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Trends in Neuroscience and Education Dec 2023Misconceptions about how the brain works (neuromyths) are shown to be common among educators, but little is known about neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) neuromyths....
Misconceptions about how the brain works (neuromyths) are shown to be common among educators, but little is known about neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) neuromyths. Here, we explored the prevalence of both general and neurodevelopmental disorders neuromyths in Chilean teachers and other educational professionals. One hundred forty-four participants answered an online neuroscience knowledge, interest, and training questionnaire. Regression analysis showed that both teachers and non-teachers endorsed more neuromyths related to NDDs compared to general neuromyths and that familiarity with the NDDs but not necessarily neuroscience training or interest plays an important role in the endorsement of these neuromyths. The findings indicate that dyscalculia is the least known neurodevelopmental disorder. Although inclusion politics demand training for all educational actors, the current findings suggest effective translational efforts between neuroscience and education fields should continue.
Topics: Humans; Chile; Neurosciences; Educational Personnel; Brain; Neurodevelopmental Disorders
PubMed: 38049290
DOI: 10.1016/j.tine.2023.100218 -
Brain Sciences Sep 2022Neurofeedback (NF) is a type of biofeedback in which an individual's brain activity is measured and presented to them to support self-regulation of ongoing brain... (Review)
Review
Neurofeedback (NF) is a type of biofeedback in which an individual's brain activity is measured and presented to them to support self-regulation of ongoing brain oscillations and achieve specific behavioral and neurophysiological outcomes. NF training induces changes in neurophysiological circuits that are associated with behavioral changes. Recent evidence suggests that the NF technique can be used to train electrical brain activity and facilitate learning among children with learning disorders. Toward this aim, this review first presents a generalized model for NF systems, and then studies involving NF training for children with disorders such as dyslexia, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and other specific learning disorders such as dyscalculia and dysgraphia are reviewed. The discussion elaborates on the potential for translational applications of NF in educational and learning settings with details. This review also addresses some issues concerning the role of NF in education, and it concludes with some solutions and future directions. In order to provide the best learning environment for children with ADHD and other learning disorders, it is critical to better understand the role of NF in educational settings. The review provides the potential challenges of the current systems to aid in highlighting the issues undermining the efficacy of current systems and identifying solutions to address them. The review focuses on the use of NF technology in education for the development of adaptive teaching methods and the best learning environment for children with learning disabilities.
PubMed: 36138974
DOI: 10.3390/brainsci12091238 -
Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience Apr 2018Brain imaging studies on academic achievement offer an exciting window on experience-dependent cortical plasticity, as they allow us to understand how developing brains... (Review)
Review
Brain imaging studies on academic achievement offer an exciting window on experience-dependent cortical plasticity, as they allow us to understand how developing brains change when children acquire culturally transmitted skills. This contribution focuses on the learning of arithmetic, which is quintessential to mathematical development. The nascent body of brain imaging studies reveals that arithmetic recruits a large set of interconnected areas, including prefrontal, posterior parietal, occipito-temporal and hippocampal areas. This network undergoes developmental changes in its function, connectivity and structure, which are not yet fully understood. This network only partially overlaps with what has been found in adults, and clear differences are observed in the recruitment of the hippocampus, which are related to the development of arithmetic fact retrieval. Despite these emerging trends, the literature remains scattered, particularly in the context of atypical development. Acknowledging the distributed nature of the arithmetic network, future studies should focus on connectivity and analytic approaches that investigate patterns of brain activity, coupled with a careful design of the arithmetic tasks and assessments of arithmetic strategies. Such studies will produce a more comprehensive understanding of how the arithmetical brain unfolds, how it changes over time, and how it is impaired in atypical development.
Topics: Brain; Child; Female; Humans; Learning; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Male; Mathematics; Neuroimaging
PubMed: 28566139
DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2017.05.002 -
Frontiers in Neurology 2023Carriers of Fragile X premutation may have associated medical comorbidities, such as Fragile X-associated tremor and ataxia (FXTAS) and Fragile X-associated premature...
OBJECTIVE
Carriers of Fragile X premutation may have associated medical comorbidities, such as Fragile X-associated tremor and ataxia (FXTAS) and Fragile X-associated premature ovarian insufficiency (FXPOI). We examined the Fragile X premutation effect on cognition, and we assumed that there is a direct correlation between the continuous spectrum of specific learning and attention deficits to the number of CGG repeats on the gene.
METHODS
A total of 108 women were referred to our center due to a related Fragile X syndrome (FXS) patient, 79 women carried a premutation of 56-199 repeats, and 19 women carried a full mutation of more than 200 CGG repeats on gene. Genetic results of CGG repeats, demographic information, structured questionnaires for ADHD, learning disabilities of language and mathematics, and independence level were analyzed in women carrying the premutation and compared to the group carrying the full mutation. Women with FXS and FXTAS were excluded.
RESULTS
When analyzed as a continuum, there was a significant increase in the following complaints which were associated with a higher number of repeats: specific daily function skills such as driving a car, writing checks, disorientation in directions, and also specific learning difficulties such as spelling and math difficulties. Additionally, when tested as a categorical independent variable, we observe that women with the full mutation were more likely to have ADHD or other learning disability diagnoses in the past than during premutation (<200 CGG repetitions).
CONCLUSION
Specific learning and attention difficulties and resulting daily function difficulties correlate with an increased number of CGG repeats and are more likely to be associated as a common feature of premutation and full mutation in a female premutation carrier. Despite evidence of learning and attention difficulties, it is encouraging that most female carriers of the premutation and full mutation function well in most areas. Nevertheless, they face significant difficulties in specific areas of functioning such as driving, and confusion in times and schedules. Those daily function skills are mostly impacted by dyscalculia, right and left disorientation, and attention difficulties. This may aid to design specific interventions to address specific learning deficits in order to improve daily function skills and quality of life.
PubMed: 37200782
DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2023.1135630 -
NeuroImage. Clinical 2018Brain disorders are often investigated in isolation, but very different conclusions might be reached when studies directly contrast multiple disorders. Here, we...
Brain disorders are often investigated in isolation, but very different conclusions might be reached when studies directly contrast multiple disorders. Here, we illustrate this in the context of specific learning disorders, such as dyscalculia and dyslexia. While children with dyscalculia show deficits in arithmetic, children with dyslexia present with reading difficulties. Furthermore, the comorbidity between dyslexia and dyscalculia is surprisingly high. Different hypotheses have been proposed on the origin of these disorders (number processing deficits in dyscalculia, phonological deficits in dyslexia) but these have never been directly contrasted in one brain imaging study. Therefore, we compared the brain activity of children with dyslexia, children with dyscalculia, children with comorbid dyslexia/dyscalculia and healthy controls during arithmetic in a design that allowed us to disentangle various processes that might be associated with the specific or common neural origins of these learning disorders. Participants were 62 children aged 9 to 12, 39 of whom had been clinically diagnosed with a specific learning disorder (dyscalculia and/or dyslexia). All children underwent fMRI scanning while performing an arithmetic task in different formats (dot arrays, digits and number words). At the behavioral level, children with dyscalculia showed lower accuracy when subtracting dot arrays, and all children with learning disorders were slower in responding compared to typically developing children (especially in symbolic formats). However, at the neural level, analyses pointed towards substantial neural similarity between children with learning disorders: Control children demonstrated higher activation levels in frontal and parietal areas than the three groups of children with learning disorders, regardless of the disorder. A direct comparison between the groups of children with learning disorders revealed similar levels of neural activation throughout the brain across these groups. Multivariate subject generalization analyses were used to statistically test the degree of similarity, and confirmed that the neural activation patterns of children with dyslexia, dyscalculia and dyslexia/dyscalculia were highly similar in how they deviated from neural activation patterns in control children. Collectively, these results suggest that, despite differences at the behavioral level, the brain activity profiles of children with different learning disorders during arithmetic may be more similar than initially thought.
Topics: Brain; Child; Dyscalculia; Dyslexia; Female; Humans; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Male; Mathematics; Problem Solving
PubMed: 29876258
DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2018.03.003 -
Disability and Rehabilitation.... Nov 2023Learning disabilities or learning disorders are umbrella terms used for wide variety of learning problems like Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, Dysgraphia, and Dyspraxia. These...
PURPOSE
Learning disabilities or learning disorders are umbrella terms used for wide variety of learning problems like Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, Dysgraphia, and Dyspraxia. These disabilities are due to the neurological disorders which affects brain functions. Early diagnosis of these disabilities in kids from age 3 to 6 will help to start early medical treatments and get them back to the normal condition.
MATERIAL AND METHOD
we developed a software-based Learning Disability Evaluation Kit called YALU with computer Game Modules for kids targeting their learning disabilities. These Computer game-based modules of the YALU consist of different tasks for the different age levels to identify the symptoms of the disabilities mentioned above. The children's interaction results to each task of the game modules with the answers of the questioner about the children given by the parents will be evaluated with the threshold values given by a panel of consultant psychologist and paediatrician of the normal kids to identify the learning disabilities in kids aged 3-6 years. The result will be given to the respective parties and uploaded to the Website under the child's name.
RESULT
YALU has been tested using 50 students in age 3-5 in three preschools. The teachers have identified Fourteen students with some learning disability symptoms. Using YALU, twelve out of fourteen students had been clearly identified. Hence, the YALU Evaluation Kit to have an accuracy 85% in diagnosing the right disability. However, the accuracy could be increased with the accurate assessments of the parents about their kids.IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATIONLearning disabilities are neurological disorders that affect the brain's ability to receive, process, store, respond to and communicate information; and there are four types (Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Dysgraphia and Dyscalculia)In this paper, we present the extracted computational techniques targeting the Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Dysgraphia and Dyscalculia and developed a software application (YALU Learning Disability Evaluation Kit) which consists of computer game modules for the kids for evaluation their learning disabilities.The developed game modules can screen the learning disabilities and these gamification modules (YALU) consists of tasks which are based on symptoms of the said disabilities. The outcomes of each module is evaluated these learning disabilities in kids age from 3 years to 6 years by analysing children's interactions to the each tasks, the child condition and then compare the result with the threshold values of the normal kids given by consultant psychologist and paediatrician.
Topics: Child; Child, Preschool; Humans; Dyscalculia; Agraphia; Learning Disabilities; Dyslexia; Apraxias; Early Diagnosis; Video Games
PubMed: 34784486
DOI: 10.1080/17483107.2021.2003454 -
Translational Psychiatry Apr 2017Several copy number variants have been associated with neuropsychiatric disorders and these variants have been shown to also influence cognitive abilities in carriers...
Several copy number variants have been associated with neuropsychiatric disorders and these variants have been shown to also influence cognitive abilities in carriers unaffected by psychiatric disorders. Previously, we associated the 15q11.2(BP1-BP2) deletion with specific learning disabilities and a larger corpus callosum. Here we investigate, in a much larger sample, the effect of the 15q11.2(BP1-BP2) deletion on cognitive, structural and functional correlates of dyslexia and dyscalculia. We report that the deletion confers greatest risk of the combined phenotype of dyslexia and dyscalculia. We also show that the deletion associates with a smaller left fusiform gyrus. Moreover, tailored functional magnetic resonance imaging experiments using phonological lexical decision and multiplication verification tasks demonstrate altered activation in the left fusiform and the left angular gyri in carriers. Thus, by using convergent evidence from neuropsychological testing, and structural and functional neuroimaging, we show that the 15q11.2(BP1-BP2) deletion affects cognitive, structural and functional correlates of both dyslexia and dyscalculia.
Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Chromosome Aberrations; Chromosome Deletion; Chromosomes, Human, Pair 15; Cognition; DNA Copy Number Variations; Developmental Disabilities; Dyscalculia; Dyslexia; Female; Functional Neuroimaging; Heterozygote; Humans; Iceland; Intellectual Disability; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Male; Middle Aged; Neuropsychological Tests; Phenotype; Temporal Lobe; Young Adult
PubMed: 28440815
DOI: 10.1038/tp.2017.77 -
Brain Sciences May 2021Specific Learning Disorder (SLD) is a multifactorial, neurodevelopmental disorder which may involve persistent difficulties in reading (dyslexia), written expression... (Review)
Review
Specific Learning Disorder (SLD) is a multifactorial, neurodevelopmental disorder which may involve persistent difficulties in reading (dyslexia), written expression and/or mathematics. Dyslexia is characterized by difficulties with speed and accuracy of word reading, deficient decoding abilities, and poor spelling. Several studies from different, but complementary, scientific disciplines have investigated possible causal/risk factors for SLD. Biological, neurological, hereditary, cognitive, linguistic-phonological, developmental and environmental factors have been incriminated. Despite worldwide agreement that SLD is highly heritable, its exact biological basis remains elusive. We herein present: (a) an update of studies that have shaped our current knowledge on the disorder's genetic architecture; (b) a discussion on whether this genetic architecture is 'unique' to SLD or, alternatively, whether there is an underlying common genetic background with other neurodevelopmental disorders; and, (c) a brief discussion on whether we are at a position of generating meaningful correlations between genetic findings and anatomical data from neuroimaging studies or specific molecular/cellular pathways. We conclude with open research questions that could drive future research directions.
PubMed: 34068951
DOI: 10.3390/brainsci11050631 -
Neuropsychologia Apr 2019Dyslexia, dyscalculia and their comorbid manifestation are prevalent disorders associated with well-documented behavioral manifestations. However, attempts to relate...
Dyslexia, dyscalculia and their comorbid manifestation are prevalent disorders associated with well-documented behavioral manifestations. However, attempts to relate these manifestations to abnormalities in brain structure have yielded mixed results, with no clear consistency across a range of measures. In this study, we used a unique design including adults with dyslexia, dyscalculia, both disorders and controls, to explore differences in gray matter characteristics across groups. Specifically, we examined whether dyslexia, dyscalculia, or their comorbid manifestation could be related to volumetric and surface characteristics of gray matter, using voxel-based and surface-based morphometry. We demonstrate with Bayesian analyses that the present data favor the null model of no differences between groups across the brain, a result that is in line with recent findings in this field of research. Importantly, we provide detailed statistical maps to enable robust assessment of our findings, and to promote cumulative evaluation of the evidence. Together, these findings suggest that gray matter differences associated with dyslexia and dyscalculia might not be as reliable as suggested by previous literature, with important implications for our understanding of these disorders.
Topics: Adult; Bayes Theorem; Brain Mapping; Dyscalculia; Dyslexia; Female; Gray Matter; Humans; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Male; Neuropsychological Tests; Reading; Young Adult
PubMed: 30738813
DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2019.02.002 -
Developmental Neuropsychology 2018A number of studies have investigated the cognitive deficits underlying dyslexia and dyscalculia. Yet, it remains unclear as to whether dyslexia and dyscalculia are...
A number of studies have investigated the cognitive deficits underlying dyslexia and dyscalculia. Yet, it remains unclear as to whether dyslexia and dyscalculia are associated with the common visual perception deficits. The current investigation analyzed cognitive performance in children with dyslexia, dyscalculia, comorbidity, and typically developing subjects. The results showed that children with dyslexia, dyscalculia and comorbidity exhibited common deficits in numerosity processing and visual perception. Furthermore, visual perception deficits accounted for deficits in numerosity processing in all three groups. The results suggest that visual perception deficits are a common cognitive deficit underlying both developmental dyslexia and dyscalculia.
Topics: Achievement; Case-Control Studies; Child; Cognition Disorders; Comorbidity; Developmental Disabilities; Dyscalculia; Dyslexia; Female; Humans; Male; Mathematics; Task Performance and Analysis; Visual Perception
PubMed: 29975105
DOI: 10.1080/87565641.2018.1481068