Previous research has demonstrated that specific instructional contexts, techniques,
and service delivery models that provide opportunities for peer interaction and active
engagement in instructional activities promote positive social and academic outcomes for
students with and without disabilities (Bulgren & Carta, 1993; Fisher et al., 1995; Grenot-
Scheyer, 1994; Kamps, Leonard, Dugan, Boland, & Greenwood, 1991; Lee & Odom, 1996;
Logan et al., 1998). It has been suggested that Multiple Intelligences (MI) theory provides a
framework that includes many of these inclusive pedagogies and techniques (Armstrong,
1994; Hoerr, 1996). The present study was intended to explore the extent to which MI theory
and instruction facilitates the inclusion of participants with developmental disabilities.
Ten elementary school students (ages 6-12) with developmental disabilities
participated in this study. The students were included in two types of general education
classrooms: those in which MI pedagogy, instruction, and assessment were implemented, or
those in which no specific educational theory or pedagogy was applied.
Data were collected using ecobehavioral assessment, which is designed to reveal
interrelationships between environmental variables (e.g., instructional activities and
groupings) and child behavior (Greenwood, Schulte, Kohler, Dinwiddie, & Carta, 1986). An
online version of MS-CISSAR (Greenwood, Carta, Kamps, Terry, & Delquadri, 1994) was
used to gather and analyze data regarding students' instructional experiences, engaged
behavior, and peer interactions. A matched-subjects design was used to compare the
experiences of participants in the two types of classrooms; specifically, the relationships
between types of task and instructional groupings and students' social interaction and
engaged behaviors were examined.
Results suggested that the experiences of the participants in both typical and Mt
classrooms were more alike than different. Participants in both types of inclusive classrooms
were frequently involved in whole-class or independent seatwork and paper-and-pencil
activities. Thus, rates of overall engaged behavior and social interactions were essentially
equivalent. However, participants in MI classrooms were more frequently observed to be
involved in activities that allowed for multiple methods of responding and in small group
structures. In contrast, participants in typical classrooms had high rates of one-to-one,
separate activities from those of their typical classmates, as well as relatively high rates of
non-instructional time (i.e. "down time" or transition time). Perhaps as a result, participants
in MI classes were observed to interact with their typical peers more frequently and to be
actively engaged in learning more often, while participants in typical classrooms were
observed to interact more with adults and to be more passively engaged. The results are
discussed in terms of their educational and research implications, limitations, and suggestions
for further research.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:BVAU.2429/10677 |
| Date | 11 1900 |
| Creators | Katz, Jennifer |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Relation | UBC Retrospective Theses Digitization Project [http://www.library.ubc.ca/archives/retro_theses/] |
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