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How well are we raising our children?A ground breaking study of WA 5-year olds has found that more than a quarter of the children have developmental difficulties that could have life-long impacts.
Research
Innovative Playful Learning Approaches to Improve Children’s Readiness for Primary Education in UzbekistanThe Government of Uzbekistan has committed to reforming preschool education, prioritising upskilling teachers to use international best practice.
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“Stop, pause and take a break”: a mixed methods study of the longer-term outcomes of digital emotional wellbeing training for perinatal womenMaternal psychological distress is related to poorer physical and mental health as well as child developmental problems. Interventions that optimise maternal mental health and wellbeing during the "first 1,000 days" of life should have wide-reaching benefits for the mother and her child.
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Moort dandjoo kaadadjiny: Growing up aboriginal kids strong in their culture and identityCommunity Elders in Boorloo (Perth) identified early childhood education (ECE) as a priority area for Aboriginal children’s research. This is due to a lower number of Aboriginal children attending ECE programs compared to non-Aboriginal children. Attending ECE programs sets children up for school success and is an indicator for positive life outcomes in later life. Therefore, we sought to co-design and implement a program that encourages Aboriginal children and families to attend ECE programs, known as Moort Dandjoo Kaadadjiny.
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Understanding variations in the built environment over time to inform longitudinal studies of young children's physical activity behaviour - The BEACHES projectWe know relatively little about the role the neighbourhood built environment plays in promoting young children's physical activity, particularly its longitudinal effect either through repeated exposure to the same environment or through change in exposure by moving from one neighbourhood to another.
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Investigating the Feasibility and Acceptability of a Facebook Delivered, Parent Mediated, Physical Activity Intervention for Children with Developmental Coordination DisorderChildren with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) experience difficulties performing fundamental movement skills, resulting in reduced physical activity (PA). Given low PA can impact mental and physical health, improving PA in DCD appears imperative. This study investigates the feasibility of a Facebook delivered, parent mediated, PA intervention for children with DCD.
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The ORIGINS Project: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of the Nutrition Profile of Pregnant Women in a Longitudinal Birth CohortPregnancy is an opportunistic time for dietary intake to influence future disease susceptibility in offspring later in life. The ORIGINS Project was established to identify the factors that contribute to 'a healthy start to life' through a focus supporting childhood health and preventing disease (including non-communicable diseases).
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Influences of bilingual input on English vocabulary size and academic outcomes: a large-scale longitudinal study following children in Australia from five to ten yearsResearch from large population-based studies investigating the language and academic outcomes for bilingual children is rare. The current study aimed to investigate the influence of dual language exposure on (i) English vocabulary outcomes at 5 years (126 bilinguals, 1675 monolinguals), and 10 years (vocabulary: 92 bilinguals, 1413 monolinguals:), and (ii) academic outcomes at 10 years (107 bilinguals, 1746 monolinguals).
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Indigenous Australian perspectives on the perinatal period: Social well-being, culture and early infant attachmentsAlthough social factors and culture are significant determinants of health in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, little is known academically about key interpersonal and social experiences of this population during the perinatal period, or how early attachments are formed through culture. This study addressed this gap in the literature.
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Which emerging autism features at 12 months of age are associated with later parent-child interaction?Parent-child interactions (PCI) in infants with an elevated likelihood (EL) of autism start to diverge from other infants toward the end of the first year. This divergence is often attributed to emerging features of autism impacting infant social interactions in ways that become increasingly amplified. The aim was to identify which, if any, 12-month autism features were associated with later PCI qualities.