THE IMPACT OF TEXT-TO-SPEECH ON COMPREHENSION FOR STUDENTS WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES IN AN URBAN SCHOOL TOLULOPE OLAYEMI SULAIMON Bachelor of Arts in Education Administration University of Lagos October 2011 Submitted in partial fulfillment of requirement for the degree MASTER OF SPECIAL EDUCATION at the CLEVELAND STATE UNIVERSITY August 2019 ©COPYRIGHT BY TOLULOPE SULAIMON 2019 We hereby approve the thesis for TOLULOPE OLAYEMI SULAIMON Candidate for the Master of Education degree for the Department of Teacher Education And CLEVELAND STATE UNIVERSITY’S College of Graduate Studies by _______________________________________ John Schaefer (Thesis Committee Chairman) Department of Teacher Education _______________________________________ Amanda Yurick (Thesis Committee) Department of Teacher Education _________________________________________ Terri Purcell (Thesis Committee) Department of Teacher Education July 23, 2019 Student’s Date of Defense ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First and foremost, I would like to give thanks to Almighty God for the grace and wisdom he has given me complete this study. He gave me the knowledge, strength and courage to carry on. This would not have been possible with the support of family, friends and all committee members for their contribution and guidance throughout the course of this research. Working with Jeffery Dell has been very crucial in choosing my research topic. He was very supportive in training me on the use of this TTS program as well as other assistive technology devices. I would like to thank every staff member of the Office of Disability Service as well. I received endless motivation from my parents, Adeyemi Solomon and Oluwakemi Solomon, my sister, Sunkanmi and Sumbo and my girlfriend, Shaina, to keep me focused on my research. Most importantly, I wish to thank my committee chair, Dr. John Schaefer for his encouragement, tutelage, valued wisdom and inspiration throughout this study. I wish to thank Dr. Amanda Yurick and Dr. Terri Purcell for their contribution as they provided expertise and insight towards the success of this study. THE IMPACT OF TEXT-TO-SPEECH ON COMPREHENSION FOR STUDENTS WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES IN AN URBAN SCHOOL. TOLULOPE SULAIMON ABSTRACT The A-B-A-B withdrawal design was used to explore the effects of Text-to- speech (TTS) program (Read & Write Gold 11) on comprehension for 2 fourth grade students with learning disability in an urban school while accessing grade level comprehension text. Participants read fourth-grade level comprehension passages from a reading instruction resource. For each session, the student was timed for 35 minutes to read and answer the comprehension passage. The students manipulated the speech option (Pitch, speed, voice and word pause) of the TTS program to suit them. Results show that the TTS program affected the students’ comprehension score. All participants’ scores increased when the TTS program was introduced to read the comprehension passages. In addition, the participants found the TTS program easy to use with less or no support. Limitation and implications for future research are discussed in this paper. Keywords: Assistive technology, comprehension, text-to-speech, reading, learning disability iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT………………………………………………………………… iv LIST OF TABLES…………………………………………………………… vii LIST OF FIGURES………………………………………………………… viii CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION……………………………………………. 1 II. METHODS…………………………………………………… 8 Participants and setting…………………………………… 8 Dependent Variable………………………………………. 9 Independent Variable…………………………………….. 9 Experimental Design……………………………………… 10 Inter-observer Agreement and Treatment Integrity……… 10 III. PROCEDURE……………………………………………… 12 Baseline………………………………………………… 12 Training Phase………………………………………… 12 Intervention…………………………………………… 13 Social Validity………………………………………… 14 IV. RESULT………………………………………………….. 15 Social Validity……………………………………….. 16 V. DISCUSSION…………………………………………… 18 Implication for Practice………………………………… 19 Implication for Future Research…………………………. 20 v Limitations………………………………………………. 20 Conclusion………………………………………………. 21 REFERENCE……………………………………………………….. 22 APPENDIX A. Visual analysis of students ‘scores…………………………… 26 B. Social Validity Scores……………………………………….. 27 C. Read and Write Training Checklist………………………….. 28 D. Social Validation survey Likert scale………………………… 29 E. Intervention Steps…………………………………………… 30 F. Sample of Comprehension passage…………………………. 31 vi LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. Social validity scores of both participants …………………… 27 vii LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. Number of questions, answered correctly at the end of each session... 26 viii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA) defines an assistive technology device as "any item, piece of equipment, or product system, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of a child and specifically excludes a medical device that is surgically implanted or the replacement of such device." The emergence of technology in education has brought about a new dimension to the delivery of instructions to learners. One of the two arguments made by Collins & Halverson (2009), on why new technologies will revolutionize schooling is technology will provide enhanced capabilities for educating learners. One of the means of making every learner access the curriculum and instruction is the infusion of technology. Over the years, technology has been introduced to accommodate students with special education in the general education setting, and these technologies are referred to as assistive technology. According to National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), the report as of 2015 is that 35 percent of children receiving special education services had specific learning disabilities as compared to 20 percent with speech or language impairment, 9 percent had autism, and 6 percent had an intellectual disability. Sec.300.8 (c) (10) 1 Individual with Disabilities Education Act (n.d.), defines Specific learning disabilities as: “disorders in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, that may manifest itself in the imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or to do mathematical calculations, including conditions such as perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia.” Reading is a fundamental element of education. Students with specific learning disabilities often struggle with this element, which in the long run will affect their learning. The proper implementation of assistive technology (AT) in the classroom is to assist students in being successful in the general education classroom. The Office of Special Education Program (OSEP) stated that assistive technology should be considered when designing IEP for students with disabilities when seen as appropriate. IDEA 2004 required every student with disabilities to be educated to the greatest extent possible in the general education setting. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (2017) shows that 68 percent of students with disabilities were below basic in reading compared to 27 percent of students without disability in 4th grade. Twenty percent of the student with disabilities were at basic in reading, 10 percent at proficient, and 0 percent at the advanced level. Compared to 33 percent of students without a disability on a basic level, 30 percent on the proficient level and 10 percent at an advanced level in reading. Technology can be compelling in the classroom, but when considering students with disabilities, it goes beyond that. It becomes the pathway to access content and demonstrate knowledge in ways that provide support around the students' learning needs 2 (Krakower & Plante, 2016). Assistive technology is not designed to improve particular skills but to provide means for the user to work around the learning differences (Raskind, 1993), Most times, students with disabilities rely on their parents, siblings, peers, and teachers for help. But assistive technology helps increase the independence of persons with learning differences. According to Simpson, McBride, Spencer, Lowdermilk, & Lynch (2009), the purpose of assistive technology is to “help students with disabilities participate in and complete tasks they would not otherwise be able to complete” (p.173). Bruinsma (2011) asserted the use of assistive technology gives students with disabilities a sense of belonging in the classroom when they complete tasks like other students without disabilities. For students with LD must overcome barriers imposed by printed materials while reading to gain meaningful access to the curriculum and instructions. These barriers can be overcome when technology is introduced to enable students with LD access printed materials when in e-text format. (Eugene, 2007). There is a wide gap between the level at which students with LD perform and the demands of the curriculum which they are expected to meet. This has had a significant effect on the achievement gap between students with LD and students without disabilities (Kennedy & Deshler, 2010). The National Longitudinal Transition Study II found that 21% of students with LD are five or more levels below in reading, 31% drop out of school compared to 9.4% of students without disabilities while 11% of students with LD attend postsecondary institutions (Wagner, Newman, Cameto, & Levin 2005). Hence, Bouck and Flanagan (2009) asserted it is essential