Do screen presentations via interactive whiteboards increase engagement in whole-group lessons for students with autism spectrum disorder? A pilot study

Candice Mariz*, Mark Carter, Jennifer Stephenson

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

8 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Visual presentations may assist students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to access instruction, and they may be more engaged when interacting with screen media in particular. Interactive whiteboards (IWBs) are large electronic screens that are used for instruction in many classrooms. An alternating treatment design was used to compare the engagement levels in a whole-group lesson of four students with ASD and mild intellectual disability in conditions using an IWB and in conditions using paper-based materials. Despite some inconsistency, an overall effect was seen and maintained for an increase in engagement levels in the nonwhiteboard conditions for two of the four participants. It is suggested that when content and presentation are kept constant, electronic screen presentation on IWBs does not necessarily increase student engagement. Several directions for future research are suggested.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)160-172
Number of pages13
JournalJournal of special education technology
Volume32
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Sept 2017

Keywords

  • interactive whiteboards
  • engagement
  • education
  • autism
  • attention

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Do screen presentations via interactive whiteboards increase engagement in whole-group lessons for students with autism spectrum disorder? A pilot study'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this