Search results for "Learning"

Rats with elevated genetic risk for metabolic syndrome exhibit cognitive deficiencies when young

2021

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a known risk factor for cognitive decline. Using polygenic rat models selectively bred for high and low intrinsic exercise capacity and simultaneously modelling as low and high innate risk factor for MetS respectively, we have previously shown that adult animals with lower exercise capacity/higher MetS risk perform poorly in tasks requiring flexible cognition. However, it is not known whether these deficits in cognition are present already at young age. Also, it is unclear whether the high risk genome is related also to lower-level cognition, such as sensory gating measured as prepulse inhibition. In this study, young and adult (5-8 weeks and ∼9 months) rats sel…

Bright Start -ohjelman soveltuminen koulunsa aloittavien dysfaattisten lasten kognitiiviseen kuntoutukseen

1998

Brain Responses to Letters and Speech Sounds and Their Correlations With Cognitive Skills Related to Reading in Children

2018

Letter-speech sound (LSS) integration is crucial for initial stages of reading acquisition. However, the relationship between cortical organization for supporting LSS integration, including unimodal and multimodal processes, and reading skills in early readers remains unclear. In the present study, we measured brain responses to Finnish letters and speech sounds from 29 typically developing Finnish children in a child-friendly audiovisual integration experiment using magnetoencephalography. Brain source activations in response to auditory, visual and audiovisual stimuli as well as audiovisual integration response were correlated with reading skills and cognitive skills predictive of reading…

Prematurity and overlap between reading and arithmetic: The cognitive mechanisms behind the association

2019

It is well-known that very preterm children perform at lower levels than full-term children in reading and arithmetic at school. Whether the lower performance levels of preterm children in these two separate domains have the same or different origins, however, is not clear. The present study examined the extent to which prematurity is associated with the overlap (i.e., common variance) of reading and arithmetic among Finnish school beginners. We also examined the extent to which the association of prematurity with the overlap between reading and arithmetic is due to different prereading skills, basic number skills, and general cognitive abilities. The participants (age 6-7) consisted of 193…

A cultural comparison of mindfulness and student performance: Evidence from university students in five countries

2021

Societal and cultural norms are important in shaping how individuals live, study, and work. Of particular interest in recent research is the role of mindfulness, defined as the ability to focus on the present moment, and how it can impact cognitive function and productivity. This study examines the relationship between scholastic achievement and mindfulness among university students in China, Finland, Germany, South Africa, and the United States. Comparisons between countries with respect to self-reported measures of mindfulness, test anxiety levels, and phone usage are analyzed. These measures are used to determine whether mindfulness affects student performance in introductory economics c…

Should dispersers be fast learners? Modeling the role of cognition in dispersal syndromes.

2021

Abstract Both cognitive abilities and dispersal tendencies can vary strongly between individuals. Since cognitive abilities may help dealing with unknown circumstances, it is conceivable that dispersers may rely more heavily on learning abilities than residents. However, cognitive abilities are costly and leaving a familiar place might result in losing the advantage of having learned to deal with local conditions. Thus, individuals which invested in learning to cope with local conditions may be better off staying at their natal place. In order to disentangle the complex relationship between dispersal and learning abilities, we implemented individual‐based simulations. By allowing for develo…

Taitamisen tiede - tietämisen taide : taidon oppimisen arkkitehtuuri

2016

The purpose of this research was to study skill learning and the meaning of the art and skill subjects in Finnish comprehensive school. During the last decade, there have been many discussions in the media about the position of the art and skill subjects in our school system and the curriculum. The beginning, the idea, of this study can be located in 2003, when we educators were in the middle of designing the new curriculum for the year 2004. In that curriculum the amount of the art and skill subjects was decreasing, because the amount of the optional subjects decreased from 20 to 13. Many teachers asked: why was that happening? They had a feeling, that the direction was not right. I was al…

An Overview on the Associations between Health Behaviors and Brain Health in Children and Adolescents with Special Reference to Diet Quality.

2020

Unhealthy diet has been associated with overweight, obesity, increased cardiometabolic risk, and recently, to impaired cognition and academic performance. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the associations between health behaviors and cognition and academic achievement in children and adolescents under 18 years of age with a special reference to diet quality. Dietary patterns with a low consumption of fish, fruits, and vegetables, and high in fast food, sausages, and soft drinks have been linked to poor cognition and academic achievement. The studies on the associations between the high intake of saturated fat and red meat and low intake of fiber and high-fiber grain produ…

Genotype determining aerobic exercise capacity associates with behavioral plasticity in middle-aged rats

2023

Good aerobic fitness associates positively with cognitive performance and brain health and conversely, low aerobic fitness predisposes to neurodegenerative diseases. To study how genotype together with exercise, started at older age, affects brain and behavior, we utilized rats that differ in inherited aerobic fitness. Rats bred for Low Capacity for Running (LCR) are shown to display less synaptic plasticity and more inflammation in the hippocampus and perform worse than rats bred for a High Capacity for Running (HCR) in tasks requiring flexible cognition. Here we used middle-aged (∼ 16 months) HCR and LCR rats to study how genotype and sex associate with anxiety and neural information filt…

Rozwój kompetencji społecznych studentów w dobie nauczania online

2021

Artykuł jest komunikatem z badań, których celem była próba odpowiedzi na pytanie, jak studenci oceniają rozwój swoich kompetencji społecznych w związku z nauką online, która stała się koniecznością z powodu pandemii COVID­19. W badaniu wzięło udział 350 studentów z trzech uczelni wyższych miasta Opola. Posłużono się metodą sondażu diagnostycznego. W celu zgromadzenia materiału badawczego wykorzystano kwestionariusz ankiety własnego autorstwa, w wersji online. Badani odpowiadali na pytania w oparciu o pięciostopniową skalę. Analiza wyników wskazuje na to, że respondenci najwyżej ocenili umiejętność zarządzania sobą w czasie (M=3,71) oraz umiejętność wyrażania własnego zdania (M=3,66), natomi…