a low socioeconomic background have an increased risk of this behaviour, but it is unknown whether socioeconomic status (SES of school neighbourhoods is also related to bullying behaviour. Furthermore, as previous bullying research mainly focused on older children and adolescents, it remains unclear to what extent bullying and victimization affects the lives of younger children. The aim of this study is to examine the prevalence and socioeconomic disparities in bullying behaviour among young elementary school children. Methods The study was part of a population-based survey in the Netherlands. Teacher reports of bullying behaviour and indicators of SES of families and schools were available for 6379 children aged 5–6 years. Results One-third of the children were involved in bullying, most of them as bullies (17% or bully-victims (13%, and less as pure victims (4%. All indicators of low family SES and poor school neighbourhood SES were associated with an increased risk of being a bully or bully-victim. Parental educational level was the only indicator of SES related with victimization. The influence of school neighbourhood SES on bullying attenuated to statistical non-significance once adjusted for family SES. Conclusions Bullying and victimization are already common problems in early elementary school. Children from socioeconomically disadvantaged families, rather than children visiting schools in disadvantaged neighbourhoods, have a particularly high risk of involvement in bullying. These findings suggest the need of timely bullying preventions and interventions that should have a special focus on children of families with a low socioeconomic background. Future studies are necessary to evaluate the effectiveness of such programs.

Reading Development in Typically Developing Children and Children With Prenatal or Perinatal Brain Lesions: Differential School Year and Summer Growth.

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Demir-Lira, Özlem Ece; Levine, Susan C

2016-01-01

Summer slide, uneven growth of academic skills over the calendar year, captures the fact that the learning gains children make over the school year do not continue at the same pace over the summer, when children are typically not in school. We compared growth of reading skills during the school year and over the summer months in children with pre-or perinatal brain lesion (PL) and typically-developing (TD) children from varying socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds as a new way to probe the role of structured environmental support in functional plasticity for reading skills in children with PL. Results showed that children with PL performed lower than TD children on both reading decoding and reading comprehension. Group differences were primarily driven by children with larger lesions and children with right hemisphere lesions (RH). For reading comprehension, children with RH showed greater growth during the school year but more slide during the summer months than both TD children and children with left hemisphere lesions, implicating a particularly strong role of structured input in supporting reading comprehension in this group. TD children from lower SES backgrounds fell behind their TD peers from higher SES backgrounds on decoding and reading comprehension, but did not show differential patterns of school year and summer growth. Overall, results highlight the importance of considering the role of a host of factors interacting at multiple levels of analyses, including biological and environmental, in influencing developmental trajectories of typically and atypically-developing children.

Social competence of elementary-school children: relationships to maternal authoritativeness, supportive maternal responses and children's coping strategies.

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Chan, S M

2011-07-01

Although the influences of parenting on children's development of social competence have been well established, research on the underlying mechanisms of this link is relatively limited. The present study examined children's coping strategies as a mediator of the effects of maternal authoritativeness and maternal inductive responses on their social competence. The mothers of 183 Hong Kong Chinese children aged 6 to 8 years (89 girls and 94 boys) reported on their adoption of authoritative parenting and their responses to their children's expressions of emotion, and rated their children's adoption of constructive coping strategies. The children's teachers reported on the children's prosocial behaviour, and rated their level of peer acceptance at school. A model of maternal authoritativeness and supportive maternal responses affecting children's social competence is presented. The study results show that the effects of authoritative parenting on children's adoption of constructive coping strategies were mediated by supportive maternal responses to children's expression of emotion, and that the effects of maternal authoritativeness and maternal responses on children's social competence were mediated by children's coping strategies. These results suggest that school personnel should organize training programmes on emotion-coping strategies for both parents and children. The findings imply that positive parenting facilitates children's acquisition of constructive emotion-coping strategies. Programmes on emotion-coping strategies should be introduced for both parents and school children. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Association between traffic-related air pollution in schools and cognitive development in primary school children: a prospective cohort study.

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Jordi Sunyer

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Air pollution is a suspected developmental neurotoxicant. Many schools are located in close proximity to busy roads, and traffic air pollution peaks when children are at school. We aimed to assess whether exposure of children in primary school to traffic-related air pollutants is associated with impaired cognitive development.We conducted a prospective study of children (n = 2,715, aged 7 to 10 y from 39 schools in Barcelona (Catalonia, Spain exposed to high and low traffic-related air pollution, paired by school socioeconomic index; children were tested four times (i.e., to assess the 12-mo developmental trajectories via computerized tests (n = 10,112. Chronic traffic air pollution (elemental carbon [EC], nitrogen dioxide [NO2], and ultrafine particle number [UFP; 10-700 nm] was measured twice during 1-wk campaigns both in the courtyard (outdoor and inside the classroom (indoor simultaneously in each school pair. Cognitive development was assessed with the n-back and the attentional network tests, in particular, working memory (two-back detectability, superior working memory (three-back detectability, and inattentiveness (hit reaction time standard error. Linear mixed effects models were adjusted for age, sex, maternal education, socioeconomic status, and air pollution exposure at home. Children from highly polluted schools had a smaller growth in cognitive development than children from the paired lowly polluted schools, both in crude and adjusted models (e.g., 7.4% [95% CI 5.6%-8.8%] versus 11.5% [95% CI 8.9%-12.5%] improvement in working memory, p = 0.0024. Cogently, children attending schools with higher levels of EC, NO2, and UFP both indoors and outdoors experienced substantially smaller growth in all the cognitive measurements; for example, a change from the first to the fourth quartile in indoor EC reduced the gain in working memory by 13.0% (95% CI 4.2%-23.1%. Residual confounding for social class could not be discarded completely

Association between traffic-related air pollution in schools and cognitive development in primary school children: a prospective cohort study.

Science.gov (United States)

Sunyer, Jordi; Esnaola, Mikel; Alvarez-Pedrerol, Mar; Forns, Joan; Rivas, Ioar; López-Vicente, Mònica; Suades-González, Elisabet; Foraster, Maria; Garcia-Esteban, Raquel; Basagaña, Xavier; Viana, Mar; Cirach, Marta; Moreno, Teresa; Alastuey, Andrés; Sebastian-Galles, Núria; Nieuwenhuijsen, Mark; Querol, Xavier

2015-03-01

Air pollution is a suspected developmental neurotoxicant. Many schools are located in close proximity to busy roads, and traffic air pollution peaks when children are at school. We aimed to assess whether exposure of children in primary school to traffic-related air pollutants is associated with impaired cognitive development. We conducted a prospective study of children (n = 2,715, aged 7 to 10 y) from 39 schools in Barcelona (Catalonia, Spain) exposed to high and low traffic-related air pollution, paired by school socioeconomic index; children were tested four times (i.e., to assess the 12-mo developmental trajectories) via computerized tests (n = 10,112). Chronic traffic air pollution (elemental carbon [EC], nitrogen dioxide [NO2], and ultrafine particle number [UFP; 10-700 nm]) was measured twice during 1-wk campaigns both in the courtyard (outdoor) and inside the classroom (indoor) simultaneously in each school pair. Cognitive development was assessed with the n-back and the attentional network tests, in particular, working memory (two-back detectability), superior working memory (three-back detectability), and inattentiveness (hit reaction time standard error). Linear mixed effects models were adjusted for age, sex, maternal education, socioeconomic status, and air pollution exposure at home. Children from highly polluted schools had a smaller growth in cognitive development than children from the paired lowly polluted schools, both in crude and adjusted models (e.g., 7.4% [95% CI 5.6%-8.8%] versus 11.5% [95% CI 8.9%-12.5%] improvement in working memory, p = 0.0024). Cogently, children attending schools with higher levels of EC, NO2, and UFP both indoors and outdoors experienced substantially smaller growth in all the cognitive measurements; for example, a change from the first to the fourth quartile in indoor EC reduced the gain in working memory by 13.0% (95% CI 4.2%-23.1%). Residual confounding for social class could not be discarded completely; however

Safety and Children: How Schools Can Help.

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Hatkoff, Amy

1994-01-01

Explores the role that schools can play in providing direction, guidance, and support to children and adolescents in the face of growing violence in society and in schools. Discusses the development and implementation of preventive measures such as additions to the curriculum, mentoring programs, child abuse and neglect programs, parent education,…

Dietary Habits of Greek Primary School Children

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Piperakis, S. M.; Papadimitriou, V.; Zafiropoulou, M.; Piperakis, A. S.; Zisis, P.

2007-06-01

The purpose of this study was to assess Greek primary (1st to 6th grade) school children's dietary habits and the factors influencing them. Our results show that children know the value of different foods. The socio-economic status of father has no effect on the attitude of children towards choosing their diet, however, mothers' educational status appears to have an effect on their children's behaviour. Place of residence (urban or semi-rural areas) and gender does not influence their knowledge about different diets. It was, finally, shown that as children grow older they tend to eat less healthy foods.

Emotion Understanding, Social Competence and School Achievement in Children from Primary School in Portugal

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Maria da Glória Franco

2017-08-01

Full Text Available This study analyzes the relationship between emotion understanding and school achievement in children of primary school, considering age, gender, fluid intelligence, mother’s educational level and social competence. In this study participated 406 children of primary school. The instruments used were the Test of Emotion Comprehension, Colored Progressive Matrices of Raven, Socially Action and Interpersonal Problem Solving Scale. The structural equation model showed the relationship between the emotion understanding and school performance depends on a mediator variable that in the context of the study was designated social competence. Age appear as an explanatory factor of the differences found, the mother’s educational level only predicts significantly social emotional competence, fluid intelligence is a predictor of emotion understanding, school achievement and social emotional competence. Regarding the influence of sex, emotional understanding does not emerge as a significant predictor of social emotional competence in girls or boys. Multiple relationships between the various factors associated with school achievement and social emotional competence are discussed as well as their implications in promoting child development and school success.

Biomechanical factors associated with running economy and performance of elite Kenyan distance runners: A systematic review.

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Tawa, Nassib; Louw, Quinette

2018-01-01

Running economy (RE) is a determinant of performance in endurance sports and is a complex multi-factorial measure which reflects the combined functioning of bio-mechanical, neuro-muscular, metabolic and cardio-respiratory factors some of which are hereditary or adapt to coaching. Kenyan distance runners have dominated major global events with their unmatched performance for decades and this phenomenon has prompted several investigations aimed at establishing possible factors associated with their performance. This systematic review was aimed at establishing up-to date quantitative synthesis of evidence on biomechanical factors associated with running economy and performance of elite Kenyan distance runners and to provide an algorithm for future research and coaching strategies. A comprehensive electronic search was conducted through June 2017. Quality appraisal was independently done by both reviewers using the STROBE checklist. Descriptive summaries and tables were used to illustrate biomechanical outcomes, mean differences and confidence intervals. Evidence from reviewed studies was graded according to the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) hierarchy for aetiological factors and meta-analysis was performed where applicable. Eight cross-sectional studies were included. The overall methodological score was moderate (58%). Elite Kenyan distance runners have significant longer gastroc-Achilles tendons compared to their counterparts while their shank length is not significantly longer. There is no certainty of evidence regarding the association between their characteristic unique profile of tall and slender bodies, low BMI and low body mass, short ground contact and flight times, greater forward lean torso and faster and greater forward leg swing with RE and performance. Our findings presents evidence on biomechanical factors associated with RE and performance of elite Kenyan distance runners. Despite these findings, there are a number of

Formation of concept of decimal system in Mexican school children

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L. Quintanar Rojas

2013-04-01

Full Text Available The present study deals with initial formation of concept of decimal system in second year of education at primary school in Mexico (City of Puebla. Our research is based on Activity Theory conception of teaching-learning process and of gradual introduction of scientific concepts in school age. The method has been designed and worked out with the help of actions in which logic, symbolic, spatial and mathematical aspects were implemented. All actions were introduced within divided activity of children in group guided by adult. A pretest-posttest design was used with an experimental group of Mexican school children. The results showed that children have developed the significant skills necessary for understanding the concept of decimal number system. They were also able to apply this concept for new kind if activity al the end of school year. Such new activity was solving of mathematic problems, which was not included in official school program. We consider that proposed method can be an approximation for solution of common difficulties which arise at primary school concerning teaching of mathematics.

Targeted vaccination in healthy school children - Can primary school vaccination alone control influenza?

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Thorrington, Dominic; Jit, Mark; Eames, Ken

2015-10-05

The UK commenced an extension to the seasonal influenza vaccination policy in autumn 2014 that will eventually see all healthy children between the ages of 2-16 years offered annual influenza vaccination. Models suggest that the new policy will be both highly effective at reducing the burden of influenza as well as cost-effective. We explore whether targeting vaccination at either primary or secondary schools would be more effective and/or cost-effective than the current strategy. An age-structured deterministic transmission dynamic SEIR-type mathematical model was used to simulate a national influenza outbreak in England. Costs including GP consultations, hospitalisations due to influenza and vaccinations were compared to potential gains in quality-adjusted life years achieved through vaccinating healthy children. Costs and benefits of the new JCVI vaccination policy were estimated over a single season, and compared to the hypothesised new policies of targeted and heterogeneous vaccination. All potential vaccination policies were highly cost-effective. Influenza transmission can be eliminated for a particular season by vaccinating both primary and secondary school children, but not by vaccinating only one group. The most cost-effective policy overall is heterogeneous vaccination coverage with 48% uptake in primary schools and 34% in secondary schools. The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation can consider a modification to their policy of offering seasonal influenza vaccinations to all healthy children of ages 2-16 years. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dietary and Physical Activity/Inactivity Factors Associated with Obesity in School-Aged Children123

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Perez-Rodriguez, Marcela; Melendez, Guillermo; Nieto, Claudia; Aranda, Marisol; Pfeffer, Frania

2012-01-01

Diet and physical activity (PA) are essential components of nutritional status. Adequate nutrition and an active lifestyle are key factors during childhood, because food habits track into adulthood. Children spend more time in school than in any other environment away from home. Studying the diet factors and patterns of PA that affect obesity risk in children during school hours and the complete school day can help identify opportunities to lower this risk. We directly measured the time children spent performing moderate to vigorous PA (MVPA) at school, compared the amount and intensity of PA during school hours with after-school hours, and tried to determine if diet behaviors and PA or inactivity were associated with excess weight and body fat. This cross-sectional study included 143 normal-weight (NLW) and 48 obese children aged 8–10 y. Diet data were obtained from two 24-h recalls. Body composition was measured by bioimpedance. Screen time and sports participation data were self-reported. NLW children drank/ate more dairy servings than the obese children, who consumed more fruit-flavored water than the NLW group. Consumption of soft drinks, sugar-added juices, and fresh juices was low in both groups. Children were less active during school hours than after school. MVPA was lower during school hours in the obese group than in the NLW group. Schools, parents, and authorities should be more involved in promoting strategies to improve the dietary habits and PA levels of school-aged children, because this group is not achieving the recommended level of daily MVPA. PMID:22798003

[How much can school staff help children with diabetes type 1 in school?].

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Tahirović, Husref; Toromanović, Alma

2006-01-01

The aim of the study was to estimate, according to parents and their children with diabetes, how far school personnel have an understanding of diabetes and is trained to provide appropriate treatment of diabetes emergencies. The study included 37 children and adolescents with diabetes type 1 (17 girls and 20 boys) from 31 schools in the Canton of Tuzla, aged 7-18 years. A descriptive research method was used in the study and for data gathering a closed type survey was used. Only 13 or 35.3 % of the 37 surveyed parents were satisfied with the care of their child with diabetes at school, while 24 or 64.7 % parents expressed dissatisfaction with it. According to the parents' statements, class teachers are 100 % informed about the existence of students with diabetes type 1 at their schools, while PE teachers (97.9 %) and the headmasters of the schools (81.1 %) are less well-informed. Regarding the question about whether the school personnel is trained for diabetes-related tasks, the parents answered YES in 25.7 % cases; 54.3 % of them answered NO, and 20 % of them answered DON'T KNOW. However, only 35.2 % of parents found that some of the employees at the school are trained to recognize the symptoms of hypoglycemia while the number of positive answers concerning treatment of hypoglycemia (18.9 %) or glucagon administration (13.5 %) was much lower. The answer to the question: "Is blood glucose testing allowed in the classroom?" in 91.5 % cases was YES, 5.7 % NO and in 2.8 % of cases was DON'T KNOW. The results of our survey show that children with diabetes do not have appropriate diabetes care in school.

Stronger vection in junior high school children than in adults.

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Shirai, Nobu; Imura, Tomoko; Tamura, Rio; Seno, Takeharu

2014-01-01

Previous studies have shown that even elementary school-aged children (7 and 11 years old) experience visually induced perception of illusory self-motion (vection) (Lepecq et al., 1995, Perception, 24, 435-449) and that children of a similar age (mean age = 9.2 years) experience more rapid and stronger vection than do adults (Shirai et al., 2012, Perception, 41, 1399-1402). These findings imply that although elementary school-aged children experience vection, this ability is subject to further development. To examine the subsequent development of vection, we compared junior high school students' (N = 11, mean age = 14.4 years) and adults' (N = 10, mean age = 22.2 years) experiences of vection. Junior high school students reported significantly stronger vection than did adults, suggesting that the perceptual experience of junior high school students differs from that of adults with regard to vection and that this ability undergoes gradual changes over a relatively long period of development.

School-Based Mental Health Program Evaluation: Children's School Outcomes and Acute Mental Health Service Use

Science.gov (United States)

Kang-Yi, Christina D.; Mandell, David S.; Hadley, Trevor

2013-01-01

Background: This study examined the impact of school-based mental health programs on children's school outcomes and the utilization of acute mental health services. Methods: The study sample included 468 Medicaid-enrolled children aged 6 to 17 years who were enrolled 1 of 2 school-based mental health programs (SBMHs) in a metropolitan area…

Communities of Children in the transition from preschool to school

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stanek, Anja Hvidtfeldt

2018-01-01

in the social everyday life children moves across. To understand the way in which children participate within the school start, we need to know about children’s participation possibilities within the social everyday life of the school and further more to be informed of the social life and the children’s former...

A New Challenge for School Counselors: Children Who Are Homeless.

Science.gov (United States)

Strawser, Sherri; Markos, Patricia A.; Yamaguchi, Barbara J.; Higgins, Kyle

2000-01-01

Reviews the legislative provisions and mandates governing the education of children and youth who are homeless and the barriers to education presented by school requirements. Highlights the effects of homelessness on children and youth and the role the school counselor should play in the provision of services for them. (Contains 55 references.)…

Influence of children's oral health-related quality of life on school performance and school absenteeism.

Science.gov (United States)

Piovesan, Chaiana; Antunes, José Leopoldo Ferreira; Mendes, Fausto Medeiros; Guedes, Renata Saraiva; Ardenghi, Thiago Machado

2012-01-01

This study assessed the relation of child oral health-related quality of life with school performance and school absenteeism. We followed a cross-sectional design with a multistage random sample of 312 12-year-old schoolchildren living in Brazil. The participants completed the child perceptions questionnaire (CPQ(11-14) ) that provides information about psychological factors, while their parents or guardians answered questions on their socioeconomic status measured by parents' education level and household income. A dental examination of each child provided information on the prevalence of caries and dental trauma. Data on school performance, which included the results of baseline Brazilian language (Portuguese) tests, and school absenteeism (school days missed) were obtained from the school register. Multilevel linear regression was used to investigate the association among psychological and socioeconomic status and children's school performance. In the multiple model, after adjusting for individual covariates, being a girl was associated with higher school performance (P Children's school performance and absence were influenced by psychological and socioeconomic conditions. © 2012 American Association of Public Health Dentistry.

The biggest fish in the sea? Dynamic Kenyan labour migration in the East African community

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ong'ayo, A.O.O.; Oucho, J.O.; Oucho, L.A.

2013-01-01

This study assesses the Kenyan policy and institutional framework concerning South–South labour migration with particular focus on the East African Community (EAC) countries. It focuses mainly on one particular policy instrument, the East African Community Common Market framework. The research

A comparison of school injuries between children with and without disabilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Ramirez, Marizen; Fillmore, Erin; Chen, Alex; Peek-Asa, Corinne

2010-01-01

The aim of this study was to compare rates, nature, and mechanisms of school injuries in children with and without disabilities. We conducted a retrospective cohort study with repeated measures of 269 919 children with and without disabilities who were enrolled in 35 adapted schools from a large urban school district. Reports of injuries sustained from 1994 to 1998 were collected by the district's insurance division, and disability was assessed using special education guidelines determined by the California Department of Education. A generalized estimating equations model was used to estimate rate ratios, accounting for the repeated, nested nature of the data. Children with disabilities had more than double the rate of injury reported than children without disabilities (incidence density ratio [IDR] 2.3, 95% CI, 2.2-2.5). Almost one third of these injuries were due to fights, roughhousing, and assaults. Among all disabled children, those with orthopedic disabilities had the highest risk, with rates over 5 times that of children without disabilities (IDR 5.4, 95% CI, 4.4-6.6). Children with cognitive disabilities had comparatively lower rates of injury than children with physical disabilities. For children with disabilities, physical impairment may play a greater role than cognitive impairment in managing risk for injury at school. Individual education programs (IEP), developed for children in special education, could be tailored to include injury prevention strategies. Copyright 2010 Academic Pediatric Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

DYSPRAXIA AS A PSYCHOMOTOR DISORDER OF SCHOOL AGE CHILDREN

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Agata Nowak

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Purpose: The purpose of the study was to define the epidemiology of dyspraxia among children from 6 to10 years’ age, attending grades I-III of primary schools in Wrocław, Poland. Material: the study was conducted among pupils of primary schools in Wrocław, Poland. The studied groups included 48 girls and 52 boys. The study employed Polish version of Questionnaire for the screening assessment of dyspraxia’s occurrence among children from 5 to 15 years’ age (DCDQ-PL, as well as the Coordination Test for Children (KTK. Results. After assessing the occurrence of dyspraxia among studied children, it was found out that this disorder is present in the studied group. The prevalence of dyspraxia depends on studied children’s gender; however, it is not related to their age. The results of tests, conducted with the DCDQ-PL and the KTK are consistent and confirm the observed inter-dependencies. Conclusions. Dyspraxia is a widespread psychomotor disorder, which can be diagnosed among children in the early school years. A diagnosis of a child’s development with respect to this disorder should constitute a constant element of work for teachers and educationists dealing with children at this stage of education.

Predominance of Blastocystis sp. Infection among School Children in Peninsular Malaysia.

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Nithyamathi, Kalimuthu; Chandramathi, Samudi; Kumar, Suresh

2016-01-01

One of the largest cross-sectional study in recent years was carried out to investigate the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections among urban and rural school children from five states namely Selangor, Perak, Pahang, Kedah and Johor in Peninsula Malaysia. This information would be vital for school authorities to influence strategies for providing better health especially in terms of reducing intestinal parasitism. A total of 3776 stool cups was distributed to 26 schools throughout the country. 1760 (46.61%) responded. The overall prevalence of intestinal parasitic infection in both rural and urban areas was 13.3%, with Blastocystis sp (10.6%) being the most predominant, followed by Trichuris trichiura (3.4%), Ascaris lumbricoides (1.5%) and hook worm infection (0.9%). Only rural school children had helminthic infection. In general Perak had the highest infection (37.2%, total, n = 317), followed by Selangor (10.4%, total, n = 729), Pahang (8.6%, total, n = 221), Kedah (6.2%, total, n = 195) and Johor (3.4%, total, n = 298). School children from rural schools had higher infection (13.7%, total, n = 922) than urban school children (7.2%, total, n = 838). Subtype (ST) 3 (54.3%) is the most predominant ST with persons infected with only ST1 and ST3 showing symptoms. Blastocystis sp infection significantly associated with low household income, low parent's education and presence of symptoms (p<0.05). It is critical that we institute deworming and treatment to eradicate the parasite especially in rural school children.

The School Children Mental Health in Europe (SCMHE) Project: Design and First Results

OpenAIRE

Kovess, Viviane; Carta, Mauro Giovanni; Pez, Ondine; Bitfoi, Adina; Ko?, Ceren; Goelitz, Dietmar; Kuijpers, Rowella; Lesinskiene, Sigita; Mihova, Zlatka; Otten, Roy

2015-01-01

Background : The School Children Mental Health in Europe (SCMHE) project aims to build up a set of indicators to collect and monitor children's mental health in an efficient and comparable methodology across the EU countries. It concerns primary schools children aged 6 to 11 years a range where few data are available whereas school interventions are promising. Methods : Three informants were used: parents, teachers and children. In selecting instruments language, instruments were selected acc...

Caries Risk Assessment in School Children Using Reduced Cariogram Model

OpenAIRE

Taqi, Muhammad; Razak, Ishak Abdul; Ab-Murat, Norintan

2017-01-01

Objective: To estimate the percentage of children with low, moderate and high caries risk; and to determine the predictors of caries risk amongst 11-12 year old Pakistani school children. Methods: Subjects’ caries risk was assessed using the Cariogram programme. The survey was done among school children in Bhakkar district of Punjab, Pakistan. Caries and plaque level were assessed using the DMFT and Sillnes and Loe indices respectively, while diet content and frequency were assessed using a t...

A comparative analysis of media reporting of perceived risks and benefits of genetically modified crops and foods in Kenyan and international newspapers.

Science.gov (United States)

DeRosier, Christopher; Sulemana, Iddisah; James, Harvey S; Valdivia, Corinne; Folk, William; Smith, Randall D

2015-07-01

We empirically examine the reporting on biotechnology in Kenyan and international newspapers between 2010 and early 2014. We identify news articles that reported on biotechnology and analyze their use of words to determine whether there is a balance in the reporting of perceived risks and benefits. We also consider how the sources used in news articles and how the publication of the Séralini study of rats fed genetically modified maize affect the balance of reporting of perceived risks and benefits. We find that in Kenyan news reporting, more articles mention perceived benefits than risks, but when risks are mentioned, new articles contain more references to risks than to benefits. We also find that sources affect the reporting of perceived risks and benefits and that the Séralini study increased the likelihood that perceived risks are reported in Kenyan news reporting, but not in international newspapers. © The Author(s) 2015.

Personality and Locus of Control among School Children

Science.gov (United States)

Pandya, Archana A.; Jogsan, Yogesh A.

2013-01-01

The main purpose of this investigation is to find out the sex differences in personality traits and locus of control among school children. A total 60 children (30 boys and 30 girls) were taken as a sample. The research tool for personality, children personality questionnaire was used, which was made by Cattell and Porter. Locus of control was…

Deaf children attending different school environments: sign language abilities and theory of mind.

Science.gov (United States)

Tomasuolo, Elena; Valeri, Giovanni; Di Renzo, Alessio; Pasqualetti, Patrizio; Volterra, Virginia

2013-01-01

The present study examined whether full access to sign language as a medium for instruction could influence performance in Theory of Mind (ToM) tasks. Three groups of Italian participants (age range: 6-14 years) participated in the study: Two groups of deaf signing children and one group of hearing-speaking children. The two groups of deaf children differed only in their school environment: One group attended a school with a teaching assistant (TA; Sign Language is offered only by the TA to a single deaf child), and the other group attended a bilingual program (Italian Sign Language and Italian). Linguistic abilities and understanding of false belief were assessed using similar materials and procedures in spoken Italian with hearing children and in Italian Sign Language with deaf children. Deaf children attending the bilingual school performed significantly better than deaf children attending school with the TA in tasks assessing lexical comprehension and ToM, whereas the performance of hearing children was in between that of the two deaf groups. As for lexical production, deaf children attending the bilingual school performed significantly better than the two other groups. No significant differences were found between early and late signers or between children with deaf and hearing parents.

School Term vs. School Holiday: Associations with Children?s Physical Activity, Screen-Time, Diet and Sleep

OpenAIRE

Staiano, Amanda E.; Broyles, Stephanie T.; Katzmarzyk, Peter T.

2015-01-01

This cross-sectional study examined differences in children’s health behaviors during school term (ST) versus school holiday (SH: June–July) and how associations changed when weather characteristics were considered. Children aged 5–18 years (n = 406) from a subtropical climate reported behaviors over 20 months. Multivariable regression models controlling for age, sex, race and body mass index z-score（BMIz ） were used to examine associations between SH and each behavior. A second model include...

Effective Group Work for Elementary School-Age Children Whose Parents Are Divorcing.

Science.gov (United States)

DeLucia-Waack, Janice; Gerrity, Deborah

2001-01-01

Parental divorce is the issue of most concern for elementary school children. This article describes interventions for children-of-divorce groups for elementary school children. Suggests guidelines related to goal setting; securing agency and parental consent; leadership planning; recruitment, screening, and selection of members; group member…

Latina Mothers' School Preparation Activities and Their Relation to Children's Literacy Skills

Science.gov (United States)

Durand, Tina M.

2010-01-01

Few studies have examined the link between children's early school achievement and parents' at-home practices exclusively among Latino groups. This study examined the relation between Latina mothers' reported at-home practices regarding school preparation and their children's literacy skills. Participants included 56 kindergarten children and…

Interrelation between Obesity, Oral Health, and Life-Style Factors among Turkish School Children

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cinar, Ayse Basak; Murtomaa, Heikki

2011-01-01

Obesity, dental caries, and periodontal diseases are among major public health concerns which may affect children's growth and development. This study seeks any clustering between obesity, oral health, and life-style factors among school children in Istanbul, Turkey. A cross-sectional study...... (BMI), and life-style factors (tooth-brushing frequency, milk consumption at breakfast and bedtimes on school nights) of children were examined. Data analysis included factor analysis, Student's t-test, and Chi-square tests by cross-tabulation. Public school children were more dentally diseased...... but less obese than were those in private school (P calculus (62%) and reported non-recommended tooth-brushing (68%) than did those in private school (37%, 56), (P

Impact of dental fear on oral health-related quality of life among school going and non-school going children in Udaipur city: A cross-sectional study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Akanksha Goyal

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Aim: To assess the impact of dental fear on different domains of oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL among school going and non-school going children in the Indian scenario. Materials and Methods: The study sample consisted of 279 school children and 257 non-school going children thus making a total sample of 536 children. The sampling frame comprised of 12-15-year-old children attending two upper primary public schools and non-school going children working at shops or not working in Udaipur city, India. Information on dental fear and OHRQoL was obtained by personal interviews by a single trained and calibrated examiner through a structured questionnaire. Intercooled STATA version 9.2 was employed to perform statistical analysis. The level of significance was set at 5%. Results: Mean dental fear scores among school going (35.41 [11.79] and non-school going (47.59 [3.80] children revealed that dental fear was significantly (P ≤ 0.05 higher among non-school going than among school going children. In school going children, the likelihood of having poor oral symptoms, functional limitation and poorer social and emotional well being were significantly (P ≤ 0.05 lesser as compared with non-school going children. Conclusions: Fear has a significant impact on different domains of OHRQoL, except emotional well being, among non-school going children.

Specific work with manifestations ADHD by the children at the primary school