Amy R. Wagner, LCSW, BCaBA

University of West Georgia

Enhancing IEP Achievement in

Students with Autism through a Video Modeling

Training with Paraprofessionals

Children with autism require precise teaching strategies

Paraprofessionals are often primary educators

Paraprofessionals are often not provided with sufficient development opportunities

Short term mastery criteria typically guides instruction

Rationale

CDC reports 1 in 88 children with autismVast empirical evidence relating early

intensive intervention to child achievement.Lovaas (1987 ) – 47% of experimental group vs

2% of control groupSimilar results replicated by Sallows and

Guptner (2005).By age 7, 48% in regular education 1st and 2nd

grade classes.

Individuals with autism often struggle with generalizing skills (Wehman, 2009)

Background

Cowan and Allen (2007) present evidence that combining intensive teaching procedures and naturalistic teaching procedures promotes generalization

Moreover, these two procedures are well documented in the behavior analytic literatureSkinner and Keller (1950’s)Saville, Lambert and Robertson (2011) –

interteaching Reed and Parsons (2000)LeBlanc, Ricciardi, Luiselli (2005) – abbreviated

performance feedbackBinder (2003) and Weiss (2010) – fluencyCatania et al. (2009), Moore and Fisher (2007)

and Collins et al. (2009) – video modeling

Coordination of teaching strategies, focused on IEP objectives will accelerate student learning and skill maintenance

Fluent teaching skills will impact student performance

Efficient and less costly staff development methods are more likely to be implemented

Assumptions

To evaluate the effects of a video modeling protocol on staff and student performance

Design of an effective, efficient staff development tool

Consistency in which staff use teaching strategies as designed

Impact of those teaching strategies on student performance

Student achievement of IEP targets

Purpose

3 paraprofessionals currently working in a classroom with children with autism

Paraprofessionals trained to use discrete trial instructional skills through video modeling Instructions and approximately 10 minutes of videos

during each of the video modeling phasesProtocol excerpted from LeBlanc, Ricciardi, Luiselli

(2005) Student instructional trials linked to IEP objectivesFeedback provided to participants on accuracy of

protocol use Indirect measures of student achievement collected

from teacher assessment

Methodology

Video Modeling Instructions and Example

Data analyzed using a ABC experimental design with replications.

IOA of 96% gathered from a sample of 25%Baseline and intervention performance data

collected for all staff participantsPerformance measured as adherence to

protocol

Results

Staff Performance

Improvements shown in 83% of student targets with baseline data

All three students showed some improvement

Student Performance

Target Baseline Av Intervention Av

Change

A 83.4 91.4 8

B 71.9 100 28.1

C 70.5 73.8 3.3

D 64.7 72.3 7.6

E 84 94.1 10.1

F 64.5 59.4 -5.1

Study was conducted with veteran staff - BL data was high

No webcam available for feedbackResearcher had no control over data collection

Protocol did not focus on accuracy of data collectionBehavior analysts did not conduct competency

checks on data collectionVariability in student data:

Reinforcement preference or satiation Insufficient trialsNon-complianceData validity and reliability

Limitations and Recommendations

Quality of videosStaff feedback sheet not comprehensive -

insufficient training given to behavior analysts Classroom logistics required staff participant to be

assigned to specific students. This clouded conclusions about generalization

Insufficient number of targets due to mastery prior to intervention

Due to time constraint, only one BL data point and two intervention data points – study needs to be extended. Multiple baseline for future research.

Limitations and Recs continued

Data trends given the time constraints, veteran staff, and variability in student data

Dissertation…

Reflection

Questions….

Catania, C. N., & Almeida, D. (2009). Video modeling to train staff to implement discrete-trial instruction. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 42(2), 387-392

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/data.html

Collins, S., Higbee, T. S., Salzberg, C. (2009). The effects of video modeling on staff implementation of a problem-solving intervention with adults with developmental disabilities. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 42(4), 849-854.

Cowan, R. J., & Allen, K. D. (2007). Using naturalistic procedures to enhance learning in individuals with autism: A focus on generalized teaching within the school setting. Psychology in the Schools, 44(7), 1-15. doi: 10.1002/pits.20259

References

Leblanc, M., Ricciardi, J. N., & Luiselli, J. K. (2005). Improving discrete trial instruction by paraprofessional staff through an abbreviated performance feedback intervention. Education and Treatment of Children, 28(1), 76-82.

Lovaas, O. I. (1987). Behavioral treatment and normal educational and intellectual functioning in young autistic children. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 55(1), 3-9.

Moore, J. W., & Fisher, W. W. (2007). The effects of video modeling on staff acquisition of functional analysis methodology. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 40(1), 197-202.

Reid, D. H., & Parsons, M. B. (2000). Organizational Behavior Management in Human Service Settings. In J. Austin & J. E. Carr (Eds.), Handbook of applied behavior analysis (pp. 275-294). Reno, NV: Greenwood: Context Press.

Sallows, G. O., & Graupner, T. D. (2005). Intensive behavioral treatment for children with autism: Four-year outcome and predictors. American Journal on Mental Retardation, 110(6), 417-438. Retrieved from EBSCOhost

Saville, B. K., Lambert, T. , & Robertson, S. (2011). Interteaching: Bringing behavioral education to the 21st century. The Psychological Record, 61(1), 153-166. Retrieved from EBSCOhost

Wehman, P., Smith, M. D., & Schall, C. (2009). Autism & the transition to adulthood: Success beyond the classroom. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.

Weiss, M. J., Pearson, N., Foley, K., & Pahl, S. (2010). The importance of fluency outcomes in learners with autism. The Behavior Analyst Today, 11(4), 245-251.