Using an iTouch to Teach Core Curriculum Words and Definitions: Efficacy and Social Validity

Abstract

Media scholars have long recognized the interaction between the medium that conveys the information and the information that is conveyed. This study examined the relative impact of different low- and high-tech instructional mediums (e.g., flashcards and the iTouch) on the acquisition of general education content-referenced sight words and definitions by students with significant cognitive disabilities. Results indicated that most of the students (three of the four students in the study) preferred high-tech instructional mediums during preference assessments prior to instruction. There was an increase in the tolerance for massed trials for preferred instructional mediums, but it was not meaningful. In spite of these data, there was minimal difference in the rates of skill acquisition or the social validity of the instructional mediums.