Using Story-Based Lessons to Increase Academic Engaged Time in General Education Classes for Students with Moderate Intellectual Disability and Autism

Overview & Synopsis

The purpose of the study was to examine the effects of special education and general education teachers working together to develop and implement story-based lessons on the academic engaged time of students with moderate intellectual disability and autism. A multiple probe across participants' design was used to measure teacher implementation of steps of task analyses as well as student academic engaged time. Results of this study indicate special education teachers can follow a 12-step task analysis to adapt books for students with moderate intellectual disability and autism and that general education teachers can reliably implement a task analysis that incorporates an adapted book in their reading instruction for students with moderate intellectual disability and autism. Furthermore, this study provides evidence that may offer an effective way to increase engagement for students with moderate intellectual disability and autism in general education classrooms during literacy instruction.