Reading comprehension interventions for students with autism spectrum disorders: a synthesis of research.
A sweep of earlier studies shows that simple tools like graphic organizers and pronoun tracking can improve reading comprehension for students with ASD, and newer work says even profoundly delayed learners can benefit when you start early and stay intensive.
01Research in Context
What this study did
El Zein et al. (2014) gathered every paper they could find on reading help for students with autism. They looked at studies published up to 2014 that tested any strategy meant to boost understanding of text.
The team did not run new experiments. They read, compared, and summarized existing work to see which tactics looked promising.
What they found
The review found that simple changes to lessons can help. Tools like graphic organizers, question generation, and anaphoric cuing (pointing back to who or what a pronoun means) may lift comprehension for students with ASD.
Because the authors did not combine numbers, they could not say how big the gains were. They simply noted that adapted strategies deserve a try.
How this fits with other research
DeRoma et al. (2004) is one of the studies Farah would have captured. That single-case test showed anaphoric cuing beat prereading questions and cloze fill-ins, giving the review a concrete tactic to list.
Nicolosi et al. (2024) extends the story. Their case study shows even a minimally verbal teen with profound ID can learn early comprehension through intense phonics taught with ABA. This widens the population the review’s ideas might serve.
Fleury et al. (2018) seems to contradict the hopeful tone. They tracked kids for 30 months and found students with ASD stayed well behind peers despite similar growth rates. The papers do not truly clash: the review says strategies can help, while the longitudinal study says without help, gaps persist. Together they argue you must use the adapted tools early and keep them in place.
Why it matters
You do not need to wait for more data. Pick one evidence-based tweak from the review—such as prompting students to find the antecedent for each pronoun—and embed it in your current reading lessons. Start small, measure comprehension with brief wh- questions, and add visual supports if you see slow progress. The body of work says these low-cost moves can narrow the gap, especially when you begin early and stay consistent.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
The authors synthesized reading intervention studies conducted between 1980 and 2012 with K-12 students identified with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Nine single-subject design studies, one quasi-experimental study, and two single-group design studies met the criteria for inclusion. Findings from the studies indicate that modifying instructional interventions associated with improved comprehension for students with reading difficulties may improve reading comprehension in students with ASD. Four studies implemented strategy instruction that included (a) question generation; (b) graphic organizers; and (c) making predictions. Two studies utilized anaphoric cueing instruction, three implemented explicit instruction, and three examined student grouping practices. Among the reviewed studies, the majority (n = 9) measured reading comprehension through researcher-developed probes, and two studies reported results from standardized measures.
Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2014 · doi:10.1007/s10803-013-1989-2