A trial of online ABRACADABRA literacy instruction with supplementary parent-led shared book reading for children with autism.
Benjamin Bailey, Darryl Sellwood, Fiona Rillotta and 2 others
PMID 35231721WHAT IT FOUND
Online literacy instruction with parent-led reading did not significantly improve reading accuracy or comprehension compared to a control group.
Parents reported positive experiences and perceived some child gains, but adherence to home reading tasks was inconsistent.
Key findings
01Children in the online instruction group did not achieve significantly greater gains in reading accuracy or comprehension than the control group.
02Parents generally viewed the online sessions positively and perceived improvements in their children's reading confidence and skills, though these observations were not supported by the quantitative data.
03Adherence to the supplementary parent-led shared book reading activities was low, with only 68% of logs fully completed.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The sample size was very small (21 children), which limits statistical power and generalizability. The duration of instruction (16 hours) was shorter than previous successful studies (26 hours), which may explain the lack of significant gains. Adherence to the parent-led home reading component was poor, making it difficult to evaluate the full effect of the hybrid model. Diagnosis was based on parent report rather than independent verification. The study used the same reading materials for pre- and post-tests, raising the possibility of practice effects.
Declared interests
The authors declared no competing interests. The study was funded by a COVID-19 Collaborative Research Grant from Flinders University.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the parents' positive reports of child improvement as evidence that the intervention works. The quantitative data showed no significant difference between the treated and control groups, and parental perceptions may be influenced by their investment in the program.