CROSSED LATERALITY

CASE STUDY

Crossed Laterality

Index

Introduction

Discussion

Purpose

Classroom interventions

Setting

Conclusion

Learner Profile

The Brain

Introduction

The term “crossed laterality” is employed to refer to people whose hand, eye, foot, or ear dominance is not uniformly right- or left-sided. We speak of crossed laterality when the laterality of the hand is different for feet, eyes, and ears. Homogeneous laterality occurs when the hand, foot, eye and ear are uniformly one-sided (left/right dominance).

The term “crossed laterality” is employed to refer to people whose hand, eye, foot, or ear dominance is not uniformly right- or left-sided. We speak of crossed laterality when the laterality of the hand is different for feet, eyes, and ears. Homogeneous laterality occurs when the hand, foot, eye and ear are uniformly one-sided (left/right dominance).

Purpose

• To present the case of a student with cross laterality

• To examine her performance in class from the beginning of the year until the present.

• To debunk the myth that students with cross-laterality face learning difficulties that hinder their progress

• To present effective strategies for the specific case of crossed-hand-eye laterality

Setting

8th 9 is a group at high school number 2 of 26 students: 10 boys and 16 girls. It is an average-performance group. Most of the students range from acceptable to satisfactory. The group fulfills class assignments and shows interest in the proposed topics. The teacher introduces pair work to create a positive class atmosphere and encourage participation from the whole group. There are individuals who work collaboratively, guiding their peers, which is of great help to the teacher.

Learner profile

Julia is a student in 8th 9 grade at high school number 2. Her crossed laterality was diagnosed when she was in second form in primary school. She attended a specialized clinic during her six years in primary to ameliorate this disability with a psychologist and was scaffolded by a private teacher until last year when she started high school. She has had good qualifications from the beginning of the year, being her weaknesses mostly related to the processes of reading and writing.

Crossed hand-eye laterality

If the dominant eye and hand are on opposite sides of the brain, vision circuits have to jump to the other side of the brain to connect to the motor circuits. This explains why some people can't read and write properly at the same time or take longer to accomplish the tasks. This is what happens in Julia´s brain.

Discussion

• The idea that crossed laterality is linked to academic performance is becoming increasingly popular in the area of school education. However, the available evidence is fragmentary.
• The results of studies do not support the claim that there is a reliable association between crossed laterality and either academic achievement or intelligence.

According to these mixed results, crossed laterality might or might not be a risk factor for learning disabilities and poor academic performance

Discussion

Crossed hand-eye laterality has been the most studied case and might be associated with learning problems, especially in the processes of reading and writing.

Most common symptoms: • Difficulties in reading, writing, and arithmetic skills. • Problems with spatial and temporal organization. • Difficulties in spelling encoded information. • Psychomotor impairment. • Letter reversal in writing and reading.

Classroom interventions

• Allow the students to choose a seat that is comfortable for them. Avoid enforcing strict seating arrangements. • Use a variety of teaching methods (visual aids, charts, diagrams, videos, auditory instructions) to cater to different learning styles and aid in understanding • Incorporate activities that involve multiple senses (hands-on experiments and interactive learning games) • Provide activities to enhance fine motor skills (puzzles, drawing, and crafting) • Encourage and praise student's efforts and accomplishments to boost their confidence. • Introduce assistive technologies (speech-to-text software for typing or recording lectures and easy reading books. • Promote oral assignments like presentations, dialogues, podcasts, TikToks.

Conclusion

• accommodation related to her writing productions.
• needs to be seated in the middle of the classroom, in the second row.
• compensates poor handwriting by using a computer
• satisfactory oral performance
• working in pairs or trios allows her to ask questions, exchange opinions
• divide large tasks into smaller ones with her peers.
• crossed laterality has been ameliorated, it can never be remediated.

From neuroscience, we know that the brain changes with experience. Plasticity, the ability to modify itself, allows it to learn. It means it changes because it learns, and it learns because it is adaptable.

Guía de Adecuaciones Curriculares. DIE. ANEP

References

Cristina Martínez de Toda. Crossed laterality and learning difficulties Crossed laterality and learning difficulties (neuronup.us) Marta Ferrero, Gillian West, Miguel A. Vadillo. Is crossed laterality associated with academic achievement and intelligence? A systematic review and meta-analysis. Research article. crossed laterality.pdf Robert A. H. Pierce. Crossed laterality. A study in its significance and treatment in ordinary school life 247.full.pdf (bmj.com) Guía de Adecuaciones Curriculares. DIE. ANEP.

References Cristina Martínez de Toda. Crossed laterality and learning difficulties Crossed laterality and learning difficulties (neuronup.us) Marta Ferrero, Gillian West, Miguel A. Vadillo. Is crossed laterality associated with academic achievement and intelligence? A systematic review and meta-analysis. Research article. crossed laterality.pdf Robert A. H. Pierce. Crossed laterality. A study in its significance and treatment in ordinary school life 247.full.pdf (bmj.com) Guía de Adecuaciones Curriculares. DIE. ANEP.

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