The project RDE-FRI: Supporting Math Access for Middle and High School Blind Students Through Adaptive Math Tutoring Technology (STEMAccess) is a 24-month, $300,000 dollar award funded by the Research in Disabilities Education (RDE) program's Focused Research Initiatives (FRI) track. The primary goal of this project is to address the relatively poor math achievement of middle and high school students who are blind and who have the academic ability to participate in STEM fields. This goal is addressed through a series of experiments to study three (3) primary objectives: The investigation of math problem solving cognitive processes in blind students with a focus on characteristics of word problems associated with successful problem representation; the evaluation of the contribution of mathematics motivation to math learning in blind students with a focus on self-regulated behaviors such as help-seeking and persistence; and the adaptation of technology-based instruction to help improve math problem solving in blind students. This project builds on the prior success of the PI's current and previous work on the cognitive and motivational outcomes of tutoring technology for non-disabled students in mathematics that was funded by NSF (DRL-0411886) and the US Education Department's Institute of Educational Sciences (R305K050086).
This highly experienced team from the University of Southern California (USC), which is lead by an expert research psychologist, is conducting three (3) experiments with blind middle and high school students using quasi-experimental designs to compare the mathematics performance of the blind students to each other and to the mathematics performance of sighted students. The experiments involve 60 middle and high school students who are blind and recruited through an existing partnership with the Los Angeles Unified School District's (LAUSD) Program for Students with Visual Impairments. The data for the sighted students includes comparison data from 60 sighted peers as well as using an existing dataset with performance data from over 500 sighted student subjects.
The project primarily addresses one (1) of the FRI track goals: To investigate effective instructional methods and practices for people with disabilities in STEM. There is a formative and summative project evaluation plan being conducted by an experienced independent external evaluator, Valerie Shute, from Florida State University. Additional formative project input is provided by a team of expert advisors who are experienced in STEM education for blind students, spatial cognition and working memory, and the use of technologies for learning. There is also a dissemination plan which includes sharing information with the RDE community and publishing in peer-reviewed professional journals.
