Procedural Adaptations for Use of Constant Time Delay to Teach Highly Motivating Words to Beginning Braille Readers

Abstract

Introduction Constant time delay is an evidence-based practice to teach sight word recognition to students with a variety of disabilities. To date, two studies have documented its effectiveness for teaching braille. Methods Using a multiple-baseline design, we evaluated the effectiveness of constant time delay to teach highly motivating words to three beginning braille readers with developmental disabilities. Procedural variations included a pre-teaching and assessment tool, a higher criterion for mastery, an increased number of trials per session, and remediated instructional feedback. Results A functional relation was established for all three participants. Students reached mastery in four to 12 sessions in less than one hour of instruction. Although the number of correct responses decreased over time, long-term maintenance was demonstrated. Discussion Results suggest that constant time delay is a promising strategy for teaching highly motivating words to early braille readers. Replication is required to establish constant time delay as an evidence-based practice for braille literacy. Implications for practitioners Practitioners are encouraged to incorporate constant time delay into a comprehensive literacy program with opportunities to generalize word reading to other contexts.