70008 - Neuropsychological Rehabilitation in Childhood and Adolescence

Learning outcomes

The course aim to acquire the knowledge:

- of the processes of cognitive and affective development.

- of the processes of cerebral plasticity in childhood

- of the basic neuropsychological treatment for cognitive and affective deficits in childhood

 

Course contents

The course will be held in the first semester (February - May 2021) and will be divided in two parts.

The first part (30 hours, Prof. Frassinetti) will approach the neuroplasticity and the general principles of rehabilitation in childhood, the rehabilitation of memory, executive functions, ADHD. Moreover, it will address the interpretative models and therapeuthic approach of the autism spectrum disorders.

The second part (15 hours, Prof. Candini) will target the intervention in learning difficulties, which includes both early neuropsychological rehabilitation on core cognitive processes at preschool and school age and specific treatment of learning skills: reading, writing, and number and calculation area.

Prof. Frassinetti program (30 hours):

- The clinical features and the rehabilitation treatment of autism spectrum disorders

- Neural palsticity and theories of neuropsychological rehabilitation in childhood

- The rehabilitation of the executive functions and memory

- The rehabilitation of ADHD

Prof. Candini program (15 hours):

- Rehabilitation of reading (developmental dyslexia)

- Rehabilitation of writing (developmental dysorthography and dysgraphia)

- Rehabilitation of numerical processing and calculation skills (developmental dyscalculia)

- Rehabilitation of non verbal learning difficulties

- Different functional profiles and etiologies of reading and writing learning disorders and differentiation of rehabilitation

- Early enhancement and neuropsychological rehabilitation of cognitive functions linked to scholastic learning

Readings/Bibliography

Prof. Frassinetti:

- Uta Frith. (2009) L’autismo. Spiegazione di un enigma. Edizioni Laterza.

In addition to the following texts, selected articles and slides can be found on "Materiali didattici".

Prof. Candini:

From the book: Tressoldi P.E. e Vio C. (2012). “Il trattamento dei Disturbi Specifici dell’Apprendimento scolastico”. Ed. Erickson, Trento.

• chapter 3 “Il trattamento della dislessia”
• chapter 4 “Il trattamento della disortografia”
• chapter 13 “La misura del cambiamento clinico tra efficacia ed efficienza”

 

• From the book "Disturbi e traiettorie atipiche del neurosviluppo. Diagnosi e intervento" di C. Pecini, D. Brizzolara (a cura di) (2020)
  
  - capitolo 13 “Disturbi specifici dell’apprendimento”

  From the book: Biancardi A; Mariani E., Pieretti M. (eds.) 2013. “Intervento logopedico nei DSA: La Discalculia”. Erickson, Trento.

• chapter 3 “Sostenere la cognizione numerica e prevenire le difficoltà in età prescolare”
• chapter 10. “Difficoltà specifiche nei numeri e nel calcolo: la riabilitazione”

From the book: Cornoldi, Mammarella, Fine (2016). “Nonverbal Learning Disabilities” Hoepli editore.

- Chapters 7 and 8: Strategies and Content of Interventions; Case Studies

Selected articles

- Galuschka K., Ise E., Krick K., Schulte-Körne G. (2014). Effectiveness of treatment approaches for children and adolescents with reading disabilities: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. PLoS One. 9(2):e89900.

- Gori S., Facoetti A. (2014). Perceptual learning as a possible new approach for remediation and prevention of developmental dyslexia. Vision Research, 99:78-87. Review

- Snowling M.J., Hulme C. (2012). Interventions for children's language and literacy difficulties. International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders, 47(1):27-34. Review

 

Teaching methods

Lectures. Throughout the lectures, clinical cases and videos will be presented.

The lessons are held at the Department of Psychology, Cesena Campus, Piazza Aldo Moro, 90.

It will also be possible to follow lectures electronically via Teams software.

Assessment methods

Verification of the learning outcomes takes place through the final exam that ensures the acquisition of the expected outcomes by conducting an oral test.

The exam test consists of:

The examination  will consist of 3 questions (2 questions concern Prof Frassinetti's program and 1 question concern Prof Candini's program)

The examination will evaluate the knowledge:

- of the processes of cognitive and affective development.

- of the processes of cerebral plasticity in childhood

- of the basic neuropsychological treatment for cognitive and affective deficits in childhood.

Assessment criteria

The following criteria will be applied for the evaluation of each answer (max 10 points each)

An answer which

demonstrates extensive theoretical and empirical knowledge and understanding of tested topic (0-5points);

reveals critical analysis and ability to integrate different aspects of the relevant literature (0-5 points).

It is necessary to sign up for the examination through the dedicated website, and within the deadline. Any problem in registering through the website should be promptly communicated to the administrative staff.

 

Teaching tools

PC and videoprojector will be used throughout the lessons. The teaching material presented in power point presentations will be made available to students online.

Office hours

See the website of Francesca Frassinetti

See the website of Michela Candini