Intentional Communication and Graphic Symbol Use by Students with Severe Intellectual Disability

Communicative intent is an important construct in pragmatic theory that is based, in part, on the study of language acquisition among normally developing children. This article discusses communicative intent in persons with severe intellectual disability in the context of intervention studies reporting the acquisition of graphic symbol use.     

Addressing Teacher Needs and Concerns in Communication Interventions for Students with an Intellectual Disability

This paper describes the phases of a professional development project designed to support teachers in planning for communication interventions with students who have a range of intellectual disabilities. Issues relating to educational change are explored recognising the importance of personal and systemic factors in such a process. An evaluation instrument designed to measure the effectiveness of the project in addressing teacher needs and concerns is introduced and discussed.     

The Language and Communication Content of FE Courses for Students with Severe Learning Difficulties

This article reports an investigation in further education colleges in the north west of England into the language and communication content of courses for students with severe learning difficulties. The inquiry was undertaken for the M.Ed degree of Liverpool University. Sue Roulstone is currently the chief speech therapist at Bristol Royal Hospital for Sick Children and teaches part time at Bristol Polytechnic.     

Intervention Provided to Linguistically Diverse Middle School Students with Severe Reading Difficulties

This study investigated the effectiveness of a multicomponent reading intervention implemented with middle school students with severe reading difficulties, all of whom had received remedial and/or special education for several years with minimal response to intervention. Participants were 38 students in grades 6-8 who had severe deficits in word reading, reading fluency, and reading comprehension. Most were Spanish-speaking English language learners (ELLs) with identified disabilities. Nearly all demonstrated severely limited oral vocabularies in English and, for ELLs, in both English and Spanish. Students were randomly assigned to receive the research intervention (n = 20) or typical instruction provided in their school's remedial reading or special education classes (n = 18). Students in the treatment group received daily explicit and systematic small-group intervention for 40 minutes over 13 weeks, consisting of a modified version of a phonics-based remedial program augmented with English as a Second Language practices and instruction in vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension strategies. Results indicated that treatment students did not demonstrate significantly higher outcomes in word recognition, comprehension, or fluency than students who received the school's typical instruction and that neither group demonstrated significant growth over the course of the study. Significant correlations were found between scores on teachers' ratings of students' social skills and problem behaviors and posttest decoding and spelling scores, and between English oral vocabulary scores and scores in word identification and comprehension. The researchers hypothesize that middle school students with the most severe reading difficulties, particularly those who are ELLs and those with limited oral vocabularies, may require intervention of considerably greater intensity than that provided in this study. Further research directly addressing features of effective remediation for these students is needed.     

试论以组织传播策略干预大学生非正式群体

大学生非正式群体既有积极作用也有消极作用,对其进行适当干预很有必要.探讨用组织传播方式干预大学生非正式群体的可行性,应先探明非正式群体与正式群体及组织的关系,组织传播的作用对象以及如何把握传播方式的正式程度.其干预方式主要分为下行传播、平行传播与上行传播三种组织传播策略.     

Models of Communication in the Education of Students with Severe Learning Difficulties

Abstract

In Colleges of Further Education communication between tutors and students or tutors and the parents of students is not generally a problem. However, when the students have severe learning difficulties communication between tutors and parents takes on a different meaning and significance. This paper begins by examining models which describe this relationship before reporting a qualitative study of tutor/parent communication. The study found that the college rhetoric of client centredness was not matched by practice, and more importantly, identified unaddressed issues relating to the status of the student. In order to resolve these difficulties an alternative model is outlined.     

A Content Comparison of Literacy Lessons from 2004 and 2010 for Students with Moderate and Severe Intellectual Disability

Mandates such as No Child Left Behind (2001) No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, Pub. L. No. 107-110, 115 Stat.1425 (2002). [Google Scholar] and Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (2004) Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004, 20 U.S.C. §1400, H. R. 1350. [Google Scholar] shifted the emphasis of instruction to include skills that access the general curriculum for students with moderate to severe intellectual disability. The purpose of this study was to describe changes in literacy instruction of teachers who participated in literacy research using secondary data analysis of instructional videos from 2004 to 2010. Results from the study suggest that teachers in 2004 focused on fewer components of reading that did not include phonemic awareness or phonics than teachers in 2010. Other changes in instruction included use of systematic instruction, grade-appropriate materials, and structure of literacy lessons.     

A Tiered Intervention Model for Early Vocabulary Instruction: The Effects of Tiered Instruction for Young Students At Risk for Reading Disability

Vocabulary knowledge at school entry is a robust predictor of later reading achievement. Many children begin formal reading instruction at a significant disadvantage due to low levels of vocabulary. Until recently, relatively few research studies examined the efficacy of vocabulary interventions for children in the early primary grades (e.g., before fourth grade), and even fewer addressed vocabulary intervention for students at increased risk for reading failure. In more recent work, researchers have begun to explore ways in which to diminish the “meaningful differences” in language achievement noted among children as they enter formal schooling. This article provides a review of a particularly effective model of vocabulary intervention based on shared storybook reading and situates this model in a context of tiered intervention, an emerging model of instructional design in the field of special education. In addition, we describe a quasi‐experimental posttest‐only study that examines the feasibility and effectiveness of the model for first‐grade students. Participants were 224 first‐grade students of whom 98 were identified as at risk for reading disability based on low levels of vocabulary. Results of a multivariate analysis of variance revealed significant differences on measures of target vocabulary knowledge at the receptive and context level, suggesting that students at risk for reading failure benefit significantly from a second tier of vocabulary instruction. Implications for classroom practice as well as future research are provided.     

Visuospatial Orientation Learning through Virtual Reality for People with Severe Disability

This study aims to test how an intervention based on virtual reality (VR) may enhance visuospatial skills amongst people with disability. A quasi-experimental intra-group study was therefore conducted. Participants were 20 people with severe disability (65% males; 34.35 years, on average, and 84.95% of disability rate according to the Andalusian Government index). Intervention consisted of 15 sessions of active navigation using a VR building similar to the participants’ day rehabilitation centre with the task of locating different rooms and objects. The time spent and errors in route in the virtual and the real environments were measured before and after the intervention. Additionally, participants had to fill out a map location task. As a result, participants showed fewer errors and less time at post-intervention assessments even with non-trained stimuli (p < .05). These results demonstrate the usefulness of VR-based interventions with active navigation to accelerate orientation learning in real-life situations.     

干预反应模式:学习障碍评估的新途径

本文首先分析了"智商-成就差异模式"用于鉴别学习障碍存在的问题,而后评述了一种新的评估模式,即干预反应模式的内涵及其特点,并对其核心成分——课程本位测量的编制方法、特点及其应用进行介绍,以期对我国开展相关的研究和教育实践提供参考。     

Effects of Social Skills Training for Students with an Intellectual Disability

This study examined the effects of a computer‐assisted social skills intervention on the social competence of 73 students with a mild intellectual disability (age range: 11.0 to 15.0) within an experimental and control group design. The experimental group (N= 38) was trained with the I Found a Solution computer‐supported package while the control group (N= 35) worked on computer‐related keyboard and writing skills. The intervention consisted of the computer‐supported program and teacher‐guided work, small‐group discussions and transfer to actual real‐life conflicts. Each student was assessed before and after the training on: teacher‐rated social skills and disruptive behaviour, peer‐rated social acceptance, and self‐rated loneliness. A 2‐way MANOVA with repeated measures (grouping by gender, with pre/post training scores as the repeated measures) revealed that the experimental group increased their different measures of social competence, and the differences between them and the control group were significant following the intervention. However, no significant differences between the experimental and control groups were found in their loneliness experience. Implications for intervention and additional research are discussed.     

论学习困难学生行为干预策略

学习困难学生的行为问题是与其学习问题相伴而生的,他们的认知障碍、动机障碍是与其行为障碍密切联系的。本文讨论三类课堂行为问题干预策略：（1）学习退避行为,学习退避行为实质上是习得性无能的表现,干预重点是改善其不良的自我概念,增强其自信心,引导其正确对待失败,克服自卑,同时要改变其消极的归因倾向。（2）注意缺陷多动障碍（ADHD）,相当部分的学习困难学生伴有注意缺陷多动障碍。对注意缺陷多动障碍的干预策略,一般有药物干预和心理社会干预。医院主要采取药物干预,而学校和家庭主要采用心理社会干预。心理社会干预包括：认知行为干预、父母训练、感觉统合训练等。（3）攻击性行为干预可以采用认知行为干预和内观训练。     

Mainstreamed or Self‐Contained Classes for Students with a Mild Learning Disability: The Case of Israel

Two studies compared students with a mild learning disability who were enrolled in the Israeli version of self‐contained classes, with comparable peers who were assigned to mainstreamed classes. The first sample comprised 33 pupils in self‐contained and 34 children in mainstreamed elementary school classes. The second sample consisted of 20 high school students in self‐contained and 21 students in regular classes. The data did not support the contention that student growth was fostered more readily in the self‐contained classes. Students of these classes tended to have somewhat higher academic self‐concept, whereas their academic attainment was generally similar to the academic performance of mainstreamed students. Results were discussed in terms of learning opportunities extended to students in the self‐contained classroom.     

School-based Interventions for Improving Disability Awareness and Attitudes Towards Disability of Students Without Disabilities: A Meta-analysis

Abstract

This article presents the results of a meta-analysis of the effects of school-based interventions for improving disability awareness and attitudes towards disability of students without disabilities in Kindergarten through secondary school grades in the Republic of Korea (South Korea). A total of 20 studies published between 2001 and 2017 were included, covering a sample of 2679 students without disabilities. The overall effect was statistically significant and large (d = 1.335). Specifically, subgroup analyses showed that the effects were large for contact-based interventions, use of materials, role-playing, and human rights interventions in that order. The school-based interventions were significantly more effective in improving attitudes towards disability than disability awareness. The intervention effects did not significantly differ by school levels. Results of meta-regression analyses showed that the number of sessions had significantly more impact than instructional time per session. Limitations, recommendations for future studies, and practical implications are discussed.     

Efficacy of a Reading Intervention for Middle School Students Identified with Learning Disabilities

This experimental study reports findings on the effects from a year-long reading intervention providing daily, 50-minute sessions to middle-school students with identified learning disabilities (n = 65) compared with similar students who did not receive the reading intervention (n = 55). All students continued to receive their special education services as provided by the school. Results indicated statistically significant findings favoring the treatment group for sight word reading fluency following intervention. Small effects were found for phonemic decoding fluency and passage comprehension. No other statistically significant differences were noted between groups. The findings suggest that while gains on word reading fluency resulted from the additional reading treatment, accelerating the reading performance of students identified with learning disabilities may be unlikely to result from a one-year, daily intervention provided to students in groups of 10-15.     

Special Education in a 4‐Year Response to Intervention (RtI) Environment: Characteristics of Students with Learning Disability and Grade of Identification

This 4‐year longitudinal research was designed to study special education determinations of students who participated in Tier 2 intervention in a Response to Intervention (RtI) model focused on reading across Grades 1–4. We compared identification rates for learning disabilities (LD) and student characteristics of 381 students the year prior to implementation with 377 students in the RtI environment. Across schools, 38–60 percent of students were English language learners (ELL). Key outcomes by Grade 4 for students with LD who had participated in a model of RtI were relatively greater reading impairment with effect sizes ranging from 0.64 to 0.82, and more equitable representation across ELL and native English speakers than in the cohort prior to RtI implementation. Notably, one‐third of the students identified for special services as LD in these schools were not identified until 4th grade.     

Educational Enrolment of Students with a Disability in New South Wales and Victoria

The extent to which legislation and special education policy have impacted on the nature of the educational enrolment of students with a disability in Australia has not been clearly addressed. Although there are no detailed and systematic national data on the enrolment of students with a disability in inclusive settings, special classes and special schools in Australia, some broad trends are apparent. The legislative background to these trends is discussed. As might be expected, there are variations in the nature of the educational enrolment of students with a disability across the states and territories of Australia. Enrolment trends in the two most populous states, New South Wales and Victoria, are examined and discussed within the context of their respective special education policies, disability discrimination legislation, and educational precedent.     

Algebraic Problem Solving for Middle School Students with Autism and Intellectual Disability

Problem solving is an important yet neglected mathematical skill for students with autism spectrum disorder and intellectual disability (ASD/ID). In addition, the terminology and vocabulary used in mathematical tasks may be unfamiliar to students with ASD/ID. The current study evaluated the effects of modified schema-based instruction (SBI) on the algebra problem solving skills of three middle school students with ASD/ID. Mathematics vocabulary terms were taught using constant time delay. Participants were then taught how to use an iPad that displayed a task analysis with embedded prompts to complete each step of solving the word problems. This study also examined participant’s ability to generalize skills when supports were faded. Results of the multiple probe across participants design showed a functional relation between modified SBI and mathematical problem solving as well as constant time delay and acquisition of mathematics vocabulary terms. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.