Running head: INSTRUCTIONAL METHODS
Instructional Methods
Dylan Graves
Virginia Commonwealth University
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INSTRUCTIONAL METHODS
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Introduction
I teach math and social studies in a middle school. I co-teach three math courses and have
one self-contained class. The social studies course is a functional class co-taught with another
special education teacher. The class contains students with intellectual abilities as well as
students with autism. In teaching the social studies class I became interested in how to educate
the students in comprehension strategies that could be used in reading history texts. To have
success in the class of social studies a student must be able to comprehend written material about
the subject matter. I researched to find a teaching strategy that could be used with students with
autism to help their reading comprehension abilities specific to the class of social studies that I
could use in the classroom.
The three math classes I co-teach have students with a wide range of abilities. I am
interested in a strategy that can enhance student engagement and learning. Also in these sixth
grade classrooms problem behaviors occur regularly.
Graphic Organizers
Research
In the research article chosen the authors focused on improving the comprehension
abilities of students with autism specifically in the area of social studies. Some unique challenges
present themselves when a student with autism is learning social studies rather than English,
however. The comprehension strategies used in an English or language arts class may not always
transfer to use in the social studies class. One challenge for students with autism is learning the
language of social studies, specifically the academic vocabulary associated with history (Zakas,
Ahlgrim-Delzell, & Heafner, 2013). In order to teach the language of history the researchers
turned to the use of graphic organizers. The study was designed to determine if the use of graphic
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organizers in a social studies classroom for students with autism would improve their
comprehension abilities of a history passage. According to Gajria, Jitendra, Sood, & Sacks
(2007) the use of graphic organizers had the largest effect on comprehension of expository text
in students with learning disabilities. The researchers set out to determine if the use of graphic
organizers would have a similar effect on students with autism in a social studies classroom.
Methods
The research team decided to use three middle school students to participate in the study.
The three students all were diagnosed on the autism spectrum disorder, 11 to 15 years old, had
good attendance, participate in the stat alternate assessment, were receptively fluent in English,
could read a passage at a first or second grade level, and could provide a written response to
questions (Zakas et al., 2013).
The research design consisted of two parts. The first was the pre-teaching of use of the
graphic organizer. As with many new teaching strategies it is important to pre-teach the concept,
use, and specifics of the task. The intervention in the experiment did not occur until the students
had learned how to use the graphic organizer. The team then conducted a series of scripted
questions to give to the students to ascertain their knowledge and abilities in using the graphic
organizer. The final part of the research study the researchers used a non-scripted expository text
to test the student’s ability in using the graphic organizer to answer questions (Zakas et al.,
2013). The researchers first modeled the use of the graphic organizer with pictures, which
consisted of seven key history terms such as “event, people, location, sequence, and time” (Zakas
et al., 2013). Once the students had learned the concept and proper usage of the graphic
organizer the researchers moved ahead and assessed their abilities in the manner of scripted
questions. Once the students had learned the new concept they would use the graphic organizer
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and the intervention would take place. The graphic organizer consisted of five blocks labeled
event, location, time, people, first detail, second detail, third detail, and outcome (Zakas et al.,
2013).
The research study consisted of two dependent variables. The first was the number of
correctly answered questions in response to the scripted questions. The students could score up
to nine points (Zakas et al., 2013). The next dependent variable was the ability for the students to
generalize the use of the graphic organizer and use it during unprompted sessions that involved
the reading of a new passage (Zakas et al., 2013). A baseline was determined after the students
used the graphic organizer with reading a passage for at least five times. The researchers then
proceeded with each of the three students having five data points to use as a baseline.
Results
The research team found that all three students showed that they could use the graphic
organizer independently with a new expository social studies text (Zakas et al., 2013). All three
students used the graphic organizer with the new text without prompting its use. This shows that
a graphic organizer can be used in social studies with effectiveness as well in an English
classroom.
Uses in Current Practice
Being that I currently teach a middle school functional social studies class with students
with autism this research study directly ties to my practice. The adaptive text used in the study is
already being used by myself and my co-teacher. We must first model the use of the graphic
organizer and then assess its use with our students. I believe this could be an essential tool to
help my students comprehend history texts.
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The research study does have drawbacks, however. The researchers only assed the
effectiveness of the graphic organizers with 3 students. There needs to be a larger sample size to
see if the results can be generalized. The use of graphic organizers also has its challenges. The
students will only be focusing on the big picture and main ideas missing many of the supporting
details that are necessary for full comprehension.
The use of graphic organizers in reading comprehension has been shown to be an
effective intervention for students with disabilities (Gajria et al., 2007). I believe it can be used in
a social studies classroom with effectiveness as well. This study only had three participants but I
am confident that it can be replicated with a larger sample size. I think this intervention can be
useful in my current social studies classroom.
Peer Tutor
Research
This research study was concerned with the effectiveness of peer tutoring in learning
basic math facts in an elementary school setting. The researchers looked at both reciprocal peer
tutoring and nonreciprocal peer tutoring and evaluated their effectiveness (Menesses & Gresham,
2009). The team recognized there was no research study completed that looked at the possible
differences in the effectiveness of reciprocal peer tutoring and nonreciprocal peer tutoring done
in the same study. Furthermore, no research up until this point had been conducted using peer
tutoring and a constant time delay procedure to teach basic math facts (Menesses & Gresham,
2009).
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Methods
The study consisted of 59 total students, 32 boys and 27 girls, across 7 different
classrooms. All of the students received general education services, however six of the students
received small group instruction for reading (Menesses & Gresham, 2009).
Each classroom was then administered a curriculum-based assessment (CBM) on the
computer to determine their knowledge in a content area. The questions were made of two math
facts that the students should have recently mastered, as reported by the teacher (Menesses &
Gresham, 2009). The CBM probes were used to determine the fluency of math facts. The
researchers used the probe over the course of three trials limiting bias (Menesses & Gresham,
2009).
The study used three models for the classrooms. The first was a classroom using
reciprocal peer tutoring, the second using nonreciprocal peer tutoring, and the third using
standard classroom instruction (Menesses & Gresham, 2009). The standard classroom instruction
was to not use peer tutoring for the duration of the study. The students were randomly assigned
to one another within the classroom.
The researchers then taught the students the method of the peer tutoring model using a
tell, show, do approach (Menesses & Gresham, 2009). The student tutors would then perform a
tutoring session with a researcher who would act as the tutee. The researchers would continue
this instruction until all students reached a level of 100% accuracy over three trials. The
researchers looked for us of six required tutoring behaviors to determine accurate use of the
strategy. The behaviors included: begin when time is set, hold card up for 3 seconds, provide
correction if necessary, provide praise, shuffle cards, and continue until timer rings (Menesses &
Gresham, 2009). The students used peer tutoring 3 times a week until they had completed 15
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sessions. The student groups used 10 cards each with one math fact on it. The sessions used a
constant time delay (CTD) format, which required the tutor to wait 3 seconds for a response.
After those three seconds if the tutee answered correctly he or she would be praised, if an
incorrect answer was given the tutor would correct and move on to another card (Menesses &
Gresham, 2009). The progress was assessed at the end of every tutoring session. At the close of
every tutoring session the tutor would present ten math facts individually to the tutee using the
same CTD method but without any verbal prompts or praise. The tutor would record the number
of correct responses. Once the tutee provided correct responses for all ten cards on two
consecutive occasions a new stack of ten cards was then used (Menesses & Gresham, 2009). All
of the peer tutoring sessions were conducted in a separate, unused classroom with a researcher
present monitoring the activity.
Results
The study shows that both the reciprocal peer tutoring group and the nonreciprocal peer
tutoring groups performed better on the post tutoring assessment than the control group. When
comparing the pre and post scores for the CBM the reciprocal peer tutoring group showed
significant changes in the pre and post scores, as did the nonreciprocal group; the control group
showed no significant changes in pre and post test scores, however (Menesses & Gresham,
2009). The researchers also compared the differences in results of the CBM measured in the
posttest and follow up assessment. The follow up assessment was given three weeks after the
posttest to determine math facts knowledge maintenance. The three groups (reciprocal peer
tutoring, nonreciprocal peer tutoring, and control group) showed no significant changes in the
outcome of post and follow up test (Menesses & Gresham, 2009).
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Uses in Current Practice
The study shows that peer tutoring can be an effective strategy to use for students to master basic
math facts. Both peer tutoring groups produced higher gains in the area of basic math facts than
did the control group (Menesses & Gresham, 2009). This can be useful in my classroom when
teaching 6th graders. Once the strategy of peer tutoring is modeled for the students they will be
able to tutor each other in class. The students I work with have challenges in the area of basic
math facts and this intervention may prove useful to help them learn. I am concerned, however,
that the maintenance of the math facts did not occur after 3 weeks. I am also encouraged that the
peer tutoring strategies can enhance student engagement, interest and promote positive behavior
interactions within the classroom. This strategy can also help with behavior management in the
classroom. I see the setting of the peer tutoring in the study as a potential drawback. The students
were performing their peer tutoring activity in an enclosed room with a researcher present. This
is an environment where the student is closely monitored so I believe problem behaviors are less
likely to occur. If the peer tutoring activity is used in a regular classroom the results could prove
to be different.
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Reference List
Gajria, M., Jitendra, A. K., Sood, S., & Sacks, G. (2007). Improving comprehension of
expository text in students with LD: A research synthesis. Journal of Learning
Disabilities, 40, 210-225.
Menesses, K. F., & Gresham, F. M. (2009). Relative efficacy of reciprocal and nonreciprocal
peer tutoring for students at-risk for academic failure. School Psychology Quarterly,
24(4), 266-275.
Zakas, T., Browder, D. M., Ahlgrim-Delzell, L., & Heafner, T. (2013). Teaching social studies
content to students with autism using a graphic organizer intervention. Research in
Autism Spectrum Disorders, 7(9), 1075-1086.