Interventions targeting cognitive control processes, such as Executive Functions (EF) have recently been experimented to enhance early math skills. This pilot study explored the feasibility and effectiveness of an intervention integrating EF activities into the mathematical domain among second-grade students. One hundred and four…

This study aimed to explore the effect of a mindfulness-based curriculum designed especially for preschoolers on facets of executive functions. Fifty-one preschoolers were randomly assigned to either a mindfulness and kindness curriculum (MC) or an active control dialogic reading program (DR). A battery of behavioral and neurophysiological tests…

Thirteen autistic teens, who were predominantly Latinx, completed the Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS), a 16-week social skills intervention. Time-frequency decomposition was calculated using advanced electroencephalographic techniques to measure oscillatory brain activity during reward anticipation and…

Two potential pathways for improving reading outcomes for students with reading disabilities are presented: (a) systematically integrating self-regulation instructional practices within reading interventions and (b) aligning small-group reading intervention with core reading instruction to reduce the pressure on the executive system. Two separate…

Because deficits in executive functions (EFs) characterize most neurodevelopmental disorders, it is appropriate to question the value of EFs for understanding learning disabilities. Two types of studies--those testing whether EFs moderate treatment effects and those testing the direction of effects between EFs and academic skills--are presented to…

The current review of the role of executive function (EF) in reading provides a brief summary of analyses with a large-scale longitudinal dataset and a meta-analysis, along with proposing a framework for designing EF training studies. The 1st study, based on latent growth models with structured residuals, demonstrated a longitudinal reciprocal…

Previous research has suggested that Event-Related Potentials (ERPs) can index form-, meaning-, and use-related aspects of the second language (L2) vocabulary knowledge, through, respectively, a lexical decision task (LDT, targeting N400), a semantic relatedness task (SEMREL, targeting N400), and a grammatical judgment task (GJT, targeting…

Genetic studies show that children's reading achievement is in part genetically influenced, and intervention studies show that reading achievement can be increased by environmental interventions. However, correlational and mean-level analytic strategies are rarely integrated into achievement research, potentially leading to misinterpretation of…

The objective of this research was to develop robust predictive models of the gains in working memory (WM) and fluid intelligence (Gf) following executive attention training in children, using genetic markers, gender, and age variables. We explore the influence of genetic variables on individual differences in susceptibility to intervention.…

Our understanding of how stress affects primary school children's attention and learning has developed rapidly. We know that children experience differing levels of stressors (factors that cause stress) in their environments, and that this can influence how they respond to new stressors when they occur in educational contexts. Here, we review…

PlayWisely is a novel approach to early learning designed to target the positive development of a wide range of cognitive and physical/motor abilities by stimulating the rapidly developing brain of very young children (from 4 months to 3 years of age). The current pilot study represents a first step toward providing an evidence base for the…

Success in postsecondary education requires proficiency with academic online information seeking. Navigating the internet to find information is a complicated task that is vulnerable to lapses in attention. This study examined the relationships among Canadian graduate students' self-reported behavioral inattention symptoms, awareness and…

Executive function (EF) contributes significantly to reading comprehension across the lifespan. Emerging research indicates domain-specific assessments of EF are better suited for assessment and intervention in academic contexts. For example, "graphophonological-semantic cognitive flexibility" (GSF), the ability to flexibly switch…

Infancy (0-3 years) represents a unique time for language learning. Previous research shows that infants' second language (L2) learning advances rapidly in early education centers, through a research-based method and curriculum delivered by native-speaking language tutors. Here we test the potential of this method for broad application, through an…

Students' behavioral outcomes are often used by both researchers and teachers to evaluate the effectiveness of pedagogical interventions. Extensive research using behavioral metrics has found that some interventions are more effective than others in certain contexts. However, there has been less focus on how different interventions impact the…