Do Screen Presentations via Interactive Whiteboards Increase Engagement in Whole-Group Lessons for Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder? A Pilot Study

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.

Keywords

interactive whiteboards engagement education autism attention

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