This study evaluated an intervention developed through an Institute of Education Sciences-funded Goal 2 research project to teach students with moderate intellectual disability (moderate ID) to solve addition and subtraction word problems. The intervention involved modified schema-based instruction that embedded effective practices (e.g.,…

This study investigated the effects of task analytic instruction, systematic prompting and graphic organizers on two students' ability to compose informational text. Participants were provided with information articles from which they identified the key ideas and supporting details. Participants transferred this information to a graphic organizer…

Literacy in science is important for all students and is one component of access and progress in the general education curriculum. One barrier to science literacy for students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) is the extensive amount of vocabulary involved in comprehending science content. Based on the inherent link between vocabulary knowledge…

A review of the literature was conducted for articles published between 2003 and 2010 to build a case for the degree to which evidence-based practices were documented for teaching academic skills to students with severe developmental disabilities. This review extended earlier comprehensive work in literacy, mathematics, and science for the…

This study investigated the effects of scripted task analytic lessons with systematic prompting on engagement and comprehension of students with a multiple, severe disability using a multiple probe single case design. Three teachers followed the scripts to include a target student in a story based lesson to increase comprehension and engagement.…

Federal mandates as well as the National Science Education Standards call for science education for all students. IDEA (2004) and NCLB (2002) require access to and assessment of the general curriculum, including science. Although some research exists on teaching academics to students with significant disabilities, the research on teaching science…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of grade-aligned math instruction on math skill acquisition of four middle schools with moderate intellectual disability. Teachers were trained to follow a task analysis to teach grade-aligned math to middle school students using adapted math problem stories and graphic organizers. The teacher…

The "What Works Clearinghouse" guidelines for high-quality professional development were used to develop a Tell, Show, Try, and Apply (TSTA) method of training. This method was used to train teachers to align instruction to grade-level content for students with severe developmental disabilities. A total of 193 teachers of students who…

This investigation focused on the effects of a treatment package including multiple exemplar training, time delay, and a self-directed learning prompt (KWHL chart) on students' ability to complete an inquiry lesson independently and generalize to untrained materials. Three middle school students with moderate intellectual disabilities learned to…

The purpose of this study was to train teachers to follow a task analysis to teach a story-based literacy lesson using adapted, grade-appropriate middle school literature to students with moderate and severe developmental disabilities. A multiple-probe-across-participants design was used to examine the effects of training teachers to follow a…

A review of applications of motion study in developmental disabilities identifies two eras of research focus in the 1990s: (1) studies establishing the effectiveness and efficiency of tasks designed with motion study principles and (2) studies examining the interaction between motion study-based task designs and other variables such as choice,…

The engineering technique of motion study was evaluated as a means to identify efficient movements and improve the productivity rates for three severely retarded adults performing a mailing task. After receiving training on the most efficient movements, subjects improved production rates and maintained the improved rates. (DB)

Two task analytic instructional procedures, a traditional strategy and a strategy based on therbligs (fundamental hand motions), were compared in teaching vocational skills to three adults with severe disabilities. Both strategies led to the acquisition of the target tasks, but the therblig-based strategy was more efficient and efficacious.…

An observational system is described that collects precise data on the performance of teachers involved in task analytic instruction with severely handicapped students. Discussed are the observation process, provision of feedback to the teacher, teacher self-monitoring of instruction, and field test data for the observation system. (JDD)