Computer Assisted Instruction to Teach Academic Content to Students With Intellectual Disability: A Review of the Literature

Abstract

Special educators are relying more heavily on computer assisted instruction (CAI) programs to teach academic content to students with intellectual disability (ID) than ever before. Research in this area is growing; however, no formal review of the literature has been conducted to examine the efficacy of using CAI to teach academic content to students with ID. This review explores the nature of academic content taught to students with ID using CAI, the CAI programs used to provide instruction, research methodology, and student learning outcomes associated with CAI. We also address gaps in the research while making suggestions for focusing future efforts to keep pace with changes in technology and the increasing implementation of CAI in special education classrooms.

Keywords: academics; computer-assisted; intellectual disability; technology.