Background: The idea that screens 'stole children's focus' and that reading books, in contrast, stimulates selective attention is theoretically complex and has largely been ignored in empirical tests. Research has identified positive associations between reading habits and various dimensions of attention in children, but most research is…

Numerous studies have revealed an alarming prevalence of test anxiety among Chinese junior high school students. Prevention of test anxiety in this population has become crucial. Brief meditation intervention (BMI) has shown promising results for promoting students' well-being and reducing test anxiety, but its mechanism for reducing test anxiety…

Fidget toys are recommended as "sensory" tools to improve the attention and performance of elementary students with autism. The purpose of this study was to evaluate how fidget toys affected the visual attention and skill acquisition of elementary students with autism during storybook reading. Provision of fidget toys was compared with a…

Stability balls have become a common option for alternative seating in classrooms. While the social validity of stability ball classroom seating remains high among students and teachers, findings on the effectiveness of this alternative seating method are mixed. This is particularly true when the intent of the intervention is to increase student…

The present study examined whether literacy difficulties in both grades 2 and 3 are associated with social and generalized anxiety within the school environment in grade 5 and if children with different literacy difficulties differ in anxiety levels compared to typically developing children in grade 5 after controlling for inattention. Sixty-nine…

With the development of information technology, co-viewing of live video streaming (LVS) has become a popular online learning method. However, existing studies have found inconsistent results regarding the effects of co-viewing, which could be due to the impact of learner-learner interactions. The present study tested the effects of co-viewing LVS…

Studies of the association between dyslexia and mental health have typically tried to minimise the influence of dyslexia comorbidities on the outcomes. However, in the "real world", many children with dyslexia have these comorbidities. In this study, we tested (1) if children with dyslexia with three common comorbidities -- inattention,…

The emotion of boredom has sparked considerable interest in research on teaching and learning, but boredom during tests and exams has not yet been examined. Based on the control-value theory of achievement emotions, we hypothesized that students may experience significant levels of boredom during testing ("test boredom"; Hypothesis 1)…

Academic task completion is essential to success in school, and academic activity across individuals appears to be maintained by different variables. The purpose of this study was to assess variables that might promote higher or lower levels of academic engagement. Participants were six general education students in elementary school, and academic…

The Brain Balance® (BB) programme has been examined in a centre-based setting, but not yet in a school setting. This pilot study assessed sensorimotor, behavioural and cognitive functioning of students aged 5-15 years with pre-existing developmental and academic challenges who attended three one-hour sessions/week of the BB programme on-site at…

Research examining the joint relationships between test anxiety, metacognition, and mathematics achievement revealing the mediational role of metacognition in the relationship between test anxiety and mathematics achievement is sparse. A mediation study was designed to redress this imbalance. The Children's Test Anxiety Scale (CTAS), Junior…

Teachers' psychological well-being is linked to their classroom teaching and student development outcomes. Kindergarten teachers are generally subject to psychological stress and burnout, but mindfulness training programs may be a promising way to alleviate these issues. This pilot study used a mixed-methods design to evaluate the feasibility and…

Competence with fractions is important for learning more advanced mathematics. The present study examined the predictive value of sustained attention, verbal and visuospatial working memory, cognitive flexibility, fluid intelligence, multiplication and division abilities for fraction knowledge in fifth grade. Participants were 97 elementary school…

Background: Visual-spatial attention is associated with reading development, but we do not know whether this is primarily driven by the deployment of goal-directed or stimulus-driven attention. Method: One hundred ninety-four Chinese-speaking first graders completed two visual search tasks, in which they searched for a target among a number of…

In an era of constant digital distractions, maintaining attention is a growing challenge for young students. This paper explores how STEM education and AI-driven learning tools can enhance attention skills by fostering problem-solving, analytical thinking, and cognitive endurance. STEM disciplines require sustained focus, while AI-powered adaptive…