The majority of research on the relationship between phonological awareness and written language focuses on demonstrating the influence of the former on the latter. However, the aim of this study is to analyse the effects of an Early Years written language programme on phonological awareness. The sample comprises 56 Spanish children aged 5-7 who are at risk of developing learning disabilities. A mixed design was used, with four assessments and three intervention stages, two study variables (syllable and phoneme awareness) and two groups (instructed and uninstructed). The results show that instructed groups achieved better scores for phonological awareness in all the assessments. The findings corroborate the short and medium-term efficacy of systemic and structured intervention in reading and writing with regard to the acquisition of phonological awareness among young Spanish children at risk of developing learning disabilities.

This work has two objectives. The first is to describe a program to strengthen socio-cognitive abilities in initial education children (called PHSC), which is focused on training teachers on its implementation in the classroom. The second objective is to examine the effectiveness of the program when it is applied in schools with different socio-cultural contexts. It involved a total of 257 initial-level students attending two pre-primary schools in the province of Mendoza. One school was in an urban area of a more stable social environment, and the other in a socially-vulnerable area.  The program was administered by teachers who had been trained for it. Pre- and post-assessments were conducted using socio-cognitive tests on the students. The teachers responded to the Executive Functioning Scale for initial education children before and after implementation of the PHSC program, and parents responded to an on-line survey to find out whether they had noticed any improvements or positive changes after the application of the program. The results suggest the possibility that this program, implemented by teachers, could improve the socio-cognitive abilities in children of both of the different social contexts, as well as being a driver to create conditions of equal opportunities and generate learning benefits in all their students.

The main purpose of this study case is to investigate the contribution of the school community to the improvement of the school. In that context, a two-phase research was conducted. In the first phase, the self-evaluation process was implemented during the first year of the research with the participation of the school community. An overall picture of the school was created, with its strong and weak points reflected in the school's final self-evaluation report. Upon the completion of the school self-evaluation process the school community decided on the implementation of actions in order to reduce a number of dysfunctional behaviors, such as bullying incidents that occurred in the school on the part of some students. The school actions and the relevant results constituted the second phase of the research work. The results showed that some of the dysfunctional behaviors were found to be decreased to a statistically significant level after action was taken by the school community.

Various investigations have applied meditation protocols in the school context, with beneficial effects. Transcendental meditation, however, received little attention in primary school settings and few controlled studies are available. The present study is aimed: 1) to investigate the implementation of a school protocol (Quiet Time-QT) based on Transcendental Meditation ™ in a primary school setting 2) to test its efficacy in promoting strengths and resilience in children, using a controlled research, with a cross over design. 92 students attending fourth and fifth class of a primary school were assigned to either the QT intervention, or to a waiting list condition. Children assigned to the waiting list received the QT protocol after few months. Before and after the intervention children were evaluated by their teachers using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) and the Devereux Student Strengths Assessment (DESSA). A Repeated Measures MANOVA was applied to compare the two groups. After the QT intervention children in the experimental condition showed fewer emotional and behavioral difficulties (SDQ) compared to children in the waiting list. An overall positive effect of QT was observed in the total sample in improving children’s strengths and emotional well-being. Participants enjoyed the practice of meditation in the school setting. Conclusions: the results of this controlled investigation showed that the QT school protocol is feasible in the school setting, and it yielded improvements in children’s strengths and well-being. Meditation programs could be easily included in the educational system to sustain children positive development.

This study explored the impact of the peer support programme on pupils at Japanese technical high school for over 6 years. A total of 268 pupils (an intervention group 112; a control group 114) were invited for the study and the pupils of the intervention group were given peer support training and they joined its supporting activities. All the pupils were assessed three times by adopting IRS, RSES10 and GHQ28. The results showed that the programme seemed to give positive influences on the peer supporters in terms of IRS, RSES10 and GHQ28. Also, both group members were classified into low-scoring groups and high-scoring groups, depending on their scores at the first assessment. Then, the results of analysis showed that the pupils from both low & high -scoring groups significantly improved their scores in IRS. In RSES10 and GHQ28, the pupils from the low-scoring groups improved their scores, but those from the high-scoring groups did not improve much. As a conclusion, even in a technical high school where the majority of pupils was male pupils (over 90%), the peer support programme seemed to give positive influences on the peer supporters in terms of IRS, RSES10 and GHQ28.  

The lives and learning experiences of high school students are increasingly intertwined with online activities. With the global trend of Education 4.0, equipping students with digital skills is essential, including the capacity for online social-emotional skills. Someone with social-emotional skills knows how to turn social media into a useful tool, providing opportunities for personal development. This study focuses on developing social-emotional competence for high school students in the context of the Education 4.0 trend. The project has developed a learning program consisting of 6 common social-emotional skill themes for both virtual and real environments and implemented a test on 34 students. Using experimental evaluation methods, classroom observation, and quantitative methods were employed to assess the effectiveness of the program. The results indicate a significant improvement in students' social-emotional competence, with an average score post-experiment of 3.7397. Our experimental model also achieved 63.6% of CASEL criteria for organizing social-emotional competence. Therefore, the study has strengthened the findings and achievements in the development of social-emotional competence training in the fields of educational psychology in Vietnam.

This study aimed to explore how the peer support programme gave influences on technical high school pupils in Japan. The study invited a total 76 pupils (37 in an intervention group and 39 in a control group) to be involved into the peer support programme and assessments. The participants were annually assessed three times by adopting four scales, which examined their interpersonal relationship level, self-esteem, mental health, and school environmental adaptation states. The results showed that pupils in the intervention group (the peer supporters) tended to improve their own skills and abilities in terms of all the scales after joining the programme. Also, in terms of Adaptation Scale for School Environments on Six Spheres (ASSESS), which was a newly developed scale, there were no significant positive influences in both areas of “fulfillments in study” and “peer support activities against bullying”. As a conclusion, even in the technical high school where the majority of pupils were male, the peer support programme gave positive influences on the intervention group (the peer supporters) in terms of interpersonal relationship level, self-esteem, mental health, and school environmental adaptation states.

In this study I examine the academic self-concept (ASC) of students who changed from vocational to academic tracking at the transition to upper secondary education in Germany. I ask (1) how their ASC differs to the ASC of their established peers in academic tracking, and (2) how their ASC is affected by the change in the learning environment. Using a subsample of the German National Educational Panel Study (NEPS; N = 4109), findings show that newcomers to academic tracking have a stronger ASC than their peers. However, social differences between the social milieu of origin and the one prevailing at school significantly reduce the ASC. These differences are interpreted as being social-habitual and tested via socioeconomic status, cultural capital, and parental solidarity expectations at the school level. Results differ according to immigrant origin; immigrant newcomers to academic tracking have higher ASC than their established peers, and context effects are more influential. I complement previous research by using a quantitative approach to test the theoretical mechanisms of a qualitative research perspective on upward mobility.