Education Commons^™

Literacy Instruction For Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Sonja Hall

Graduate Teacher Education

This paper reviewed current literature on instructional strategies for providing literacy instruction to students with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Literacy is made up of many strands, literacy was broken into three subsections for the purpose of this review: phonics instruction, reading comprehension, and writing. According to experts, reading comprehension and writing are two main areas in which students who have been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) can be challenged by. The studies in this review revealed that direct, systematic, and explicit instruction in the area of literacy is essential for student success in the targeted areas. Different teaching strategies involved …

Writing Strategies And Older Students With Learning Disabilities, Lisa J. D. Thomas

LC Journal of Special Education

This review focuses on literature dealing with strategies for writing for older students with learning disabilities. Specifically, the literature in this review deals with strategies that have developed from both cognitive/motivational conceptualizations, which looks at aspects of writing such as student ability and mental processes, and social/contextual conceptualizations, which looks at collaboration and the writing environment (Graham & Harris, 2011) . In the following three sections, I will provide a brief summary and critical analysis of five articles regarding writing strategies for high school students with learning disabilities, a discussion of the overall findings from these five articles, and implications …

A Spark Of Light In The Darkness: A Framework Of Habits And Routines That Grow Literacy Identities, Andy Schoenborn

Michigan Reading Journal

Using familiar and flexible classroom routines, authentic literacy habits, and encouragement, his students moved from "I hate reading and writing" to self-identifying as readers and writers in a matter of eighteen weeks.

The Effect Of Constant Time Delay And Sentence Frames On Correct Word Selection For Sentences Constructed Using Technology-Aided Instruction During A Story-Based Lesson, Thai Williams

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of an intervention package that included constant time delay (CTD) and sentence frames on correct word selection for sentences constructed using technology-aided instruction (TAI) during and following a story-based lesson (SBL) for participants ages 6-8 who have intellectual disability, developmental delays, and autism (IDD). A multiple probe across participants design was used to evaluate the efficacy of the intervention. Probes were conducted during baseline, intervention, generalization, and maintenance phases to determine the effectiveness of the intervention on correct word selection for sentence construction. Results indicate a functional relation between the …

Specialized Writing Instruction For Deaf Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial, Kimberly A. Wolbers, Hannah Dostal, Steve Graham, Lee Branum-Martin, Leala Holcomb

Theory and Practice in Teacher Education Publications and Other Works

Strategic and Interactive Writing Instruction (SIWI) involves teaching cognitive writing strategies and apprenticing novices within collaborative writing communities. It is responsive to deaf students' diverse language experiences through embedded metalinguistic/linguistic components. A randomized controlled trial of SIWI was conducted with 15 teachers and 79 students in grades 3-5. Recount, information report, and persuasive genres were taught across three 9-week periods. Writing samples analyzed for writing traits, language clarity, and language complexity were collected prior to instruction for the genre, immediately following, and 9 weeks after withdrawal of instruction for the genre. Standardized writing measures and motivation surveys were collected at …

Teaching Writing To Middle School Students With Disabilities: A Merc Research Brief, David Naff, Jennifer Askue-Collins, Julie S. Dauksys

MERC Publications

This research brief by the Metropolitan Educational Research Consortium explores peer reviewed literature about effective strategies for teaching writing to middle school students with disabilities. It answers the following questions: 1) Why is it important to teach writing? 2) What is the nature of the challenge in teaching writing to middle school students with disabilities? 3) What interventions help with teaching writing to middle school students with disabilities? and 4) What strategies are utilized in the MERC region for teaching writing to middle school students with disabilities?

Scoring Measures Of Word Dictation Curriculum-Based Measurement In Writing: Effects Of Incremental Administration, Apryl L. Poch, Abigail A. Allen, Erica S. Lembke

Special Education and Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

Spelling has been identified as a key transcription skill that emerges during the elementary years as students learn how to write and subsequently develop fluency with writing, making the assessment of spelling a critical component of evaluation systems within schools. This includes the use of curriculum-based measures of writing (CBM-W). This study examined the extent to which word dictation CBM-W administered during the Fall, Winter, and Spring of an academic year maintained technical adequacy across 1-min time intervals in grades 1–3. Results revealed moderate predictive and concurrent validity estimates with the Spelling subtest of the Weschler Individual Achievement Test-III. Statistically …

The Effects Of Self-Regulated Strategy Development On Students With Emotional/Behavioral Disorders: A Literature Review, Danika Lang

The Nebraska Educator: A Student-Led Journal

Students identified with or at risk for emotional/behavioral disorders (EBD) face a number of challenges, both academic and behavioral (Trout et al., 2003). Individuals in this disability category especially struggle due to their challenges with self-regulation skills. These difficulties make it strenuous for students with EBD to regulate their thoughts, feelings, actions, and environments that may serve as distractions when attempting to attend to key learning tasks, including written expression. Self-regulated strategy development (SRSD) is a general framework of intervention designed to guide students through the complex process of writing while embedding necessary strategy instruction in self-monitoring, self-instruction, goal setting, …

Acting With Inscriptions: Expanding Perspectives Of Writing, Learning, And Becoming, Kevin R. Roozen

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

This article argues for increased attention to people’s engagements with inscriptions and inscriptional practices and the long-term implications they have for the ongoing production of persons, practices, and social worlds across heterogeneous times, places, and activities. Based on a multi-year case study, this analysis examines one microbiology major’s production and use of inscriptions at the intersections of his participation in both disciplinary science and religious worship and traces the long-term consequences those uses have for his becoming as a scientist of faith. If, as Paul Prior asserts, “ literate activity is not located in acts of reading and writing but …

“The Hidden Door That Leads To Several Moments More”: Finding Context For The Literacy Narrative In First Year Writing, Denise Goldman

The Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning

The literacy narrative has emerged as a useful genre in composition pedagogy because of the perceived bridge it provides between personal narrative and academic literacy. Although there remains disagreement among practitioners with regard to its purpose and efficacy, it continues to be a staple in the writing classroom because it has the potential to help students learn analytical skills while fostering investment through the features of a personal narrative. Recent efforts in the field, especially with regard to questions of transfer of writing, have focused on the benefits of genre and community discourse analysis as a means to help students …

Examining The Effects Of The Write Sounds Intervention With First Grade Students, Brittany Wambold

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Students who have difficulty with reading and writing are at risk to continue having difficulty throughout their schooling. Lack of time and resources may be a contributing factor for students not receiving additional instruction for both skills. However, there is evidence that balanced reading and writing programs can be effective. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of the Write Sounds intervention for students who had deficits in reading and writing. This study was a multiple baseline across participants design with three first-grade students who showed difficulty with reading, spelling, and phonemic awareness. Students received 40 minutes …

Using Data-Based Instruction To Support Struggling Elementary Writers, Apryl L. Poch, Abigail A. Allen, Pyung-Gang Jung, Erica S. Lembke, Kristen L. Mcmaster

Special Education and Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

Writing is a critical academic and life skill, but many school-age children struggle with the complexity of written expression. Given the importance of writing, there is a clear need for a systematic approach to identifying and supporting struggling writers, including writers with learning and emotional disabilities. One such approach is known as data-based instruction (DBI). This article presents an overview of DBI and guidance on how educators can use the DBI steps with assessment data to inform their classroom writing instruction. Additional resources are shared to support teachers in using DBI with their struggling writers and writers with learning and …

Academic Literacy For Deaf Postsecondary Students Through Integrated Reading And Writing Instruction, Sue Livingston

Publications and Research

Based on theoretical findings from the literature on the integration of reading and writing pedagogies used with hearing postsecondary students to advance academic literacy, this article offers a model of instruction for achieving academic literacy in developmental and freshman composition courses composed of deaf students. Academic literacy is viewed as the product of acts of composing in reading and writing which best transpire through reciprocal rather than separate reading and writing activities. Pedagogical practices based on theoretical findings and teacher experience are presented as a model of instruction, exemplified as artifacts in online supplementary materials and juxtaposed with practices used …

Empower: An Adaptable Writing Intervention, Carly Dinnes

The Nebraska Educator: A Student-Led Journal

EmPOWER is a six-stage writing intervention designed by speech-language pathologists to improve the expository writings of school-aged children with language learning and executive function disabilities. The intervention uses scaffolded instruction to transform struggling students into independent and self-regulating writers by training the students to use a variety of supports (e.g., graphic organizers, checklists) and strategies (e.g., referring back to the writing prompt) throughout the writing process. Many key features of the EmPOWER approach to writing instruction directly support components described in cognitive models of writing, which indicates that EmPOWER is a theory-guided writing intervention that may benefit a wide range …

Implementing Writers’ Workshop Into The Special Education Classroom, Taylor Denning

Masters of Education in Teaching and Learning

Writers’ Workshop has developed prominence as a method towards providing authentic writing experiences. The purpose of this study was to determine what happens to student perceptions and quantity of writing when Writers’ Workshop is implemented into a special education setting. This study took place in a self-contained special education classroom of third-, fourth-, and fifth-graders. Data was collected through focus group interviews with the teachers, focus groups with two students from every grade, perception surveys, and writing samples.

Surveys and focus group interviews were completed before and after the implementation. Writing samples were collected at the beginning, middle, and end …

Writing Interventions For Students With Specific Learning Disabilities, Phillip Rose

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Only 27% of U.S. eighth graders are at or above grade level proficiency in writing (National Center for Education Statistics, 2012). Students with specific learning disabilities frequently exhibit skill deficits in planning, organizing, and writing conventions, and show inadequate awareness to write strategically (Troia, 2006). The purpose of this study is to examine evidence-based writing interventions aimed at enhancing the writing skills of students with specific learning disabilities and then to indicate which interventions were proven to be effective. The results of a variety of studies of writing intervention strategies have been reviewed. Specific instructional strategies that were successful in …

Effects Of A Writing Instructional Package For Students With Moderate Intellectual Disability., Beth Newberry Gurney

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The development of writing skills is one of the most complex competencies that students are expected to master (Saddler, 2013). Limited research has been conducted on the acquisition of writing skills for students with moderate and severe intellectual disability. Even fewer studies have examined the acquisition of sentence construction skills. The current study examines the effects of a writing instructional package using peer tutoring, response prompting, and sentence frames to teach students with moderate intellectual disability to construct sentences related to adapted grade-level social studies content. Four seventh grade students without disabilities were trained to implement the writing instructional package …

Enhancing Self-Monitoring With Differential Negative Reinforcement Of Alternative Behavior For Increasing Students’ Writing Production, Meghann Torchia

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Writing is a difficult task for many students who find it aversive, and who attempt to escape the task. Self-monitoring and differential negative reinforcement of alternative behavior (DNRA) are two approaches that have been shown to improve quantity of performance, but no studies were found that combined the two methods to determine whether they are more effective in combination than in isolation. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of using DNRA to enhance self-monitoring for increasing writing productivity using a multiple probe, across participants, design. Number of words and number of sentences were measured. For …

Writing Underachievement: How To Support Students With Learning Disabilities And/Or Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder Through Self-Regulation Strategy Development, Katie Ludin

Education | Master's Theses

Writing underachievement is a national dilemma, especially among students with LDs and/or ADHD. Difficulties with written expression create negative social and emotional consequences for students since writing is critical to academic and professional success. Despite this, few studies have explored the impact of writing underachievement. The purpose of this research was to better understand the experiences of struggling writers within the elementary school setting, especially students who receive special education services. Part of this research included an intervention group. Self-Regulation Strategy Development was taught to a group of students with LDs and/or ADHD. This research was conducted in an effort …

Beyond Replicative Technology: The Digital Practices Of Students With Literacy-Related Learning Difficulties Engaged In Productive Technologies, Aimee Frier

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation, I present the findings from a qualitative case study of the digital literacy integration of a teacher and the digital literacy practices of three students with literacy-related learning difficulties within her classroom. As a researcher, I was interested in the ways students with literacy- related learning difficulties navigated digital tools in a technology-infused environment created by a teacher who has experience using digital tools for instructional and student-learning purposes. My research was guided by the following questions: (1) What was the context, content, and structure of the teacher’s technology instruction? (2) In what ways did the students …

A Sentence Construction Intervention For Elementary-Aged Spanish-Speaking Language-Minority Students With Writing Difficulties, Tim Andress

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The present replication study used a multiple probe across participant single-case experimental design to measure the effect of a sentence construction intervention on Spanish-speaking language-minority students with writing difficulties. Participants were two males and one female, aged eight to ten. Dependent variables tracked were frequency of correct word sequences, incorrect word sequences, complete sentences, and incomplete sentences written in one-minute sentence construction probes. A pre-and post-test five-minute paragraph probe served as a secondary measure to determine whether sentence-level instruction improved paragraph-level writing. Results were an increase in frequency of correct word sequence and complete sentences for all participants, as well …

Increasing Writing Skills For Students With Significant Multiple Disabilities, Heather Lyne Mcdermott

Theses and Dissertations

Students with severe disabilities struggle greatly in the area of writing. The purpose of this study is to discover how implementing a writing program created for students with disabilities can increase students' letter writing ability. The study used a single subject, repeated measures crossover design using 2 kindergarten aged students during a public school Extended School Year Program. Students were given the Sensible Pencil Pretest, 3 weeks of writing instruction and the same Sensible Pencil test after instruction. This 5-week model showed that students grew in their writing ability at different rates, but all in a positive manner. It was …

Using Cartoons To Make Connections And Enrich Mathematics, Janet St. Clair

Proceedings of the Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching and Learning Conference (2017-2019)

The article discusses the integration of cartoons into a finite mathematics college course. However, cartoon integration is appropriate for any educational level STEM course. Students and the author used an online comic strip creator, MakeBeliefsComix.com, to create cartoons that connected concepts to the real world and history. Following Cho, Osborne, and Sanders (2015), students wrote a paragraph about their cartoon and its mathematics. In addition to connecting mathematics to art and writing and unearthing students’ creative side, cartoons helped show the humanistic side of mathematics and promote communication and excitement about mathematics. The author developed a rubric to evaluate students’ …

The Effectiveness Of Using Speech-To-Text Technology To Support Writing Of Students With Learning Disabilities, Jennifer Adams

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the effects of using Speech Recognition (SR) technology to create more cohesive writing for students with learning disabilities as compared to the use of paper and pencil. Six students with IEPs from general education classrooms, ages 7 years old to 9 years old, participated in this study.

Prior to the start of this study, the subjects completed a baseline assessment to measure their expressive writing abilities in response to a narrative prompt. The students were required to include a topic sentence, beginning, middle, and end, and demonstrate understanding of the conventions of writing. There was not a …

An Exploration Of Alternative Scoring Methods Using Curriculum-Based Measurement In Early Writing, Abigail A. Allen, Apryl L. Poch, Erica S. Lembke

Special Education and Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

This manuscript describes two empirical studies of alternative scoring procedures used with curriculum-based measurement in writing (CBM-W). Study 1 explored the technical adequacy of a trait-based rubric in first grade. Study 2 explored the technical adequacy of a trait-based rubric, production-dependent, and production-independent scores in third grade. Results of Study 1 suggest that the rubric holds promise as a valid measure of sentence writing ability in first grade and has utility as a supplemental scoring procedure when using CBM-W as a screening tool. Results of Study 2 show that correct word sequences maintained the highest correlation coefficients across time with …

Effects Of Self-Regulated Strategy Development On The Persuasive Essay Writing Of Seventh Grade Students With Disabilities, Amanda Scrivani

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to analyze the effect of Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) on the persuasive essay writing of seventh grade students with disabilities. Specifically the study analyzed the effects of SRSD on (a) essay length, (b) number of essay parts, and (c) essay quality. In addition, student satisfaction with SRSD was evaluated for social validity. Eight seventh grade students, seven male and one female, participated in the study. All students were classified with either learning disabilities (LD) or other health impairment (OHI). A single-subject multiple baseline across participants design was used. During the baseline phase, students wrote …

Siwi In An Itinerant Teaching Setting: Contextual Factors Impacting Instruction, Rachel Machelle Saulsburry

Doctoral Dissertations

In the last 40 years, there has been a shift in where deaf and hard-of-hearing (d/hh) students have been educated (Foster & Cue, 2009), with a majority of d/hh students now spending at least part of their school day in the general education classroom instead of residential or day-schools for the deaf. Many of these students receive specialized support from an itinerant teacher. D/hh children have unique language needs due to their access (or lack thereof) to natural language for acquisition purposes. Insufficient access to language, ASL or English, may be due to: delays in identification and/or amplification, auditory input …

Perceptions Of Eighth Grade State Writing Assessment At A Nationally Recognized Middle School, Jillian M. Quandt

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study seeks to understand how one at-risk middle school in Nebraska is consistently beating eighth grade Nebraska State Writing Assessment (NESA-W) averages. The school has significant populations of Hispanic, special education, and low-income students. The study answers the following two research questions. What strategies does the at-risk school utilize to enable its students to exceed the Nebraska average on the NESA-W? What attitudes do the school’s writing teachers, administrators, students, and their parents hold about the NESA-W? Students and their parents answered a multiple-choice survey; teachers and administrators answered a longer, open-ended survey. The researcher used a combination of …

Assessing The Writing Achievement Of Young Struggling Writers: Application Of Generalizability Theory, Steve Graham, Michael Hebert, Michael Paige Sandbank, Karen R. Harris

Department of Special Education and Communication Disorders: Faculty Publications

This study examined the number of writing samples needed to obtain a reliable estimate of young struggling writers’ capabilities. It further assessed if performance in one genre was reflective of performance in other genres for these children. Second- and third-grade students (81 boys, 56 girls), who were identified as struggling writers in need of special assistance by their teacher and scored at the 25th percentile or lower on a norm-referenced story-writing test, wrote four compositions: a story, personal narrative, opinion essay, and informative text. Applying generalizability theory (G-theory), students’ scores on three writing measures (total number of words [TNW], vocabulary …

Practices And Routines In Siwi Lessons That Develop Skills In Reading, Paulson A. Skerrit

Doctoral Dissertations

The average performance of Deaf and hard of hearing (D/hh) students on test of reading comprehension is several grade equivalents below their high school hearing peers. The reading-writing connection is one way to address the literacy challenges of D/hh learners. This study explored that connection in instruction that was driven with a high fidelity to the principles of Strategic Interactive Writing Instruction (SIWI). The data for this study came from two grade three classes involved in the second half of a Year II project that was part of a 3-year Institute of Education Sciences-funded project to develop SIWI for use …