Teaching students with autism to solve mathematical story problems: A replication and extension

Solving mathematical story problems has proven to be a challenge for primary school students with and without developmental disabilities. The present study replicates a behavior analytic study (Neef et al.) by teaching three autistic Chinese students in inclusive education classes to solve addition/subtraction story problems by acquiring an overt precurrent behavior chain. The intervention was effective for all participants by employing a multiple baseline design across behaviors. Additionally, the study extends Neef et al. by conducting maintenance, generalization, and social validity assessments, and expands the teaching format to distance learning (telehealth). The results and limitations are discussed based on Skinner's conceptualization of problem-solving and its clinical application in teaching complex mathematical skills to students with developmental disabilities.