4/11/2016 1 Implementing a Working Memory Program At Your School What does your school need to consider in order to improve working memory and learning outcomes? • What are your goals for the program? How is Cogmed a part of the learning and wellbeing curriculum? • What is the best way to prepare the staff and school for training? • Identifying the resources for the best training environment • Selecting and monitoring students for Cogmed training • Setting realistic expectations Review: What is working memory and why does it matter? A system for temporary storage and manipulation of information, necessary for wide range of cognitive tasks The ability to keep information active in your mind for a short period of time (seconds) keeping it available for further processing What is working memory?
Transcript
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Implementing a Working Memory Program At Your
School
What does your school need to consider in order to improve working memory and learning outcomes?
• What are your goals for the program? How is Cogmed a part of the learning and wellbeing curriculum?
• What is the best way to prepare the staff and school for training?
• Identifying the resources for the best training environment• Selecting and monitoring students for Cogmed training• Setting realistic expectations
Review: What is working memory and why does it matter?
A system for temporary storage and manipulation of
information, necessary for wide range of cognitive tasks
The ability to keep information active in your mind for a short
period of time (seconds) keeping it available for further
processing
What is working memory?
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Quick working memory example – play with the demo at http://mycogmed.com
Working memory is used for:
• Controlling attention
• Resisting distraction
• Complex thinking
• Organisation
• Problem solving
• Remembering tasks
Why is it important?
15% of all students have working memory deficits causing them to perform below average
in many areas of learning
Working memory is crucial for areas such as math, reading comprehension, complex problem solving and test
taking
Working memory is key for academic performance Working memory capacity in school-age children
• Supports learning
• Useful prospective indicator of academic performance:–Predict attainment on national assessments at 7, 11, 14 years of age (e.g. Gathercole, et al., 2004; St-Clair Thompson & Gathercole, 2006)
–More than 80% of children with poor working memory fail to achieve expected levels of attainment in either reading or maths, typically both (Gathercole & Alloway, 2008)
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Reciprocal Relationship between WM, Anxiety and Learning
• 5% of children and young people experience clinical levels of anxiety
• Negative emotional states are associated with lowered performance
• Strong association between anxiety and executive functions (i.e. inhibition, set-shifting and updating information in working memory)
• Negative affect and academic performance in school is mediated or moderated by WM functioning or attentional processing
>> Increasing academic performance via improvements in WM may reduce feelings of negative affect
The impact of working memory training in young people with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties L. Roughan, J.A. Hadwin / Learning and Individual Differences 21 (2011) Skill/
behaviourFar transfer
Near transfer
Executive functions
Rate of learning
Remembering directions
Attention/Concentration
Working memory Planning
Reading comprehension Maths skills On-task
behaviour
Initiate
Manipulating information
Task monitoring Organise
Language development
Working memory training acts on underlying levels:Improves capacity to learn
Change is Possible ….but it is Hard Work!
• Brain’s core job is to minimise threat and maximise reward
• Pre-programmed to resist change: 5 x more threat receptors
• We need to work hard to change the way we react, think, feel and behave e.g. rehab after injury, dieting, quitting smoking, completing complex activities
• You CAN change – it is possible. See Barbara Fredrickson (2001) “Broaden and Build Theory”– Small steps– Positive reinforcement
Training programs- Cogmed JM- Cogmed RM- Cogmed QM
Coaching- Ongoing Support to User- Quality Assurance/Follow Protocol- Support to Cogmed Coaches
The Cogmed Method
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How does Cogmed fit into the learning curriculum?
Australian CurriculumLearning Areas• English• Maths• Science• Languages• Arts• HPE
General capabilities • literacy • numeracy • information and communication
technology capability • critical and creative thinking • personal and social capability • ethical understanding • intercultural understanding
Cross-curriculum priorities• Aboriginal culture • sustainability • engagement with Asia
Brain Function
Thoughts&
Actions
Knowledge baseSkills base
e.g. phonics, vocabulary,
number concepts
e.g. focus, grit, organisation,
problem solving
Cogmed Plus
Cogmed 'creates an opportunity for change' but the ultimate benefit depends on how that opportunity is used - e.g. to build literacy, social skills, lifestyle habits, resilience and so on.
The extent to which it works cannot be separated from the support, the rewards, the matching content that the school and coaching environment can provide”.
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Interventions Shown to Aid Executive Function Development in Children 4 to 12 years oldAdele Diamond and Kathleen Lee, Science 333, 959 (2011);
• Diverse activities have been shown to improve children’s executive functions: computerized training, games, aerobics, martial arts, yoga, mindfulness, and school curricula
• All successful programs involve repeated practice and progressive increase of the challenge to executive functions.
• Children with worse executive functions benefit most from these activities –importance of early intervention
• To improve executive functions, focusing narrowly on them may not be as effective as also addressing emotional, social and physical development (shown by positive effects of aerobics, martial arts and yoga).
Using Cogmed as part of developing and practicing good learning behaviours
How have other schools have measured success?
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What are the goals for the program at your school?Goal For How will you know you have been
successful?
Improve working memory capacity
students AWMA scores, teacher checklist around attention in class,
Have a measureable impact on behaviour – Students are more engaged and attentive in class
students Achievement of their own goals, wellbeingquestionnaire, teacher report, parent questionnaire
See improvements in academic outcomes –especially in maths and reading comprehension
Students Track rate of improvement in Maths and English compared to controls
Increased teacher satisfaction – having a tangible effect on learning
Staff Teacher survey
What is involved in preparing the staff and school for training?
How will you raise awareness of working memory in staff, students and parents? Prepare the environment – Review
strategies for the classroom and teacher awareness of Pace, Rehearsal and Chunking
• Evaluate noise and distraction load• Evaluate working memory demands of learning activities• Reduce the working memory load• Reduce processing demands • Increase repetition • Encourage memory aids • Build routines and familiarity
…..Put information in the world, not in their heads
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Identifying the resources for best training
All the products share the same underlying design – the only difference is in the user interface
Cogmed JM Cogmed RM Cogmed QMPreschoolers School-age Adults
Select the appropriate version of Cogmed for each student
Consider Roles & Responsibilities
Cogmed Coach - Key person for the user- tracking, following up and offering feedback on training with weekly feedback and reward meetings
Training Supervisor - Person who will supervise the user (or group of users) during training, offering support and motivation. (Can be the coach but usually learning support staff or training aide)
Choose your coaches - Staffing resources
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Technical Requirements checklist
Need access to:• Computers: Cogmed can be used on
a PC or a laptop (Macs are OK, iPads/tablets OK)
• A strong internet connection • Google Chrome seems to be best
performing browser • A mouse is recommended over a
track pad on PCs• Headphones are recommended.
Most students use their own i-Pod headsets
• Guidelines are provided – whitelist of servers improves performance
o Never as a punishment e.g. after school or luncho Many schools prefer first thing when brains are fresho Consider length of periods availableo Consider training environment and staff availability
Training Environment: Quiet Room in School If more than one student is training should have study corrals or area
where they are not distracted by other students but the coach can see multiple students working
Should have a “do not disturb’’ rule during training time – avoid interruptions
Parent support – get to school on time, best attendance, early nights
Choose the best time and place for training
Selected students vs whole class training
Version 4 makes whole class training possible• New flexible protocols• New coaching tools
– automatic monitoring of training fidelity
– Group reporting tools– Reporting on rate of
improvement on trained and non-trained tasks
Which protocol best suits your school timetable? Or your particular group or goals?
#Session Length
Days per
Week
Number of
Sessions
Number of Exercises
per Session
TOTAL TIME
1 50 mins 5 25 8 5 weeks
2 50 mins 4 25 8 6 weeks, 1 day3 50 mins 3 25 8 8 weeks, 1 day
4 35 mins 5 30 5 6 weeks5 35 mins 4 30 5 7 weeks, 2 days
6 35 mins 3 30 5 10 weeks
7 25 mins 5 40 3 8 weeks
8 25 mins 4 40 3 10 weeks
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Routines help Allow time for rewards
The game interface itself and lots of feedback provide intrinsic reward. What are other appropriate milestone rewards can you negotiate with each student?
Time for RoboRacingGift vouchers
Free timeHomework pass
Field trip
Supporting Resources How will you monitor progress?1. Behavioural Questionnaire at baseline and end
Pre: Prior to Day 1 CPI and Training, during Start-Up Session with CoachPost: Available to complete after 80% of training has been completed;
Captures users perspective of their Attention in everyday life
Expectations for CWMT, Areas they would like to improve
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2. Cogmed Coaching Centre provides statistics on progress, time trained, etc
2. Training Details – progress on trained tasks
3. Cogmed Progress Indicator (CPI) helps you track progress on non-trained tasks
• Protocol– Shape up, Listen up, Add up tasks– Embedded in program– Math challenge (auto/manual removal)– CPI has cognitive load– Best performance out of Days 1 and 2 used as Baseline
Measure – Occurs on 6 sessions (occurrence depends on
training protocol selected)
• Purpose– Provides quantitative measure of training effect– Assess with non-trained working memory tasks– Track cognitive change as it occurs
Day 1 & 2 10 15 2520
Selecting students for working memory training
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Who should train?Poor Working Memory: Impact and Interventionsin Joni Holmes, editor, Advances in Child Development and Behavior, Vol 39 Academic Press 2010 pp1-43
Working Memory is not as yet recognised as a developmental disorder, however, children with poor working memory function are at very high risk of educational underachievement
Working Memory impairments are associated with a wide range of developmental disorders of learning, including ADHD, Dyslexia, SLI, Down syndrome and reading and mathematical difficulties
Verbal STM
Visual-spatial STM
Verbal WM
Visual-spatial WM
125
120
115
110
100
95
90
85
80
75
70
65
60
DYSLEXIA
Verbal STM
Visual-spatial STM
Verbal WM
Visual-spatial WM
125
120
115
110
100
95
90
85
80
75
70
65
60
ADHD
Verbal STM
Visual-spatial STM
Verbal WM
Visual-spatial WM
125
120
115
110
100
95
90
85
80
75
70
65
60
DYSCALCULIA
Verbal STM
Visual-spatial STM
Verbal WM
Visual-spatial WM
125
120
115
110
100
95
90
85
80
75
70
65
60
SLI
Cogmed is not just for ADHD
• It is for those 15% of normally developing students with working memory constraints
• or those who wish to improve their ability – Cogmed is increasingly used as a whole class solution to improve attention, behaviour and capacity to learn
• Possible candidates also include- LD- TBI- underperforming students- gifted/enrichment program
students
Considerations for assessment in a school environment
• Looking for cognitive, behavioural and academic changes
• Time and resources needed to administer the assessments in school environment
• Ability to re-test within a specific timeframe
WISC V
AWMA
Connors 3
BRIEF or D-REF
TEA-CH, NEPSY
Identifying WM strengths & progress
Spelling, Reading Comprehension
Mental arithmeticBASC 3
WMRS
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What do you do when you see a low WM score on the WISC?
• The WISC IV measures auditory working memory within the Working Memory Index (WMI).
• Use process analysis to distinguish between:• auditory STM and auditory WM (digit span forwards vs backwards)• Global memory vs visual-spatial vs auditory memory (subtests of the
Alloway, Gathercole & Kirkwood (2008)Age range 5 to 11 yearsScreening tool22 item rating scale
e.g., “The child raised his hand but when called upon, he had forgotten his response”
“She lost her place in a task with multiple steps”
• A quick measure of observed behaviors identifying Executive Function problems in children and adolescents ages 5-18
• 36-item rating scale with parallel parent and teacher forms (Self Report for ages 11-18)
• Has difficulty shifting from one task to another• Easily upset when corrected by an adult• Keeps trying to solve problems the same way even if that way doesn’t work
• Checklist of Stressors to help prioritize interventions
• Behavioural, Emotional and Executive Functioning index
• Attention/Working Memory Index and Activity/Impulse Control Index
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Teacher Report: Do you recognise these behaviours?
Is easily distracted when doing something not highly interesting
Has trouble waiting his/her turn – will often interrupt you or put their hand up to ask a question and then forget what to say
Struggles with reading comprehension, doing math calculations in their head
Struggles with getting started and completing a task. Watches and depends on neighbour to remind them of the current task
Difficulty organising something with multiple steps… frequently stops, frequently loses their place
Often seems restless and on the go
Loses belongings frequently
Fails to progress despite working hard
Look beyond the behaviour
Can’t vs. Won’t
What is the right age for training?
“ …Over time these frequent missed learning opportunities amount to slow educational progress and poor academic attainment” (Gathercole & Alloway 2008)
Working Memory and Adolescents
• Teenagers and Risk: decision-making is determined by well-developed reward system and underdeveloped pre-frontal cortex (J Res Adolesc. Mar 1, 2011; 21(1): 21–33. Braking and Accelerating of the Adolescent Brain, BJ Casey, et al)
• More emotionally volatile , susceptible to stress and peer influence
• Environment increasing loads on working memory
• Social media• School expectation that they
have mastered learning skills and can handle complexity
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Advantages of working with older students
• Older students have bigger gaps in learning, but more motivated to get help
• Keen to learn about themselves as individuals and as learners
• Cogmed protocol provides feedback and reflection opportunities – this age group is better at noticing and practicing the changes
• Biggest effect is on anxiety and organisational skills • “Just finishing is a first”• “Taught me new work habits”• “Persistence pays off”
When is the right time for training?
• SALIENCE Individuals who not only have a working memory training need, but who are ready – not overly anxious, rebellious, resistant but those who see that opportunity, have an authentic goal for themselves
• Least impact on group school work – many train before school or first thing, often accompanied by special privileges and rewards
• Never as a punishment – never after school or lunchtime
• Ideally as part of a broader focus on wellbeing and self-regulation
What can you expect?
Complete Cogmed professional development - in-service or via coursework 3 hours
Track progress on the Cogmed Training Web. Weekly 1:1
Involvement in rewards –enjoyed by pupils and teachers
Supported by dedicated resources at Pearson
The educator experience
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Cogmed School Data in Australia
• 93% of students doing Cogmed at school completed the program successfully
• Around 8 out of 10 children completing Cogmed show significant improvements in working memory capacity (consistent across multiple studies as well as data collected online from CPI)
• 72% of all schools completing Cogmed in 2014 renewed their order in 2015.
• For detailed research outcomes, please download the Cogmed Claims and Evidence V 4 document.
Skill/ behaviourFar transfer
Near transfer
Executive functions
Rate of learning
Remembering directions
Attention/Concentration
Working memory Planning
Reading comprehension Maths skills On-task
behaviour
Initiate
Manipulating information
Task monitoring Organise
Language development
Working memory improves capacity to learn. When is it realistic to measure outcomes?
Training Effects - Realistic expectations
Neuroplastic changes take time to occur – think of patients in rehab, any type of rehab they engage in takes time to yield results and have resultant brain change.
Visible directly after training
Training effects to be expected over the coming months
Improved attention in class Improvements in school grades
Better scores on AWMA Reduced anxiety
Parents noticing changes at home
Increased confidence in performing every day tasks
Wynnum – Manly, QLD (High School)• Wynnum High School – started mid July 2013- 42 completed, 28 current- 5 rounds (mid July 2013 to present)- Age range 12 to 15, even mix M/F- All RM, Standard protocol (50 mins)- Index scores and CPI improvements – majority
positive
ACADEMICS English Math Science Humanities
T1 T2 T1 T2 T1 T2 T1 T2
u109997 C B E C D C D Bu109999 C C D C D C D Cu110005 C C D D D D C Cu109998 C C D C D B C Cu109993 D C E C D D D Cu109994 D C D C D D D Cu110003 D C C C D D C Cu110002 C B C D C C D B
• SAMPLE – 8 students- 1 x 12 yo, 7 x 13 yo- WM pre/post testing completed, 73% improvements- 7 x RM and 1 x QM, Standard protocol 50 mins- 7/8 within II, 1/8 was 1 point outside of average- 7/8 +ve CPI results- T1 = Pre Cogmed, Term 1 2013- T2 = Term 1 2014 (1 year later)
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How will you continue the challenge? Sustain the gains?
