How Are Self-Determination Components Taught to Improve Reading Outcomes for Elementary Students With or At Risk for Learning Disabilities?

Research findings illustrate the strong connection between self-determined learning and reading performance for students with or at risk for disabilities. Students with or at risk for learning disabilities (LDs), who are at increased risk for academic failure, may benefit from instruction to promote self-determination skills. Causal Agency Theory has driven research on interventions to support the development of self-determination in people with disabilities since the 1990s; however, this work has most often focused on adolescents and young adults. Self-determination skills develop over the lifespan—and targeting the building blocks for these skills in the elementary years can lay a foundation for the development of self-determined learners in reading and beyond. As such, this systematic review sought to investigate to what extent self-determination skills were taught to improve reading outcomes for students with or at risk for LD in kindergarten through fifth grade. Twelve studies met criteria for inclusion; two randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and 10 single-case design studies. Results indicate self-determination for students with LD at the elementary level is limited; all interventions used a subcomponent related to self-regulation. Goal setting and positive attributions were also investigated but within intervention packages alongside self-regulation. Future researchers should study the effects of interventions that use other self-determination components for this population of students.