Dear NASET News, Welcome to NASET'sWEEK in REVIEW. Here, we provide you with the latest publications fromNASET to read and or download, as well as some of the most interesting articles that have happened this week in the field of special education. We hope you enjoy this publication. Feel free to send us articles for this publication or let us know your thoughts about the WEEK in REVIEW at news@naset.org. Have a great weekend.
Sincerely,
NASET News Team |
NEW THIS WEEK ON NASET December 2017 Special Educator e-Journal
Table of Contents |
MRI Shows Brain Differences Among Individuals with ADHD
Information from brain MRIs can help identify people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and distinguish among subtypes of the condition, according to a study appearing online in the journal Radiology. ADHD is a disorder of the brain characterized by periods of inattention, hyperactivity and impulsive behavior. The disorder affects 5 to 7 percent of children and adolescents worldwide, according to the ADHD Institute. The three primary subtypes of ADHD are predominantly inattentive, predominantly hyperactive/impulsive and a combination of inattentive and hyperactive. While clinical diagnosis and subtyping of ADHD is currently based on reported symptoms, psychoradiology, which applies imaging data analysis to mental health and neurological conditions, has emerged in recent years as a promising tool for helping to clarify diagnoses. Read More |

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In San Diego, Parents Say They Fear for Students' Safety Amid Special Ed Staffing Shortage
For 16 days so far this school year, Josclyn Davis chose not to send her second-grader to school at Sherman Elementary for fear of what could happen to her. Davis' daughter Aiyana, who is on the autism spectrum and has such a limited vocabulary that she's considered non-verbal, has already escaped the classroom twice this year. She also has a disorder called pica, in which people have an appetite for non-food items like paper, stones, drywall or metal. Aiyana needs a one-on-one aide to help her with schoolwork, calm her down at times, watch what she eats and keep her from wandering off. But this year, with the transitions, restructuring and staffing shortages throughout special education classrooms at San Diego Unified, Aiyana lost the aide she had for the past two years, Davis said. Read More |
Brains of Children with a Better Physical Fitness Possess a Greater Volume of Gray Matter
Researchers from the University of Granada (UGR) have proven, for the first time in history, that physical fitness in children may affect their brain structure, which in turn may have an influence on their academic performance. More specifically, the researchers have confirmed that physical fitness in children (especially aerobic capacity and motor ability) is associated with a greater volume of gray matter in several cortical and subcortical brain regions. In particular, aerobic capacity has been associated with greater gray matter volume in frontal regions (premotor cortex and supplementary motor cortex), subcortical regions (hippocampus and caudate nucleus), temporal regions (inferior temporal gyrus and parahippocampal gyrus) and the calcarine cortex. All of those regions are important for the executive function as well as for learning, motor and visual processes. Read More |
Video Game Improves Balance in Youth with Autism
Playing a video game that rewards participants for holding various "ninja" poses could help children and youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) improve their balance, according to a recent study in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders led by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Balance challenges are more common among people with ASD compared to the broader population, says study lead author Brittany Travers, and difficulties with balance and postural stability are commonly thought to relate to more severe ASD symptoms and impaired activities in daily living. "We think this video game-based training could be a unique way to help individuals with ASD who have challenges with their balance address these issues," says Travers, an investigator at UW-Madison's Waisman Center and an assistant professor of kinesiology. Read More |
New Simple Test Could Help People with Cystic Fibrosis Find Best Treatment
Several cutting-edge treatments have become available in recent years to correct the debilitating chronic lung congestion associated with cystic fibrosis. While the new drugs are life-changing for some patients, they do not work for everyone. In a study published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation Insight, a team led by UNC researchers presented a simple test that aims to predict which treatment is most likely to work for each patient, an approach known as personalized or precision medicine. "Any given drug may not be the drug that works best for a given patient, because there's so much variation from person to person," said Jennifer Guimbellot, MD, who conducted the research at UNC and is now assistant professor of pediatrics at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. "We still have a long way to go to get a really optimized therapy for most cystic fibrosis patients, and the only way we can do that is to have a model like ours, where we can take cells from each individual patient and test them with each individual drug to find out which one is the best match." Read More |
Board Certification in Special Education Available to NASET Members  Through an agreement with The American Academy of Special Education Professionals(AASEP), NASET members now have the opportunity to achieve AASEP Board Certification in Special Education - (B.C.S.E.) at a reduced fee. AASEP Board Certification in Special Education - (B.C.S.E.) is a voluntary choice on the part of the candidate. The candidate for Board Certification wishes to demonstrate a commitment to excellence to employers, peers, administrators, other professionals, and parents. From the standpoint of the Academy, board certification will demonstrate the highest professional competency in the area of special education. Board Certification in Special Educationestablishes a much needed standard for professionals, across disciplines, who work with exceptional children.Read More |
Children with Alagille Syndrome Have Malformed Bile Ducts
Serious liver and heart problems can affect children with Alagille Syndrome early in life. While there is as yet no cure, researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have discovered that the liver disease part of the syndrome is caused by specific malformations of the bile ducts. The results, which are published in the journal Gastroenterology, were discovered with the aid of a new mouse model that can now be used to develop and test new therapies. About 2 in 100,000 children are born with the rare genetic disease known as Alagille Syndrome. Some of them become very ill with chronic liver and heart problems, sometimes so serious that they require a transplant. The liver problems can also give rise to severe itching. Other possible symptoms of the disease, which is usually caused by different mutations of the JAGGED1 gene, are deformities of the eyes or bones, and sometimes growth disorders. The children can also develop problems with other organs, such as the kidneys. Little is currently understood about how the disease can develop and each symptom is treated separately. Read More |
Eagle Scout Builds Buddy Bench to Fight Bullying, Promote Autism Awareness
Sometimes kids who are bullied don't know where to go for help. Thanks to an Eagle Scout, that's no longer the case at a Maryland elementary school. For his Eagle Scout project, Tory Ridgeway built a buddy bench at Windy Hill Elementary School in Owings, Md. Whenever a student is feeling down, he or she can sit on the bright blue bench, which is decorated with handprints and inspiring phrases like "be happy" and "speak up." "If they don't have a friend or if they're having problems, they can come sit here and a friend will come and talk with them or bring them into their game," said Cara Quade, Tory's fourth-grade teacher and the woman to whom the bench is dedicated. Read More |
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