The Effectiveness of Cognitive Training Method and Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) on the Metamemory in the Students with Special Learning Disorders

Background: The present study was aimed to determine theeffectiveness of cognitive training method and transcranial directcurrent stimulation (tDCS) on the metamemory in the students withspecial learning disorders.Methods: The study has been conducted based on a semi-experimentaldesign of the pretest-posttest type with a control group. Forty-fivestudents were selected based on a purposive sampling method andassigned to two groups, a control group and an experimental group(each containing ۱۵ individuals) based on a simple randomizedmethod. One of the experimental groups received cognitive training fora period of ۲۰ to ۳۰ sessions, every ۴۵ minutes (twice a week) and theother group was subjected to transcranial direct current stimulation for۲۰ minutes during ten consecutive days. The statistical method ofchoice was multivariate covariance analysis (ANCOVA). Significantlevel was set at ۰.۰۵.Results: The results of data analysis using covariance analysisindicated that both the cognitive training method and the transcranialdirect current stimulation (tDCS) were effective in the metamemory(Pvalue < ۰.۰۱).Conclusions: Cognitive training and the transcranial direct currentstimulation (tDCS) methods can be applied for improving themetamemory in students with special learning disabilities.

Keywords:

Metamemory , Cognitive training , Learning disabilities , Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS)