Strategy Name: ‘Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies’ (PALS) – this is the strategy to be used on this task.? Attached below is? – an example of how it should look like – the instruction

EEX 6051 – Evidence-Based Practices Assignment

Synthesis Matrix Template

Student Name: Stuart Miller

Strategy Name: Visual supports (VS) for students with disabilities.

Strategy Description:

A VS is a visual representation of scheduled tasks and activities; it is typically composed

of pictures, images, symbols, or text prompts that are arranged to depict a sequence of

steps for a specific task, or a schedule of activities and how to transition between them.

(Spriggs et al, 2015). VSs are objects that can be seen and/or held, which are used to

provide information visually to enhance an individual’s understanding of the physical

environment, people, and the social environment. They are also used to supplement

communication (Rutherford et al, 2020). For example, a commonly used VS for students

with autism is a visual timeline. This can be set up, depending on the individual’s ability

or level. The timeline could be used in a ‘now & next format or it could highlight a full

day in school. Again, depending on ability, will determine how the timeline is displayed.

It could include objects of reference, photos, symbolic picture or even text. VS have the

potential to increase understanding, reduce anxiety, facilitate participation, support

communication, and increase independence, thereby reducing the risk of challenging

behaviour and supporting inclusion (Baxter, Rutherford, & Holmes, 2015).

Thesis:

 Visual supports should be utilised by educators when working with children with

disabilities in order to promote independence, aid communication and reduce the

risk of problem behaviours.

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Main Idea #1 (required)

Utilizing VS can promote independent social interaction, engagement, and communication in

students with disabilities.

Source A Source B Source C Source D

-Last name(s) of

author and year

Donato, C., Shane,

H. C., & Hemsley, B.

(2014).

-Participants studied

3 focus groups of

parents, educators

and health

professionals.

-Intervention studied

To explore the views

of key stakeholders

on using visual

supports for children

with developmental

disabilities in early

intervention group

settings.

-Last name(s) of

author and year

Akers, J. S., Higbee, T.

S., Gerencser, K. R., &

Pellegrino, A. J. (2018)

-Participants studied

Three children

diagnosed with ASD,

between the ages of 3

to 5, who attended a

university-based

preschool for

individuals with ASD,

were the target

participants in the

study. Additionally,

twelve neurotypical

children, between the

ages of 4 to 5, who

attended a university-

based early childhood

-Last name(s) of

author and year

Duttlinger, C., Ayres,

K. M., Bevill-Davis, A.,

& Douglas, K. H.

(2013).

-Participants studied

Four students were

selected for

participation in this

study based on the

following criteria: (a)

age range from 11 to

15 years; (b) cognitive

level within the mild-

moderate range of

intellectual

functioning; (c) within-

average range of

visual and auditory

functioning (based on

successfully passing

-Last name(s) of

author and year

Foster‐Cohen, &

Mirfin‐Veitch, B.

(2017

-Participants studied

23 children: 4 girls

and 19 boys,

ranging in age from

5 years 7 months to

10 years old at entry

into the project and

between 7 years 8

months and 11

years 10 months at

the finish.

Intervention studied:

The use of VS with

children with

disabilities across a

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-Findings related to

the main idea.

Participants in the

parents' focus group

reported that visual

supports were used

with their children

both at home and at

the early intervention

centre, with positive

outcomes on their

children's language,

communication,

learning, and

behaviour. The

educators reported

using visual supports

'all the time' and 'for

everything', including

within the group

setting to facilitate

children's

comprehension,

expression, and

orientation to the

sequence of

activities.

center also

participated in this

study as peer

participants.

Intervention studied:

Efficiency of VAS on

children with ASD

when learning to

engage in complex

group play.

Finding related to the

main idea:

The three target

children with ASD in

the study showed to

have learned to play

hide-and-seek as a

result of the

implementation of VS

and continued to play

appropriately even

after most of the VS

materials were

removed. Depicting,

that VS is effective in

teaching children with

ASD how to properly

engage in group play.

school system’s vision

and hearing

screenings); (d) ability

to independently

complete tasks used

in study without

supervision; (e) goals

in his or her

Individualized

Education Plan (IEP)

that included skills

emphasizing

independence in the

self-contained

classroom, general

education classroom,

and community

settings; (f) no prior

training in

independently setting

up picture prompts as

a self-management

strategy for accurately

completing multi- task

verbal directives.

Intervention studied:

The independent

creation of picture

activity schedules

mainstream primary

school.

Finding related to

the main idea:

Overall, the study

found that both

parents and

teachers embraced

the use of VS and

that there was a

positive impact in

classroom

participation and

engagement and

home routines. Not

all children

progressed as well

as others, some

were at a lower

academic level and

found accessing the

VS more difficult.

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(PAS/VS) and how

four middle school

students with

intellectual disability

used them to

complete tasks

independently.

Finding related to the

main idea:

All participants

exhibited increased

abilities to complete a

sequence of three or

five tasks following

verbal directions when

using the PAS as

compared with the

conditions where no

PAS was utilized.

Summary Paragraph(s) for Main Idea #1:

The use of VS can promote independent social interaction, engagement, and

communication in students with disabilities. In various studies, the use of VS showed an

increase in engagement within the classroom, increased abilities to complete tasks and

activities independently and improved communication (Donato et al, 2014., Akers et al,

2018., Duttlinger et al 2013., Foster‐Cohen, & Mirfin‐Veitch, 2017). Additionally, the

study by Akers et al (2018) showed that by using the VS you can teach children with

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ASD how to engage in correct social interaction while playing games together. The

three children were able to play a game of hide and seek. This ability to social play,

engage and communicate continued even when the VS were removed. VS have been

shown to help improve social interaction, engagement, and communication in children

with disabilities. The visual cues and sequencing of events reduces the anxiety by

providing a visual representation of the plan ahead.

Main Idea #2 (required)

VS can promote independence and life skills at home and/or in the community.

Source A Source B Source C Source D

-Last name(s) of

author and year

Foster‐Cohen, &

Mirfin‐Veitch. (2017)

-Participants studied

23 children: 4 girls

and 19 boys, ranging

in age from 5 years 7

months to 10 years

old at entry into the

project and between

7 years 8 months

and 11 years 10

months at the finish.

Intervention studied:

– Last name(s) of

author and year

Marshal and Mirenda

(2002)

-Participants studied

The study followed a

family of a child with

ASD – Wyatt lived at

home with his mother

and father, Laura and

Martin, and with his

younger brother, Elliott.

A respite worker

provided childcare in

the family’s home two

mornings a week and

some evenings. Wyatt

attended an inclusive

-Last name(s) of

author and year

Donato, C., Shane, H.

C., & Hemsley, B.

(2014).

-Participants studied

3 focus groups of

parents, educators

and health

professionals.

-Intervention studied

To explore the views

of key stakeholders

on using visual

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The use of VS with

children with

disabilities across a

mainstream primary

school.

Finding related to the

main idea:

Overall the study

found that both

parents and teachers

embraced the use of

VS and that there

was a positive impact

in classroom

participation and

engagement and

home routines.

Parents found that

the VS brought a

more organised and

less disruptive

approach to home

life.

preschool program for

children with autism

and their typical peers

every weekday

afternoon for 3 hours.

-Intervention studied

Combining positive

behavior support and

family-centered

intervention in home

settings.

-Findings related to the

main idea

The parents found that

they were able to

implement consistently

the use of various VP’s

to assist Wyatt through

his daily schedule. This

helped reduce the

average number of

behavioural episodes

from approximately 20

to around four or fewer

per day. The parents

also witnessed a

marked increase in

Wyatt’s attempts to do

things for himself

supports for children

with developmental

disabilities in early

intervention group

settings.

-Findings related to

the main idea.

Participants in the

parents' focus group

reported that visual

supports were used

with their children

both at home and at

the early intervention

centre, with positive

outcomes on their

children's language,

communication,

learning, and

behaviour. The

parents appreciated

knowing their child’s

communication goals

and what they could

and should expect of

their child’s

development.

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during daily routines.

The areas where they

saw these increases

were toileting, hand

washing, brushing

teeth and mealtime.

Summary Paragraph(s) for Main Idea #2:

VS can promote independence and life skills at home and/or in the community.

Numerous studies showed that when the parents who were given the instruction on how

to use VS in the home setting, they recorded increased levels of independence and

increased communication from their children with disabilities at home (Foster‐Cohen, &

Mirfin‐Veitch, 2017, Marshal and Mirenda, 2002), Donato et al, 2014). The use of VAS

has shown to prepare the individual, for the following activity or the following step within

an activity, by visually depicting and providing clear expectations to the learner of what

is to be performed next. When students are taught to utilize VAS, they can then use the

support of it in order to determine how to proceed and what to do next, and how to

remain on-task and on- schedule. Although the study carried out by Marshal & Mirenda

(2002) is dated, it showed that by parents buying into the use of VS at home, the

parents were able to witness more independence in life skills such as toileting and at

mealtime. Overall the use of VS provides children with disabilities a support that is non-

intrusive and can assist with transitioning from activity to activity or to the next step in a

chain. Home life is often less structured than an educational or clinical setting, using the

VS at home can bring about more organisation and provide the opportunities for

children to become independent. Although VS showed a positive impact at home,

Rutherford et al (2020) suggested that greater studies need to be carried out to gather

even greater evidence on VS use at home and in the community.

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References

Akers, J. S., Pyle, N., Higbee, T. S., Pyle, D., & Gerencser, K. R. (2016). A synthesis of script fading effects with individuals with autism spectrum disorder: A 20-year review. Review Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders,3, 1-17. https://doi- org.ezproxy.lib.uwf.edu/10.1007/s40489-015-0062-9

Baxter, J., Rutherford, M., & Holmes, S. (2015). The Visual Support Project (VSP): An authority-wide training, accreditation, and practical resource for education settings supporting inclusive practice. The Journal of Communication Matters, 29(2), 9–13.

Donato, C., Shane, H. C., & Hemsley, B. (2014). Exploring the feasibility of the Visual Language in Autism program for children in an early intervention group setting: Views of parents, educators, and health professionals. Developmental Neurorehabilitation, 17(2), 115–124. https://doi- org.ezproxy.lib.uwf.edu/10.3109/17518423.2014.880526

Duttlinger, C., Ayres, K. M., Bevill-Davis, A., & Douglas, K. H. (2013). The effects of a picture activity schedule for students with intellectual disability to complete a sequence of tasks following verbal directions. Focus on autism and other developmental disabilities, 28(1), 32–43. https://doi.org/10.1177/1088357612460572

Foster‐Cohen, & Mirfin‐Veitch, B. (2017). Evidence for the effectiveness of visual supports in helping children with disabilities access the mainstream primary school curriculum. Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, 17(2), 79–86. https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-3802.12105

Marshall, J. K., & Mirenda, P. (2002). Parent-professionals collaboration for positive behaviour support in the home. Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities, 17, 216–228.

Rutherford, M., Baxter, J., Grayson, Z., Johnston, L., & O’Hare, A. (2020). Visual supports at home and in the community for individuals with autism spectrum disorders: A scoping review. Autism: The International Journal of Research and Practice, 24(2), 447–469.

Spriggs, A., van Dijk, W., & Mims, P. J. (2015). How to implement visual activity schedules for students with disabilities. DADD Online Journal: Research to Practice. Vol.2, 21-34. http://daddcec.org/Portals/0/CEC/Autism_Disabilities/Research/Publications/dec2_2 015 %20DOJ_2.pdf ISSN: 2377-3677

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