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Effective Writing Instruction for Students with Developmental Disabilities: Curriculum, Measurement, and Accommodations
Janet M. Sturm, PhD, CCC-SLP
Central Michigan University
MATN Webinar Part II – October 30, 2013
Writing Development – Beginning Writers
• move from drawing to scribbling to inventive spelling
• are single session writers
• naturally choose a variety of genres & topics
• may not yet have a sense of audience
• use spoken and written skills to convey meaning
• use pictures to convey meaning
• develop conventional spelling over time (after lots of opportunities)
In early writing development students -
Writing Development – Skilled Writers
• Convey what they know through writing
• Focus on all processes (planning, composing, revising, editing)
• Use sophisticated word choice and syntax
• Integrate information from a variety of sources
• Use of sophisticated structures across genres & use writing for a variety of purposes (enjoyment, tell what you know, tell a story, persuade)
• Know “why” they are writing and are able to communicate message based on their audience
• Compose multiple drafts
In later development students -
Writing In General Education First Grade Classrooms (180 day school year)
Include drawings or pictures with writing
• 148 times per year
Choose Own Writing Topics
• 119 times per year
Start a new piece of writing
• 109 times per year
Write independently
• 164 times per year
(Richards, Sturm, & Cali, 2012)
Students...
Text Types Naturally Chosen by Kindergarten & 1st Grade Students
Kindergarten
• Labels
• Opinions
1st Grade
• Personal Stories
• Plans
• Descriptions
(Cali & Sturm, Manuscript in Preparation)
Writing Instruction & Students with Developmental Disabilities
• social, vocational, and daily living skills
• basic functional literacy skills
• decontextualized drill and practice
• Tracing
• Copying
• Worksheets
The instructional focus has targeted -
(Summarized by Hedricks, Katims, & Carr, 1999)
First Author – A Writing Process Software Tool for Beginning Writers
This tool was designed to be an integrated writing software tool, that supports beginning writers across the writing process -- planning, composing, revising, and publishing – and is
accessible to students with severe speech and physical impairments (SSPI).
First Author – Software Goals – It will:
provide functional outcome measures for periodic assessment probes and classroom-produced writing artifacts
provide access to the general education writing curriculum by reflecting, and operating in parallel with, an exemplary model of writing instruction
use research on the development of beginning writers
target simple and efficient interface design for both direct selection and scanning
provide ease of access to planning, composing, and revising processes, & offer ease of movement among the processes
First Author – Phase I Research
• Five primary and secondary special education classrooms
• Mild cognitive impairments (3 classrooms)
• Moderate cognitive impairments (2 classrooms)
• 44 total student participants (Age 5-19)
Participants
• Repeated measures between-subjects design
• Control group = Paper and pencil
• Treatment group = First Author software
• Teachers utilized standard instructional practices
• Measured:
• student independence
• writing quantity and quality
• time writing
Research Design
First Author – Results for Student Independence
• 24 student participants were trained on First Author
• Of the 24 students, 18 were able to use First Author with minimal to no support (Rated a 3-4) during the assessment of tool competence.
Training & Learning First Author
• During intervention these levels of independence were maintained.
• The remaining 6 students became more independent and/or purposeful over time.
Skill Maintenance
FirstAuthor vs. Paper and Pencil – Research Results on the DWS for 44 Students with Mild-Moderate IDD
Total Words Minus Baseline Level by Group
FirstAuthor vs. Paper and Pencil – Research Results on the DWS for 44 Students with Mild-Moderate IDD
DWS Level (Assumed Interval) Minus Baseline Level by Group
First Author – Phase II Research
• Eight primary and secondary special education classrooms
• Physical or Otherwise Health Impaired (1 classroom - 35 participants)
• Moderate cognitive impairments (4 classrooms – 34 participants)
• Autism spectrum disorders (4 classrooms – 38 participants)
• 107 total student participants
Participants
• Repeated measures between-subjects design
• Control group = Paper and pencil
• Treatment group = First Author software
• All participants received high-quality writing instruction (Enriched Writers’ Workshop
• Measured writing quantity and quality
Research Design
Baseline Writing – Paper & Pencil
Level = 3
Total Words = 0
Unique Words = 0
Topic = Unclear
Text Type = Emergent
First Day on First Author – Fall 2012
Level = 8
Total Words = 14
Unique Words = 12
Topic = Miley Cyrus
Text Type = Label
Current Writing – Spring 2013
Level = 11
Total Words = 13
Unique Words = 10
Topic = Acting
Text Type = Plan
Current Writing – Spring 2013
Level = 9
Total Words = 7
Unique Words = 6
Topic = Gravedigger
Text Type = Persuasion
Recognize Possibility – The Future
I had these kids that really couldn’t write even….they
could not write a word, they didn’t know letters. Now I
have these same kids. I have Michael [who] would
actually write backwards. He’d start on the right and
write to the left. But he couldn’t do it. Now he’s writing
sentences on paper as well as the computer. It’s amazing!