Hand Preference in Three Genetic Syndromes Associated with Intellectual Disability (Published)
Research findings about handedness in sydromes associated with intellectual disability are ambiguous. We investigated the frequency of handedness in three syndromes associated with intellectual disability. A total of 80 age and gendre matched children and adolescents, (20 with Down syndrome, 20 with Sotos syndrome, 20 with Williams syndrome and 20 with typical development), participated in this study. Handedness was defined according to the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory and α classification we developed representing levels of handedness. Using the Laterality Quotients calculated for each group, we didn’t find significant differences between these syndromes. However, our data indicate that atypical laterality between the three syndromes does not occur at the same rate, suggesting the existence of specific patterns of laterality in each syndrome, probably related to the underlying genetic basis.
Keywords: Syndrome, down syndrome, genetic syndromes, hand preference, intellectual disability., sotos, williams syndrome
Assessment of Regular Teachers Knowledge of Curriculum Adaptation for Pupils with Mild Intellectual Disability in Calabar Education Zone Cross River State, Nigeria (Published)
The study assessed regular teachers’ knowledge of curriculum adaptation for pupils with mild intellectual disability in Calabar Education Zone, Cross River State, Nigeria. Four research questions were raised to guide the study. Literature were reviewed according to the sub-variables of the study. The population of the study was 5604 primary school teachers in 286 primary schools within the Calabar Education Zone of Cross River State, Nigeria. Stratified random sampling technique was used in selecting 560 teachers (males 253 and females 307) representing 10% of the entire population from 29 public primary schools. The instrument named: Regular Teachers’ Knowledge of Curriculum Adaptation Rating Scale Questionnaire (RTKCARSP) was developed by the researchers and was used for data collection. The data collected was analysed using descriptive statistics which include simple percentages, and mean. The result revealed that regular teachers’ have fair knowledge about pupils with mild intellectual disability, adapting curriculum content, adapting learning environment and adapting instructional materials for pupils with intellectual disability was also fair. It was recommended among others that awareness programmes on inclusive education should be regular by curriculum planners in collaboration with Ministry of Education to equip regular teachers with skills on how to implement a successful inclusive education programme.
Keywords: Adaptation, Curriculum, intellectual disability., regular teachers’