R.J. Risueño, Utah State University
Students in later elementary grades must understand informational texts, extract and synthesize critical ideas and details, and apply that information in tests, reports, and projects. This case study is a follow-up to a larger treatment study. The modifications in the case study focus on increased verbal rehearsal and coaching over a longer treatment time. One sixth and two fourth graders with language impairment participated. The speak-and-sketch treatment involved repeated practice with two notation forms, pictography and bulleted notes; and oral practice of well-formed sentences and reports. Treatment was delivered in two 20-minute sessions a week over eight weeks by the school speech-language pathologist (SLP). Pre- and post-test measures consisted of notes, an oral report, written report, comprehension test, and a learner interview. Perceptions of the implementation from the SLP instructor were also obtained. The instructor and testers were trained, and reliability and fidelity measures were taken. The study was carried out remotely in a school district in Wyoming. The results of this study will give better ways to teach students with language impairment to use note-taking and verbal rehearsal to improve their ability to extract and synthesize critical ideas and details in academic activities.