Date of Award
12-1998
Degree Name
Specialist in Education
Department
Psychology
First Advisor
Dr. Kristal E Ehrhardt
Second Advisor
Ruth Ervin
Access Setting
Masters Thesis-Campus Only
Abstract
The effects of environmental arrangement strategies and direct social skill instruction on the interactive play of preschoolers with and without disabilities was examined. The results indicated increased levels of interactive play for at least one of the experimental phases for all students with Autism. Typically-developing students showed increases in interactive play during the environmental arrangements phase, but decreases during social skill instruction. The frequency of initiations and sharings by the target students was variable. Initiations and sharings by peers to the target students increased during both phases for students with Autism and increased for typically-developing students during the environmental arrangements phase. Acceptability ratings by the teachers indicate perceptions of effectiveness for both intervention phases and for both typical and Autistic preschoolers. Implications for future practice include incorporating research based environmental arrangement strategies and direct social skill instruction into inclusive preschool curricula to support social development.
Recommended Citation
McIntyre-Doerr, Marie, "The Effects of Environmental Arrangements and Direct Social Skill Instruction on Socially-Isolated and Typically-Developing Preschool Children" (1998). Masters Theses. 3492.
https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/3492