Perceptual-visual-motor measures, reading and properties of eye movements of students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

This study is aimed to compare and relate the performance of students with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and with good academic performance in the perceptual-visual-motor and reading processes, and to verify the eye movements' pattern of students with ADHD during reading. Twenty students from primary school, both male and female, and aged between eight and twelve years old, participated in this study. They were divided into two groups: Group I (GI): composed of 20 students with an interdisciplinary diagnosis of ADHD, and Group II (GII): composed of 20 students with an equal good academic performance according to gender, age group and education with GI. All students were submitted to the Reading Processes Assessment protocol (PROLEC), Developmental Test of Visual Perception 3 (DTVP 3). PROLEC text reading test was administered to the students, also through the computer support. During this activity, the Gazepoint GP3 Eye Tracker equipment was used, which records the eye movements and analyses their properties by using the Gazepoint Analysis UX Edition Software for capturing eye movement during reading. These procedures were applied individually with students from both groups. The results were statistically analyzed, and revealed that the difficulties of students with ADHD in the reading processes could be justified by the perceptual-visual-motor deficit, and the shorter fixing time for capturing the information of each word read. This compromises the ability to identify and decode words, leading to difficulty in accessing meaning at the level of words and texts.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on physical activity practice of people with disabilities

The global pandemic caused by the COVID-19 has profoundly changed the daily life of most of the world population. People with disabilities have been particularly affected by these changes, which often have accentuated their isolation and marginalization also due to greater difficulties in accessing healthcare services. People with disabilities have also been impacted in relation to their ability to participate in physical activity with even more adverse consequences for their quality of life and health. The aim of this study was to explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on physical activity practice of people with disabilities and to understand the changes that caregivers have perceived for the participation in physical activity of this specific population. It emerged that, regardless of the type of disability, people with this condition experienced drastic reductions in their physical activity levels during the pandemic and in most cases did not have access to any type of remote guidance. Furthermore, a higher prevalence of sedentary behavior and negative changes in eating habits have been reported by the caregivers, highlighting the need for specific strategies and initiatives for people with disabilities to maintain healthy habits and a physically active lifestyle.

Getting up to SpEED: Special Education Embodied Design for Sensorially Equitable Inclusion

We present the implications of a novel approach to design-based research, Special Education Embodied Design (SpEED), for inclusive education. SpEED is a new way of thinking about how Special Education students can learn through whole-body participation (Tancredi et al., in press). The goal of SpEED is to update our thinking about special education and inclusion based on the latest developments in cognitive science. We illustrate the utility of embodied design to teaching and research on issues affecting learners in Special Education through examples centering different Special Education populations, including Deaf learners, learners on the autism spectrum, and sensory-seeking learners. Each project focuses on deepening the learning opportunities we offer students by using learners' existing embodied resources. We conclude with a commentary on considerations for implementing SpEED within the Italian educational system.

A pandemic year and the offense to the younger generations. Suggestions and hypotheses.

To summarize this article with a single expression, we could enclose it in a lack, which has been widely argued on all its pages: the programming one. Moreover, there was a lack of planning and ability to predict for many institutions and most of the citizens. Or, still, there was often a failure to prevent, in order to remedy instead, and not always adequately. With a particular reference to Italy on these pages. The above-mentioned four limits or wounds are particularly serious for our country in this pandemic year. Furthermore, this pandemic caught everyone unprepared and inexperienced. And, then, too many people - I am referring to the Government here - sold themselves to a lot of virologists and various mass media exponents, etc., who have frequently ended up increasing the unease of a nation, which is exhausted at a sanitary, economical and psychological level, with an excess of self-representation and easy self-confidence, too. In particular, this text makes school and university and, therefore, those who attend them, from children to young people, its focal point. They are not considered as abstract entities, but embodied people still belonging to an Italy at high speed: from the rapidly increasing poor people in the Southern Italy, which has not progressed yet and is in a great difficulty, to a middle class who, far from being as the fundamental nerve centre of the Italian productive fabric in the last century, is being overcome by pockets of poverty, misery and unemployment on the other hand. Thus, the invitation to reopen school and university rooms, as it has happened for factories and companies for months. Obviously, in safe conditions. And with all the necessary due contextual measures. Moreover, in the desirable interpenetration between classroom teaching and distance learning for the next future, whi To summarize this article with a single expression, we could enclose it in a lack, which has been widely argued on all its pages: the programming one. Moreover, there was a lack of planning and ability to predict for many institutions and most of the citizens. Or, still, there was often a failure to prevent, in order to remedy instead, and not always adequately. With a particular reference to Italy on these pages. The above-mentioned four limits or wounds are particularly serious for our country in this pandemic year. Furthermore, this pandemic caught everyone unprepared and inexperienced. And, then, too many people - I am referring to the Government here - sold themselves to a lot of virologists and various mass media exponents, etc., who have frequently ended up increasing the unease of a nation, which is exhausted at a sanitary, economical and psychological level, with an excess of self-representation and easy self-confidence, too. In particular, this text makes school and university and, therefore, those who attend them, from children to young people, its focal point. They are not considered as abstract entities, but embodied people still belonging to an Italy at high speed: from the rapidly increasing poor people in the Southern Italy, which has not progressed yet and is in a great difficulty, to a middle class who, far from being as the fundamental nerve centre of the Italian productive fabric in the last century, is being overcome by pockets of poverty, misery and unemployment on the other hand. Thus, the invitation to reopen school and university rooms, as it has happened for factories and companies for months. Obviously, in safe conditions. And with all the necessary due contextual measures. Moreover, in the desirable interpenetration between classroom teaching and distance learning for the next future, which is still to be entirely created in the Italian reality. We have written these reflections, having in mind the psycho-social and educational conditions of the younger generations, so that an age of crisis does not become a double crisis in the way we are risking, and not for a little while, at present. With negative repercussions on them and all the times to come, whose signs are already evident, although they are mostly ignored. It is rather indispensable to translate them into opportunities for growth and life, culture and mental health. And with an Italian socio-economic gap which is nevertheless increasing. Finally, we have in mind that the right to study for each person and everyone is the only social lift which can change the destiny of a country, Italy, and also restart its economy and employment. Because skills are also a fundamental variable of GDP growth, such as a democracy effectively implemented and not only acted in words. ch is still to be entirely created in the Italian reality.

La formazione degli insegnanti in era Covid. Descrizione e analisi di una esperienza laboratoriale sui temi della pedagogia e della didattica inclusiva

La Pandemia Covid-19, com'è ormai ampiamente noto, ha costretto a un ripensamento degli spazi sociali della relazione anche educativa e formativa, facendo emergere tutta una serie di criticità e di questioni già presenti in era pre-pandemica ma che i confinamenti obbligati e i limiti imposti dal distanziamento hanno amplificato. In tal senso, anche in ambito universitario si è dovuto operare una riconfigurazione non solo degli spazi (presenza vs distanza) ma del paradigma della formazione stessa. Questo ha rappresentato e sta rappresentando una opportunità per chi ha raccolto positivamente tale sfida, aprendosi a esperienze che - pur nella loro tendenza a ri-adattare il vecchio nel nuovo - hanno comunque introdotto alcuni elementi innovativi e la sperimentazione di campi d'azione poco o non del tutto esplorati. È quanto accaduto anche agli autori del presente contributo nel quale si descrivono alcune esperienze laboratoriali condotte nell'ambito della formazione iniziale degli insegnanti del ciclo primario. Lo sfondo è dato dall'ambito di riferimento: quello della pedagogia e della didattica inclusiva, che hanno rappresentato non solo il contenuto disciplinare da veicolare ma l'orizzonte di senso per le scelte metodologico-didattiche adottate e per la scelta dello stesso oggetto di studio proposto ai partecipanti.

Trauma Informed Care During a Global Pandemic: Synergies and multidisciplinary boundaries for working with childhood, adolescence, senility and disability

This article addresses the issue of a trauma informed approach from a multidisciplinary perspective and global and systemic taking charge. The work is defined in the current pandemic background, with particular reference to the most fragile persons, in every phase of existence, especially when the fragility is due to deficit and disability. The guiding principles of trauma-informed organisations consist in creating a safe and reliable environment, allowing peer support and self-help, implementing personal empowerment, voice and choice. The TI approach aims to reduce exposure to adversity by implementing collective capacities for support, assistance, education and guidance. Trauma informed approach is a border territory to Special Pedagogy: the second part of the work outlines the role of Special Pedagogy in trauma and the issues highlighted by the COVID 19 pandemic, with the possible collective traumatic effect it can cause. The importance of recognizing, evaluating and dealing with stress due to trauma is highlighted in promoting collaboration with families and social networking, shaping policies and cultures to manage emergencies in relation to everyone's needs, especially the most exposed people such as people with disabilities.

Children with Hearing Disabilities during the Pandemic: Challenges and Perspectives of Inclusion

The COVID-19 has dramatically increased the inequalities of the opportunities to education and health services of the children with disabilities. The data collected from international agencies between 2020 and 2021 demonstrate the danger of further rising the risk of exclusion of children with disabilities especially in developing countries. The marginalization of people with sensory disabilities during the Pandemic have further expanded compared to the pre-Covid situation. The article aims to investigate the barriers that children with hearing disabilities have encountered in accessing socio-educational and rehabilitation services and reflect on the importance of social support flexibly from different local actors. In this perspective, the Center of Attention for Communication, Hearing and Language of the Central American University José Simeón Cañas of El Salvador provides educational and rehabilitation service aimed to children with hearing disabilities transforming their methodologies and practices. Based on this analysis, perspectives of action and research will be envisaged to plan the future starting from the lessons learned.

Filoso-fare nell'epoca della pandemia: attualità e nuove sfide per la Philosophy for Children

A partire dalle sfide e dalle criticità di fronte alle quali ci ha posto la situazione pandemica da Covid-19, in quest'articolo si esplorano le possibilità che il Curriculum della Philosophy for Children, attraverso lo specifico dispositivo educativo della Comunità di Ricerca Filosofica, potrebbe offrire non solo a livello didattico, ma anche a livello comunitario. La proposta della Philosophy for Children, che si esplicita nella pratica dialogica del filoso-fare, potrebbe permettere di riorganizzare l'esperienza pandemica in un nuovo orizzonte di senso e significato, recuperando, nel contesto di questa "nuova normalità" in cui alla riflessività si è sostituita un'azione di tipo emergenziale, una prospettiva orientata al valore e alla cura dell'altro. Inoltre si sottolinea l'importanza della dimensione latente della communitas, in quanto condizione originaria e presupposto trascendentale della nostra esistenza, facendola 2dialogare" con la Comunità di Ricerca Filosofica, considerata come modello ideale verso cui tutte le comunità dovrebbero tendere.