CDS Seminar Series : Professor Armando Bertone | Assessing and training attention skills in neurodivergent learners: A three-dimensional object tracking approach

This seminar is free to attend and is open to all, both within and outside the University. If you wish to attend in person or via Zoom, please register your interest to attend via the Zoom portal using the link above. Zoom details will be shared prior to the event via email.

We are delighted to announce that the Centre for Developmental Science will welcome Professor Armando Bertone, Associate Professor and William Dawson Scholar in the Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology at McGill University, Montreal, Canada, to present a hybrid CDS Seminar, taking place on Tuesday 26th of November 2024, 13:00-14:00.

There will be an opportunity for an informal discussion after the seminar itself.

You are welcome to attend either in person at Gisbert Kapp, Room N337, or online via Zoom. . 

Prof Bertone can be contacted at armando.bertone@mcgill.ca

CDS Event Host - Professor Cathy Manning

Assessing and training attention skills in neurodivergent learners: A three-dimensional object tracking approach

Abstract

Attentional challenges are amongst the most commonly identified domain-general difficulties amongst neurodivergent learners, including youth with autism.  Factors including alternative communicative preferences (e.g., non-verbal communication), varying intellectual capacity and diverse perceptual styles result in a spectrum of strengths and challenges that must be considered when evaluating and enhancing attentional ability amongst neurodivergent learners. Based on studies employing a transdiagnostic approach, findings will be presented that support a three-dimensional Multiple Object-Tracking (3D-MOT) approach - anenhanced iteration of the traditional MOT task -, as an accessible and adaptable platform for assessing and improving attention in neurodivergent youth.  Results from both laboratory- and school-based studies will be presented with a discussion highlighting the benefits and implications of considering both strengths and challenges when developing assessment and intervention approaches that are appropriate for neurodivergent learners. 

Speaker Biography

Dr. Armando Bertone is an Associate Professor and William Dawson Scholar in the Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology at McGill University. He directs the Perceptual Neuroscience Lab for Autism and Development (PNLab) where he leads lab- and school-based research programs aimed at improving cognitive assessment protocols for neurodivergent persons based on their sensory and cognitive strengths. He founded and currently directs the Summit Centre for Education, Research, and Training (SCERT), a unique school-based learning, teaching and research centre that brings together experts in the different fields relevant to the education and management of neurodivergent learners.