Initial Action Research Plan TASK 3

1. SITE DESCRIPTION: -Congregated classrooms in secondary schools -10 students age 15-20 per classrooms -Phase 2, one classroom; -Phase 3, three classrooms; -Phase 4, eight classrooms. -Surveys distributed to participants' families, teachers and relevant professionals within the community - completed off-site

2. RESEARCH PROBLEM: The impact of direct instruction on language acquisition for non-reading students with developmental disabilities (DD), mild intellectual disability (MID), and autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

3. RATIONALE: The purpose behind this study is to examine the efficacy of the existing model of instruction for students with developmental disabilities and to explore alternative methods of instruction delivery with the goal of challenging the status quo of the existing model of practice, by changing, modifying and improving it.

4. CENTRAL QUESTION: What is the impact of direct instruction on language acquisition for non-reading students with DD, MID and ASD? What teaching and learning methods and approaches do teachers currently use in Developmental Education?

5. SUB QUESTIONS: 1. What are the main factors that influence learning for students with developmental disabilities? How is this different from mainstream students? 3. Under what conditions can teachers deliver effective direct instruction? 4. What direct instruction programs have proven to be most effective for youth with developmental disabilities?

6. COLLECTION OF EVIDENCE: QUALITATIVE SURVEY QUANTITATIVE SURVEY INTERVIEWS CONDUCTED REVIEW OF FILES ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY LITERATURE REVIEW ANALYSIS FOCUS GROUPS CASE STUDY INTERVENTION

7. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY: Mixed Methods - both qualitative and quantitative data collection methods within the design of: -transformative, embedded, multi-phase with intervention -disability theory triangulation

8. TRANSFORMATIVE, EMBEDDED, MULTI PHASE WITH INTERVENTION: Phase one of this study uses a sequential design in which quantitative data collection helps to inform qualitative data collection. Phase two, three and four utilize a concurrent design in which quantitative data is collected to measure and support the qualitative data collected during the intervention.The form of integration in this study consists of connecting the results from the preliminary analysis to the data collection of phase two,three and four. The final phase merges the data and includes quantitative post-test data and results.

9. CONTEXTUAL FRAMEWORK: -Students with developmental delays learn differently and mature at a slower rate, cognitively, physically and emotionally, in comparison to their mainstream peers. There is data to support the assumption that there is a disproportionately large number of adults with disabilities who transition to elementary school programs to secondary school programs, and again from secondary to post-secondary, as non-readers. This problem might be attributed to the current instruction methods for literacy instruction in elementary schools and the lack of literacy instruction training for teachers within the secondary panel. Direct instruction methods are not currently used for literacy instruction in elementary or secondary classrooms.

10. DISABILITY TRIANGULATION THEORY: The data is then interpreted and analysed through disability theory triangulation, a group of people from different disciplines or positions to allow for different perspectives.