Promoting Personally Relevant Access to the General Mathematics Curriculum for Students With Intellectual Disability

Providing access to the general curriculum for students with intellectual disability (ID) has been a topic of debate in the field of low-incidence disabilities (e.g., Ayers et al., 2011; Trela & Jimenez, 2013). Researchers (e.g., Spooner et al., 2006; Trela & Jimenez, 2013) generally agree that students with ID should have access to the general academic curriculum, but some (e.g., Ayers et al., 2011) are concerned that adhering to a standards-based academic curriculum may not lead to independence. Trela and Jimenez (2013) proposed the term personally relevant to describe curriculum modifications for students with ID. Personally relevant modifications provide individualized support and a focus on academic curriculum that is meaningful for each student. Finally, a 2006 literature review of academic interventions for students with ID (Spooner et al.) found more evidence for reading interventions than for math interventions. The purpose of this dissertation was to identify effective strategies and interventions to support personally relevant access to the general mathematics curriculum for students with ID. Study one of this dissertation was a systematic review of math fact literature for students with ID. Basic math fact acquisition and fluency is imperative for independent living (Codding et al., 2011) and students with ID should be provided opportunity to acquire basic math facts to automaticity. The purpose of the review was to identify empirical studies on math fact interventions for students with ID, summarize the evidence base, and use those findings to offer recommendations to the field of ID for future research and application. Study two investigated the use of a technology-aided instruction (TAI) and augmented reality (AR) intervention for basic math fact acquisition in elementary students with ID. Three students participated in a multiple baseline design single-case study. An AR application was used to teach basic addition and multiplication facts. Results indicated the AR intervention improved math fact acquisition for all three students. Findings were discussed in the context of TAI and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) to provide personally relevant access to the general math curriculum for students with ID.