Empirical Study of Learning Activities of Students with Disabilities

Abstract

Introduction: Issues of teaching children with special educational needs in classes attended by students with similar or different disabilities, as well as the search for optimal conditions for developing their learning activities, remain poorly understood.

Objective: To establish intensity and efficiency of involvement of students with disabilities in the learning process.

Materials and Methods: The study was conducted in February to May 2022 in Moscow and the Moscow Region involving 65 elementary school students with intellectual disabilities, mental retardation, musculoskeletal disorders, hearing and speech disorders, autism spectrum disorder, and severe multiple developmental disorders. The sample consisted of four classes of children with different health conditions (n = 31) and four classes of those with the same condition (n = 34). Timing was the primary method. Special protocols were developed for this study to record the duration and sequence of learning activity elements during the lesson. Input data included the grade, day of the week, subject, and its content.

Results: Children grouped by disability demonstrated longer concentration on tasks, were less easily distracted, and required rarer activity changes (Mann–Whitney U test: U = 312.5, p = 0.002; U = 270.0, p = 0.001; and U = 362, p = 0.004, respectively). They were more active during the lessons (activity variation ranged from 83 to 100 %) than children in mixed classes (23 to 75 %) (p < 0.05).

Conclusion: The results show that students with similar health conditions attending the same class of a special needs school demonstrate higher academic performance compared to their peers in mixed classes.