DEVELOPMENT OF AN ENGLISH INSTRUCTIONAL MANAGEMENT MODEL BASED ON DIFFERENTIATED INSTRUCTION AND UNIVERSAL DESIGN TO ENHANCE ENGLISH LEARNING ACHIEVEMENT, SOCIAL SKILLS, AND LEARNING ENGAGEMENT OF UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS WITH AND WITHOUT HEARING IMPAIRMENT IN INCLUSIVE ENGLISH CLASSROOMS

Abstract

The objectives of this study were to develop an English instructional management model based on differentiated instruction and universal design for learning to enhance English learning achievement, social skills, and learning engagement of undergraduate students with and without hearing impairment in inclusive English classrooms. The research processes consisted of four phases: situation analysis, model development, model implementation, and model evaluation. The model was developed based on the results of the situation analysis and related literature and implemented in a foundation English classroom for undergraduate students. Fifty hearing students and four students with hearing impairment participated in the study. English learning achievement tests, social skill questionnaire, learning engagement questionnaire, learning logs, and semi-structured interviews were employed to evaluate the effects of the model. The results of the study was an English instructional management model for English inclusive classrooms with students with and without hearing impairment entitled “The DI&UD English instructional management model.” The model describes the types of accommodation and adaptation in four teaching steps of an English lesson—lesson introduction, language input, language task, and conclusion. Regarding accommodation, students with hearing impairment were supported by a sign language interpreter and a note-taker. For adaptation, content, process, and product were differentiated to provide equal opportunities for both groups of students to access instructional materials, activities, and assessment tasks in inclusive classrooms. The results of the model evaluation indicated that the DI&UD English instructional management model had positive effects on students’ English learning achievement, social skills, and learning engagement; however the effects on the students with and without hearing impairment differed in regard to English learning achievement and learning engagement. These results suggest that the DI&UD English instructional management model can be used in English inclusive classrooms to support students with hearing impairment with some adjustment in order to enhance all four communication skills and learning engagement. Since the DI&UD English instructional management model includes the provision of many types of accommodation and adaptation which may not always be available in natural classroom settings, further research can be conducted to investigate the most effective types of accommodation and adaptation in the model so that English educators will be able to design the instruction that is appropriate to their local contexts and resources.