An ecological, interpersonal skills approach to drop-out prevention

When Injury Clouds Understanding of Others: Theory of Mind after Mild TBI in Preschool Children

There is evidence to suggest that social skills, such as the ability to understand the perspective of others (theory of mind), may be affected by childhood traumatic brain injuries; however, studies to date have only considered moderate and severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). This study aimed to assess theory of mind after early, mild TBI (mTBI). Fifty-one children who sustained mTBI between 18 and 60 months were evaluated 6 months post-injury on emotion and desires reasoning and false-belief understanding tasks. Their results were compared to that of 50 typically developing children. The two groups did not differ on baseline characteristics, except for pre- and post-injury externalizing behavior. The mTBI group obtained poorer scores relative to controls on both the emotion and desires task and the false-belief understanding task, even after controlling for pre-injury externalizing behavior. No correlations were found between TBI injury characteristics and theory of mind. This is the first evidence that mTBI in preschool children is associated with theory of mind difficulties. Reduced perspective taking abilities could be linked with the social impairments that have been shown to arise following TBI.

Estimated mental retardation and school dropout in a sample of students from state public schools in Porto Alegre, Brazil

OBJECTIVES: To assess the association between estimated Mental Retardation (MR) and school dropout in a sample of students of the third and fourth grades at state schools in Porto Alegre, the capital of the southernmost state of Brazil. METHOD: In this case - control study, students that dropped out from schools (n=44) and a control group who continued attending schools (n=44) had their intelligence quotient (IQ) determined by the vocabulary and cubes subtests of the Wescheler Intelligence Scale <FONT FACE=Symbol>¾</FONT> third edition (WISC<FONT FACE=Symbol>¾</FONT>III). Students with IQ lower than 70 were considered as potential cases of MR. Other prevalent mental disorders in this age range were assessed in both groups using the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School<FONT FACE=Symbol>¾</FONT> Age Children, Epidemiological Version (K-SADS-E). RESULTS: The prevalence of potential MR was significantly higher in the dropped out group than in the control group (p<0.001). Odds ratio for school dropout was significantly higher in the presence of MR even after controlling for potentially confounding factors (age, conduct disorder, grade repetition, family structure and income) (p<0.01). CONCLUSION: Children with IQ lower than 70 (potential MR) were at higher risk for school dropout. These children need to be identified at school and specific educational strategies should be implemented to assure their inclusion in the learning process.

School dropout and conduct disorder in Brazilian elementary school students

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate the association between DSM-IV conduct disorder (CD) and school dropout in a sample of students from the third and fourth elementary grades at state schools in the capital of the southernmost state of Brazil.

METHODS

In this case-control study, students that dropped out of schools (n = 44) and a control group who continued attending schools (n = 44) were assessed for CD and other prevalent mental disorders, using the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School Age Children, Epidemiological Version (K-SADS-E).

RESULTS

The prevalence of DSM-IV CD was significantly higher in the school-dropout group than in control subjects (P < 0.001), both in the entire sample and in a subsample including only subjects under age 12 years (P = 0.001). Also, the odds ratio (OR) for school dropout was significantly higher in the presence of DSM-IV CD, even after controlling for potential confounding factors (age, estimated IQ, school repetition, family structure, and income) (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSION

Our results extend to children and young adolescents previous findings from studies of older adolescents, suggesting an association between school dropout and CD.

Prevention training of paraprofessionals in the schools: an examination of relevancy and effectiveness

Prevention training programs for paraprofessional school personnel are examined in this article. Prevention training for the reduction of student alcohol and other drug use, incorporating a student well-being model, is described and evaluated. The prevention training, entitled "Enhancing Student Well-Being," took place in two urban school districts with over 200 paraprofessional school personnel participating. The training was evaluated using measures of knowledge gained, self-efficacy, and participant satisfaction. Pre- and post-training differences showed consistent gains in participant efficacy expectations but less consistent gains in outcome expectations and knowledge. Participant satisfaction and self-reports of knowledge enhanced and skill improvement were uniformly high across all training programs. Implications for inservice prevention training of paraprofessionals are discussed.