Session 3, Individual Papers

Improving evidence-based practice in schools for children with genetic syndromes: developing an online bespoke training resource for education practitioners.

Authors: Dr Jo Moss¹, Dr Hayley Crawford², Dr Katherine Ellis¹, Prof Emily Farran¹, Dr Katie Gilligan-Lee³, Dr Caroline Richards⁴, Dr Jane Waite⁵, Dr Laura Wilby¹, Shelley Wilson¹.

1. School of Psychology, University of Surrey
2. Division of Medicine, University of Warwick
3. University College Dublin
4. School of Psychology, University of Birmingham
5. School of Psychology, Aston University

Corresponding Author: Dr Jo Moss j.moss@surrey.ac.uk

Children with neurodevelopmental disorders experience poor developmental, health and wellbeing outcomes compared to typically developing peers. Our previous research has shown that these inequalities are heightened in children with genetic syndromes associated with intellectual disability. While accessible information regarding genetic syndromes has become more readily available for parents, carers and clinicians in recent years, there are few resources that are specifically aimed at supporting education practitioners who work closely with children with genetic syndromes on a daily basis.

In consultation with parents, carers, and school practitioners/teachers, we developed a bespoke online training resource (<www.findteacherresources.co.uk>) which focuses on the educational support needs of children and young people with genetic syndromes. Through the development of this dynamic resource, we aim to improve awareness and understanding of the complex needs of children with genetic syndromes in education, and to support educational practitioners and teachers who are working closely with these children on a daily basis. The resource includes information about the lived experience of families, current research findings and associated implications for education and includes extensive (but not exhaustive) collation of other resources that may be useful.

In this talk, I will give an overview of the research that has supported the development of this teacher training resource, a summary of the process of co-development and an overview of the resource content.

Stepping into the shoes of young children with Down syndrome: Understanding sensorimotor patterns of parent-child interaction

Hana D'Souza^1,2, Kate Mee¹, Catalina Suarez-Rivera^3,4, & Chen Yu⁵

1. Cardiff University
2. Newnham College, University of Cambridge
3. New York University
4. UCL
5. The University of Texas at Austin

Contact: dsouzah@cardiff.ac.uk

A lot of our knowledge about how young children experience the world currently comes from screen-based tasks or standardized tests. Surprisingly little is known about their everyday experiences, where parent-child interaction is at the core. During this free-flowing activity, parents direct or react to their child, while their child—who is often surrounded by interesting objects and in pursuit of their own goals—directs, reacts to, or ignores the activity of their parent. What sensorimotor patterns (e.g., looking, object handling, speech) define this rich context? In order to understand this, we need to step into children's shoes and experience the world as they do. Recent technological advancements allow us to do this by enabling us to transition from traditional screen-based eye-trackers to head-mounted eye-trackers/cameras. This revolutionary technology has already provided us with insights into the dynamic interplay between various components of parent-child interaction in typically developing children, challenging fundamental assumptions about the sensorimotor properties of everyday interactions (e.g., how much the child looks at faces). This is the first study to use the same technology with young children with Down syndrome and their parents.

Fifteen children with Down syndrome aged 3-5 years, and 15 typically developing children matched on ability level, took part in this head-mounted eye-tracking study of parent-child interaction. The interaction data was coded frame-by-frame and analyzed for looking behaviors, object handling, and parental speech. The sensorimotor properties of these interactions will be discussed in the context of the strengths and difficulties young children with Down syndrome experience, as well as large individual differences we observe. We hope that this research will provide insights for parents and practitioners into how to better support young children with Down syndrome.

Embodied attention and word learning in young children with Down syndrome

Kate Mee¹, Catalina Suarez-Rivera^2,3, Chen Yu⁴, & Hana D'Souza^1,5

1. Cardiff University
2. New York University
3. UCL
4. The University of Texas at Austin
5. Newnham College, University of Cambridge

Contact: Meek1@cardiff.ac.uk

Background

Early word learning often occurs through free-flowing, parent-child interaction. Head-mounted eye-tracking has been revolutionizing our understanding of everyday learning in typical development. Previous research using this method has identified specific patterns of sensorimotor behavior that are associated with word learning in typically developing (TD) children (Yu & Smith, 2012; 2017). For instance, it was found that word learning best occurs when parent and child jointly attend to the object that the child is manipulating, with the parent providing the object name during these moments. However, the present study is the first to explore these processes in young children with Down syndrome (DS). As DS is often associated with language delay, which is commonly responsive to early intervention, understanding word-learning mechanisms is likely to inform such interventions.

Research questions

What sensorimotor patterns during novel word-naming moments within parent-child interaction are associated with: (1) novel word learning; and (2) vocabulary size for young children with DS?

Method

Fifteen children with DS aged 3-5 years, and 15 TD children matched on ability level, took part in this word-learning study. During an interaction period, parents and children played together with a selection of novel objects, whose names were visible to the parents, whilst wearing head-mounted eye-trackers. The children were then tested on their receptive learning of the names. Their general vocabulary size was also estimated using parent-report questionnaires.

The interaction data was then coded frame-by-frame for attentional region of interest and object-touching behaviors for both parent and child, alongside the parent's speech.

Results and conclusion

The analyses will focus on identifying specific patterns during parent word-naming moments that are associated with word learning, comparing the children with DS to TD children. Relationships to vocabulary size will also be explored. We hope that this research will inform intervention to target early language difficulties.