Increasing Independence in Students with Disabilities Through the Use of Visual Activity Schedules Within the General Education Classroom

Individuals with disabilities such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often require more prompts and specialized instruction than their peers in the school setting. These individuals often benefit from using Visual Activity Schedules (VAS) to learn to complete routines and increase independence while decreasing the needs for adult help and prompts. This study uses VAS plus prompting to increase independence in three children with ASD within the general education elementary classroom. During the study, VAS were introduced and paired with specific prompts aimed to help students become more independent at completing a given routine throughout their school day. Results from the study indicate that using activity schedules with specific prompts resulted in an increase in independent task completion and a decrease in adult prompting across all three participants