Estudio empírico sobre la aplicación de los principios del diseño universal para el aprendizaje en la enseñanza de inglés como lengua extranjera en niños con trastorno por déficit de atención con hiperactividad (TDAH)

Abstract

The purpose of this PhD dissertation is to analyze the impact of the inclusion of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles of both English Language Teaching on children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and their attitudes towards this subject. In order to do so, an educational intervention based on three sessions has been carried out, whose focus was on Year 1 and Year 2 students having an existing diagnosis of ADHD. The method designed followed the three UDL principles to provide students with additional language support on learning contents. These three principles are as follows: Provide Multiple Means of Representation (the “what” of learning), Provide Multiple Means of Action and Expression (the “how” of learning), and Provide Multiple Means of Engagement (the “why” of learning). In the three sessions, aspects such as lexicon acquisition, listening skills, the phonetic-phonological competence and the acquisition of linguistic structures based on commands were assessed, as well as the participants´ attitude towards the subject being studied by means of two rating scales. Two groups were formed and two different methodologies were applied to them. The experimental group received instructions based on UDL principles —i.e. based on digital technology— and the control group based on traditional teaching —i.e. based on printed material—. Results will demonstrate the efficacy of the method propounded in this research.