William J. Therrien

A Teacher's Guide to Meta-Analysis.

tor, convened her monthly meeting with the district’s special education teachers. The theme of Ms. Quinn’s discussion was the implementation of evidence-based practices required by the No Child Left Behind Act. During this discussion she brought up the term meta-analysis in reference to research studies, stressing that this type of literature review may be helpful when selecting effective practices for students with special needs. The term was a new one for many of the teachers and even the ones who were aware of the term were perplexed how meta-analysis could possibly impact their day-to-day classroom teaching.

Effectiveness of a Test-Taking Strategy on Achievement in Essay Tests for Students With Learning Disabilities

Research was conducted to ascertain if an essay-writing strategy was effective at improving the achievement on essay tests for 7th- and 8th-grade students with reading and writing disabilities. Students were assigned via a stratified random sample to treatment or control group. Student scores were also compared to students without learning disabilities nominated by teachers as average writers. A 6-step essay strategy was taught that included analyzing the essay prompt, outlining, writing a response, and reviewing the answer. On the posttest, intervention group students significantly outperformed control group students on essay measures related to strategy use, content, and organization. There was no significant difference between treatment group and students without learning disabilities on posttest measures of content and organization.

Effects of Combined Reading and Question Generation on Reading Fluency and Comprehension of Three Young Adults With Autism and Intellectual Disability

Reread–Adapt and Answer–Comprehend (RAAC) is a reading intervention designed to target fluency and comprehension for students with disabilities. Previous researchers have demonstrated the effectiveness of the intervention for students with learning disabilities. This study extended the research by using the RAAC intervention with three postsecondary students with autism spectrum disorder. In the context of a multiple baseline across participants design, the results can be interpreted to conclude that the RAAC intervention may improve oral reading fluency and comprehension for young adults with autism. Using the linear weekly growth model based on the slope, the authors calculated realistic and ambitious goals. Participants’ fluency gains exceeded the ambitious levels of growth and transferred to unpracticed passages. In addition, all participants correctly answered more factual and inferential comprehension questions during the intervention.

Science Education for Students with Special Needs.

Students with special needs tend to show significantly lower achievement in science than their peers. Reasons for this include severe difficulties with academic skills (i.e. reading, math and writing), behaviour problems and limited prior understanding of core concepts background knowledge. Despite this bleak picture, much is known on how to significantly improve science achievement for students with special needs. A recent comprehensive meta-analysis indicates that inquiry instruction which infuses appropriate scaffolds and supports, can significantly improve science achievement for students with special needs. This article will delineate the types of supports and scaffolds that students with special needs require to be successful in inquiry instruction. It will also provide concrete examples of how these supports have been successfully applied in an inclusive third through fifth grade science approach (i.e. the science writing heuristic).

Comparison of a Reading Fluency Intervention With and Without Passage Repetition on Reading Achievement

The purpose of this study was to compare the effect of a repeated reading and question generation intervention entitled Re-read-Adapt and Answer-Comprehend (RAAC) with a modified RAAC intervention without the repeated reading component. The sample included 30 students in Grades 3 through 5. The students received services in reading within a three-tiered response to intervention framework or in special education. Students were randomly assigned to the nonrepetitive condition or the control repeated reading condition and participated in 50 intervention sessions over a 4-month period. Regardless of condition, all students made gains in oral reading fluency on independent passages. The modified RAAC program without passage repetition appeared to be as effective if not more so at increasing reading fluency when compared to the RAAC program with passage repetition.

Essay-Writing Strategy for Students Enrolled in a Postsecondary Program for Individuals With Developmental Disabilities:

This study investigated the efficacy of a writing (ANSWER) strategy to improve the essay test responses of students who were enrolled in a campus-based, postsecondary education program for individuals with developmental disabilities. Random assignment to treatment or control groups and a pre- and posttest design were employed. Students used the six-step ANSWER strategy to analyze essay test prompts, construct outlines, generate essay responses, and revise as needed. The results were evaluated using a strategy scoring rubric. The treatment group received higher scores than the control group in the areas of strategy use and quality of essay responses. The results support the ANSWER strategy as an effective writing intervention for improving students’ essay responses.

Enhancing Motivation to Complete Math Tasks Using the High-Preference Strategy

Designed to enhance the completion of math tasks, high-preference strategy consists of presenting math tasks that students prefer, to enhance their interest in completing difficult math tasks. In this article, a brief review of the literature related to the use of the high-preference strategy is provided along with directions on how to implement the strategy with students with learning and behavior disabilities.

How Can Meta-Analyses Guide Practice? A Review of the Learning Disability Research Base:

Meta-analysis is considered an acceptable method to evaluate research studies for evidence-based practices. The purpose of this review is to examine the applicability of using meta-analyses in the learning disability field to guide classroom practice. The authors evaluated 15 learning disability meta-analyses in three domains: large-scale analyses, academic, and social. Results indicate that although meta-analyses provide strong support for general components of effective instruction, they are unable to provide definitive answers for practitioners looking for concrete suggestions of what evidence-based practices to implement in their classrooms.