Reading Comprehension Instruction for Adolescents With Learning Disabilities

• In Event: Roundtable Session 60
  In Roundtable Session: Examining Literacy Issues and Practices in Special Education

Abstract

Today’s adolescents with learning disabilities (LD) face significant challenges comprehending written text. Students have not developed basic reading skills to access new information and lack metacognitive skills to monitor their comprehension. Surprisingly little is known about reading instruction for students with LD in secondary special education classrooms. The purpose of this study, therefore, was to describe reading comprehension instruction in special education reading classrooms for ninth grade students with LD and illuminate the factors that influence instructional decisions. Eight special education teachers participated in three lesson observations and three interviews. Using qualitative data analysis methods, data was coded, categorized, and emergent themes identified. The findings will extend previous research on reading instruction for students with LD to the secondary level.

Author

• Tiffany J. Ko, University of Illinois at Chicago