Jennifer Stephenson

A Review of the Use of Touch-Screen Mobile Devices by People with Developmental Disabilities.

This article presents a review of the research on the use of mobile touch-screen devices such as PDAs, iPod Touches, iPads and smart phones by people with developmental disabilities. Most of the research has been on very basic use of the devices as speech generating devices, as a means of providing video, pictorial and/or audio self-prompting and for leisure activities such as listening to music and watching videos. Most research studies were small-n designs that provided a preponderant level of research evidence. There is a clear need for more research with younger participants and with a much wider range of apps, including educational apps.

The Use of Weighted Vests with Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and Other Disabilities

Therapists who use sensory integration therapy may recommend that children wear weighted vests as an intervention strategy that they claim may assist in remediating problems such as inattentiveness, hyperactivity, stereotypic behaviors and clumsiness. Seven studies examining weighted vests are reviewed. While there is only a limited body of research and a number of methodological weaknesses, on balance, indications are that weighted vests are ineffective. There may be an arguable case for continued research on this intervention but weighted vests cannot be recommended for clinical application at this point. Suggestions are offered for future research with regard to addressing methodological problems.

A Review of Three Controversial Educational Practices: Perceptual Motor Programs, Sensory Integration, and Tinted Lenses

Children with disabilities have frequently participated in various interventions before the efficacy of those practices was scientifically validated. When subsequent scientific evidence failed to support particular practices, those that had already made inroads into the educational arena frequently continued to be used. Given the current emphasis on the use of empirically validated interventions, a review of research on the efficacy of educational interventions is consistent with guidelines from the No Child Left Behind Act (2001) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (2004). The research findings regarding three relatively common, yet controversial, practices failed to support the continued use of perceptual motor programs, sensory integration therapy, and tinted lenses. Educators are encouraged to become informed consumers of research and implement evidence-based practices.

The Effects of Response Cards on Student and Teacher Behavior during Vocabulary Instruction.

The use of response cards during whole-class English vocabulary instruction was evaluated. Five low-participating students were observed during hand-raising conditions and response-card conditions to observe the effects of response cards on student responding and test scores and teacher questions and feedback. Responding and test scores were higher for all targeted students in the response-card condition. The teacher asked a similar number of questions in both conditions; however, she provided more feedback in the response-card condition.

Parents' Perspectives on the Communication Skills of Their Children with Severe Disabilities.

Abstract Background The development of communication skills in children with severe disabilities partly depends on the responsivity of partners to all forms of communicative behaviour. This study explored the behaviours that parents interpret as communicative. Method Parents of 10 children aged 4 to 9 years were interviewed about the forms of communication used by their children. All the children had severe intellectual disability and were unable to use spoken language as their primary means of communication. Results Parents described a wide range of behaviours, including the use of facial expressions, body movements, vocalisations, gestures, word approximations and words, formal and made‐up signs, and object and picture symbols, as communicative behaviours. Conclusions Parents interpreted many of these behaviours, including challenging behaviours, as communicative, but may need support to encourage presymbolic communicative behaviours. Where formal alternative and augmentative communication had been introduced by schools, parents were not always supportive of its use at home.

Anger Management Using a Cognitive‐behavioural Approach for Children with Special Education Needs: A literature review and meta‐analysis

This review examines the use of a cognitive‐behavioural approach to anger management in children with special needs in community settings. Eighteen experimental studies involving a total of 408 children were located. The participants were mainly of high school age, with an IQ above 80, and with behavioural or emotional disorders. A moderate effect was observed for improvement in the three dimensions of anger: behaviour, cognition and emotion – although conclusions need to be very tentative. The interventions employed varied greatly in their characteristics and there were concerns about the quality of many studies. Further research is needed to investigate the interaction between intervention features and participant characteristics.

Iconicity in the Development of Picture skills: Typical Development and Implications for Individuals with Severe Intellectual Disabilities

The iconicity of graphic symbols and the iconicity hypothesis are theoretical concepts that have had an impact on the use of augmentative and alternative communication strategies for people with severe intellectual disabilities. This article reviews some of the recent literature on the impact of iconicity on symbol recognition and use by typically developing children and relates those findings to people with severe disability. It seems that although iconicity may have some impact on symbol learning, there are other variables that are likely to be much more important. It is likely that iconicity is not helpful to those learning graphic symbols who have little or no comprehension of spoken language.

Classroom behaviour management content in Australian undergraduate primary teaching programmes

The ability to differentiate classroom behaviour management (CBM) strategies is an important skill for novice teachers in increasingly diverse classrooms. Worldwide, little is known about the curriculum content offered to pre-service teachers in the area of CBM. This article reports the findings from the first nationwide survey of Australian primary pre-service teacher educators coordinating units and programmes with CBM content. Twenty-five Australian tertiary institutions with primary programmes participated, providing information on 102 of the 118 units with CBM content. Stand-alone units were offered in 68% of programmes and embedded in 96% of programmes. Unit coordinators included a mean of 8.3 approaches/models per unit. They commonly included applied behaviour analysis, decisive discipline, positive behaviour intervention and support, and choice theory/reality therapy, among the 36 approaches/models listed. More than half (57.9%) of the stand-alone units and only 20% of embedded units were coordinated by an academic with a stated CBM research interests. Units coordinated by an academic with CBM research interests contained more hours/model and included research-based models more often than those without CBM research interests, although they still included non-research-based models.

Professional Learning for Teachers Without Special Education Qualifications Working With Students With Severe Disabilities

In this article, the authors report on an individualized professional learning activity, based on the principles described by Gersten and colleagues, implemented by two academics with three teachers without special education qualifications teaching students with severe and multiple disabilities. The professional learning consisted of consultation based around observation of classroom practice (live or by video recording) focusing on the use of strategies to increase the number of opportunities for communication offered to students. Analysis of video recordings of targeted activities over baseline and intervention sessions demonstrated an increase in the opportunities teachers offered, with larger effects in two of the classes.

Best Practice? Advice Provided to Teachers about the Use of Brain Gym® in Australian Schools

Perceptual motor programs continue to be used in Australian schools despite evidence showing they do not influence academic learning. Brain Gym® is one perceptual motor program that is used in schools in Australia and overseas. There is little evidence to support the claims made about the benefits of Brain Gym® its theoretical underpinning has been subject to criticism by neuroscientists. A search was made of Internet sites, including state department of education sites to locate information provided to teachers about Brain Gym®. Although education departments and others responsible for providing advice and professional development to teachers espouse research-based practice, they continue to endorse and support the use of Brain Gym®.