Abstract
Understanding how different environmental arrangements can affect academic performance and engagement is critical for developing effective and efficient instructional strategies. The current study examined the influence of five environmental arrangements (no-interaction, distractor, escape, attention, and tangible conditions) on the rate of correctly completed math problems for four children diagnosed with ASD who had individual education plans (IEP). The results suggest that different students’ academic behavior is sensitive to different environmental arrangements and, as such, should be tested and incorporated into students’ IEPs. Consistent with prior research, none of the participants completed any math problems in the distractor condition, suggesting that having leisure items accessible during academic programming may limit a student’s productivity.
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The first author of the study was the teacher of record for each of the participants included in the current study. As such, the data from the current study were used to inform instructional strategies utilized in their classroom and address student goals.
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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were reviewed and approved by university institutional review boards.
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Lorden, J., Walker, S.F., Peters, K.P. et al. Assessment of Academic Responding in Children Diagnosed with Autism. Educ. Treat. Child. 45, 389–393 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43494-022-00085-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s43494-022-00085-3