Sight word instruction for students with autism: an evaluation of the evidence base.
Massed-trial sight-word drills with prompts and rewards work for minimally verbal students with autism, but you must add comprehension lessons later.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The authors looked at every study that taught sight words to students with autism.
They found nine single-subject papers. All used massed trials, prompts, and rewards.
The kids had little or no spoken language. No study tested if the kids could later read books.
What they found
Every study showed the students learned to name printed words.
The method was always the same: many quick trials, clear prompts, and small rewards.
No one checked if the new words helped the kids read sentences or stories.
How this fits with other research
Storch et al. (2012) adds a twist: have the child echo and match a peer’s reading before solo practice.
Jones et al. (2010) shows the same prompting style can teach short phrases, not just single words.
Delgado-Lobete et al. (2019) then uses the child’s new reading skill to build spoken requests.
Micai et al. (2021) sounds like bad news: older readers with autism decode words yet struggle to understand them. The difference is age and goal—May (2011) tests word naming in young, minimally verbal kids, while Martina looks at comprehension in older students who already read.
Why it matters
You can start sight-word drills tomorrow with non-speaking students. Use many quick trials, prompts, and rewards. Once they know the words, move to phrases and real requests. Plan extra lessons later to turn word calling into true reading.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
This paper reviews the evidence on sight word instruction as a method of teaching students with autism and significant cognitive and verbal limitations to read printed words. Nine single-subject studies were rated using Reichow et al.'s (J Autism Dev Disord 38:1311-1319, 2008) evaluative method for identifying evidence-based practice, and studies with at least adequate methodology were analyzed to identify common intervention features. Results yielded evidence in support of a massed trials approach featuring student response to a succession of items, differential positive reinforcement, systematic prompting, and use of visual supports. Across studies, students learned to identify printed words, even those with limited oral language and no prior reading instruction. However, no studies addressed the effects of sight word instruction on broad literacy outcomes.
Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2011 · doi:10.1007/s10803-010-1165-x