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Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal – Vol.7, No.10

Publication Date: October 25, 2020

DOI:10.14738/assrj.710.9141.

Nalova, E. M., & Serkwem, A. S. (2020). Information Security Management in Financial Organisations: From Policy to Education and

Training. Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal, 7(10) 154-168.

Information Security Management in Financial Organisations: From

Policy to Education and Training

Endeley Margaret Nalova

Ph. D, University of Buea,

South West Region, Cameroon

Awiye Sharon Serkwem

University of Buea,

South West Region, Cameroon.

ABSTRACT

The study set out to find out the extent to which analysing the cognitive

competences of children, specifically executive function and visual

perception, leads to the effective teaching of children with learning

disability. An exploratory sequential mixed method research design was

used and participants were selected purposively. A sample size of 10

pupils with learning disability was used. A diagnostic test and an

observation checklist with items corresponding to the needs of the

pupils was used to analyse pupils’ cognitive competences while a quasi- experiment was used to find out if teaching based on an analysis of

competences was effective. Data were subjected to both descriptive and

inferential statistics. Results showed that an analysis of cognitive

competences has a significant influence on the effective teaching of

reading and writing to children with learning disabilities.

Recommendations were made.

Keywords: Cognitive competence, Executive function, Visual Perception,

Effective Teaching, Primary School.

INTRODUCTION

Regulations in Cameroon permit learners with disabilities to attend regular schools (Cameroon,

1990). Yet students with Learning Disability have always been a vulnerable part of the mainstream

student population (Paterson, 2007) who consistently fail to have their learning needs met through

conventional teaching methods (Vaughn & Linan- Thompson and Hickman 2003). However, the

analysis of specific learning patterns, as well as specific strengths and needs, is needed in order to

purposefully plan for the variety of diverse learners in the classrooms. UNESCO, (2010) asserts that

students with Specific Learning Disability make up approximately five to fifteen percent of any

population and there is need to provide practical information for teachers with regard to the

characteristics associated with Specific Learning Disability, and information regarding practical

teaching methods and strategies for addressing the needs of these specific learners.

Learners’ cognitive competences are a set of intellectual, personal, and social skills that all students

need to develop in order to engage in deeper learning - learning that encourages students to look at

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URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.14738/assrj.710.9141 155

Nalova, E. M., & Serkwem, A. S. (2020). Information Security Management in Financial Organisations: From Policy to Education and Training. Advances in

Social Sciences Research Journal, 7(10) 154-168.

things from different perspectives, to see the relationships between their learning in different

subjects and to make connections to their previous learning and to their own experiences (Alberta,

2019). This study focuses on the analysis of two components of learner competences, namely:

pupils' executive function and visual perception competences and how this influences the effective

teaching of pupils with Learning disability.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Competences are a specific, identifiable, definable, and measurable knowledge, skill, ability and/or

other deployment related characteristic (e.g. attitude, behavior, physical ability) which a human

may possess and which is necessary for, or material to, the performance of an activity within a

specific business context (HR-XML Consortium Competencies Schema in Russo, 2016). Analysis of

competences or assessment provides the basis for screening students who require additional

resources without which long term failure is inevitable. It is important to diagnose the strengths

and weaknesses of the learners and use them as a basis for designing instructional programs and to

monitor the ongoing development of these competences (Kame’enui et al, 2006). This diagnostic

approach may lead to effective teaching.

Bastick, (1995) defines effective teaching as maximizing student academic attainment. Olatoye,

(2006) said that teaching effectiveness is the extent that student’s performance improves after a

period of instruction in a manner consistent with the goals of instruction. Ogunyemi, (2000) argued

that effective teaching goes beyond just imparting knowledge but it is a purposeful activity carried

out by someone with a specialized knowledge in a skillful way to enhance the cognitive, affective

and psychomotor development of a person or group of persons. According to Centra (1993)

effective teaching is demonstrated when instructors use classroom procedures that are compatible

with a student’s cognitive characteristics, can organize and present information to promote

problem solving and original thinking on issues, and can show that students are able to become

more productive thinkers and problem solvers. So without visual perception teaching may not be

effective.

Learning depends on the child’s readiness and on teaching methods that meet individual learning

needs and strengths of a child. Therefore, reading and writing difficulties can be avoided by using

appropriate teaching methods, appropriate teaching support and teaching interventions.

Appropriate teaching methods for reading and writing involve strategies and delivery skills that

promote decoding and comprehension skills among children (Westwood, 2008) which may include

phonological awareness, morphological awareness, reading comprehension, teaching spellings and

a consideration of the local language spoken by the children.

Executive Functioning and Teaching the Learning Disabled

Executive functioning competences have received a tremendous amount of attention in the past

decade, likely because of its importance to everyday human functioning and the significant

impairments that may occur for individuals with executive dysfunction. However, despite growing

research and clinical interest in Executive functioning, there is little agreement on how to define

this cognitive domain (Welsh, 2002). Executive functions competences have been defined as

distinct, higher-order cognitive functions that work together to enable a person to engage

successfully in independent, purposive, self-serving behavior (Anderson, 2002; Gioia, Isquith,

Kenworthy, & Barton, 2002; Lezak, 1995). It is an umbrella term that includes all supervisory or

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Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal (ASSRJ) Vol.7, Issue 9, September-2020

self-regulatory functions which organize and direct cognitive activity, emotional response, and

behavior (Gioia, 2002; Hughes & Graham, 2002).

Individual components of executive functioning competence, however, are widely agreed upon and

include capacities such as initiation, the ability to maintain a behavior (Lezak, 2004), inhibition,

switching, working memory, sustained and selective attention (Alvarez & Emory, 2006). It also

includes the ability to inhibit inappropriate responses and delay responding (Goulden & Silver,

2009), planning, goal-directed action, problem-solving, strategy development and selection

(Meuwissen and Zelazo 2014 and Carlson, Zelazo, and Faja 2013). Children and adults with learning

and attention issues, including learning disabilities (LD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity

Disorder (ADHD) often struggle profoundly with many of these skills that are usually taken for

granted. To better understand and support one’s kids when they lack certain executive skills, it

helps to know about the underlying brain functions that go awry to create such challenges.

Executive functioning encompasses cognitive processes directly related to the successful

negotiation of both educational and life-related tasks and the ability to be mentally and

behaviourally flexible, as well as make use of problem-solving skills that assist in goal attainment

(Altemeier, et al. 2006).

Executive function is made up of a number of cognitive processes that allow for goal-directed

processing of new or complex situations. It can be subdivided into two categories: metacognitive

executive functions and emotional/motivation executive functions (Ardila, 2008). The first category

which is metacognitive executive functions represents behaviour typically measured in

neuropsychological tasks such as mental set-shifting (switching attention between tasks), inhibition

of a prepotent response (deliberate suppression of a dominant response) and monitoring/updating

of representations in working memory (active manipulation of information held in working

memory) (Miyake et al., 2000). The second category is emotional/motivation executive functions

which includes control of affective impulses, such as tailoring behaviour in order to be socially

appropriate (Fuster, 2002). The following elements of Executive function: Planning and

organization, cognitive flexibility and working memory which are within the scope of this study are

discussed below.

Planning skills involve managing current or future tasks by setting goals and establishing the steps

needed to complete the task. This requires that a student prioritize tasks -which should be done

immediately or which can wait. It also requires that a student learns to sequence or determines

which order to complete tasks. Organization of materials involves keeping belongings and other

personal objects neat and orderly. An individual needs to maintain such items and materials so they

are easy to access and use as needed. Planning is an important executive function, and describes the

ability to establish and sequence sub goals towards achieving an outcome. Difficulties in planning

may affect a range of abilities such as performance in visuospatial-construction tasks and planning

of drawings (Hudson and Farran,2011)

Cognitive flexibility refers to the ability to consider more than one dimension of the same stimulus

(Jacques & Zelazo, 2005), for instance, using a chair as a step-stool. Cognitive flexibility is an aspect

of Executive Functions – processes that enable goal-directed behaviour (Garon, Bryson, & Smith,

2008). In preschoolers it is typically measured by assessing the ability to shift between two