Skip to main content
OpenTrials
Completed

NCT Number: NCT06729177

Single Case Research Design: Teacher Outcomes

This study examines whether a professional development program helps teachers implement Strategic and Interactive Signing Instruction (SISI) with higher fidelity. The training includes review of an intervention manual, live modeling of SISI components, and discussion of implementation expectations. Teacher fidelity is evaluated with the Strategic and Interactive Signing Instruction Fidelity Tool, which rates the extent to which core components are used during a intervention session. The study also documents how often teachers receive additional support (e.g., coaching) to understand which procedures help strengthen implementation.

Completed

Looking for future studies?

Notify Me

Key information

Conditions

Teacher Practice Behavior Communication Language Manual Communication Nonverbal Communication Sign Language

Age range

18 year–99 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

University of Tennessee, Knoxville

Knoxville, Tennessee, 37996, United States

About this study

This project uses a nonconcurrent multiple-baseline design across four teachers who serve deaf children in a deaf education program. The goal is to examine changes in teachers' SISI implementation fidelity following training and coaching.

At baseline, the PI observes each teacher's typical language arts instruction using the SISI Fidelity Tool. Three stable data points are collected for each teacher before intervention. Every SISI component is scored as 1 (fully implemented), 0.5 (partially implemented), or 0 (not implemented), and then summarized as a percentage of components implemented.

After baseline, the PI provides a two-day training in SISI procedures. Teachers then begin implementing SISI in a staggered fashion: Teacher 1 starts immediately after training for three weeks; Teacher 2 begins in Week 4; Teachers 3 and 4 begin in Weeks 7 and 10. All instructional sessions are video-recorded and uploaded to a cloud platform, where the PI and a second rater review them for daily fidelity monitoring.

Throughout the study, the PI offers coaching as needed to support implementation. The PI also tracks children's progress on their individually targeted sign language skills to confirm that intervention adjustments are appropriate and timely. If implementation challenges arise or if data collection procedures are insufficiently clear or consistent, refinements may be made. Any refinements are put in place immediately and monitored for their influence on teacher fidelity and the feasibility of study procedures.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Teachers of the deaf working in a school for the deaf across kindergarten to 3rd grade levels

Exclusion criteria

  • Not teachers of the deaf working in a school for the deaf across kindergarten to 3rd grade levels

Treatment and study plan

Strategic and Interactive Signing Instruction

Behavioral

Evidence-based instructional methods, grounded in cognitive, sociocultural, and linguistic theories, are applied to interventions that support sign language development in deaf children.

Primary outcomes

  1. SISI Fidelity

    Time frame: Baseline began at the start of the school year for all participants. Because intervention start times were staggered in the multiple-baseline design, intervention duration ranged from approximately 12 to 40 weeks across participants.

    The Strategic and Interactive Signing Instruction (SISI) Fidelity Tool is a 45-item observational checklist assessing adherence to the model-guided-independent cycle, scaffolding quality, and use of targeted ASL skills. Each item is rated from 0 to 1 (0 = not implemented, 0.5 = partially implemented, 1 = fully implemented). Scores are summed and converted to a percentage (0-100%). Higher scores indicate stronger fidelity of implementation.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

The University of Tennessee, Knoxville

Other

Collaborators

  • National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)

Registry information

Official study title

Strategic and Interactive Signing Instruction

Important dates

Study start
2024
Primary completion
2025
Study completion
2025
First posted
Dec 11, 2024
Registry last updated
Dec 19, 2025

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

Related clinical trials

Published trials that share one or more normalized conditions with this study.