Browsing by Author "Escobar, Jose-Pablo"

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    Direct and Indirect Effects of Inhibition and Flexibility to Reading Comprehension, Reading Fluency, and Decoding in Spanish
    (2023) Escobar, Jose-Pablo; Rosas Diaz, Ricardo
    This research aims to evaluate the predicting role of executive functions, specially inhibition and flexibility, in reading comprehension. Participants were evaluated with inhibition and flexibility measures in first grade, and later in third grade their reading comprehension, oral and silent reading fluency, as well as their decoding skills were measured. Results show that first grade inhibition and flexibility are direct predictors of third grade reading comprehension. When the indirect effect of inhibition and flexibility on reading comprehension was tested through measures of reading fluency and decoding, it was found that neither ORF nor decoding mediates the relationship between the variables. However, it was found that SRF is a variable that mediates the relationship between flexibility and reading comprehension. Results are discussed in the context of the relevance of early measures of inhibition and flexibility to explain reading comprehension and the role of SRF in this relationship.
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    Direct and Indirect Effects of Inhibition, Working Memory and Cognitive Flexibility on Reading Comprehension of Narrative and Expository Texts: Same or Different Effects?
    (2024) Escobar, Jose-Pablo; Espinoza, Victoria
    Reading skills are essential adaptive skills for daily life, enabling individuals to function effectively in society. This study examines the relations between executive functions components - including inhibition, working memory, and cognitive flexibility - and reading comprehension in both narrative and expository texts. A total of 263 fourth grade elementary school students participated in this study, who were evaluated on their reading comprehension skills, as well as on their executive functions and reading variables such as word reading, fluency and vocabulary. The results of this study suggest that inhibition, working memory and cognitive flexibility have direct and indirect effects on reading comprehension of narrative and expository texts. Especially, the direct effect of working memory is highlighted, both for reading comprehension of expository and narrative texts. Additionally, academic vocabulary is an important mediating variable between executive functions, especially inhibition, and reading comprehension in students of this age. These findings underscore the relevance of strengthening executive functions to improve reading comprehension, especially in middle school students.
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    Testing of a Drawing Toy for Children with Blindness: The Kuwu Experience
    (2021) Escobar, Jose-Pablo; Castro, Camila; Garolera, Marion; Sepulveda, Angelica; Santa Cruz, Martin; Rosas, Ricardo
    Play is a fundamental activity in early childhood and a source of cognitive development. One ludic activity in early childhood is drawing, a semiotic activity in which children can build and transform symbols and meanings in a way to reflect their thoughts and emotions. However, drawing has a visual component that is a challenge for some children with blindness or visual impairment. This research aims to evaluate a prototype of a haptic pencil called Kuwu. Through user's usability tests and expert heuristic inspection, we evaluated 10 children with blindness or visual impairments between 5 and 8 years old, from 2 schools of Santiago, Chile. Heuristics evaluation shows the minimalist design, ease, and flexibility of use of the pencil that allows children to draw independently. Usability testing is a foundational phase in any technological development, especially when creating from a universal design perspective.