An Examination of Teacher and Student Behaviors in Classrooms for Students With Moderate and Severe Intellectual Disability

Abstract

Students with moderate and severe intellectual disability require intensive instruction to develop academic skills. A majority of instruction for these students takes place in self-contained classrooms. Unfortunately, there are little data describing common instructional practices within these classrooms. This pilot investigation aimed to explore classrooms for students with moderate and severe intellectual disability to determine the levels at which teachers typically present opportunities to respond and provide feedback in classrooms for these students, the degree to which students are engaged with academic instruction in these classrooms, and if there is a difference in teaching practices and student engagement in different school settings (separate school vs. separate classroom in a general education school). Findings, limitations, and ideas for future research are discussed.

Keywords:

• intellectual disability
• opportunities to respond
• student engagement

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Robert C. Pennington

Robert C. Pennington is an assistant professor in special education at the University of Louisville. His research interests involve the application of behavior analytic instructional strategies to written expression and other communication skills for students with moderate to severe disabilities.

Ginevra R. Courtade

Ginevra R. Courtade is an associate professor in special education at the University of Louisville. Her work focuses specifically on teaching academics to students with moderate or severe disabilities and on preparing teachers to instruct students using the general education curriculum.