Reading research for students with LD: a meta-analysis of intervention outcomes

The present article provides a meta-analysis of instructional research with samples of children and adolescents with learning disabilities in the domains of word recognition and reading comprehension. The results of the synthesis showed that a prototypical intervention study has an effect size (ES) of .59 for word recognition and .72 for reading comprehension. Four important findings emerged from the synthesis: (a) Effect sizes for measures of comprehension were higher when studies included derivatives of both cognitive and direct instruction, whereas effect sizes were higher for word recognition when studies included direct instruction; (b) effect sizes related to reading comprehension were more susceptible to methodological variation than studies of word recognition; (c) the magnitude of ES for word recognition studies was significantly related to samples defined by cutoff scores (IQ > 85 and reading < 25th percentile), whereas the magnitude of ES for reading comprehension studies was sensitive to discrepancies between IQ and reading when compared to competing definitional criteria; and (d) instructional components related to word segmentation did not enter significantly into a weighted least square hierarchical regression analysis for predicting ES estimates of word recognition beyond an instructional core model, whereas small-group interactive instruction and strategy cuing contributed significant variance beyond a core model to ES estimates of reading comprehension. Implications related to definition and instructional components that optimize the magnitude of outcomes are discussed.     

Science and schooling for students with LD: a discussion of the symposium

In this summative discussion, we respond to Crockett's proposals about supporting science in the schoolhouse, and we summarize and reflect on the perspectives of the commentators. Overall, they identify discussion points in issues of science in schooling, implementation of scientific practices, teacher training and professional development, and issues in educational administration and leadership. We agree with Crockett and the commentators that intensive efforts in all these areas must be made to strengthen the role of science in the schoolhouse.     

Evaluation practices for college students with LD

To examine current practices in the use of psychoeducational evaluations for service delivery, we surveyed 91 service providers to college students with learning disabilities. The three purposes of the survey were to determine (a) whether service delivery decisions are based on information from psychoeducational evaluations, (b) which sections of the psychoeducational report are most useful in making service delivery decisions, and (c) the respondents' satisfaction with the tests and measurements for service delivery. The findings supported the common belief that data from psychoeducational evaluations serve as the primary basis for both eligibility and specific accommodation determinations. Respondents reported that all sections of the psychoeducational evaluation written report were useful, with the least useful section being test scores and the most useful being the summary of cognitive strengths and weaknesses. However, the section used most often for service delivery decisions was the professional's recommendations.     

The critical policy discourse analysis frame: helping doctoral students engage with the educational policy analysis

This paper addresses an issue of increasing significance in the context of taught educational doctorates and argues that this may have wider applicability for doctoral students across a range of social science disciplines. It identifies the need to engage with policy analysis as a key element of such programmes and attempts to address students' concerns over a lack of practical approaches to do so by offering an analytical framework drawing on critical discourse analysis. This paper highlights the affordances of a taught doctorate context to consider the potential for more collaborative community approaches to doctoral pedagogies through reflecting upon the way the frame was introduced and used by one group of EdD students. In doing so, this paper offers both a practical analytical tool for doctoral students but also a pedagogical approach grounded in an invitation to dialogue and induction into the academic discourse community, through a notion of critical inclusion.     

Adding an extra dimension to what students see through the light microscope: a lab exercise demonstrating critical analysis for microscopy students

This article describes an undergraduate lab exercise that demonstrates the importance of students thinking critically about what they see through a microscope. The students are given growth data from tip-growing organisms that suggest the cells grow in a pulsatile manner. The students then critique this data in several exercises that incorporate aspects of a problem-based learning approach, envisaging growth not just in two dimensions, but in three dimensions. For some cells, what appears to be pulsatile growth could also be explained by growth at a constant rate up and down in the z-axis. Depending on the diffraction pattern generated by the tip of the cell, this movement in the z-axis could go undetected. This raises the possibility that pulsatile growth seen in some species may be an artifact generated by the limitations of the light microscope. Students were subsequently asked to rate their awareness of the need to think critically about what they see through a microscope, using a scale of 1 (unaware) to 5 (very much aware). Prior to doing the lab exercise, the mean rating was 2.7; this increased to 4.4 after the lab. The students also indicated a likelihood of being more critical in their thinking in other aspects of their biology curriculum.     

Improving comprehension of expository text in students with LD: a research synthesis

This article summarizes the findings of research studies designed to improve the comprehension of expository text for students with learning disabilities. Twenty-nine studies were located that met the inclusion criteria. Interventions gleaned from the review were categorized as content enhancement (i.e., advance and graphic organizers, visual displays, mnemonic illustrations, and computer-assisted instruction) or cognitive strategy instruction (i.e., text structure, main idea identification, summarization, questioning, cognitive mapping, reciprocal teaching). Treatment outcomes are discussed in relation to the various instructional approaches, student characteristics (e.g., grade, IQ), instructional features (e.g., materials, treatment length), methodological features, strategy maintenance, and generalization components. Implications for classroom practice and future research directions are provided.     

The social and emotional world of gifted students: Moving beyond the label

Students who are identified as gifted have academic, social, and emotional experiences that are informed by both their cognition and their identification. Similarly, highly able students who are overlooked and remain unidentified have extra layers of social and emotional complexity to negotiate. While the label should not uniquely define the treatment of the student, this review of the literature offers some supported themes that might inform service. Research on traditional and contemporary concerns is placed in the context of conceptual and methodological limitations, concluding with recommendations for the practitioner as a beginning to the conversation.     

A meta-analysis of single-subject-design intervention research for students with LD

This article summarizes single-subject-design intervention studies that include students with learning disabilities. Effect sizes of 85 studies were analyzed across instructional domains (e.g., reading, mathematics); sample characteristics (e.g., age, intelligence); intervention parameters (e.g., number of instructional sessions, instructional components); and methodological procedures (e.g., internal validity, treatment integrity, sample representation). The major findings were as follows: (a) All domain areas except handwriting yielded effect sizes at or above Cohen's .80 threshold for a substantial finding; (b) instructional components related to drill-repetition-practice-review, segmentation, small interactive groups, and the implementation of cues to use strategies contributed significant variance (15%) to estimates of effect size; (c) strategy instruction (SI) models better predicted effect size estimates than direct instruction (DI) models when the results were qualified by the reported intellectual and reading levels of the participants; (d) high-IQ discrepancy groups yielded lower effect sizes compared to low-IQ discrepancy groups in the domain of reading, whereas the reverse effect occurred when treatment outcomes were not reading measures; and (e) the low-IQ discrepancy groups yielded higher effect sizes for a Combined DI and SI Model when compared to competing models. The results are supportive of the pervasive influence of cognitive strategy and direct instruction models across treatment domains and of the notion that variations in sample definition moderate treatment outcomes.     

The ethnic minority achievement grant: a critical analysis

This article critically analyses the extent to which the Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant (EMAG) has been successful in meeting its core objective of raising the achievement of minority ethnic groups who are at risk of underachieving. The article provides an historical analysis of the Grant, sets the Grant within the context of the Labour government’s policies relating to minority ethnic groups and social inclusion and reports on the authors’ research into the use made by Local Education Authorities (LEAs) of EMAG based on an analysis of LEA EMAG action plans. It suggests that although there have been some improvements in closing the gaps between minority ethnic achievement and national averages since the introduction of the Grant, these have been largely limited to groups receiving English as an Additional Language (EAL) support, although these groups continue to underachieve. Further the relative achievement of some groups, notably Black Caribbean pupils, has not improved at all since the introduction of the Grant. The article proposes that if the government wishes to more effectively tackle minority ethnic underachievement then it needs to increase the overall amount spent on the Grant, which has been frozen in recent years, and demonstrate more commitment to tackling institutionalized racism within the education system and the national curriculum. Although the government is issuing guidance to schools to address historic weaknesses in the way that the Grant has been deployed, the guidance itself does not go far enough in acknowledging the role of schools and particularly LEAs in tackling underachievement. Nor does the proposed new guidance recognize the importance of including the perspectives of local Black and Asian communities in decisions on how the Grant is deployed.     

The “learning disabilities” label: An experimental analysis

The “learning disability” label is a relatively new addition to the field of special education and its effects have begun to be investigated. This study examined the differences produced by two categorical labels on students impressions of the “disturbingness” of behavior and their willingness to work with the labeled child. Aggressive behaviors thought to be exhibited by learning disabled youngsters were rated differently from identical behaviors thought to be exhibited by emotionally disturbed children. Implications of this study suggest that the “LD” label may connote a milder form of disability; and that teacher and professional training institutions should consider the deleterious effects labels may convey with regard to expected behaviors.     

教育机智在“学困生”教育中的作用

教育智能与教育机智,是指教师在不断变化的教育情境中得以随机应变、进退自如的技能和技巧.教育情境是不断变化的,因为教育过程中学生、教师、时间、氛围等都在不停地运动、发展、变化.     

The relation of LD and gender with emotional intelligence in college students

This study examined the relation of learning disabilities (LD) and gender with emotional intelligence in 128 college students. Fifty-four students with LD (32 men and 22 women) and 74 without LD (34 men and 40 women) attending two colleges and one university participated in the study. Emotional intelligence was assessed using the Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i; BarOn,1997), a self-report instrument designed to measure interpersonal and intrapersonal skills, stress management, adaptability, and general mood. A 2-way multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was performed to examine the main effects of LD and gender and the interaction of the two main effects on the five composites of the EQ-i. Students with LD had fewer credits and lower scholastic aptitude test (SAT) scores, high school grade point averages (GPAs), and college GPAs than students without LD; women students were older and had higher college GPAs than men students. Results of the MANOVA indicated significant main effects of both LD and gender; no significant interaction occurred. Post hoc univariate analyses of the five composites revealed significant differences between students with LD and students without LD on stress management and adaptability, significant differences between men and women students on interpersonal skills, and significant differences of the interaction of LD and gender on interpersonal skills.     

History as narrative: the nature and quality of historical understanding for students with LD

In this study, we examine the nature and quality of students' comprehension of history. Specifically, we explore whether cognitive-psychological theories developed to capture the comprehension of narrative text can be used to capture the comprehension of history. Participants were 36 students with learning disabilities who had taken part in an earlier study designed to investigate the effects of an interactive instructional intervention in history. The results of the original study supported the effectiveness of the intervention in terms of amount recalled. The results of the present study reveal that historical understanding can be characterized as the construction of meaning through the creation of a causal network of events. The study of history within a causal network framework has implications for understanding the nature and quality of students' learning of history, and for potentially identifying sources of failure in learning.     

The validity and comparability of entrance examination scores after accommodations are made for students with LD

Every year, thousands of college and university applicants with learning disabilities (LD) present scores from standardized examinations as part of the admissions process for postsecondary education. Many of these scores are from tests administered with nonstandard procedures due to the examinees' learning disabilities. Using a sample of college students with LD and a control sample, this study investigated the criterion validity and comparability of scores on the Miller Analogies Test when accommodations for the examinees with LD were in place. Scores for examinees with LD from test administrations with accommodations were similar to those of examinees without LD on standard administrations, but less well associated with grade point averages. The results of this study provide evidence that although scores for examinees with LD from nonstandard test administrations are comparable to scores for examinees without LD, they have less criterion validity and are less meaningful for their intended purpose.     

Four narratives about online international students: a critical literature review

In the current higher education context, offering online programmes is seen as an effective means to recruit more international students. However, supporting online international students studying at a distance is not a simple task for both universities and tutors. The problem mainly stems from a lack of theoretical understanding of online international students and their learning experiences. The present article, therefore, aims to address the gap, by systematically, yet critically reviewing relevant academic narratives about online international students. Our review reveals four types of narratives presented in the literature, describing online international students in particular ways: unspecified others with a rapid increase in their numbers, specific others with deficits, specific others as pedagogical resources and active participants in international learning communities. We discuss the merits and the drawbacks of each type of narratives for online educators seeking pedagogical suggestions about supporting online international students.     

The development of Internet use for communication among undergraduate students: a multilevel analysis

As few studies utilized longitudinal design to examine the development of Internet use for communication, the purpose of this study was to examine the effects of gender and initial Internet use for communication on subsequent use. The study sample was 280 undergraduate students who were assessed at five time points. Hierarchical linear models were used to analyze longitudinal data regarding the development of three Internet mediums, email, instant messaging, and chat. The negative correlation between initial status and growth rate demonstrated that students using one particular medium relatively heavily tended to grow slower, and thus students with low initial use of a medium increased their use of that medium faster and thus closed the gap between students with low and high initial status. Findings about the use of a certain medium on the use of others were mixed with four models supporting neither displacement nor augmentation hypothesis and two remaining models supporting the displacement hypothesis.     

Teacher competency testing: what teachers of students with LD need to know

In 1964, North Carolina became the first state to enact a testing program for initial certification of teachers. Today, almost all states and the District of Columbia are actively planning or implementing teacher testing programs; six are administering tests in the specific area of learning disabilities. The objectives and content areas of knowledge included in competency testing programs within this specialized area of teacher competence were analyzed, and comparisons were completed across knowledge areas and among states. In general, much similarity exists in what teachers of students with learning disabilities in different states are expected to know. This information represents a strong foundation for planning, implementing, and evaluating training programs for all teachers.