Evaluation of a comprehensive literacy program in primary school students with intellectual disabilities in single case studies.

Abstract

Background: The comprehensive literacy program Schoolmates, an adaptation of the program Friends on the Block, combines (high-frequency) sight word and phonics instruction for German-speaking students with intellectual disabilities.

Method: A single-case multiple baseline design was used to assess the progress of nine primary school students with intellectual disabilities in reading practised sight words and simple syllables (basic decoding). Data were analysed using standardised visual inspection, non-overlapping indices and hierarchical piecewise linear regression.

Results: Students demonstrated moderate improvement in reading sight words, with a significant effect on both the level and trend. Six out of nine students improved their basic decoding skills from the baseline to the follow-up phase.

Conclusion: The comprehensive literacy program Schoolmates appeares to promote sight word reading among primary school students with intellectual disabilities. Future studies could investigate whether a higher frequency or longer duration of instruction affects basic decoding skills.