Effective Instruction for Students with Developmental Disabilities

Dear Colleagues,

A teacher’s primary role is to be a pedagogical expert. To develop instructional expertise, a teacher must acquire knowledge about a wide range of instructional strategies that address the characteristics of thinking and learning relevant to their students. Students with developmental disabilities who require extensive support require systematic instruction that accounts for their relatively slower rate of learning, and challenges maintaining and generalizing learned content.

Additionally, this instruction must address both academic and functional content, as these students’ condition adversely affects their academic achievement and the development of adaptive behaviors. Furthermore, the students benefit from highly structured environmental arrangements that target their intrinsic cognitive load (i.e., the content they must learn) while minimizing their extraneous cognitive load (i.e., any matter that impairs a student’s ability to concentrate on their targeted learning outcome, such as background noise or excessive teacher talk). Consequently, teachers must be aware of strategies for designing and operating safe and orderly classrooms that facilitate the presentation of effective instructional strategies.

This topical collection aims to inform readers about effective instruction for students with developmental disabilities who require substantial support (e.g., autism involving level 2 or 3 supports). Entries should address evidence-based instructional and classroom management strategies that are effective in improving student outcomes.

Dr. Timothy E. Morse
Collection Editor

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