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Objective: We evaluated the effect of a universal, teacher-training, violence-prevention program implemented in preschool, on high-risk children's behavior, achievement, and attendance in grade one of primary school. Methods: A cluster-randomized trial was conducted in 24 preschools in Kingston, Jamaica. Three children from each class with the highest level of teacher-reported conduct problems were recruited for evaluation of outcomes (n = 225 children). For this study, to increase power, we recruited an additional two children from each class with the next highest teacher-reported scores for conduct problems in preschool. In the final term of grade one of primary school, we assessed children's: (1) conduct problems and social skills at home and school, (2) academic achievement, language, and self-regulation skills, and (3) school attendance. Results: 214/225 (95.1%) of the children evaluated in preschool were assessed in grade one of primary school; an additional 150 children were recruited to give 364 children (181 intervention, 183 control). Significant benefits of intervention were found for child academic achievement (Effect size (ES) = 0.23, p = 0.02), oral language (ES = 0.28, p = 0.006), self-regulation (ES = 0.25, p = 0.007), and school attendance (ES = 0.30, p = 0.003). No significant benefits were found for observed conduct problems (ES = -0.13, p = 0.16), and parent-reported conduct problems (ES = 0.10, p = 0.31) and social skills (ES = -0.07, p = 0.52). Benefits to teacher-reported conduct problems and social skills were significant at p < 0.1 (ES = -0.16, p = 0.09, and ES = 0.19, p = 0.06, respectively). Conclusion: A scalable intervention involving training preschool teachers in classroom behavior management and how to promote child social-emotional competence led to positive outcomes in primary school across multiple child developmental domains for high-risk children.

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A cluster of factors affects nutritional status among adolescent girls in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). We investigated the association between school attendance and diet quality among 498 rural adolescent girls (352 attending and 146 not attending school) in Tecpán, Guatemala. In a cross-sectional study, we collected sociodemographic and anthropometric data and characterized the dietary intake using a Food Frequency Questionnaire. We then calculated diet quality using the Healthy Eating Score (HES). Multiple linear regression models were conducted to evaluate the effects of school attendance on diet quality. We found that the overall diet quality among the study participants was poor, according to the HES. However, those who attended school had significantly higher intakes of vitamin A-rich fruits and vegetables (P = 0.04), other fruits (P = 0.01), and milk and milk products (P = 0.004), but a higher intake of fast foods, chips, and saturated fatty acids (P < 0.001). Furthermore, the effects of school attendance on diet quality were significant after adjusting for sociodemographic and lifestyle factors (ß coefficient = -1.70, 95% CI: -3.30 to -0.11) but was attenuated when further adjusted for weight status (ß coefficient = -1.58, 95% CI: -3.17 to 0.02). Our findings suggest that diet quality among girls in rural Guatemala is poor, particularly among those who do not attend school. To advance our understanding of adolescent diet in LMICs, future studies should include adolescents who are out of school.

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As oportunidades no mercado de trabalho, bem como a formação de capital humano (educação), afetam os custos implícitos de se dedicar às atividades ilegais. No presente texto, investigamos empiricamente o efeito que a taxa de desemprego, os rendimentos reais no mercado de trabalho e o acesso educacional para os jovens (15 a 24 anos) exercem sobre a prevalência de homicídios nos municípios brasileiros. Analisamos ainda as heterogeneidades que dizem respeito à especialização do trabalho e ao ciclo de vida na juventude. A fim de contornar os problemas de endogeneidade, em nossa estratégia de identificação utilizamos um modelo de dados em painel para todos os municípios brasileiros (no período entre 1980 e 2010), com o uso de variáveis instrumentais, seguindo de perto a abordagem desenvolvida por Gould, Weinberg e Mustard (2002). Os instrumentos relacionam-se a mudanças estruturais de longo prazo na indústria que afetam a demanda por trabalho nas cidades. Encontramos os seguintes resultados: i) efeito positivo da taxa de desemprego dos homens sobre a taxa de homicídios, sendo esse efeito maior para jovens adultos (25 a 29 anos); ii) efeito estatisticamente nulo da renda do trabalho por hora trabalhada sobre a taxa de homicídios; e iii) efeito negativo da taxa de atendimento escolar de 15 a 17 anos sobre a taxa de homicídios.

The opportunities in the labor market and formation of human capital (education) affect the implicit costs of engaging in illegal activities. In this article we empirically investigate the effect that the unemployment rate, which real income in the labor market and which school atandence rate for young people (15 to 24 years) exert on the prevalence of homicides in Brazilian municipalities. We also analyze the heterogeneities related to the specialization of work and the life cycle in youth. In order to overcome the problems of endogeneity, in our identification strategy we used a instrumental variable estimation of panel data model for all Brazilian municipalities (between 1980 and 2010), closely following the approach developed by Gould et al. (2002). The instruments its relationship to long-term structural changes in industry that affect the demand for labor in cities. We found the following results over homicide rate: i) positive effect of men’s unemployment rate, which is greater for young adults (25-29 years); ii) no effect of real hourly labor wage ; and iii) the negative effect of the school attendance rate of 15 to 17 years.

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This study identifies the impact of Hurricane Matthew on school attendance in an agricultural community in rural Haiti. We conducted a survey of parents whose children attended a rural school prior to Hurricane Matthew to determine the mechanism by which hurricanes impact school attendance. We determined the marginal effect of family size and school enrollment using a probit model. Parents identified two primary causes for their children leaving school: a loss of income-through crop damage and livestock deaths-and requiring the children's labor on the family farm. In our sample 96 children, 46% of the children enrolled in school, stopped attending because of the hurricane. No parent reported that their child(ren) left school because of illness or injury. Families with more children in school before the storm were 5% (p < 0.001) more likely to have a child remain in school. Families with some children not attending school before the hurricane were 7.6% (p < 0.001) more likely to leave school after the storm. The survey and probit model both suggest that an income constraint caused children to leave school. There is limited empirical evidence that students leave school to provide labor on family farms, and no evidence they leave school because of illness or injury.

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AIM: To examine the evidence on the influence of oral health status on school performance and school attendance in children and adolescents. DESIGN: A systematic review was performed in accordance with PRISMA included epidemiological studies that assessed concomitantly oral health measures, participants' school performance and/or school attendance. Electronic search was conducted on MEDLINE, SCOPUS, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, and LILACS. Studies published up to May 2018 in any language were eligible. The risk of bias was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. Meta-analysis was used to obtain pooled estimates between oral health measures and school performance and school attendance. RESULTS: Eighteen studies were included. Of them, fifteen studies were used for the meta-analyses. Most studies were assessed as moderate quality. Children with one or more decayed teeth had higher probability of poor school performance (OR = 1.44 95%CI: 1.24-1.64) and poor school attendance (OR = 1.57 95%CI: 1.08-2.05) than caries-free children. Poor parent's perception of child's oral health increased the odds of worse school performance (OR = 1.51 95%CI: 1.10-1.92) and poor school attendance (OR = 1.35 95%CI: 1.14-1.57). CONCLUSIONS: Children and adolescents with dental caries and those reporting worse oral health experience poor school performance and poor school attendance.

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Physical fitness (PF) is a construct of health- and skill-related attributes which have been associated with academic performance (AP) in youth. This study aimed to review the scientific evidence on the association among components of PF and AP in children and adolescents. A systematic review of articles using databases PubMed/Medline, ERIC, LILACS, SciELO, and Web of Science was undertaken. Cross-sectional and longitudinal studies examining the association between at least one component of PF and AP in children and adolescents, published between 1990 and June 2016, were included. Independent extraction of articles was carried out by the two authors using predefined data fields. From a total of 45 studies included, 25 report a positive association between components of PF with AP and 20 describe a single association between cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and AP. According to the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology guidelines: 12 were classified as low, 32 as medium risk, and 1 as high risk of bias. Thirty-one studies reported a positive association between AP and CRF, six studies with muscular strength, three studies with flexibility, and seven studies reported a positive association between clustered of PF components and AP. The magnitude of the associations is weak to moderate (ß = 0.10-0.42 and odds = 1.01-4.14). There is strong evidence for a positive association between CRF and cluster of PF with AP in cross-sectional studies; and evidence from longitudinal studies for a positive association between cluster of PF and AP; the relationship between muscular strength and flexibility with AP remains uncertain.

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Executive functions (EF) in children can be trained, but it remains unknown whether training-related benefits elicit far transfer to real-life situations. Here, we investigate whether a set of computerized games might yield near and far transfer on an experimental and an active control group of low-SES otherwise typically developing 6-y-olds in a 3-mo pretest-training-posttest design that was ecologically deployed (at school). The intervention elicits transfer to some (but not all) facets of executive function. These changes cascade to real-world measures of school performance. The intervention equalizes academic outcomes across children who regularly attend school and those who do not because of social and familiar circumstances.

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O presente artigo tem por objetivo evidenciar a implicação das deficiências sobre o atendimento, o atraso e a progressão escolar no ensino fundamental. Para tal, é utilizada a modelagem estatística logística binária. Após apresentação dos diferentes conceitos de deficiência, por meio do Censo 2000, transcorre-se a análise dos quesitos pretendidos. A progressão escolar é pesquisada por meio da medida nomeada probabilidade de progressão por série (PPS), dos três pontos de maior relevância no desenvolvimento do ensino fundamental. Os resultados indicam grande disparidade entre as deficiências na determinação dos elementos investigados. Em geral, todas as condições se mostram como fatores que desfavorecem o desenvolvimento na carreira escolar. Porém, a implicação das deficiências sobre as PPS se reduz com o avanço no ensino fundamental, sendo também menos significativa a cada etapa sequente. Entre os quesitos analisados, o atraso escolar demonstrou sofrer relevante variação, devido ao controle por fatores de natureza socioeconômica. No mais, este trabalho contém resultados e aponta contributos para o desenvolvimento científico dessa área de estudo.

El presente artículo tiene como objetivo poner en evidencia la implicación de las diferentes discapacidades en áreas como la atención, el atraso y la progresión escolar en la enseñanza fundamental. Para ello, se utiliza el modelo estadístico logístico binario. Tras la presentación de los diferentes conceptos de discapacidad, usando como instrumento el Censo 2000, transcurre el análisis de las áreas mencionadas anteriormente. La progresión escolar se investiga por medio de una medida denominada Probabilidad de Progresión por Clase11 (PPS), tratándose, además, de uno de los tres puntos de mayor relevancia en el desarrollo de la enseñanza fundamental. Los resultados indican una gran disparidad entre las discapacidades en la determinación de los elementos investigados. En general, todas las condiciones se muestran como factores que desfavorecen el desarrollo en la carrera escolar. Sin embargo, la implicación de las discapacidades sobre la PPS se reduce con el avance en la enseñanza fundamental, siendo también menos significativa en cada una de las etapas siguientes. Entre los ámbitos analizados, el atraso escolar demostró sufrir una relevante variación, debido al control por factores de naturaleza socioeconómica. En lo restante, este trabajo contiene resultados y contribuye al desarrollo científico de esta área de estudio.

This article aims to highlight the implications of disabilities in attendance, retention and progression in primary schools, using binary logistic statistical modeling. After presenting the different concepts of disability using the 2000 Census, we analyze the following questions. School progression is investigated using a measure called Grade Progression Probability (GPP), with the three most relevant points in the development of basic education. The results show wide disparity disabilities in determining the elements investigated. In general, all conditions are factors discouraging development in the school life. However, the implication of disabilities on the GPP decreases with each grade in elementary school, being less significant at each subsequent grade. Among the issues we analyzed, grade retention demonstrated a more significant variation, given the nature of controlling socioeconomic factors. Moreover, this study contains results and points to contributions to the scientific development of this area.

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Este estudo teve por objetivo implementar mudanças na disciplina de Parasitologia e Micologia Médica do curso de Medicina da Universidade Federal de Ciências da Saúde de Porto Alegre (UFCSPA), que sempre foi oferecida na modalidade presencial. O estudo foi realizado de março a julho de 2009 com os alunos do primeiro semestre do primeiro ano do curso de Medicina. A mudança consistiu em utilizar parte do ensino a distância (EAD) com aplicação do método de ensino ABP, no ambiente virtual Moodle, disponível na instituição. Os resultados deste estudo apontam que a utilização do EAD e os recursos de ABP como complemento do ensino presencial de graduação nos cursos da área da saúde podem se tornar efetivos para a formação profissional.

This study aimed to implement changes in the course on Parasitology and Medical Mycology at the School of Medicine of the Federal University of Health Sciences in Porto Alegre (UFCSPA), Brazil, which had traditionally been offered with a classroom format. The study was conducted from March to July 2009 with students enrolled in the first semester at the medical school. The change consisted of using part of distance learning with application of the problem-based learning (PBL) method in the Moodle virtual environment, available at the institution. The results of the study indicate that the use of distance learning and PBL resources to complement classroom teaching in undergraduate health courses can become an effective part of professional training.

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