Khng, Kiat Hui

Preferred name
Khng, Kiat Hui
Email
kiathui.khng@nie.edu.sg
Department
Office of Education Research (OER)
Personal Site(s)
ORCID
Now showing 1 - 10 of 29
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    Open Access
    Beyond BCI: Validating a wireless, consumer-grade EEG headset against a medical-grade system for evaluating EEG effects of a test anxiety intervention in school
    (Elsevier, 2020)
    Khng, Kiat Hui 
    ;
    Mane, Ravikiran
    Educational neuroscience is an emerging interdisciplinary field. However, the use of neuroimaging techniques and tools such as electroencephalography (EEG) in school-based interventions and research is limited, largely due to the high costs and physical constraints of conventional research- or medical-grade equipment. Neuroimaging and electrophysiological data can provide useful evidence to validate the efficacy of interventions. The present study explores the utility of lightweight, affordable, and easy-toset-up EEG systems for use in school-based research with children. Specifically, we examine the effects of a deep-breathing-for-test-anxiety intervention on brain electrical activity during a flanker distractor interference task in eleven-year olds, comparing the pattern of results observed using a consumer-grade EEG system (Emotiv EPOC+) against that obtained using a medical-grade EEG system (Neurostyle). Behavioral, EEG, and respiratory data was obtained from Primary 5 students (N = 45; Mage = 10.88, SD = .33), split into Emotiv and Neurostyle groups. The aim of the study was two-fold: to examine the effects of deep breathing on neurophysiological and behavioral correlates of inhibitory control of attention in children, and to understand the affordances and limitations of the Emotiv system for school-based research with children. Results from power spectral analyses suggest that deep breathing may enhance attentional control on a neural level by modulating brain electrical activity on several frequencies. Despite limitations, the low-res, consumer-grade EEG system appears to be capable of detecting some degree of power spectral differences associated with intervention effects.
    WOS© Citations 7Scopus© Citations 19  146  285
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    Mindfulness in early childhood: Developing 21st century competencies
    (Springer, 2022)
    Khng, Kiat Hui 
    Mindfulness-based programs and techniques have become some of the most examined and validated prevention/intervention approaches. With the rising movement on holistic education, they are increasingly being used in schools around the world, including in Singapore, to support the development of socio-emotional competencies and cognitive, emotional, and behavioral self-regulation in students. These skills underlie the “21st Century Competencies” regarded to be important for children to survive and thrive in a fast-changing world. This chapter begins with an introduction to mindfulness and how it can be cultivated in young children. This is followed by a discussion of how mindfulness-based practices can foster self-regulation and socio-emotional competencies underlying 21st century skills and how mindfulness in teachers/teaching and parents/parenting can also influence child outcomes. The chapter concludes with a section on recommendations and implications for policy and practice, including a brief discussion of mindfulness in the local school settings and the need for future studies examining systems-level approaches involving teachers and parents.
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    Open Access
    Longer bars for bigger numbers? Children’s usage and understanding
    (European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction (EARLI), 2013)
    Lee, Kerry
    ;
    Khng, Kiat Hui 
    ;
    Ng, Swee Fong
    ;
    Ng, Jeremy Lan Kong
    In Singapore, primary school students are taught to use bar diagrams to represent known and unknown values in algebraic word problems. However, little is known about students’ understanding of these graphical representations. We investigated whether students use and think of the bar diagrams in a concrete or a more abstract fashion. We also examined whether usage and understanding varied with grade. Secondary 2 (N = 68, Mage = 13.9 years) and Primary 5 students (N = 110, Mage = 11.1 years) were administered a production task in which they drew bar diagrams of algebraic word problems with operands of varying magnitude. In the validation task, they were presented with different bar diagrams for the same word problems and were asked to ascertain, and give explanations regarding the accuracy of the diagrams. The Küchemann algebra test was administered to the Secondary 2 students. Students from both grades drew longer bars to represent larger numbers. In contrast, findings from the validation task showed a more abstract appreciation for how the bar diagrams can be used. Primary 5 students who showed more abstract appreciations in the validation task were less likely to use the bar diagrams in a concrete fashion in the production task. Performance on the Küchemann algebra test was unrelated to performance on the production task or the validation task. The findings are discussed in terms of a production deficit, with students exhibiting a more sophisticated understanding of bar diagrams than is demonstrated by their usage.
    Scopus© Citations 4  712  603
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    Screening for executive function difficulties: An evaluation of the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function-2nd Edition Screener, Teacher Report (BRIEF2-TS)
    (American Psychological Association, 2023)
    Waschl, Nicolette 
    ;
    Khng, Kiat Hui 
    ;
    Bull, Rebecca
    ;
    Ng, Ee Lynn 
    ;
    Sun, He 
    ;
    Chan, Wei Teng
    Executive functions (EFs) correlate positively with many developmental outcomes, and ecologically valid measures of EFs may be more predictive of some outcomes than performance-based measures. Accordingly, there is a need to evaluate short EF rating scales, such as the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function-2nd Edition Screener, Teacher Report (BRIEF2-TS). Data from 1,322 kindergarten children in Singapore (50% girls; 61.3% Chinese, 10.6% Malay, 16.3% Indian, 4.0% other ethnicity, and 7.8% did not report their ethnicity), followed for 3 years, were used to examine the multilevel factor structure, gender and longitudinal invariance, reliability, and concurrent and predictive validity of BRIEF2-TS scores. Results indicated a two-factor within-level structure (11 items; cognitive and emotional–behavioral regulation) that was at least partially invariant across gender and time. Concurrent validity with direct EF measures and ratings of self-regulation, and predictive validity for socioemotional and academic skills were good. Overall, BRIEF2-TS scores showed evidence for good validity and reliability. Future research should consider correlates of the between-level structure and further consider structure and validity in clinical samples. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)
    Scopus© Citations 4  141
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    COVID-19, family dynamics, and perceived mental health among families in Singapore
    (Springer, 2023)
    Yang, Yang 
    ;
    Chua, Jallene Jia En
    ;
    Khng, Kiat Hui 
    ;
    Yu, Yue 

    The COVID-19 pandemic presents a significant challenge to the well-being of families with children. Although previous studies have documented COVID-related deterioration in parents’ mental health, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. It is also unclear how much of the deterioration is due to the pandemic itself, versus mandated lockdown measures. We conducted a cross-sectional study in Singapore to examine perceived changes in parents’ lives and mental health related to the pandemic and lockdown measures. In June 2020, when Singapore had just exited a nationwide lockdown, we asked families to retrospectively report on the family dynamics, daily activities, and mental health of family members during the phases before local transmission (Pre-pandemic), during local transmission but before the lockdown (Pre-lockdown), and during the lockdown (Lockdown). Results from 180 mothers and 166 fathers from 198 families showed significant changes in jobs and income, childcare arrangements, family dynamics, and parents’ perceived mental health across the three timepoints. Mothers’ increased time spent on housework was associated with the increase in their mental health problems from Pre-lockdown to Lockdown. Parents’ increased conflict with other adults in the household was associated with the increase in their mental health problems from Pre-pandemic to Pre-lockdown, and from Pre-lockdown to Lockdown. Mental health problems increased more for young mothers, parents with a graduate or professional degree, and fathers high on authoritarian values. Findings suggest that both the pandemic and the imposed lockdown measures impact parents’ lives and family dynamics, in turn leading to deterioration in parents’ mental health.

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    Working memory training and math achievement evidence from a large-scale intervention in a real learning environment.
    (National Institute of Education (Singapore), 2020)
    Munez, David 
    ;
    Khng, Kiat Hui 
    ;
    Lee, Kerry
    ;
    Bull, Rebecca
    ;
    Cheam, Fiona
    ;
    Ridzuan Abdul Rahim
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    Will the future BE POSITIVE? How early life parenting signals the developing "pre" school brain
    (Taylor & Francis, 2019)
    Rifkin-Graboi, Anne 
    ;
    Khng, Kiat Hui 
    ;
    Cheung, Pierina 
    ;
    Tsotsi, Stella
    ;
    Sun, He 
    ;
    Kwok, Fu Yu
    ;
    Yu, Yue 
    ;
    Xie, Huichao
    ;
    Yang, Yang 
    ;
    Chen, Mo 
    ;
    Ng, Chee Chin
    ;
    Hu, Pei Lin
    ;
    Tan, Ngiap Chuan
    We suggest that prior to school entry, our earliest “teachers” and “learning settings” —that is, our parents, caregivers, and homes—provide signals about our environmental conditions. In turn, our brains may interpret this information as cues indicating the types of environments we will likely face and adapt accordingly. We discuss ways in which two such early-life cues—bilingual exposure and sensitive caregiving quality, influence “domain general” neurocircuitry and associated functioning (e.g., temperament and emotional reactivity, emotion regulation, relational memory, exploratory play, and executive functioning), as well as pre-academic outcomes. We conclude by discussing the need for early upstream intervention programmes, as well as the need for additional research including our upcoming “BE POSITIVE” study, designed to help bridge the gap between the community, home, and school environments.
    Scopus© Citations 1  362  179
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    Transitioning from kindergarten to primary school: Exploring the links between children’s self-regulation skills, socio-emotional competence, and academic outcomes
    (Office of Education Research, National Institute of Education, Singapore, 2024)
    Ng, Ee Lynn 
    ;
    Bull, Rebecca
    ;
    Khng, Kiat Hui 
    ;
    Ang, Marlene
    The transition to formal learning in primary school is an important developmental milestone. In comparison to the more informal setting in preschool classrooms, the primary school classroom typically imposes considerably greater expectations for children to direct and sustain their attention toward academic work. Given that learning in school occurs through social interactions, children who are able to regulate their emotions and maintain positive relationships with peers and teachers also adapt better to the new environment. Collectively, the cognitive and socio-emotional competencies that facilitate children’s transition to formal schooling are known as school readiness skills. Many studies have shown that these skills, including early academic skills, self-regulation skills and social competencies predict later school success.
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