There is growing evidence that the amount of attention paid plays a key role in the processing of information. Such evidence suggests that there is a relationship between the attention span of children in class and the abilities demonstrated by the children.
Literature Review
Children’s attention span in classrooms is being negatively affected by the pervasive nature of the television into homes and the increasing time spent by children watching television. In a study done to evaluate the impact of watch television on the attention span of fourth and fifth grade children, it was found that Irrespective of the type of program watched, the ability of these children to pay attention in class dropped with the increase in the amount of time spent watching television (Levin & Waite, 2000).
The link between children’s ability and their attention span is indicated in studies into children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).Studies into the cognitive skills and verbal and spatial working memory of children with ADHD and normal children shows that children with ADHD are poorer at comprehending inferences, monitoring comprehension of instructions, verbal working memory, spatial span and spatial working memory (McInnes, Humphries, Hogg-Johnson & Tannock, 2003).
The lower cognitive and academic skills as a result of inattention and hyperactivity start at a very early age, but lose their significance when inattention and hyper activity in children are controlled (Friedman-Weieneth, Harvey, Youngwirth & Goldstein, 2007).
Commodari and Guarnera, 2005, conducted a study on a public junior high school on children in the age group 11-14 years, to investigate the interaction between reading skills and overall scholastic performance as rated by teachers and the components of attention, visual reaction time, simple immediate span and selectivity. Based on their findings they concluded that there was a strong link between reading speed and accuracy and scholastic assessment as rated by teachers with simple immediate span of attention in class and visual reaction time.
Methodology and Planning
The study plans to investigate the reading skill and overall scholastic performance as rated by teachers in the age group 8-10 in relation to their attention span in class, as a means to evaluate the correlation between children’s ability and attention span in class.
For this purpose one hundred students in a public school in the age group 8-10 would be randomly selected as participants and their class teachers requested to participate in the study. Administrative sanction of the school authorities would be sough and received before the start of the study. Parent consent of the participants would be received before inclusion in the study. Reading skill would be evaluated using Comprehension, Accuracy and Speed tests. Overall scholastic performance would be evaluated based on ratings of the class teacher. Computerized multi-task test consisting of Simple Reaction Time, Digit Span and Colour-Word Interference would be employed to assess attention span in class.
The data received would be collected and suitably compiled for statistical analysis of the data. Multivariate logistic regression analyses would be the statistical means used to analyse the data to arrive at the findings of the study in relation to the correlation between children’s ability and attention span of children in class. The conclusion of the study would be drawn from the findings of the data analysis.
Literary References
Commadari, E. & Guarnera, M. 2005, ‘Attention and reading skills’, Perceptual and motor skills, vol. 100, no. 2, pp. 375-386.
Friedman-Weieneth, J. L., Harvey, E. A., Youngwirth, S. D. & Goldstein, L. H. 2007, ‘The Relation between 3-Year-Old Children’s Skills and Their Hyperactivity, Inattention, and Aggression’, Journal of Educational Psychology, vol. 99, no. 3, pp. 671-681.
Levin, L. E. & Waite, B. M. 2000, ‘Television Viewing and Attentional Abilities in Fourth and Fifth Grade Children’, Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, vol. 21, no. 6, pp. 667-679.
McInnes, A., Humphries, T., Hogg-Johnson, S. & Tannock, R. 2003, ‘Listening comprehension and working memory are impaired in attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder irrespective of language impairment’, Journal of abnormal child psychology, vol. 31, no. 4, pp. 427-443.