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About

Yael Barak Levy - PhD

Dr. Yael Barak Levy is the Head of the special education field in Achva Academic College in Israel. In this capacity she is in charge of 4 departments within the college: Early Childhood Education; Special Education for graduates; Special Education for postgraduates; and Educational Counseling. She is also an educational adviser in the special education system and a researcher and lecturer within the field of developmental psychology. Her research centers mainly on parental experiences within complex educational challenges. This includes two major paths: parents and families of children with special needs and parenting in the context of professional relocation. These interests stem from a strong connection to the field. Yael worked as a kindergarten teacher in kindergartens for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) for 8 years and as an educational counselor supporting families of children with a variety of special needs. Her experience within the educational system is evident in her work as she considers in her research a holistic view to education that examines both cognitive and social-emotional aspects of learning and teaching. She also focusses on the attitudes of all the participants surrounding children’s learning, including parents, children, and educational staff. Her latest studies examine the reactions of parents to their child’s diagnosis with special needs; the placement process into the special education system – from both parental and staff points of view; and special programs to encourage inclusion of children with special needs into regular schools and kindergartens. In order to achieve a more in-depth view of these aspects her studies mix qualitative and quantitative data. The holistic view of the educational system, with a focus on social, emotional and cognitive aspects of education, continues in Yael’s research regarding parenting when on professional relocations. Here too she has personal interest in the subject as she had been on relocation with her family, including her three young children. This has given her firsthand insight regarding the challenges parents face in a setting of temporary immigration, as they integrate the children into educational institutions and at the same time deal with their own personal adjustment.

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Special Project

Articles in Refereed Journals

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Paryente, B. & Barak-Levy, Y. (2023). How Bedouin and Jewish mothers process their experiences of parenting their children with special needs in Israel. Israeli Affairs. 

Family at home

Parenting and Stress in Mothers and Fathers of Children with Developmental Delay, November 2013. Number of pages: 95, Language: English, Ben Gurion University of the Negev. 

Advisors: Prof. Judy Auerbach & Dr. Naama Atzaba-Poria.

Father and Son in Bed

Barak-Levy, Y. & Paryente, B. (2023). Diving into the resolution process: Parent’s reactions to child’s diagnosis. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20, 3295. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20043295

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Paryente, B. & Barak-Levy, Y. (2023). Parents’ Reactions to their Child’s Placement in Special-Education Kindergartens: A Grounded Theory Study in Israel. International Journal of Early Years Education.

Barak-Levy, Y. & Paryente, B. (2023). The Parental Resolution Process with a Diagnosis of Special Needs in Early Childhood. Researching @ Early Childhood, 18, 51-75 ]Hebrew[.

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 Paryente, B. & Barak-Levy, Y. (2023). Parents’ Reactions to their Child’s Placement in Special-Education Kindergartens: A Grounded Theory Study in Israel. International Journal of Early Years Education.

Dance Class

Barak-Levy, Y. & Flavian, H. (2022). Learning Self Expression through dance; A Case Study of Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Research in Dance Education.

Ballroom Dancing Lessons

Barak-Levy Y. & Flavian, H. (2022). Dancing for All; A Case Study of Adolescents with ASD Learning to Dance and Express Themselves Through Movement. Issues in Special Education and Integration. 

   

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Paryente, B. & Barak Levy, Y. (2022). "A special education kindergarten sounded to me like a nightmare" the parental perspective of special education with the escort of the educational counselor.  Journal of the Educational Counselor [Hebrew].

Happy Children

Levavi, K., Menashe-Grinberg, A., Barak-Levy, Y. & Atzaba-Poria, N. (2020). The Role of Parental Playfulness as a Moderator Reducing Child Behavioural Problems Among Children with Intellectual Disability. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 107, 103793. Doi: 10.1016/j.ridd.2020.103793.

Cute Animal Hat

Huffmeijer, R., Barak-Levy, Y., & Rippe, R. C. (2020). Attractiveness and neural processing of infant faces: effects of a facial abnormality but not dopamine. Physiology & Behavior, 222, 112937. Doi: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2020.112937.
(Journal ranked in the category of Philosophy & Cognitive Psychology – Q1; IF 2.69).

Family at home

Barak-Levy, Y. & Atzaba-Poria, N. (2015). The effects of familial risk and parental resolution on parenting a child with mild intellectual disability. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 47, 106-116. Doi: 10.1016/j.ridd.2015.09.008
 

Children's Dentist

Barak-Levy, Y. & Atzaba-Poria, N. (2013). Paternal versus maternal coping styles with child diagnosis of Developmental Delay (DD). Research in Developmental Disabilities, 34, 2040-2046. Doi: 10.1016/j.ridd.2013.02.026

Dance Class

 Barak-Levy Y. & Flavian, H. (2022). Dancing for All; A Case Study of Adolescents with ASD Learning to Dance and Express Themselves Through Movement. Issues in Special Education and Integration. ]Hebrew[, 33, 179-196.

Playing Video Games

Barak-Levy, Y., Goldstein, E. & Weinstock, M. (2010). Adjustment characteristics of healthy siblings of children with autism. Journal of Family Studies, 16, 155-164. Doi: 10.5172/jfs.16.2.155

Entries in Encyclopedias

Stressed Woman

Barak-Levy, Y. & Atzaba-Poria, N. (2018). Diathesis-stress model. In Bornstein, M. (Ed.), The SAGE Encyclopaedia of Lifespan Human Development (pp 616-617). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Other Works Connected with my Scholarly Field

Hip Hop Class

Odiz, D. & Barak Levy, Y. (2019). Steps of success: a hip hop workshop to develop social and emotional skills for children with special needs. Manual and lesson plans. 
*Funded by the Daniel Howard fund.

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Barak Levy, Y. (2019). Steps of success: a hip hop workshop to develop social and emotional skills for children with special needs. Manual and lesson plans. Adaptation for high functioning autism spectrum disorders.

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Barak Levy, Y. (2018). Steps of success: a hip hop workshop to develop social and emotional skills for children with special needs. Manual and lesson plans. Adaptation for Intelectual developmental disabilities.

Barak Levy, Y. (2019). Steps of success: a hip hop workshop to develop social and emotional skills for children with special needs. Manual and lesson plans. Adaptation for low and medium functioning autism spectrum disorders.

CURRICULUM VITAE - Yael Barak Levy  

Undergraduate and Graduate Studies

Period of Study 
 

Name of Institutionand Department

Degree

2008-2013

Developmental Psychology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.
Parenting and Stress in Mothers and Fathers of Children with Developmental Delay, 
Advisors: Prof. Judy Auerbach & Dr. Naama Atzaba-Poria.

Ph.D
 

Year of Completion

2014

2004-2006

Educational Counseling, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.

MA, 
magna cum laude

Approved 2007

1998-2001

Behavioral Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

BA, 
magna cum laude

Approved 2001

Post-doctoral studies

2015-2017

The Centre for Child and Family Studies, Education Department, Leiden University, The Netherlands.
"The Dopamine and Parenting Behavior Project" under the supervision of Dr. Huffmeijer & Dr. Rippe in the lab of Prof. Van IJzendoorn & Prof. Bakermans-Kranenburg

Post-doctoral

2017

 Participation in Scholarly Conferences

Active Participation

Date

Oct, 2023

Name of Conference

16th annual International Conference of Education, Research and Innovation

Place of Conference

Saville, Spain

Subject of Lecture /Discussion

It was a really hard time and suddenly it was wonderful" - experiences of mothers in relocation regarding their children's educational institutions

Role

Lecturer (virtual)

June, 2023

Passion and Professionalism in Teacher Education

The Eighth International Conference on Teacher Education

Israel

Coherence and self-efficacy among

kindergarten student teachers

learning NLP skills

Co-Lecturer

June, 2023

International Virtual Conference on Nursing

Research, Patient Safety and Healthcare

Virtual conference

Diving into the Resolution Process: Parent’s Reactions to Child’s Diagnosis

Lecturer

Dec, 2022

IACEP 2022

International Association for Cognitive Education and Psychology

Virtual conference

If you want to promote inclusion – Think out of the box

Promoting emotional and social awareness among adolescents with autism spectrum disorder through dance

Lecturer

Mar, 2022

The 16th annual International Technology, Education and Development conference

Spain

Promoting emotional and social awareness among adolescents with autism spectrum disorder through dance

Lecturer

Oct, 2021

Assistance for children with special needs and their family’s seminar

Israel

Autism spectrum disorders and intellectual disabilities in children

Lecturer

 Mar, 2021

Conference of Educational cohesion: Coherence within the training process, residency, and professional learning of teachers

Israel

The contribution of NLP training to professional competence perception for students in training and residency

Lecturer

Sep,

2019

17th ICTEL 2019 – International Conference on Teaching, Education & Learning

London, UK

Maternal views concerning the mainstreaming of children with ASD within the Haredi sector of Judaism

Fathers are NOT mothers; a mediation model of parental stress, parenting and risk factors in families of children with a mild intellectual disability

Poster presenter

April, 2019

Autism is Not a Disability, it is a Difference

Israel

April, 2019

Conference for Chinese school headmasters

Israel

May, 2018

The World Congress

 of the World Association for Infant Mental Health

Israel

What is the Autistic Spectrum and why does it keep widening?

Children with special needs in the Israeli school system

The Importance of Maternal and Paternal Playfulness Among Families of Children Diagnosed with Developmental Delay

Organizer and Lecturer

Main Lecturer

Poster presenter

July,2013

the conference of the Institution for advanced studies – The Influential Child: The Role of Children’s Psychobiology and Socialization in Development

Israel

Paternal versus maternal coping styles with child diagnosis of Developmental Delay

Poster presenter

Dec,2012

The Gerry Schwartz and Heather Reisman 3rd International Conference on Pediatric Chronic

Diseases, Disability and Human Development

Israel

Mothers versus fathers’ reactions to the diagnosis of children with developmental delay

Lecturer

July, 2011

The fifth annual disabilities international convention, conference of the Issy Shapira House

Israel

Parental role division in families of children with developmental delay: are mothers and fathers content?

Poster presenter

June, 2010

The World congress of the World Association for Infant Mental Health

Leipzig, Germany

Father-child interaction in families of infants with feeding problems: The role of paternal depression

Poster presenter

Sept, 2009

Mar, 2023

Jan-May, 2023

The annual conference of the British Psychological Society Developmental Section

Nottingham, UK

Adjustment characteristics of healthy siblings of children with autism

Outside the box: Meaning, innovation and empowerment when entering teaching and throughout professional development

Israel

Meaning, identity and culture

Outside the box: Meaning, innovation and empowerment when entering teaching and throughout professional development

Israel

Academic and professional development for kindergarten and special education pedagogical trainers, students, and teachers

Poster presenter

Chair of session

Organizer

Dec. 2021 – June, 2022

potlight on undiscussed challenges in education through the perspective of Social Emotional Learning (SEL) – From the personal to the theoretical

Israel

Academic and professional development for pedagogical trainers, students, and teachers

Organizer

June, 2021

We are not alone: Innovative projects within the early childhood education department

Israel

The innovative approach to cooperative work in early childhood studies

Lecturer

April, 2019

What is the Autistic Spectrum and why does it keep widening?

Israel

Autism is Not a Disability, it is a Difference

Organizer and Lecturer

Teaching

Courses Taught in Recent Years 

Current issues in specific learning disabilities - a critical analysis of articles

Advanced Aspects in Developmental Psycholog

Innovative Approaches and Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Through Inclusion of Learners with Special Needs

Mediation for Development of Thought Processes

Reflective Care

Introduction to Mild Disabilities

Cognitive and Senso-Motor Development in Toddlers

Detection and Care in Students with Attention Deficit Disorder

Introduction to Care Systems Accompanying the Process of Development and Maturation

PDD – Advanced Issues

The World of Children

Introduction To Severe Disabilities and Sensory Disabilitie

Detection and Care in Students with Attention Deficit Disorder

Reading and Understanding Psycho-Didactic Diagnosis

Special Education, Inclusion and Mainstreaming

Cooperation Within a Multidisciplinary Team

Augmentative and Alternative Communication

Cooperation Within a Multidisciplinary Team

Identifying At-risk Children and Toddlers

Education / Integration of Children with Special Needs

Introduction to Learning Disabilities

Socio-Emotional Development

Typical and Pathological Development

Children with Special Needs in the school system

Children with Special Needs in the school system

Developmental Psychology

Psychology to Non-Psychologists

Autism and Communication Disorders: Theory and Application

Phone

972-543107108

Contact

Email

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© Dr Yael Barak Levy

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