Students With Learning Disabilities in the Social Studies: A Meta-Analysis of Intervention Research

Abstract

This meta-analysis synthesized over 40 years of research ( k = 42 studies) in the social studies for students with learning disabilities. We analyzed the various mechanisms that researchers have used to improve outcomes in the social studies by conducting a subgroup investigation of interventions targeting the following instructional categories: (a) content acquisition, (b) general literacy in social studies, (c) alternative or digitized text, and (d) historical reasoning. The subgroup meta-analyses resulted in considerable variability across study and intervention components. Meta-analysis robust variance estimation procedures were used to aggregate standardized mean difference effect sizes of treatment and comparison groups. Implications for future research and suggestions for classroom instruction are provided.