Project Activities
Research plan
Across all years of the project, the PI developed and refined components of the adaptive intervention. At the start of every school year, children with ASD were recruited from participating classrooms. Those who met inclusion criteria (4-5 years old, English speaking, ASD diagnosis, and some language facility) were eligible to participate. Stage 1 intervention involved adults reading with children in small groups using dialogic reading strategies. Classrooms were randomized to either an early decision or late decision condition. At the decision point, children's vocabulary knowledge served as the tailoring variable to determine subsequent intervention. Children who were either high performers or fast developers (responsive to instruction) continued with the group dialogic reading intervention for stage 2. All other children (slow to respond) were randomized to one of two intensified instructional conditions, either a one-to-one instructional arrangement or a modified dialogic reading condition that was implemented in small groups with more systematic instruction. Children's early literacy development was assessed using a variety of measures prior to and after the study. The research team used video recordings of the interventionists’ instruction to evaluate fidelity and conducted focus groups and administered questionnaires to evaluate teachers' perceptions of feasibility and acceptability of the intervention. These data were analyzed descriptively. Data from the pilot study were used to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of the adaptive interventions. Researchers also used the pilot data to determine the potential scalability of an adequately powered SMART and evaluate the direction of the adaptive interventions’ impact on children’s early literacy skills.
Career plan
Through a career development plan, the PI developed (1) expertise in adaptive interventions, (2) knowledge of the application and analysis of SMART designs, and (3) an independent program of research through publication and funding. To accomplish these goals, the PI engaged in regular meetings with mentors, attended institutes and workshops related to grant writing and research methods, engaged in self-study of the adaptive intervention literature, and participated in writing accountability groups.
Key outcomes
Key Outcomes: The main findings of this project, as reported by the PI, are as follows:
- The number of children (responders and non-responders) suggests there would be sufficient distribution across subgroups to move to an adequately powered full-scale SMART study.
- Adults implemented the adaptive intervention in classrooms with high fidelity.
- Overall, teachers were positive about the goals of the adaptive intervention and believed that shared book reading supports children’s language development. They expressed concerns about the feasibility of reading with children individually or in small groups because of current staffing shortages and some students’ behavioral challenges.
- Teachers reported meaningful improvements in their students’ emergent literacy behaviors, specifically in engagement and social interactions during shared reading, story comprehension, and expressive vocabulary.
- Although a proportion of children were responsive to the “stage 1” small group dialogic reading (30%), most children in the sample required augmented instruction. The proportion of stage 1 responders were similar across conditions (early decision and late decision).
People and institutions involved
IES program contact(s)
Project contributors
Products and publications
ERIC Citations: Find available citations in ERIC for this award here.
Additional project information
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