The Effects of CellF-Monitoring on Students’ Academic Engagement: A Technology-Based Self-Monitoring Intervention

Students who are not academically engaged spend less time mastering material, are less likely to be successful in school, and are more likely to be disruptive. The purpose of the current brief report was to investigate the effects of a technology-based self-monitoring intervention on elementary students’ academic engagement during independent work time. The intervention, CellF-Monitor, is an iPad application that allows individuals to self-rate their on-task behavior. In this multiple-baseline, single-case-design study, four nominated students used the CellF-Monitor during independent work time in their regular education classrooms. Systematic direct observations, self-ratings, and teachers’ Direct Behavior Ratings of academically engaged and on-task behaviors were collected to measure students’ behavioral changes from baseline to the intervention and reinforcement phases. Visual analyses illustrated positive effects of the CellF-Monitor on academic engagement and on-task behavior, and findings were augmented by effect size estimates.