Assessing Self-Concept in Children (Aged 5-7) with Functional Dyslalia.

Language not only plays a powerful role in human life, as it is also a crucial factor in our minds. It shapes our personality, memory and even the way in which we see the world, as well as playing a fundamental role in the building of self-concept and self-esteem. Having a good self-concept, that is, knowing one's own qualities and strengths, will, in turn, promote good self-esteem. The aim of this research was to analyze self-concept in 50 children (aged 5-7) with functional dyslalia in the city of Granada (Spain). A quantitative approach was taken, with a non-experimental design; it was descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational. The Perception of Child Self-concept Scale (PCS), a Spanish scale, was used. In general, the children who were interviewed showed a medium level of self-concept. It is noteworthy that differences were found in the average scores on the scale according to the sex of the children, with girls showing a higher level of self-concept than boys. Participants scored higher on Factor 1, family attachment, followed by Factor 3, feelings, with the values of both these factors decreasing with age. On the other hand, lower average scores were found for Factor 2, environment, and Factor 4, autonomy. It was found that self-concept was higher in young children (five-year-old children) as well as in those who studied in rural areas. Finally, guidelines for improvement were provided. Self-concept is a fundamental aspect of personality, but it is not innate; it develops and evolves.

ICT training for educators of Granada for working with people with autism.

Background: Innovative methodologies based on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) are a tested and motivating option for working with people with autism. Their use, however, should not be indiscriminatory and arbitrary, but didactic and appropriate. Objective: We aimed to discover the training in ICT they had, its frequency of use, and the types of digital resources that they used. Methods: We administered the questionnaire, "Demands and Potentials of ICT and Apps for Assisting People with Autism" to 310 educators in the city of Granada (Spain). The participants belonged to schools and associations that worked with people with autism. Adopting a quantitative-type study, we carried out descriptive analyses (frequencies, mean, mode, and standard deviation). Having confirmed that the data did not follow a normal distribution (Kolmogorov-Smirnov test for samples of >50 participants), we carried out non-parametric inferential and intrafactorial correlation analyses. We also calculated the effect size. Results: The educators revealed that they had ICT training for working with people with autism, but not enough. This suggests that there is still a need to improve the digital competence of these professionals. Strong, direct and significant correlations were found between ICT training and the frequency with which they were used. There were also statistically significant differences according to sex, gender, age, type of institution, and type of educator. The educators who worked as Therapeutic Pedagogy teachers and those who worked in Special Education schools were shown to be more competent than the rest in educational technology applied to people with autism. Conclusions: The results, which were not wholly positive since ICT training should be better and have achieved higher scores, revealed that there is a foundation in ICT education but it needs to be heightened and improved with greater knowledge and more practical experience.

Opinions, training and requirements regarding ICT of educators in Florence and Granada for students with functional diversity.

Information and communication technology (ICT) is a means of learning for people with functional diversity (FD), in the context of both formal and non-formal education. These digital options favor their inclusion, participation and motivation, so having competent professionals in the field of educational technology is crucial for the full development of this population. Within this framework, the opinion, training and requirements regarding ICT of 809 educators in Florence (Italy) and Granada (Spain) were analyzed, following a quantitative study, with a non-experimental, descriptive, cross-sectional and comparative design. Descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation and mode) and frequencies were used. After checking the normality of the data (Kolmogórov-Smirnov test), inferential analyses were performed, applying Student's t- test and one-factor ANOVA, calculating the effect size (Cohen's d and eta squared). Statistically significant differences were found according to city of origin, gender, and years of experience with students with FD. The results point to the need for different educators to have sufficient technological training, as despite being aware of the functionalities of ICT and having a favorable opinion of them, resources and knowledge about their use fall short of what is desirable.

ICT Training Perception of Professionals in Functional Diversity in Granada.

Training in Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) has become very valuable in the current educational panorama, given the proliferation of digital resources available in the formal and non-formal education context. Fortunately, the field of attention to diversity has also benefited from it. For this reason, it is essential that the professionals who attend to people with functional diversity have a good attitude towards them, as well as training in accordance with their requirements. The aim of this study was to analyse how professionals in Granada (Spain) perceived their ICT training. A total of 404 specialists who worked in the field of attention to diversity were interviewed. In general, participants showed a favourable opinion towards ICT but they expressed a medium-low perception of their digital training. Nevertheless, these results are encouraging, as younger teachers showed a more favourable opinion and training towards ICT. In the long term, this will be a generation that is more educated and aware of the benefits, applicability and usefulness of these resources for working with people with functional diversity.

Functionality of Apps for People with Autism: Comparison between Educators from Florence and Granada.

BACKGROUND: Studies on the potential of smartphone apps for people with autism are currently increasing in number, given the large digital supply available and the benefits they offer. We analyzed the opinion of educators from Florence (Italy) and Granada (Spain) regarding the benefits and applicability of apps, frequency of their use, and the type of apps used for people with autism. METHODS: The study involved 1261 professionals, of whom 286 worked with apps, using a non-experimental quantitative design, descriptive and frequency statistics, parametric inferential analyses (Student's t and one-factor ANOVA), and calculation of the effect size (Cohen's d and eta squared) and intrafactorial correlations. RESULTS: Statistically significant differences were observed in respect of city, sex, age, years of experience, place of work, and type of teacher. The teachers from Granada found more benefits and applicability in apps, and revealed a slightly higher usage than those from Florence. CONCLUSIONS: It is an arduous but worthy task for professionals from schools and associations that work with people with autism to acquire the necessary knowledge to apply methodologies based on information and communication technology (ICT), as this will help achieve the integrated development of people with different capabilities.