CHAPTER 4: Skill Acquisition

Positive Reinforcement

(SR+): The presentation of a stimulus that results in an increase in the probability of a response.

Negative Reinforcement

(SR-): The removal of a stimulus that results in an increase in the probability of a response.

Components of Skill Acquisition Plan simplified

- who - will do x - under what condition - at what level of proficiency - measured by whom and measurement methods

Types of Prompts

Full physical partial physical gestural positional independent verbal prompt partial verbal visual independent

Types of reinforcers

Primary Secondary

Fixed Ratio Schedule of Reinforcement

Reinforcement is delivered after a fixed number of responses.

Pairing: Step 1

Sanitize the environment Conduct Preference Assessments

Instructional method

Skill acquisition plan should include this will let the therapist know how instructions and materials are presented. • Discrete Trial Method • Chaining • Shaping • Naturalistic Teaching Methods • Prompting/Prompt Fading

Primary Reinforcers

Unconditioned reinforcers - biological needs

Partial physical

guiding from elbow

Continuous reinforcement

refers to reinforcement being administered to each instance of a response • is used to increase or stabilize behavior. • Behavior should occur consistently and at a high and steady rate before the frequency of rein- forcement is reduced.

Chaining Procedures

to increase independent living skills

Plan for Maintenance of Skills

• A skill is being maintained when the child has learned a skill and continues to demonstrate the skill after teaching has stopped.

What is a skill acquisition plan?

• A written plan that identifies an individual's strengths and deficits.

What is Rapport?

• Demonstrating a closeness, empathy, and mutual liking for an individual. • Foundation for teaching the student. • Interactive relationship (communication-based). • Ongoing process. • Based on sharing, cooperation, and a mutual give-and-take.

Contingencies

• Dependent and temporal relations between operant behavior and its controlling variables. • 3 term contingency -- Antecedent Behavior Consequence

Once the sessions has started you need to

• Review notes from other therapists • Get a new data sheet

Variable Interval Schedule of Reinforcement

• Schedule provides reinforcement for the first correct response following the elapse of variable durations of time. • Produces low to moderate rates of responses, but the responses are stable. • Example: • VI3 • Reinforcement is available after 2 minutes, then 5 minutes, then 3 minutes, then 4 minutes and then 1 minute. 2+5+3+4+1=15 • Reinforcement available 5 times. 15/5=3

Inter-Trial interval

• Starts after the consequence, signifies the end of a trial • The interval is between trials • A brief pause

Examples of building new reinforcers

• Use physical play and label it • Use interactive books • Use novelty items • Use cause-effect toys • Use music, videos • Gradually expand interests • Add a sensory element to toy or activity

Instructional Objective

• When the objective is related to formal instruction, it is called an instructional objective

A plan should tell therapists

• When/Where data needs to be collected on skills that are being maintained. • Who needs to take data on skill maintenance. • What to do when a skill is not being maintained.

Schedules of Reinforcement

Extinction Intermittent Continuous

Materials

Reinforcers Materials to teach the skill

Prompt

• The client may need help to respond correctly. • anything that is "added" by the therapist to facilitate a correct response. • Physical Prompts • Modeling • Verbal • Gesture • Proximity

Preparing for the ABA session

• When the therapist is organized, the session is more structured for the child. • Preparing for the session allows the therapist to make a plan so that the necessary learning targets are covered during the session. • Preparing for the session will allow you to deal with the unexpected that could happen dur- ing the session.

Discrete Trials Teaching Strategy involves

1. A highly structured environment 2. Breaking skills down into small steps or components 3. Teaching each step of the skill intensively until mastered 4. Providing many repeated opportunities to learn and practice the skill in a variety of set- tings 5. Prompting the correct responses and fading the prompts as soon as possible 6. Using mostly positive reinforcement procedures 7. Monitoring performance by direct observation and data collection and modifying inter- vention if the data shows that the learner is not making satisfactory progress.

Plan for DTT

1. Arrange necessary materials. 2. Decide what you will use as consequences for correct and incorrect responses 3. On each trial: a. Secure the child's attention. b. Present the correct materials c. Present the correct instruction. d. Provide whatever extra help (i.e., prompts or cues) you think are necessary for the child to respond correctly. e. Once the ''child'' responds, provide what you consider to be an appropriate feedback or reward for a correct response, or provide an appropriate reaction for an error f. Across trials gradually provide less and less prompts or cues (i.e., fade out the extra prompts) i. By prompting less ii. By delaying your prompts g. Record the results on the data sheet.

Task analysis puzzle example

1. Take out puzzle pieces 2. Put in first/one puzzle piece 3. Put in second/another puzzle piece 4. Continue until all pieces are in their places

Pairing

1st step to gaining instructional control • It is often said that you cannot begin teaching until you have "paired" yourself as a reinforcer. • This is a very important process, and begins with establishing yourself as the "giver" of all good things. • This means that you are the person that "delivers" all of the reinforcement. you arrange environment in order to do this

Example of Target Behavior

A correct imitation is defined as a response that closely matches the model provided by the trainer and occurs within 3 seconds.

Stimulus-Stimulus Pairing

A neutral stimulus (an object or event that does not effect behavior reliably) is paired with a primary or learned reinforcer. Over time the neutral stimulus acquires reinforcing proper- ties.

Reinforcement

A process which results in an increase of the future probability of a behavior.

Behavior chains

A sequence of SDs and responses that when linked together make up a longer complex skill or behavior. Typically, the final response in the chain produces the reinforcer.

Three-Term Contingency

ABCs of behavior (antecedent-behavior-consequence) illustrates how behavior is elicited by the environment and how the consequences of behavior can affect its future occurrence. Three-term contingencies account for much of what scientists have discovered about the prediction and control of human behavior.

Secondary reinforcers

Conditioned reinforcers - Tangible: toys, pictures - Social: attention, expressions, proximity - Activity: games, movies, videos - Generalized -- money, cards, tokens (backup reinforcers)

DTT vs. NET

DTT -- • Teaching controlled by adult. • Occurs in structured environment. • Materials are selected by teacher. • Reinforcement varies. NET -- • Teaching initiated by child. • Occurs in natural environment. • Materials are selected by child. • Reinforcement is directly related to learning sequence.

full physical prompt

HOH

If pairing procedure did not work

If the student does not approach you, continue Pairing Yourself with Positive Reinforcement • Once the child is seeking you out, you should start to move closer to the teaching table and chair. • Begin to place preferred items on the teaching table and chair. • Arrange for the intensive teaching situation (table) to be the place you go to receive rein- forcement not the place you go where reinforcement is removed. • The request to go to the intensive teaching situation should be correlated with reinforce- ment not extinction (removal of reinforcers). Eventually, "Morph" into working at the table.

Incidental Teaching or natural environment teaching

NET -- natural environment teaching applied behavior analytic teaching technique that is used to increase the spontaneous use of language. Incidental teaching occurs within the context of the interac- tions between two people. begins with an initiation by the first person (the student) who specifies an individual reinforcer; the second person presents a prompt for a language re- sponse from the first person and differentially reinforces that language response by the deliv- ery of the reinforcer previously specified by the first person

Benefits of errorless learning

Reduces the likelihood that errors will be repeated on future trials. • Reduces frustration and the occurrence of inappropriate behaviors by increasing opportunities for reinforcement. • Minimizing the amount of errors can increase overall available time for instruction.

Vocabulary of Reinforcement

Reinforcer: a stimulus Reinforcing: a property of a stimulus To reinforce: to deliver consequences when response occurs

Antecedent Stimuli

SD • Present the antecedent stimuli. An antecedent stimuli sets up the response. • An SD also lets the student know that a reinforcer is available. • A short clear instruction • Cue

Classes of Reinforcers

Social Edible Tangible Activity

A skill acquisition plan should answer the question

What does this individual need to know in order in order to be as independent and successful as possible?

Setting

Where does training occur? What is the activity

Errorless teaching

an instructional prompting technique that utilizes prompts and reinforce- ment to help students learn as quickly as possible without making an excessive number of mistakes. system of most to least prompting, which initially involves prompting with a 0 second time delay (meaning immediately) and gradually fading the prompts to foster independence. • The goal is to minimize or eliminate errors. involves reinforcement of prompted responses

Parts of the instructional routine

antecedent stimuli -- SD Prompt Learner Response Time between the SD and learner response Consequence -- correct and incorrect Inter-trial interval

positional

correct response is closer to child

Consequence for incorrect response

correction no reinforcement given • Therapist says, "no" and uses a pre-chosen prompt to guide the child to the correct re- sponse. • Repeat the trial after a correction

Generalized Reinforcers

learned reinforcers that have become effective for a wide range of behaviors under a variety of circumstances. They develop when they are coupled with primary or learned reinforcers. • Tokens • Social Recognition

Intermittent Reinforcement or Variable Schedules of Reinforcement

lies between continuous reinforcement and extinction. The behavioral requirement for reinforcement varies randomly from one reinforcement to the next. - Interval (fixed/variable) -Ratio (fixed/variable)

gestural

points to correct response

Consequence for correct response

positive reinforcement schedule of positive reinforcement

Forward Chaining

pro -- competence from starts, naturally occurring order cons -- may be lengthy, timing of reinforcement changes, attending may decrease, inappropriate behaviors may increase

Variable Ratio Schedules

produce an overall high consistent rate of responding • Requires the completion of a variable number of responses to produce a reinforcer. The deliv- ery of reinforcement must average out at a specific number. Example -- • Reinforcement is given after 1 correct response, then after 3 more correct responses, then 2 more, then 1 more, then finally after 3 more correct responses. • 1+3+2+1+3=10, • 5 reinforcers were available. 10/5=2

Backward chaining

pros -- completion of task, reinforcement is always the terminal cons -- lengthy, student must wait first, reverse of natural order, does not take advantage of any mastered steps

visual prompt

shows visual

Discrete Trials

specific method of teaching used to maximize learning. It is a teaching technique or process used to develop many skills, including cognitive, communication, play, social and self-help skills and community living skills and to reduce problem behaviors.

verbal prompt

state response

Teaching behavior chain

total task presentation forward chaining backward chaining

partial verbal

verbalizes part of correct response

independent

w/o prompt

Schedules of Reinforcement

what responses results in positive reinforcement

Required incidental teaching target responses

• (a) watch-the instructor is sitting or standing within 1- to 1.5-m of the learner. • (b) remove- the desired item was defined as the instructor's making eye contact with the learner for at least 1 s after a learner initiation, and keeping the requested item or activity away from the learner • (c) ask-for a correct response was defined as the instructor's using an expectant look and one statement or one question to ask the learner to say more about the initiation made • (d) pause-for a correct response was defined as the instructor's allowing up to 10 s for the learner to respond independently, or providing a prompt after 10 s. • (e) reward-was defined as the instructor's presenting behavior-specific praise about the learn- er's initiation, using an enthusiastic tone of voice, along with access to the object or activity that the learner requested

Target Behavior

• A clear description of the behavior. • A clear description of the behavior helps ensure consistency in the implementation of treat- ment programs and identifies what responses should result in positive reinforcement.

Plan for Generalization

• A skill is considered generalized when it occurs across various settings, people and stimu- li, as well as over time. • Generalized behavior change involves systematic planning. • "Train and Hope" method

Sanitizing the environment

• All potential reinforcers need to be accessed through you • If there are many items scattered about, the child may move from item to item as you ap- proach him/her. • Consequently you never become paired with providing the reinforcer. • Therefore reinforcers need to be seen but not had freely • By providing the child with what they want you become associated with what they want

Discrete Trial Training

• An evidenced based instructional method. • A series of distinct, short, repeated lessons or trials. • Each trial has a clear beginning and end • manipulates the sequence of antecedents and consequences. • provides the client with many learning opportunities. • Tasks are broken down into short simple trials. • A discrete trial is a single cycle of behaviorally based instructional routine consisting of four or five parts. • SD (discriminative stimulus) • Prompt (if necessary) • Learner Response • Time between SD and learner Response • Consequence • Inter-Trial Interval

Best practice

• Behavior Specific Praise--Label the response that is being reinforced • Tone of Voice & Body Language-- SD's versus feedback • Varying Social Reinforcement-- Form and content • Eye Contact-- Communicative nature • Appropriate Sitting -- Prerequisite • Do Vs. Don't-- Can not teach the absence of behavior; rather we attempt to increase the occurrence of appropriate behavior • Repetition of Requests-- Consequence should immediately follow the response • Pacing • Differential Reinforcement-- Reinforce independent/more difficult responses with more potent reinforcement • Reinforcement Provided Throughout Session-- Not just for current STO

Task Analysis

• Breaking a complex skill or series of behaviors into smaller teachable units. Breaking a task down into its component parts ("links") in order to create a sequence of related skills for instruction.

How to implement NET

• Can the environment be manipulated to provide incidental teaching opportunities? • YES; Since the natural environment does not always allow multiple opportunities for a child to use their skills, we must "set up" or contrive opportunities in the environment so that these learning situations may occur. • The important elements of NET are to keep in mind what you want to teach and to capture the student's motivation, which will help to create strong reinforcers. Remember to be creative in figuring out how to teach and to have fun!

How to set up learning situations

• Control access to materials (small amounts). • Instructor manipulates materials (tighten). • Set up repetitive play situations. • Withhold materials needed to complete an activity (puzzle piece). • Provide photographs or illustrations of preferred activities and materials (picture/object cor- respondence). • Engage in a preferred activity then pause. • Glance at materials, then look at the student expectantly. • Move materials closer but out of reach of student.

Requirements for DTT

• Distraction-free • Materials: have teaching materials used for the program within reach of the instructor and as needed, the child; containers or boxes should be open or ready for use; items such as edible or tangible reinforcers are within reach of the instructor. • Attending: establish appropriate attending responses by having the child sit or stand with hands and feet still in a position facing the instructor or task materials while making eye contact with the instructor or looking at the task materials in anticipation of the delivery of a direction. • Verbal Direction: present a clear, brief, and appropriate instruction appropriate to the pro- gram; Voice tones: differential voice tones used, Wait: allow appropriate amount of time for the child to respond to instruction, approximate- ly 5 s, after an instruction was presented by the instructor, as appropriate to the program. Praise statement: immediately following a correct response, the instructor will deliver a behavior-specific praise statement specific to the correct target response made by the child, within 2 s - 4 s, e.g., "Great (specified behavior)." Contingent reinforcers: present primary or secondary reinforcer(s), e.g., tangible, social, or edible, for a brief duration during praise statement, contingent on correct responses. Prompting and correction procedure: provide an appropriate prompting procedure within 5 s after the child's failure to respond or an appropriate correction procedure as a predetermined gestural, verbal, and/or physical prompt, immediately following an incorrect response, as ap- propriate to the program and target response. Pause for inter-trial interval: allow a brief pause in instruction, up to 5 s, following delivery of the consequential stimuli after a target response and during the inter-trial interval, prior to presenting the next trial. Incidental or additional teaching: present additional or incidental teaching responses, dur- ing the interval following the consequential stimuli presentation, the instructor may make a response related to the reinforcing stimulus or event. Data recorded: record data for correct or incorrect responses following each of the child's responses, after each trial on the data sheet.

Effective ways to use reinforcement

• Establish an initial criterion so that the participants first response produces reinforcement. • Use a reinforcer of high quality for behaviors that require more effort. • Use a variety of reinforcers. This will minimize satiation effects. • When possible, use direct rather than indirect reinforcement contingencies. • Indirect contingencies-the therapist presents the reinforcer. • Combine response prompts and reinforcement. • Incorporate attention and praise into any intervention entailing positive reinforcement. • Teaching the client to manipulate the environment is the ultimate naturally occurring reinforcer. • Gradually increase the response to reinforcement delay. • Provide continuous reinforcement to strengthen new behavior. After the behavior is estab- lished, thin the rate of reinforcement (every response is not reinforced).

Step 2: Assess whether pairing procedure has worked: become a signal for approach and communication

• Frequently approach then gradually turn or walk away from the child when delivering rein- forcers. • The student should begin to approach you seeking reinforcers. The child may seek you out in the following ways: • Should not walk away from you • May look for you • May ask or "nag" you frequently for the reinforcer • May ask for you when you are gone • Appears happy to see you (e.g., smile, laugh, or talks with you).

Preference Assessment

• Identify strong preferences through observation or interviews. Conduct preference assessment (MSWO/free operant). WHY? • To identify potential reinforcers that will motivate a child to work. • To help pair yourself with reinforcement and provide an opportunity for the child to engage with you in a "fun" manner. • To provide structure for staff to find motivating items. Thereby eliminating the "trial and er- ror" that often occurs during the delivery of potential reinforcers. • Examine environment and make it a better place to be so the child wants to be there!

Process of Writing Behavioral Objectives

• Identify the conditions under which the behavior is to be observed and measured. Typically, this is when the skill/behavior is expected to occur, and location. • Define the performance skill or behavior. • Set an attainable, reasonable criterion for performance. • Define the magnitude, duration requirementsof the target criterion necessary for the goal/ objective to be considered as "mastered."

We deliver reinforcement without demands at a high rate for two reasons:

• If you ask the child to earn the reinforcers they may refuse and display inappropriate behavior. • The child may not know how to ask for the things that he or she likes and may become frus- trated and tantrum without this information.

What are the components of a skill acquisition plan?

• Name of client • Objectives for each skill/program • Definition of target behavior • Materials/Setting • Instructional Method • Ways to respond to correct and incorrect responses • Plan for generalization • Plan for maintenance • Behavioral Objective/Instructional Objective

Ways to Plan for Generalization

• Natural Maintaining Contingencies • Program Common Stimuli • Train loosely • Train in multiple settings • Train with multiple people • Vary SD's/cues

Definition of Behavioral Objectives

• Objectives define the outcome for a specific goal (behavior, skill). • Objectives are similar to the steps within a task analysis, as they break down the goal's requirements into smaller skills. • Objectives must be attainable and written to promote the client's contact with mastery, success. • Objectives should be mastered before the client demonstrates mastery of the goal criterion.

Step 3: Introduction of Demands

• Once the child is approaching you consistently to seek reinforcers, you will begin to move from non-contingent (freebies) to contingent delivery of reinforcement • Be sure not to jump to an "all demand-all the time" condition. • Instead, systematically increase the number of demands over time. • One of the first demands to be introduced will be to teach the child to request for the pre- ferred item (increase language deficit). • Require the child to complete preferred mastered activities (present student with addition- al reinforcers) and request preferred items (the item requested serves as the reinforcer) to gain access to reinforcers • Require student to complete a mastered non preferred activity • If the student does not have any mastered activities, require him/her to complete a sim- ple task and reinforce (i.e., reinforce student for placing each block in the bucket with a prompt).

Once formal teaching has begun you need to

• Organize materials/clear the area of distractions • Look at graphs from previous sessions • You will need to make a decision on whether to continue with the current target or move on to a new target. • Look back at the behavioral objective for a target to look up the level of proficiency for that target. • For example, if the behavioral objective says "80% across three sessions," you will need to look at the graph to see if there are three consecutive data points at or above 80% for that target. If there are, you should move on to the next target for that skill.

How to Create Additional Reinforcers

• Pair Primary Reinforcers with Secondary Reinforcers. • When a neutral item is followed immediately by a reinforcing item, the neutral item takes on reinforcing properties. • This can help to expand your child's reinforcement repertoire. • This will make the teacher and teaching environment reinforcing • Pairing and embedding the learning environment with delivery of positive reinforcers will increase behaviors we want • Any preferred activity can be used to reinforce a less preferred activity (a.k.a. Premack Prin- ciple, Grandma's Rule).

Types of prompts

• Physical guidance • Modeling • Verbal • Gestures/Positional Cues • Visual

Behavioral Objective

• Precise specification of a behavioral goal including three essential elements. 1. A statement of the condition in which the behavior will occur 2. A statement of the expected behavior 3. A statement of the criteria for attainment

Total task presentation

• Present all the steps in the chain, allowing the student to perform all of the steps indepen- dently. • Total task is the most familiar chaining strategy because it is what most general educators use to teach a skill or activity. • Provide assistance (usually physical prompts) whenever necessary. • Provide reinforcement at the end of the chain. • It is generally recommended for use when a student can already perform over 50% of the steps in the task independently, and/or when there are very few steps to a task.

Expanded Trial

• Presenting one target and 2-5 mastered targets.

Fixed Interval Schedule of Reinforcement

• Reinforcement is available after a fixed amount of time. • Reinforcement is ONLY available if the target behavior is emitted at some time after the in- terval has ended. Example • 5 minutes pass, child is sitting upright and working, reinforcement delivered.

Reinforcer vs. Preference and identifying potential reinforcers

• Reinforcer -- A stimulus which results in an increase of the future probability of a behavior. • Preference -- A strong liking of one thing over other things. A preference is not necessarily a reinforcer. • Preference assessments can be used to identify potential reinforcers.

What to do before a session begins

• Review the treatment plan, BIP and skill acquisition plan. When working with many children, it can be difficult to remember every aspect of a plan for each child. • Make sure you have the necessary materials if the materials are not already at the house. • Reinforcers • Writing Utensils • Flashcards • Visuals

Examples of Pairing Yourself with fun things

• Sing Songs The Child Likes - sing a variety of songs during play and if you get eye contact, start pausing to see if you can get some communication to sing more. • Help The Child During Play - if the child likes putting shapes in a shape sorter, gather all the shapes and let the child request each piece either non verbally or verbally. This shows the child that they need you to complete a fun activity. • Add Funny Noises During Play - Make cool sound effects when playing cars or be dramatic with play. • Bubble Fun - Many children don't know how to blow bubbles but enjoy bubbles. This is a fun activity to encourage communication and to pair yourself with. • Gross Motor Fun - Many children love jumps, spins, lifts and anything to do with gross motor. Blanket rides, magic carpet rides, tub rides are all great fun activities that a therapist can pair themselves with.

Increasing the response to reinforcement delay

• Start with a short delay and gradually increase the delay to reinforcement. • Gradually increase the work requirements during the delay. • Incorporate an activity during the delay. • Verbally assure the client that the reinforcer will be available following the delay. • Make the reinforcer visible during the delay. • Use conditioned reinforcers such as tokens.

Extinction of Intermittently Reinforced Behavior.

• The less often and the more inconsistently behavior is reinforced, the longer it will take to extinguish the behavior, other things being equal • Behaviors that are reinforced on a "thin" schedule are more resistant to extinction than be- haviors reinforced on a more dense schedule

Learner Response

• The target behavior • The target behavior should be clearly defined in the skill acquisition plan.

Random Rotation

• The target response is rotated with other target responses. • Generally the therapist presents two targets at a time (current target and previously learned target).

Time between SD and learner response

• The therapist waits for the learner to emit the skill or target behavior. • Usually 3-5 seconds. May be longer. The behavioral goal/objective should state how long the therapist can wait for the child to emit the skill or target behavior.

How To Make Yourself Reinforcing When Working With Children With Autism

• The ultimate goal of reinforcement is to help learners with ASD learn new skills and maintain their use over time in a variety of settings with many different individuals • When a child learns that when you are around, good things happen, the ability to teach this child becomes strong. So not interrupt the child's fun to do an activity which is less reinforcing -- when child is playing with toy/activity, do things that add more fun to it pair yourself with good things

Massed Trial

• Therapist presents the same target repeatedly. Can consists of 3-10 trials. • Example without distractor: • Only the cup is on the table. Therapist says, "give me cup," and the child hands the therapist the cup. • Example with distractor: • Two objects are on the table. Therapist says, "give me cup," and the child hands the therapist the cup.