Target Skills Research Articles

Ability-Performance Relationships in Memory Skill Tasks for Young and Old Adults

The present experiment investigated ability-performance relationships for two memory skills, each of which required associative learning. Evidence suggests that, after practice, young and old adults have equivalent associative learning abilities (Fisk and Rogers, 1991; Kausler, 1982). We provided 41 young and 52 old adults with extensive practice on consistently and varied versions of a memory search task and a noun pair look-up task (Ackerman and Woltz, 1993). Only consistent practice allows associative learning because the stimulus items are consistently paired; in varied practice, item pairings change across practice and associative learning is not possible. We also assessed a wide range of abilities for each subject and were thus able to investigate ability-performance relationships across practice conditions and across age groups. These relationships provide an indication of the underlying abilities related to task performance (Ackerman, 1988). The mean data suggested that both young and old adults demonstrated successful associative learning in the two CM tasks. The individual differences data suggest, however, that different abilities may be driving performance across the two age groups. These data have important implications for predicting whether or not older adults will successfully acquire a new skill. If the target skill requires associative learning, older adults, may perform as efficiently as young adults if they are provided with sufficient, consistent practice. The ability-performance data suggest that predictions about which individuals will be most successful at skills requiring associative learning, may be dependent on the age of the target population.

Multisensory Mathematics for Children With Mild Disabilities

I examined the effects of a multisensory program (the TOUCH MATIP program1; Bullock, Pierce, & McClellan, 1989) on the acquisition of addition and subtraction skills by students with mild disabilities. I taught three elementary students with mild disabilities (learning disabilities and mental handicaps) to use the TOUCH MATH counting technique for addition and subtraction problems within the context of a multiple-probe design across math skills. Target skills included (a) adding two-digit numbers with regrouping, (b) adding columns of two-digit numbers with regroup- ing, (c) subtracting single-digit numbers from numbers up to 18, (d) subtracting two-digit numbers with regrouping, and (e) subtracting three-digit numbers with regrouping. Results showed significant gains in acquisition of target skills for all three subjects. Maintenance and generalization results also were observed in that the subjects maintained mastery-level performance on all skills and generalized the TOUCH MATH strategies to novel math problems. I discuss these results in relation to the use of a multisensory counting approach with students with mild disabilities.

Towards numeracy for the third millennium: A study of the future of mathematics and mathematics education

The research reported here has sought to identify target skills and abilities that will compose a future numeracy, so that new expertise can be incorporated and the exposed "deficiencies" remedied within a dynamic rather than static concept of competency. A nation-wide selection of panellists contributed to a three-round Delphi process, with the final data comprising both structured responses and qualitative comment. The scope of the items covered calculating activities, writing activities, reading activities, physical skills, supporting (mental) skills, applications, and problem solving. Responses to the structured items have provided priorities for numeracy for the turn of the century, in terms of both expected and desired characteristics. In general, expectations for numeracy fall short of the levels deemed desirable by panel consensus. The qualitative comments have been incorporated into three scenarios reflecting altermative visions for the future. A comparison of the scenarios uncovers wide differences between informed thinkers with respect to future visions of the ends, means, and mechanics of learning. These differences among individuals who are otherwise consistent in their views of future needs must be addressed if the identified priorities are not to be lost in a quagmire of conflicting interests, opinions, priorities, and values.

Improving writing skills: Which approaches and what target skills?

This article presents a critical overview of recent trends in research on writing skills. Part one defines criteria for the studies reviewed here and is based on current cognitive writing models. The treatments examined were all designed to change writer activity by influencing the main constituent features of writing: knowledge and cognitive functions. The following two sections deal with the effects of treatments aimed at the acquisition of knowledge or expert skills. Part four focuses on the effects on writing skills of interaction between peers or immature and expert writers. The final section examines computer aids to writing. The conclusion stresses the need for carefully controlled studies drawing on well-defined theoretical frameworks.

TRAINING INTERACTIONAL BEHAVIORS OF ADULTS WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES: A SYSTEMATIC REPLICATION AND EXTENSION

This study was a replication and extension of research by Foxx, McMorrow, Bittle, and Ness (1986) that assessed generalization effects of a social skills training program on the interactional behavior of adults with developmental disabilities. Target skills were a verbal action or reaction in six skill areas that specifically addressed the participants' skill deficits. In the present study, we trained 5 adult residents of a group home across these six skill areas using the "Sorry" game format and the scoring criteria described by Foxx et al. We extended the results of Foxx et al. by (a) using pretreatment assessment procedures to identify participants' specific skill deficits, (b) training all residents in the natural environment, (c) training participant-participant interactions, (d) training participants to respond to four of the six skill areas through the use of a role-play procedure, and (e) omitting rewards, criterion levels, and self-monitoring. Additionally, the trainer in the present study modeled correct responses only as an error correction procedure during training. Similar to those of Foxx et al., our results indicated that all participants increased their use of the trained interactional behaviors during the generalization assessments in the presence of other trained peers.

Innovations for the "Other" Teacher

70 SHOFAR INNOVATIONS FOR THE "OTHER" TEACHER ZevBar-Lev Zev Bar-Lev is a faculty member at San Diego State University, where he teaches classes in Hebrew, linguistics, and computers and language. He has published articles on language teaching methods and is the author of Computer Talk for the Liberal Arts (1986). This article will describe three innovations for the teaching of Hebrew. These innovations successfully impart several skill-goals that are considered centrally important in modern language teaching but, I would argue, are by no means successfully taught in all courses, even after several years of study: (1) the ability to instantaneously recognize (comprehend) whole words in their ordinary printed form; (2) the ability to speak spontaneously and continuously in original sentences and discourses; (3) the ability to integrate grammatical and other contrasts into spontaneous speech, rather than just learn them for grammar exercises; and (4) the ability to comprehend written and spoken discourse even when it contains a proportion of unknown words (e.g., skim-reading and "skim-listening"). These skills are traditionally regarded as "advanced," e.g., associated with the third year of college study: traditionally, it is assumed that the basic grammar and vocabulary of a language must be mastered before they are attempted . (This observation applies somewhat less starkly to proficiency-oriented approaches, which generally include (1), but aim for goals (2-3) only within the limits of specific situations, thereby limiting spontaneity and originality, and ignore (4) on elementary levels.) A defining characteristic of the proposed method is, then, that it teaches these "advanced" skills from the very beginning of study-in particular, beginning with the first month of study. Of course, it teaches these skills on an elementary level. It does so with two intentions: to increase the number of students able to begin study of Hebrew; and to increase subsequent success with the skills for all students, since it is by no means the case that all thirdyear students (even the best of them) actually acquire the target skills in existing approaches (even in proficiency-oriented courses). Although both intentions would seem to be non-controversial, I realize that my formulation of the second may raise the hackles of some teachers. Volume 9, No.3 Spring 1991 71 Indeed, many teachers that I have spoken with insist that their students perform well in all skills taught, including speaking. On the other hand, most of the hundreds of students that I have spoken with just as firmly insist that they cannot speak (at least not beyond sentences that they have memorized in fixed dialogues), cannot comprehend a text without a dictionary (or perhaps even with one), and cannot recognize whole words unless and until they mentally fill in the vowels. Obviously these students have learned from "other" teachers-and it is to these "other" teachers that I therefore direct my innovations (realizing, unfortunately, that the "other" teacher is generally interested only in choosing a textbook and pacing the class to it, rather than achieving skill-goals at all). I should also note that these innovations work best on new students of Hebrew: those who have studied Hebrew before, even for several years, generallyend up, after just a few weeks, able to read and speak less well than newcomers. We will return to this interesting fact at the end. 1. "Glyphs" for Reading The first innovation to be presented, called "glyphs," has been explained in Bar-Lev (1989 and 1990a) and recognized in Brown-Azarowicz et al. as a device that students can use independently. Indeed, some students (especially young ones) have shown considerable imagination in finding their own "glyphs" in Hebrew spellings-but the glyph program provides ready-made glyphs sufficient for its own goals: over a hundred have been designed (copyright 1986), although far fewer are needed to teach the alphabet as such. Glyphs are visual puns, combining the visual appearance of printed Hebrew words with a visual representation of their meaning, e.g., in which 'king' is assigned a glyph representing a king on a throne, with a bowing subject. king on throne, with bowing subject "0 72 Other glyphs: SHOFAR WI ~ >6}. DQ~ 2 hands, person with camel with head...

Generalization, Maintenance, and Behavioral Covariation Associated with Social Skills Training through Structured Learning

This investigation assessed the effects of social skill training using a structured learning model on the behavior of three children with behavioral disorders. Specifically, the acquisition, maintenance, and generalization of target skills were measured across an entire school year using a multiple probe design across behaviors. In addition, negative responses were measured to determine if they would covary with the social skills. Results show an increase in frequency for most skill areas, an inverse relationship across negative behaviors, maintenance over time, and moderate levels of generalization to nontreatment settings. These results are discussed in relation to effective social skills training and the integration of children with behavioral disorders.

Parent Training in Decision-Making Facilitation: Skill Acquisition and Relationship to Gender

The present controlled study tests the effectiveness of a parent training intervention aimed at teaching participants how to facilitate their adolescent child's decisionmaking ability, which is regarded as an important and developmentally relevant adolescent problem-solving skill. Parents enrolled in a six-session course on decision-making facilitation demonstrated significantly greater skill acquisition in empathic responding and in decision-making facilitation through the generation of alternatives and consequences than either a delayed intervention or a contact control group. In addition, analyses by gender indicate that mothers demonstrated higher performance on each of the target skills than fathers, although both mothers and fathers acquired these skills equally well. The results are discussed in terms of their implications for future research and practice concerning training programs for parents of adolescents. Researchers as well as clinicians have long valued the potential for parent training to ameliorate or prevent child behavior problems (cf. Roberts & Peterson, 1984). More recently, investigations have shown that skills training programs for parents are more effective than training that is provided in a discussion group (Croake & Glover, 1977; Haffey & Levant, 1984; O'Dell, 1974; Pinsker & Geoffrey, 1981; Rinn & Markle, 1977). As Haffey and Levant (1984) have noted, skills training programs typically are comprised of the following components: (a) identification of explicit behavioral objectives, (b) practice of specific skills, (c) group discussion, (d) understanding the rationale for the use of specific skills, (e) sequential presentation of skills, (f) active trainee participation, (g) use of modeling techniques, and (h) use of immediate feedback. Skills training approaches allow for a more systematic presentation of program content and make possible more controlled studies of skill acquisition and program impact (Durlak & Jason, 1984; Haffey & Levant, 1984; O'Dell, 1974; Rinn & Markle, 1977). Currently, two types of skills training approaches are emphasized in parent training research: behavior modification approaches (Becker, 1977; Berkowitz & Graziano, 1972; Gordon & Davidson, 1981; Patterson, 1971) and communication-centered approaches (Dinkmeyer & McKay, 1976; Dreikurs & Soltz, 1964; Gordon, 1970; Levant, 1978). In behavioral skills training, parents are taught social learning theory principles as they pertain to child management, with the aim of producing direct behavior change (Gordon & Davidson, 1981). Parents trained in communication-centered approaches (or what have come to be called democratic approaches to parenting) typically are taught how to identify and respond to their child's feelings, how to determine whether parent or child is most responsible for a problem's ultimate solution, and how to promote adaptive communication between parent and child (Dinkmeyer & McKay, 1976; Gordon, 1970). While each approach has been shown to be somewhat effective in teaching parents target skills and in producing desired changes in children of program participants (cf. Cloake & Glover, 1977; Rose, Battjes, & Leukefeld, 1984), the evidence for the effectiveness of either approach is inconclusive, and may suggest that different skills are acquired depending on the approach used (Haffey & Levant, 1984; Pinsker & Geoffrey, 1981; Tavormina, 1980). This has led

Functional Skills and Behavioral Technology:

The present paper provides a technology for addressing two important questions in teaching/training exceptional individuals: (a) What to teach? and (b) How to teach it? A functional skills approach to identifying target skills is presented and contrasted with a developmental approach to training curriculum. A behavioral approach to training is delineated, in particular shaping and chaining methods for developing new behaviors. The use of these methodologies in working with handicapped individuals will lead to these people transitioning more successfully into the mainstream of society.

Room management and target‐setting in a classroom for pupils with severe mental handicaps

ABSTRACTRoom management has been developed and researched in an attempt to improve aspects of the quality of life of children and adults with mental handicaps. The effect of this procedure was evaluated in a classroom for pupils with severe mental handicaps. Following a baseline, the system was implemented with eight pupils and monitored for five weeks. Subsequently, the additional component of interest, weekly target‐setting, was included for half the group for a further five weeks. The progress of each of the eight pupils on target skills and “control” target skills was assessed, and the results were compared. The rate of skill acquisition by pupils for whom targets were set did not differ significantly from that of the control pupils. The target‐setting procedure did not have an adverse effect on pupil or staff behaviour within the room management procedure. The implications of including a teaching element within the room manager role are discussed.

Communication skills training for parents: experimental and social validation.

Coordination of professional services of behalf of children often hinges on the involvement of informed parents. The purposes of this study were to identify and experimentally and socially validate skills required of parents for effective communication with professionals. Target skills were identified on the basis of judges' social validation ratings of (a) sample interactions between parents and professionals and (b) the behaviors comprising a resultant task analysis. Eight parents were then trained in these skills via an instructional package. Results of a multiple baseline design across subjects and grouped skill domains showed that each parent acquired the targeted skills during simulated conferences and that correct responding usually generalized to actual conferences. Independent judges validated training outcomes, and participating parents indicated satisfaction with the curriculum.

The Individualized Curriculum Sequencing Model: Effects on Skill Acquisition and Generalization

The effects of the Individualized Curriculum Sequencing (ICS) model on the acquisition and generalization of skills by two preschoolers with severe handicaps were evaluated using a within-subject multiple probe design across different target responses. Target skills were taught across three classroom activities and routines that occurred during the school day. Daily training trials were distributed across and within activities using the skill cluster approach. In addition, concurrent stimulus variation was programmed across multiple stimulus dimensions (i.e., trainers, activities, and materials). The results preliminarily support the efficacy of the ICS model. Criterion performance and generalization across novel classroom activities and materials were evident for four of five skills trained. The study was discontinued before training of a second skill for one subject could be completed. Prior to terminating the study, performance on the second skill was highly variable and the effect of training was negligible. Research implications are addressed.

Cognitive Apprenticeship

Abstract : Even today, many complex and important skills, such as those required for language use and social interaction, are learned informally through apprenticeshiplike methods -- i.e., methods involving not didactic teaching, but observation, coaching, and successive approximation while carrying out a variety of tasks and activities. The differences between formal schooling and apprenticeship methods are many, but for our purposes, one is most important. Perhaps as a by-product of the specialization of learning in schools, skills and knowledge taught in schools have become abstracted from their uses in the world. In apprenticeship learning, on the other hand, target skills are not only continually in use by skilled practitioners, but are instrumental to the accomplishment of meaningful tasks. Said differently, apprenticeship embeds the learning of skills and knowledge in the social and functional context of their use. This difference is not academic, but has serious implications for the nature of the knowledge that students acquire. This paper attempts to elucidate some of those implications through a proposal for the retooling of apprenticeship methods for the teaching and learning of cognitive skills. Specifically, we propose the development of a new cognitive apprenticeship to teach students the thinking and problem-solving skills involved in school subjects such as reading, writing and mathematics.

Facilitating the Acquisition of Sensorimotor Behavior with a Microcomputer-Mediated Teaching System: An Experimental Analysis

The effects of a combined neuromotor/behavioral approach on the acquisition of basic motor skills by young children with severe and multiple disabilities was examined. Two children, 17 and 24 months of age, were provided training via a microcomputer-mediated teaching system. Specific questions addressed were: (a) Do basic motor skills improve as a result of direct training using a neuromotor/behavioral approach? (b) Does generalization occur to other settings? (c) Do students demonstrate maintenance of the target skills once training has been terminated? (d) Can the microcomputer-mediated teaching system accurately reinforce and measure students' performance of the target motor behaviors? A multiple probe across behaviors design was used. Results indicated that the children increased the frequency and duration of the target behaviors in both the training and generalization settings. Maintenance of the effects was also demonstrated. These findings are discussed in light of the efficacy of using a neuromotor/behavioral training approach. Issues related to the implementation of a microcomputer-mediated teaching system in a classroom setting are also discussed.

Stimulus manipulation versus delayed feedback for teaching missing minuend problems to difficult-to-teach students

The present study evaluated two procedures, Stimulus Manipulation and Delay Feedback Only, for teaching difficult-to-teach students to solve missing minuend problems (i.e., missing number problems starting with a minus sign). The Stimulus Manipulation procedure was directed at establishing the target skill with a minimum of errors. The training consisted of three phases of several steps each. The first phase was designed to establish a nonnumerical response to a prompt, the shape of which was gradually transformed into the final discriminative stimulus. The second phase was designed to extend the control of this stimulus to the numerical operations and to eliminate all supplementary stimuli. The third phase gradually eliminated the originally trained nonnumerical responses. The Delayed Feedback Only procedure included no stimulus manipulation and consisted of the experimenter giving only delayed right·wrong feedback on the solutions. The data indicate that both procedures resulted in all ( N = 4) subjects (a) learning to solve the target problems, (b) generalizing this skill to similar, more advanced problems, and (c) maintaining it over multiple intervals of several consecutive weeks. However, systematic differences in error rate and long-term retention across training methods were observed, favoring the Stimulus Manipulation procedure.

Teaching mentally retarded students to tell time

This study evaluated a program for teaching handicapped students to tell time to the nearest 5-minute interval. Four adolescents with IQs of 42 or below participated. The target skills were trained in six phases, each of which consisted of two or more steps. A modified multiple probe technique was used for each subject. The data indicated that all subjects completed the program in 14.2–19.6 hours of individual training time. The mean percentage of correct responses during training was 87.9. Frequently occurring discrimination errors, the relative efficacy of the program, and the social relevance of the skill are discussed.

Test Interpretation Competence: A Comparison of Microskills and Mental Practice Training

To study the effects of behavioral versus mental rehearsal in acquiring test interpretation skills, we randomly assigned students in a counseling‐related testing course to one of two training groups or to a delayed‐control (DC) group. The treatment groups received identical instructions, modeling, feedback, and review of target skills but practiced in either a microskills (MS) or mental practice (MP) mode. Ratings of videotaped interviews of the MS and MP trainees did not differ but were superior to the DC group's ratings on measures of general counseling and test interpretation skills. Those in the MS group had more confidence in and perceived greater benefits from their training than did those in the MP group. Implications are discussed, and a suggestion is made for combining MS and MP training methods.

Teaching mentally retarded children to use an experimental device for telling time and meeting appointments

This study evaluated a program for teaching mentally retarded children to use an experimental clock-agenda combination (CAC). The CAC was designed to serve as a prosthetic device for children with minimal numerical skills and time concepts to (a) tell time to the nearest 5-minute interval, and (b) meet scheduled appointments. The target skills were trained in two phases, each of which consisted of two or more steps and substeps. A modified multiple-probe technique was used for each phase. Three mildly mentally retarded children and one moderately retarded child served as subjects. The data indicated that all subjects acquired both skills in 5 to 10 hours.

The multiple effects of a play-oriented parent training program for mothers of developmentally delayed children

A behavior education program for teaching mothers to develop toy play in their developmentally delayed children was evaluated. During training, introduced in a multiple baseline fashion, mothers were sequentially instructed how to use prompts and rewards in teaching their children to play with developmentally appropriate toys. Measurement of training effects were assessed on multiple levels. After training, mothers displayed the target skills taught, and children showed an increase in their rate of appropriate play. A higher order analysis of the data revealed that mothers and infants were generally more responsive to each other's behavior and that the children self-initiated more frequently during interactions with their mothers. The implication of the results for designing early intervention programs and the merits of using complex units of analysis when examining a training program's effectiveness were discussed.

A Self‐Management Strategy for Increasing Implementation of Behavioural Procedures by Residential Staff

Abstract Two preliminary studies explored the use of a self‐management strategy as a component of a training program for residential Child and Family Workers. The self‐management strategy comprised the Correspondence Training procedures of Risley (1977) and the formulation of specific implementation plans (Sanders & Glynn, 1981). Experiment 1 found that prompting staff to formulate plans of how they would implement target behaviour management skills and providing individual feedback on their performance in accordance with their plans resulted in gains in implementation of target skills; no gains in implementation resulted from Instruction and Group Feedback conditions alone. This experiment examined pooled data from 18 staff collected by regular time sampled observations. Experiment 2 introduced similar procedures in a multiple baseline design to four volunteer staff, each of whom selected two target behavioural skills from the training manual. The self‐management strategy resulted in clear gains in imple...