Dr. Carmen Rasmussen

Challenge Math presents a steep challenge for many school-aged children, especially when a learning disability or neurodevelopmental disorder affects some of the skills it requires. Students with FASD, for example, can struggle with visual-spatial processing, self-regulation, and working memory. Project Summary A tutoring program called the Math Interactive Learning Experience (MILE) tackles not [...]

Challenge Math presents a steep challenge for many school-aged children, mainly when a learning disability or neurodevelopmental disorder (NDD) affects some of the skills that it requires. Students who were prenatally exposed to alcohol, for example, can struggle with visual-spatial processing, working memory, and self-regulation : the ability to monitor and exert control over their thoughts, [...]

Challenge Self-regulation is the ability to attain, change, or maintain an appropriate level of alertness for a specific task or situation. Being able to do this is critical in our everyday functioning, but it's something with which people with FASD struggle. Drs. Carmen Rasmussen and Jacqueline Pei (University of Alberta) have implemented a modified version [...]

Challenge Children are usually school-aged by the time they receive a diagnosis for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. However, evidence indicates that early intervention is beneficial. Having reliable biomarkers to detect changes related to prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) could allow clinicians to identify FASD in children at a younger age and therefore provide earlier access to [...]

Challenge Children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) exhibit a wide variety of brain abnormalities. These abnormalities include a small head and brain relative to body size, an underdeveloped cerebellum, and thinning of the corpus callosum. However, children with FASD display have such a wide range of brain anomalies that the exact relationship between structural [...]

Challenge The assessment of children for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) requires testing many different types of brain function to determine if they are impaired. However, children with FASD usually have to wait a long time for this formal diagnostic assessment, which often prevents them from accessing supports early on in life. Project Summary Measuring [...]

Challenge People with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) tend to struggle with executive functioning—a set of cognitive processes that include working memory, flexible thinking, and planning. To help improve this skill set, a “serious game” is in development. Project Summary Previously called Cognitive Carnival, Caribbean Quest is a computer game that was rooted in neuroscience, [...]