Jami Shlensky IP 2 27

8/13/2019 Jami Shlensky IP 2 27

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Jami Shlensky

Instructional Program

SPED 461

Roster number: 27

Requesting Instructional Program

Student Description

Student R is twelve years old and currently in seventh grade at Jefferson Middle School.

At birth, R was diagnosed with an intellectual disability, which contributes to her extremely low

use of spoken language. She currently follows an adapted, functional life skills curriculum in

which she learns life skills such as toileting, social interactions, and community skills. Most of

her day is spent in the self-contained functional life skills classroom. However, she does partake

in limited classes with typically developing peers, such as art. R was diagnosed as having Down

syndrome and uses pre-linguistic forms of communication such as pointing, body language, and

some vocalizations to express unpleasantness (Kim Patton, personal communication). The

student currently has an iPad that hosts Proloquo2go to serve as a communication device.

However, the student is not independent in use of the device. R is very good at getting what she

wants and she has high receptive communication levels. However, she needs to work on her

expressive communication in order to communicate her wants and needs. Rs expressive

communication skills are very limited. However, she has her own ways that she can

communicate her needs and wants to those around her. Often these ways include physical

gestures, noises, or refusal. While Rs expressive communication skills are limited, she is able to

understand most communication and has a much higher level of performance when it comes to

receptive communication (Communication Assessment Project). R is able to understand simple

directions but due to her disability, can be very stubborn, and chooses not to follow the directions


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given to her. R enjoys to be left alone and as a result she often makes the active choice to not

follow directions given to her.

R struggles in her expressive communication especially when it comes to social

interactions. She is unable to greet those around her and therefore has very little peer interaction

(Kim Patton, personal communication). As a result, a clear need is for R to expressively be able

to greet those around her. A step in order to achieve that would be requesting an item she desires.

Research Description and Rationale

In the article Teaching VOCA Use as a Communicative Repair Strategy, an

intervention was applied to two students who are nonverbal and have Autism. The study

aimed to teach students to repair communication breakdowns, when a student initiates a

request that is neither responded to nor reinforced by the listener but, the implications of

the study reached into the realm of initiating requests using a voice output communication

aid. Students were trained to request snack food items in 5-minute sessions where they

were provided with six opportunities to access the snack tray. The trainer prompted the

student by letting them sample the snack and then saying Let me know if you want more

(Sigafoos, 415). During intervention sessions, students were given three to five standard

opportunities to request the snack and one to three opportunities to repair the

communication breakdown. A constant time delay of ten seconds as well as a graduated

physical guidance prompting hierarchy were used as instructional procedures.

Reinforcement was given by giving the student the snack.

The results of the study showed that the interventions proved to be successful not

only in repairing communication breakdowns but also when initiating requests. One

student, in her final sessions, relied entirely on the VOCA as a first response and to repair


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communicative breakdowns (Sigafoos, 416). This is applicable to our focus student, R,

because she is non-verbal, has no experience in operating her voice-output communication

aid independently, and needs to learn to make a specified request. Parts of this experiment

that could be successfully replicated in order to teach R to make a specified request would

be the constant time delay and physical prompting hierarchy with specified reinforcement

immediately after the behavior is delivered.

The article Teaching Requests for Food and Drink to Children with Multiple

Disabilities in a Graphic Communication Modewas a study where the students five and six

years old and had significant communication deficits. They were diagnosed with cerebral

palsy and significant intellectual delays. In order to communicate students were given

symbols eat and drink. Theclassroom teacher offered the students favorite foods

sequentially. Two to three minutes later she offered their favorite beverages. She said, If

you want this, point to drink (eat) (Sigafoos, 253). Students were instructed to touch the

food symbol to obtain a food and the drink symbol to obtain a drink. If after ten seconds of

the teacher providing a verbal prompt the student didnt point to the correct symbol, the

teacher would use physical prompting to have the student point to the symbol while

delivering the same verbal prompt. If the student indicated the incorrect symbol the

teacher verbalized No, while shielding the wrong symbol with her hand. After she placed

the plate or cup on the table and restated, If you want this, point to eat (drink)(Sigafoos,

253). She gave this verbal prompt while pointing herself, to the correct symbol.

The results of the training yielded success for both students in requesting food and

beverage items. The study results showed that both students were correctly requesting at

ninety percent of opportunities given. Similar procedures can be used with Student R how


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to request. The students selected for participation in this study and Student R have similar

communication needs. Therefore it would be likely that the procedures used in the study

would have similar results with student R.

Skill Sequence

IEP Goal Area: Expressive communication is the goal area in which Student R will work on

Objective: Requesting desired items from a communication partner (12 month)

Student:Student R is a beginning communicator who will be using a variation of the PictureExchange Communication system for the very first time in order to improve her expressive

communication skills

Condition: When presented with a communication partner, standing at least 12 feet away,

holding a preferred item,

Behavior:Student R will

Identify the symbol that represents the desired item (from at least 8 symbols) Pick up the communication symbol Approach communication partner Hand symbol to communication partner independently Reach for the desired item after item is given

Criteria:Student will perform behavior independently with 80% accuracy on three consecutive

probe trials.

9-Month Objective

Condition: When presented with a communication partner, standing at least 8 feet away, holding

a preferred item,





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probe trials.

6-Month Objective


a preferred item,



Criteria:Student will perform behavior independently with 80% accuracy on three consecutiveprobe trials.

3-Month Objective


a preferred item,




probe trials.Condition: When presented with a communication partner, standing 2 feet away from R, holding a preferred item,


Identify the symbol that represents the desired item (from 1 symbol and a distracter) Pick up the communication symbol Hand symbol to communication partner independently Reach for the desired item after item is given

Criteria:Student will perform behavior independently with 80% accuracy on 2 consecutive probe trials.

Condition: When presented with a communication partner, standing 1 foot away from R, holding a preferred item,


Identify the symbol that represents the desired item (from 1 symbol and a distracter) Pick up the communication symbol


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Hand symbol to communication partner independently Reach for the desired item after item is given

Criteria:Student will perform behavior independently with 80% accuracy on2 consecutive probe trials.

Condition: When presented with a communication partner, standing 1 foot away from R, holding a preferred item,


Identify the symbol that represents the desired item (from 1 symbol) Pick up the communication symbol Hand symbol to communication partner independently Reach for the desired item after item is given

Criteria:Student will perform behavior independently with 80% accuracy on 2 consecutive probe trials.

Beginning Skill Objective

Condition: When presented with a communication partner, standing directly in front of R,

holding a preferred item,


Identify the symbol that represents the desired item (from 1 symbol) Pick up the communication symbol Hand symbol to communication partner independently Reach for the desired item after item is given


probe trials.

Baseline Data Chart, Graph, Aimline

Opportunity

(11/12/13)

Full Physical Partial

Physical

Modeling Point

Prompting

Independent

1 0

2 0

3 0

4 0

5 0


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Percent

Accuracy

0%

Opportunity

(11/13/13)


Physical

Modeling Point

Prompting

Independent

1 0

2 0

3 0

4 0

5 0

Percent

Accuracy

0%

Opportunity

(11/14/13)


Physical

Modeling Point

Prompting

Independent

1 0

2 0

3 0

4 0

5 0

Percent

Accuracy

0%


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Description of Materials

Above are the six symbols that will be used in order to teach R to request a desired

item that a communication partner is holding. Blank symbol cards as well as other random

symbols will be used as distracters.

These symbols and materials are appropriate for Student R due to the fact that they

are the few items that serve as reinforcement for the student. Although some of the items

may be on the verge of age inappropriate, they are the few items in Rs repertoire that she

enjoys partaking in leisure with and therefore will want to obtain through requesting. A

model of the Picture Exchange Communication System was selected due to the fact that R is

a beginning communicator and the physical process of giving a symbol in order to receive a

desired item will help her learn about the cause and effect that occurs within

communicative partners. This will help her understand that her initiation of something can

help her receive a desired item. As a result, in the further scope and sequence of instruction


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R will learn to greet in order to receive a desired item and eventually the item

reinforcement would be faded out in order to teach R to greet those around her. However, a

variation of PECS was selected due to the studentscurrent use of very little expressive

communication.

Context for Instruction:

Assessment and instruction will occur at Jefferson Middle School in the functional life

skulls classroom. It will occur as a natural routine directly after lunch when the students in the

class have time for leisure. Other students will be present around the room engaging in various

leisure activities of choice including a game, chatting with friends, or bouncing on a ball. The

classroom teacher, paraprofessionals, and other trainer will be present during instruction and

assessment. The required materials include the symbols (attached) and Rs leisure item(s) of

choice in which the symbols represent.

Program Objective:

When presented with a communication partner, standing directly in front of R, holding a

preferred item, Student R will select the symbol that represents the desired item and hand it to

the communication partner independently, in order to request the item, with 80% accuracy on

three consecutive probe trials .

Generalization:

In order to assist with generalization colored symbols, black and white symbols, and

distractor symbols will be utilized. This will ensure that the student is selecting the symbol that is

coordinated with the object based upon what it means not just what it looks like. A different

visual stimulus will ensure that the student is selecting the symbol to present to the


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communication partner based upon the implication of the symbol. In accordance, trainer

generalization should occur. Each day, the trainers should switch roles so that the student is able

to generalize her communication skills to multiple communication partners.

Rationale:

It is extremely important for R to learn to request desired items in order to teach her how

to initiate communication with an individual in proximity. This initiation of communication,

through requesting, will teach R the value in using expressive communication to obtain what she

wants and to see social interaction. The impact of this skill will give R an opportunity to acquire

age appropriate expressive communication skills that she can use to obtain her wants and needs.

It will open a world of opportunity for R to be able to express her thoughts to those around her.

This particular skill was selected for student R due to the fact that she still uses pre-

linguistic communication in order to obtain her needs. These communication tactics include

pointing, using physical gestures, or using sounds of displeasure to communicate with others.

The skill of requesting will allow R to appropriately and expressively communicate her desires to

those around her.

Assessment Procedures

Once instruction begins, assessment should occur every Friday after lunch during leisure

time. Instead of using this time for instruction, the time should be used for assessment. Data will

be collected on the same data sheet used for instruction. Results should then be graphed.

1. Gather all materials2. Trainer 1 should stand directly in front of student holding desired item (reinforcer).

Trainer 2 should stand directly behind student

3. Presentation of the Sd (Trainer 1 shows student R the desired item by holding it infront of their own body while facing the student)

a. If R completes the desired behavior within 10 seconds (picking up thesymbol and handing it to trainer 1) Trainer 1 hands the desired item


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(reinforcer) to R, records a + (in the independent), and allows R to play with

the item for 1 minuteb. If R does not complete the desired behavior within 10 seconds, mark a 0 in the

independent column

4. Return to step 2 and repeat for 5 probe trials5.

Calculate percent accuracy and record


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Data Sheet

Trainer 1: _______________________ Student:_______________________

Trainer 2: _______________________ Date: _________________________

Objective: When presented with a communication partner, standing directly in front of R,

holding a preferred item, Student R will select the symbol that represents the desired item and

hand it to the communication partner independently, in order to request the item, on four of five

consecutive assessment probe trials.

Materials: Symbol, table

Procedures: Follow the instructional procedures attached

Opportunity Full Physical Partial

Physical

Modeling Point

Prompting

Independent

1

2

3

4

5

PercentAccuracy


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Assessment Schedule:

Assessment probes will occur daily for three days during baseline assessment. Once

instruction begins, assessment will occur every Friday on a weekly basis. Assessment will occur

directly after lunch during leisure time, just as instruction would.

Instructional Procedures

Instruction will occur daily (Monday-Thrusday) after lunch in the Functional Life

Skills Classroom. A constant time delay, as well as a most to least prompting hierarchy will

be used. An instructional session will follow the sequence below:

1. Gather all materials2. Set up materials (symbols should be located on table directly next to Student R)3. Trainer 1 should stand directly in front of student holding desired item (reinforcer).

Trainer 2 should stand directly behind student

4. Presentation of the Sd (Trainer 1 shows student R the desired item by holding it infront of their own body while facing the student)

5. Full Physical Prompt:a. Immediately after Sd, Trainer 2 who is behind R physically guides Rs hand to

the symbol and then to give it to Trainer 1. When Trainer 1 takes symbol

from R, the desired item should be given to R immediately and R should be

allowed to play with the item for 2 minutes. Trainer 1 should mark a + in the

full physical column

b. Use this most intrusive prompting level for 5 probe trials on 5 instructionalsessions. Then move to partial physical prompting6. Partial Physical

a. Immediately after Sd, trainer 2, who is behind R touches Rs elbow to signalher to go to get the symbol and give it to Trainer 1.

b. If R completes the desired behavior within 10 seconds (picking up thesymbol and handing it to trainer 1) Trainer 1 hands the desired item

(reinforcer) to R, records a + (in the partial physical column), and allows R to

play with the item for 1.5 minutes

c. If R does not complete the desired behavior within 10 seconds, provide a fullphysical prompt to complete the step and mark a 0 in the partial physical

column and a + in the full physical columnd. Use this prompting level for 5 probe trials on 5 instructional sessions. Then

move to modeling

7. Modelinga. Immediately after Sd, Trainer 2, who is behind R models the desired

behavior. Trainer 2 should pick up the symbol and hand it to trainer 1.

Trainer 1 should then give trainer 2 the item. Trainer 2 should return the

item to trainer 1 and then return behind R


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b. If R completes the desired behavior within 10 seconds (picking up thesymbol and handing it to trainer 1) Trainer 1 hands the desired item

(reinforcer) to R, records a + (in the modeling column), and allows R to play

with the item for 1.5 minutes

c. If R does not complete the desired behavior within 10 seconds, provide a fullphysical prompt to complete the step and mark a 0 in the modeling columnand a + in the full physical column

d. Use this prompting level for 5 probe trials on 5 instructional sessions. Thenmove to point prompting

8. Point Prompta. Immediately after Sd, Trainer 2, who is behind R points to the symbolb. If R completes the desired behavior within 10 seconds (picking up the

symbol and handing it to trainer 1) Trainer 1 hands the desired item

(reinforcer) to R, records a + (in the pointing column), and allows R to play

with the item for 1.25 minutes

c. If R does not complete the desired behavior within 10 seconds, provide a fullphysical prompt to complete the step and mark a 0 in the pointing columnand a + in the full physical column

d. Use this prompting level for 5 probe trials on 5 instructional sessions. Thenmove to allowing independent responses

9. Allowing independent responsea. Immediately after Sd, allow R 10 seconds to respond independentlyb. If R completes the desired behavior within 10 seconds (picking up the

symbol and handing it to trainer 1) Trainer 1 hands the desired item

(reinforcer) to R, records a + (in the independent column), and allows R to

play with the item for 1 minute

c. If R does not complete the desired behavior within 10 seconds, provide a fullphysical prompt to complete the step and mark a 0 in the independentcolumn and a + in the full physical column

d. When R has completed 3 consecutive assessment probes with 80% accuracyindependently criterion for mastery has been met

Reinforcement (Type and Schedule)

Reinforcement for the student is built into instruction. After the student properly requests

the item she will be given the item to play with for one minute. This will allow for immediate

reinforcement of the desired behavior. The reinforcers are Rs leisure items. They should be

introduced into instruction and assessment in the following order, as determined by a preference

assessment; Barney doll, doll, apple letters, wobbles, floating dots game, dish mat.


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Maintenance

In order to maintain the skill, fading of reinforcement should occur. In order to fade

reinforcement, it is built into the program that as R moves through the physical prompting

hierarchy and becomes more independent, she will receive less time with the desired item

(reinforce). After mastery of the skill is met, maintenance probes (using the same assessment

procedures listed above) should occur on the following schedule; once every other week for six

weeks.

References

Boardmaker Plus!

Patton, K. (2013, September 13). Personal interview.

Moran, K., Shlensky, J, (2013),Instructional Program 1

Sigafoos, J., Couzens, D., Roberts, D., Phillips, C., & Goodison, K. (1996). Teaching requests

for food and drink to children with multiple disabilities in a graphic communication mode.

Journal of Developmental and Physical Disabilities, 8(3), 247-262.

Sigafoos, J., Drasgow, R., Halle, J. W., OReilly, M., Seely-York, S., Edrisinha, C. , & Andrews,

A. (2004). Teaching VOCA use as a communicative repair strategy. Journal of Autism

and Developmental Disorders, 34(4), 411-422.

Shlensky, J. (2013), Communication Assessment Project

Jami Shlensky IP 2 27

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