Which strategy could a special education teacher use to help a student with PDD-NOS improve listening during a collaborative class project?

• A. Provide explicit listening goals and assign partner roles with brief check-ins before and after meetings.
• B. Encourage the student to listen passively without any supports.
• C. Have the student work alone to avoid miscommunication.
• D. Rely solely on verbal prompts without any visual supports.

Answer: (A)

Structured support with clear expectations helps a student with PDD-NOS tune in during group work. By setting explicit listening goals, the student knows exactly what to listen for and what success looks like, turning a vague task into concrete steps. Assigning partner roles creates predictable interactions and distributes duties so the student has clear moments for listening, note-taking, and contributing, which reduces confusion and keeps attention on the discussion. Brief check-ins before and after meetings give timely feedback and help adjust strategies if something isn’t understood, reinforcing the listening skills in a real collaboration.

Encouraging passive listening or having the student work alone removes opportunities to practice listening in social contexts, which is essential for collaborative projects. Relying only on verbal prompts without visual supports can be hard for many students, especially those who benefit from concrete cues or reminders to stay engaged. Combining explicit listening goals with structured roles and check-ins provides the supports that help a student with PDD-NOS listen more effectively in a team setting.