The LCPLTAS provides information for a strong positive correlation with MMSE, while the use both of MMSE and LCPLTAS as adequate measures of financial (in)capacity is discussed for the Greek legal procedures regarding elder guardianship cases.

During the last decade, there has been an explosive increase in the number of mobile apps that are called educational and target children aged three to six. Research has shown that only a few of them have been created taking into consideration young children’s development and learning processes. The key question that emerges is how parents, custodians, or teachers can choose appropriate, high-quality educational apps. Literature has presented limited assessment tools based on advanced statistical procedures, which allow one to address validity and reliability issues. This study investigates the dimensions of using and operating educational apps for kids and presents a thirteen-item assessment instrument along with its psychometric properties. Data (N = 218) were collected via an electronic questionnaire from pre-service teachers of preschool education. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) with Varimax rotation was used to investigate the underlying dimensions. The resulting structure included four factors, namely: Usability, Efficiency, Parental Control, and Security. PCA supported the factorial validity of the instrument, while the reliability measures of Cronbach’s alpha for the four dimensions were satisfactory. Finally, a lucid discussion on the findings is provided.

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The introduction of STEM education, and specifically the implementation of educational robotics (ER), has drawn researchers’ attention and has shown that teachers play a crucial role in leading this innovation. The present study concerns in-service and pre-service early childhood teachers, focusing on their perceptions and attitudes about ER use in daily teaching practice. The data were collected via a questionnaire (N = 201) and explored using latent class analysis, which detected distinct clusters/profiles of participants based on their pattern of responses. Two clusters were identified: Cluster1 was relatively homogeneous, including those who share a positive attitude towards ER, while Cluster2 was heterogeneous, comprising participants with inconsistent responses and expressing negative and skeptical thinking. The cluster memberships were associated with external covariates, such as age, years of teaching experience, and variables measuring their technological competencies. The results showed that teaching experience and age were negatively associated with cluster1-membership, while educational robotics knowledge was positively associated. The findings are interpretable, and the implications for education are discussed considering the current literature.

To cite this version:Dimitrios Stamovlasis, Georgios Tsitsipis, George Papageorgiou. The effect of three cognitive variables on students' understanding of the particulate nature of matter and its changes of state. In- The effect of three cognitive variables on students' understanding of the particulate nature of matter and its changes of state AbstractIn this study, students' understanding of the structure of matter and its changes of state, such as, melting, evaporation, boiling and condensation was investigated in relation to three cognitive variables: logical thinking, field-dependence/field-independence and convergence/divergence dimension. The study took place in Greece with the participation of 329 ninth-grade junior high school pupils (age 14-15). A stepwise multiple regression analysis revealed that all of the above mentioned cognitive variables were statistically significant predictors of the students' achievement. Among the three predictors, logical thinking was found to be the most dominant one. In addition, students' understanding of the structure of matter, along with the cognitive variables, were shown to have an effect on their understanding the changes of states and on their competence to interpret these physical changes. Path analyses were implemented to depict these effects. Moreover, a theoretical analysis is provided that associates logical thinking and cognitive styles with the nature of mental tasks involved when learning the material concerning the particulate nature of matter and its changes of state. Implications for science education are also discussed. KeywordsParticulate structure of matter, changes of state, logical thinking, cognitive styles, field-dependence/field-independence, convergence/divergence thinking.