Arrowsmith Program Research Summary 2017

Arrowsmith Program245 St. Clair Avenue WestToronto, Ontario M4V 1R3

research@brainex.orgwww.arrowsmithschool.org

ARROWSMITHPROGRAM–RESEARCHSUMMARY2017

OverthelastthreedecadestheArrowsmithProgramhasimplementedanindependentandongoingseriesofevidence-basedresearchinitiatives.Therehavebeenmultipleindependentstudies,bydifferentresearchers,indifferentschools,usingdifferentresearchframeworkswhichhaveallshownthesameresults-thattheArrowsmithProgramiseffectiveforstudentswithlearningdifficulties.Thisresearchhasincludedvariouslevelsofresearchdesignincludingbothindependentresearchandpeer-reviewedresearch.ThreetypesofeducationalresearchhavebeenappliedtoanalyzingtheArrowsmithProgramincludingdescriptiveresearch(e.g.,casestudyandsurvey),associational(e.g.,correlationalandcausal-comparative),andinterventionresearch(whichinvestigatestheimpactofaninterventiononindividualsorgroups).

Thisevidence-basedresearchhasusedavarietyofresearchdesigns,differentmeasures,botheducationalandcognitive,andstudiedstudentsindifferentschoolsimplementingtheArrowsmithProgram.Datacollectionmethodsincludeinterview,neuroimaging,standardizedacademicandcognitiveassessments,behaviouralassessmentandself-reporting.Outcomeshavebeenmeasuredintermsofacademicresults,rateoflearning,cognitiveresults,andchangesinthebrain.

Thesestudieshavebeenundertakenbyavarietyofinstitutionsaroundtheworldbyrespectedresearchers.Thisdocumentoutlinesboththecompletedresearch,includinghighlightsoffindingsandoutcomes,anddetailsofcurrentresearchprojects.

CHRONOLOGYOFPASTRESEARCH:

1. August15,1997 CorrelatesofaTestofMotorSymbolSequencingPerformance

BarbaraA.Young,M.A.&DonaldF.Burrill,Ph.D.ProfessorEmeritus,OntarioInstituteforStudiesinEducation,UniversityofTorontoPosterSession–105thAPAAnnualConvention,Chicago,August15,1997

Thisresearchpaperinvestigatedtherelationshipbetweenatestdevelopedtomeasuretherateoflearningarepeatedsequenceofsymbolsasanautomaticmotorpatternandstandardizedtestsofwritingandcopying.

Findings:Performanceonthemotorsymbolsequencingtest,forthecontrolgroupalone,andthecontrolgroupcombinedwiththelearningdisabledgroup,correlatedsignificantlywithstandardizedtestsofcopyingandhandwriting.

Thispreliminaryevidencesuggeststhatatestoflearningamotorsymbolsequence,developedbyArrowsmithProgram,discriminatesbetweenagroupidentifiedaslearningdisabledandacontrolgroup.Furtherresearchisneededtoseeifthistestcouldbeusedtoidentifyindividualsatriskofhavingdifficultywiththemotoractofthewritingprocess.

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2. June1998 ResultsfromfirstyearofSt.PatrickCatholicSecondarySchoolandArrowsmithProgramPilotProject

StudyundertakenbystafffromtheTorontoCatholicDistrictSchoolBoard(TCDSB)andArrowsmithProgramondatacollectedbyTCDSBteachers

Apilotprojectundertakeninco-operationwithSt.PatrickCatholicSecondarySchoolintheTorontoCatholicDistrictSchoolBoard.Thepurposeofthestudywastoprovideevidence-basefortheefficacyoftheArrowsmithPrograminimprovingacademicperformanceforagroupofgrade9and10learningdisabledstudentsinapublicsecondaryschool.

Thereportsummarizestheaveragedquantitativeimprovementsseenin19studentsworkingon4cognitiveareasovera7-monthperiod.

Findings:After7monthsofcognitiveintervention,theaveragechangeincourseworkperformanceforArrowsmithstudentsfromterm1toterm2wasagainof11%andperformanceonstandardizedtestsofreadingcomprehension,readingspeed,wordrecognition,vocabulary,verbalreasoning,visualmemoryandwrittenlanguageimproved.Parentsandstudentsreportednoticeableimprovementsinthestudents’concentration,focus,listeningandorganizationalskills,timemanagement,self-esteemandself-expression.Basedonthepositivefindings,theTCDSBcontinuedtooffertheArrowsmithProgramtohighschoolstudentsandexpandedtheprogramtoimplementationattheelementaryschoollevel.

3. 1999-2007 ChangesObservedonCognitiveScoresofArrowsmithProgramStudents

PreparedbyHowardEaton,Ed.M.

ChangesonStandardizedCognitiveMeasuresofstudentsintheArrowsmithProgramobservedatEatonArrowsmithSchoolorbyEatonLearningCentre

Findings:StudentsdemonstratedsignificantgainsaftertimespentintheArrowsmithProgramonstandardizedmeasuresthataredirectlyrelatedtolearningskills,cognitivefunctioningandacademicoutcomessuchas:cognitiveefficiency,workingmemory,visualmotorintegration,visualperceptualfunctioning,auditoryprocessingforspeechsounds,semanticknowledge,andachievementskills.

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4. July2000 EvaluationoftheImplementationoftheArrowsmithProgramintheTorontoCatholicDistrictSchoolBoard(TCDSB)

StudyundertakenbyresearchersfromtheTorontoCatholicDistrictSchoolBoardandTorontoHospitalforSickChildren.

Athreemonthstudycomparing15studentsintheArrowsmithProgramwithintheTCDSBtoagroupofTCDSBstudentsusingAutoskill’sAcademyofReadingProgram.ThestudymeasuresfortheAutoskill’sgroupwereadministeredpreandpostinterventionwhereastheArrowsmithProgramstudentshadbeenintheprogramforseveralmonthssoatruepre-interventionbaselinecouldnotbeestablished.

Findings:TheresultsofthisbriefevaluationprojectindicatethatbothArrowsmithandAutoSkillprogramsproducedstatisticallysignificantgainsinspecificacademicskillsoverthethreeandone-halfmonthperiodoftheproject.

Parentandstudentquestionnaireresponsesdemonstrated,thatforthestudentsintheArrowsmithProgram,thisprogramwasseentobeofbenefittothestudentsonacademicandcognitivedomainsinthecurrentelementaryandsecondaryprogramsaswellasthosestudentswhohadbeeninthesecondaryprogramthepreviousyear(completedatSt.PatrickinJune1999).

5. August7,2000 TreatmentOutcomeforaMotorSymbolSequencingDysfunction

BarbaraA.Young,M.A.&DonaldF.Burrill,Ph.D.ProfessorEmeritus,OntarioInstituteforStudiesinEducation,UniversityofTorontoPosterSession–105thAPAAnnualConvention,Chicago,August15,1997

Studyinvestigatedtherelationshipbetweenaprogramdesignedtotrainautomaticwrittenmotorsymbolsequencesforagroupof12learningdisabledindividualshavingdifficultywiththewritingprocessandoutcomemeasuresonatestdevelopedtomeasuretherateoflearningarepeatedsequenceofsymbolsasanautomaticmotorpatternandstandardizedtestsofwritingandcopying.

Findings:Significantpositivechangeswerefoundfrompre-to-post-treatmenttestingonallmeasures.Thestudyconcludes:“…forindividualsidentifiedashavingcertainspecificdifficultieswiththewritingprocess,thetreatmentprogramdescribedinthispapersignificantlyimprovedsubjects’performanceontestsoflearningasymbolsequence,clericalspeedandaccuracy,handwriting,andcopying.”

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Schoolyearending2002-20036. ArrowsmithProgramEvaluationReportCompletedfortheVancouverSchoolBoard(VSB)

StudyundertakenbyDr.LindaSiegel,ProfessorofEducationalandCounsellingPsychologyandSpecialEducationattheUniversityofBritishColumbia.

TenstudentswereselectedbytheVancouverSchoolBoard(VSB)atanElementarySchoolfortheArrowsmithProgramexperimentalgroupandacomparisongroupofsevenstudentsinanExtendedLearningAssistanceClass(ELAC)intheVSB.ThefocusoftheELACgroupwasonimprovingreadingandwritingskills.

Findings:In2013,anindependentre-analysisofdatawasdonebyDr.DarrenIrwinofUBCandDr.WilliamJ.LanceeoftheUniversityofToronto.Thisre-analysisfoundonlytwosignificantresults.OnboththeComprehensionandSpellingtests,theArrowsmithgrouphadsignificantlyhighergainsthantheELACgroup(Comprehension;P=0.002;Spelling:P=0.012).

7. January22,2003 ReportontheTorontoCatholicDistrictSchoolBoard(TCDSB)StudyoftheArrowsmithProgramforLearningDisabilities

StudyundertakenbyDr.WilliamJ.Lancee,Ph.D.,HeadofResearchintheDepartmentofPsychiatryatMountSinaiHospitalandAssociateProfessor,DepartmentofPsychiatry,UniversityofToronto.

Aone-yearresearchstudycomparingstudentsidentifiedaslearningdisabledenrolledintheArrowsmithProgram(AP)withlearningdisabledstudentsinatraditionalspecialeducationprogramthatwasconductedoverthe2001/2002schoolyearintheTorontoCatholicDistrictSchoolBoard.Astudycomparingoutcomemeasuresof30grade2tograde7studentsenrolledintheArrowsmithProgramfrom4schoolsintheTorontoCatholicDistrictSchoolBoard(TCDSB)to10studentsinatraditionalspecialeducationclassroomintheTCDSBforstudentswithlearningdisabilities.

Findings:ThestudystronglysupportedtheArrowsmithProgram(AP)asinstrumentalinchangingthedevelopmentalcourseofthemajorityofchildrenwithlearningdisabilities(LD)inthissample.

Inonly12months,almostonethirdoftheAPstudentswereonacoursethatbroughtthemclosertotheirpeers.Another27%improvedtheirperformanceatthesamerateasexpectedfromtheirnon-LDpeers,thatis,theystayedatthesamedistancebutdidnotfallfurtherbehind.AllotherAPstudents(43%)improvedatleastsomewhatonthevariousachievementtests.Noneofthe10studentsinthecomparisongroupprogressedsubstantiallybeyondtheirentrystatus.

ThestudentsinAPoverthecourseoftheyearmadesignificantgainsonstandardizedmeasuresofreadingcomprehension,wordrecognition,wordattack,wordcomprehension,arithmetic,andspellingascomparedtothestudentsinthetraditionalspecialeducationprogram.

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8. November24,2004 TCDSBLearningDisabilitiesProgramReview

StudyundertakenbyTheSpecialEducationAdvisoryCommitteeoftheTorontoCatholicDistrictSchoolBoard.

TheProgramreviewincludedtheArrowsmithProgram,theHospitalforSickChildrenLearningDisabilitiesResearchProgram,self-containedspecialeducationclassroomandresource/withdrawalorintegrationintheregularclasswithmodificationsand/oraccommodations.

WithrespecttotheArrowsmithProgram,thereportconcluded:“TheArrowsmithprogramhashadastatisticallysignificantimpactonmostprocessingmeasuresandonereadingmeasure.EffectsizeanalysesindicatethatgainswereachievedontheProcessingSpeedmeasureontheWJPairCancellationmeasure.Gainswerealsoachievedonthreeofthephonologicalmeasures.Onmostmeasures,studentsmaintainedrelativestandingwiththeirpeers.”

Thirty-fivestudents(11femaleand24male)intheArrowsmithProgramintheTCDSBfromgrades3to6intheArrowsmithProgramweretestedbyTCDSBstaff.

Findings:Significantgainswerefoundonthefollowingmeasures:

WISC(fourthedition)

• ProcessingSpeedIndex• WorkingMemoryIndex

ComprehensiveTestofPhonologicalProcessing:

• PhonologicalMemoryCompositeScore• RapidNamingCompositeScore• AlternateRapidNamingCompositeScore

WoodcockJohnson(WJ-111)

• WJPairCancellationRawScore

9. November20,2005 ReportonanOutcomeEvaluationoftheArrowsmithProgramforTreatingLearningDisabledStudents

StudyundertakenbyDr.WilliamJ.Lancee,Ph.D.HeadofResearchintheDepartmentofPsychiatryatMountSinaiHospitalandAssociateProfessor,DepartmentofPsychiatry,UniversityofToronto.

Athree-yearoutcomestudyof79childrenwithlearningdisabilitiesconductedatArrowsmithSchoolfundedbytheCanadianDonnerFoundation.

Anumberofstandardizedmeasureswereusedsuchasachievementtestsandtestsofmentalabilityaswellasmeasuresoflearningcapacityandchangesinratesoflearning.

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Findings:Theamountandrateofimprovementwerenotdependentonotherbaselinecharacteristicssuchasage,genderorIQandwereslightlyrelatedtointakeseveritylevel.AlldeficitareasidentifiedbytheArrowsmithProgramimprovedasaresultoftheapplicationofArrowsmithcognitiveexercises.Aspecificityofeffectwasfoundsuggestingthatthecognitiveexercisecouldbedirectlylinkedtoacademicperformanceimprovement,forexampleimprovementonthecognitivefunctionsrelatedtoquantificationandreasoningwerestronglycorrelatedwithimprovementsonastandardizedtestofarithmeticwhereasimprovementonthecognitivefunctionrelatedtovisualsymbolmemorystronglycorrelatedwithimprovementsonstandardizedtestsofwordrecognition,spelling,wordattackandvisuallettermemory.ThepatternofcorrelationsfoundsupportedtheAPtheoreticalframeworksoftheroleofspecificcognitivefunctionsunderlyingspecificacademicskilllearning.

10. January25,2007 ReportontheeffectivenessoftheArrowsmithProgramintheTorontoCatholicDistrictSchoolBoard(TCDSB)

StudyundertakenbyArrowsmithProgramattherequestoftheDirectorofSpecialEducationoftheTorontoCatholicSchoolBoardusingdatacollectedbyTCDSBteachersandsupervisedbyDr.WilliamJ.Lancee,Ph.D.HeadofResearchintheDepartmentofPsychiatryatMountSinaiHospitalandAssociateProfessor,DepartmentofPsychiatry,UniversityofToronto

Afollow-upstudytrackingprogressofstudentsintheArrowsmithProgramintheTCDSBonstandardizedachievementmeasuresandontheamountofresourcesupportneededpreandpostArrowsmithProgram.Dataonstandardizedachievementmeasureswasavailablefor120studentsinthisstudy.

ThepurposeoftheresearchwastostudytheeffectivenessoftheArrowsmithProgramintheTCDSB.Thestudyincludedreportsfromparents,teachersandstudentsofspecificobservablecognitiveandacademicgains,resourcesupportandonthesuccessofTCDSBArrowsmithstudentsinhighschoolandpost-secondaryprograms.

Findings:Anincreaseintherateoflearningonacademicskillsbybetween1.5to3timestheratestheywerelearningpriortotheArrowsmithProgram(wordrecognition–3timesfaster,arithmetic– 1.5to2timesfaster,readingcomprehension–2to3timesfasterandreadingspeed–2to3timesfaster)

Specificchangeswerealsonotedincognitivefunctioningintheareasof:visualmemory;auditorymemory;logicalreasoning;non-verbalproblemsolving;concentrationandfocus;numbersense;thinkingandproblemsolving;conceptualunderstanding;andcomprehension.

AsignificantreductionintheamountofresourcesupportrequiredduringandafterArrowsmithProgramintervention.

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11. November2013 ACaseStudyofTheLearningDisabilitiesAssociationOfSaskatchewan(LDAS)ArrowsmithProgram

PrincipalInvestigator:DebraKemp-KooPhDCandidate,UniversityofSaskatoon,Saskatchewan

CaseStudyresearchwasconductedtoinvestigatehowparticipationintheLearningDisabilitiesAssociationofSaskatchewan(LDAS)ArrowsmithProgramaffectedthecognitive,academic,emotional,andinterpersonalfunctioningoffivestudentswhoattendedthisprogramfortwotothreeyears.

Findings:

ParticipationintheLDASArrowsmithprogramwasanoverallpositiveexperienceforfourofthefivestudentsandtheirparentsincludedinthiscasestudyresearch.

AllofthestudentswhoparticipatedintheresearchafterparticipationintheArrowsmithProgramhadsignificantly:

• Highercognitivefunctioning/processinginatleastonebroadareameasuredbystandardizedtests

• Improvedinsomeaspectofmemory(workingmemoryand/orlongtermretrieval).

MostofthestudentsafterparticipationintheArrowsmithProgramhadsignificantly:• Highercognitiveprocessingscoresinmanyareas• Improvedinareassuchasmemory,focus,decisionmaking,andcomprehension• Improvedinatleastonestandardizedachievementtestresult,themostcommonbeing

writingandacademicfluency

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Allfourofthestudentswhohadreturnedtoregularschoolsweretakingacademicprogrammingatahigherlevelthantheywerepreviously.

SocialEmotional:• Allbutoneofthestudentsincreasedinself-confidenceandhappinessafterparticipationin

theLDASArrowsmithprogram.• Someofthestudentsbecamelessemotionallyreactive,betterdecisionmakers,moreself-

reliant

TheArrowsmithProgramwasofbenefitoncognitive,academicandsocialemotionalmeasuresfor4ofthe5studentsstudied.TheonestudentwhodidnotreportthesamebenefitsfromtheArrowsmithProgramhademotionalstresslevelsabovetheoptimallevelforlearninganddevelopment.Thisfactorappearedtobethemainreasonshehadlesssuccessintheprogram.

12. June,2014 EffectsoftheArrowsmithProgramonAcademicPerformance:APilotStudy

Institution:UniversityofCalgary,BrainGainLabResearchers:HannaA.Kubas,JessicaA.Carmichael,KimR.Fitzer,JamesB.HaleAstudypresentedatapostersessionattheCanadianPsychologicalConvention,VancouverJune2014

Findings:FollowingArrowsmithProgramintervention,allacademicscores(broadreading,comprehension,mathematics,writing,spelling,andreceptivelanguage)improvedsignificantlyandwereintheaveragerangeexceptmathfluency.Strengtheningcognitiveneuropsychologicalfunctionspresumedtounderlieacademicachievementdeficitsimprovesreading,mathematics,andwritingbytargetingthecause(i.e.,cognitivedeficit)ratherthanthesymptoms(i.e.,achievementdeficits).

13. August,2014 ABrain-BasedInterventionProgramThatChangesCognition:ImplicationsforAcademicAchievement

Institution:UniversityofCalgary,BrainGainLabResearchers:KimR.Fitzer,HannaA.Kubas,JessicaA.Carmichael,HowardEaton,JamesB.Hale

AstudypresentedatapostersessionattheAmericanPsychologicalConvention,WashingtonD.C.August2014.

Findings:FollowingArrowsmithPrograminterventionimprovementswerefoundonthefollowingcognitivedomains:AuditoryProcessing;FluidReasoning;ProcessingSpeed;Short-TermMemory;PhonemicAwareness;andWorkingMemory.

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14. 2015 ComparisonstudyofgrowthrateofstudentsinGrades3,4and5onstandardisedacademicmeasures

StudyundertakenbyHolyTrinityParishschools,EastBentleigh,Melbourne,Australia.

AllstudentsinGrades3,4and5completedtheACERPatMathsandReadingComprehension assessments.ThegrowthrateofArrowsmithProgram(AP)studentsinthosegradeswascompared totheirpeers.ResultsshowedthatthegrowthrateofAPstudentswashigherthantheirpeerson bothmeasures.

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15. December2016MotorSymbolSequencingWholeCohortStudy

StudyundertakenbyaprimaryschoolinAustralia.

AstudycomparingresultsacrossfourGradeOneclasses.• Studentsperclass:18to22• 3classes:traditionalhandwritingprogram• 1class:30minutes/daydoingtheArrowsmithexerciseforlearningmotorplansnecessaryfor

writingAssessmentTool:WoldSentenceCopyTest-astandardizedvisualmotortestusedasapredictorofacademicperformance

Findings:

Thestudentsreceiving30minutesperdayofacognitiveprogramdesignedtoimprovemotorplanninginvolvedinreadingandwritingshowedsignificantlygreaterimprovementonameasureofwritingthanstudentsreceivingtraditionalacademiccurriculumingrade1.AtRiskReaders• 5studentsidentifiedatriskforreadingproblemsinkindergarten;ReadingRecoveryprogram

recommendedforGrade1• All5studentsplacedinArrowsmithclassinGrade1• 10weeksintheprogram,all5studentsreadingatproficientlevelandnolongerrecommended

asneedingReadingRecoveryprogram

StudentResults ArrowsmithClass

Gi/edClass

AcademicClass1

AcademicClass2

AverageGrowth(le8ersperminute) 21 17 13 9

PreTest PostTest PreTest PostTest PreTest PostTest PreTest PostTest

No.studentsatorabovegradelevel

Change:

2 19

+17

6 14

+8

7 9

+2

1 9

+8

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16. August42017 ChangesInBrain-BehaviorRelationshipsFollowingA3-MonthPilotCognitiveInterventionProgramForAdultsWithTraumaticBrainInjury

Institution:UniversityofBritishColumbia,FacultyofMedicineResearchers:S.Porter,I.J.Torres,W.Panenka,Z.Rajwani,D.Fawcett,A.Hyder,N.Virji-BabulPublishedin:HeliyonFindings:“OurresultsprovidepreliminaryevidencethatparticipatinginanintensivecognitiveinterventionprogramwasassociatedwithneuroplasticchangesinadultswithchronicTBIthatoccurredinparallelwithimprovementsincognition.Overall,weobservedashiftfromabaselinepatternofnetworkorganizationthatmaybecharacterizedbyneuralinefficiencyanddecreasedcognitiontoareorganizationthatreflectedimprovedefficiencywithpossibleimprovementsinfluidcognition.Importantlythisdatasuggeststhatbrainnetworkorganizationiscapableofreorganizationeveninchronicpatientswithintenseintervention.Furtherworkwithalargersampleisclearlyneededtounderstandthenuancesofhowbrainorganizationimpactsoncognitiveabilityandperformance.”

ARROWSMITHPROGRAM:CurrentresearchResearchStudiesCurrentlyUnderway

1) StructuralBrainChange,BehaviouralAndAchievement“DoestheArrowsmith“intervention”affectbrainstructureandfunction?”Institution:UniversityofBritishColumbia:FacultyofMedicine,BrainBehaviourLaboratoryPrincipalInvestigator:Dr.LaraBoydCommenced:2014

Researchprocessandstructure:Brainscansoffifty-fourArrowsmithpupilsascomparedtotwocontrolgroups—onecomprisingindividualswithoutlearningdisabilitiesandtheotheragroupwithlearningdisabilities(LD)whoarereceivingtraditionalspecialeducationsupport.Thestudyincludeschildrenages12-19,andwasdesignedwiththreesubjectgroups:1)StudentswithLDparticipatingintheArrowsmithProgram;2)PublicschoolstudentswithoutLD;3)PublicschoolstudentswithLDintraditionalspecialeducationprograms.Thereare95participantsinthestudywithapproximatelyhalfinsubjectgroup1andhalfsplitbetweenthetwocontrolgroups.Progress:Dataforfourtime-pointshasbeencollected:

Time-point1-priortointervention;Time-point2-after3monthsofintervention;Timepoint3-after10monthsofintervention;Time-point4-after20monthsofintervention.

Theresearchteam’sgoalistopublishseveralpapersontheirfindings.

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Somefindingsatendofyearone:

• Significantlyincreased activationintheexecutivecontrolnetwork• Changeswerenotedinbrainregionsrelatedtonumeracy, abstractthinking,andsensory

integration• Somebrainareasbecamelessactiveinthe Arrowsmithgroupcomparedtothelearning-

disabledcontrolgroup,and inthiscasethechangesuggestedamoreefficientbrain• Arrowsmithgroupmadesignificantgainsinstandardizedcognitive andachievementtesting

whencomparedtothelearning-disabled control group at the end of one academic year.

2) LongitudinalStudyLookingAtBrainChangeStructuralAndFunctionalImaging,AsWellAsBehaviouralAndAchievementChangesThroughCognitiveAndAcademicTestingInstitution:SouthernIllinoisUniversityPrincipalInvestigator:Dr.GregRose-Director,CenterforIntegratedResearchinCognitive&NeuralSciencesCommenced:2014Recruitmentforthisstudyremainsactiveasthedatacollectionandanalysisisongoing.

Researchprocessandstructure:TheresearchDr.GregRoseisconductingontheArrowsmithProgramisalongitudinalstudylookingatbrainchangethroughstructuralandfunctionalimaging,aswellasbehaviouralandachievementchangesthroughcognitiveandacademictesting.Multipleformsofimagingarebeingusedinthestudy,includingstructuralMRI,andfunctionalMRI.Thestudyinvolves40participantsenrolledatBrehmPreparatoryAcademy,whichspecializesinworkingwithstudentswithlearningdifficulties.Theparticipants,aged12-19,weresplitacrosstwosubjectgroups:1)Studentswithlearningdisabilities(LD)participatingintheArrowsmithProgram;2)StudentswithLDnotparticipatingintheArrowsmithProgram.

ProgressSomefindingsatendofyearone:

• Preliminary results,based on behavioral testing and fMRImeasurestakenoneyearapartareshowingbetterexecutivefunction,whichshould translateintobetterorganizingofdailytasksandfollowingthroughtoget themaccomplished,aswellasmorethoughtfuldecisionmakingandoverall planning.

• Theimagingresultssofarsuggestthatbrainregions involvedininternalprocessingofinformation-“thoughtfulness”-and memoryshouldfunctionbetter.

• PositiveshiftsintheExecutiveControlNetworkandtheAttentionControlNetworkinArrowsmithsubjects

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3) ImpactOfTheArrowsmithProgramOnWorkingMemoryInstitution:UniversityofBritishColumbia,FacultyofEducationPrincipalInvestigator:Dr.RachelWeberCommenced:October2016Recruitmentforthisstudyremainsactive.

Researchprocessandstructure:Dr.RachelWeberisworkingincollaborationwithDr.Boyd’steamtostudytheimpactoftheArrowsmithProgramonworkingmemory,whichishighlycorrelatedtoacademicsuccess.ParticipantsfromallthreesubjectgroupsinDr.Boyd’slongitudinalLDstudyarealsoinvolvedinDr.Weber’sworkingmemorystudy.

4) EvaluationOfSocialAndEmotionalDevelopmentInStudentsAcrossThreeDifferentEducationalContextsInstitution:UniversityofBritishColumbia,FacultyofEducationPrincipalInvestigator:Dr.KimberlySchonert-ReichlCommenced:September2017Recruitmentforthisstudyremainsactive.

Researchprocessandstructure:Dr.KimberlySchonert-Reichl,incollaborationwithDr.LaraBoydandherteam,willbeconductingaresearchinvestigationtoevaluatesocialandemotionaldevelopmentinstudentsacrossthreedifferenteducationalcontexts,includingonegroupintheArrowsmithProgram.Inaddition,itisintendedtoassessneural-correlatesofbehaviourandsocialemotionallearning(SEL)competenciesbylinkingtheSELdatacollectedwithdatafromDr.LaraBoyd’sstudy.

5) StudyOnTheEffectsOfArrowsmith’sCognitiveIntensiveProgramOnParticipantsAges11-

19Institution:UniversityofBritishColumbia,FacultiesofMedicineandEducationPrincipalInvestigators:Dr.LaraBoydandDr.RachelWeberCommenced:July2017Recruitmentforthisstudyremainsactive.

Researchprocessandstructure:Thissix-weekprogramfocusesontheSymbolRelationscognitivefunctionthatprocessesandunderstandsideas.Thisisacriticalfunctioninvolvedinprocessingconcepts,quicklyunderstandingwhatisreadandheard,gaininginsight,logicalreasoning,andmathematicalreasoning.ThisisthefirstopportunitytoresearchtheimpactofonecognitiveexerciseonparticipantswithnopriorArrowsmithexperience.Thisstudyusedpre-andpost-functionalimagingaswellascognitiveandachievementmeasures.ThisstudywillbeconductedagaininJuly/August2018tocontinuetogrowthesamplesize.

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6) StudyOnTheEffectsOfArrowsmith’sCognitiveIntensiveProgramOnParticipantsAged11-19

Institution:SouthernIllinoisUniversityPrincipalInvestigator:Dr.GregRose-Director,CenterforIntegratedResearchinCognitive&NeuralSciencesCommenced:July2017

Researchprocessandstructure:InJuly2017,Dr.GregRosebeganastudyontheeffectsofArrowsmith’sCognitiveIntensiveProgramonparticipants,aged11-19.Therewere22participantsinthestudythatreceivedpre-andpost-functionalimaging.TheaimofthisstudyistounderstandtheimpactoftheSymbolRelationsexerciseonbrainstructureandfunction.Datacollectionforthestudyiscomplete,anddataanalysisbeganinSeptember2017.ThisstudywillbeconductedagaininJuly/August2018tocontinuetogrowthesamplesize.Participantswillalsoreceiveaquestionnaire,10monthsaftercompletingtheCognitiveIntensiveProgram,tocollectinformationonthelong-termimpactofthecognitivechange.

7) EffectsOfTheArrowsmithProgramOnStudentsEnrolledInTheFull-TimeProgram

Institution:SouthernIllinoisUniversityPrincipalInvestigator:Dr.GregRose-Director,CenterforIntegratedResearchinCognitive&NeuralSciencesCommenced:September2017Recruitmentforthisstudyisongoing.Researchprocessandstructure:InSeptember2017,Dr.GregRosebeganasecondlearningdisabilitiesstudyontheeffectsoftheArrowsmithProgramwithstudentsenrolledinthefull-timeprograminToronto,Canada.Thestudycomprisesof13-studyparticipantsaged11-19.Thisstudyisinvestigatingbrainchangethroughstructuralandfunctionalimaging,aswellasbehaviouralandachievementchangesthroughcognitiveandacademictesting.Dr.RoseisworkingincollaborationwithDr.WeberfromtheUniversityofBritishColumbiaonthisstudy.