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| Rapport Building |
| Tuesday, May 27, 2008 |
| 10:30 AM–11:50 AM |
| Stevens 2 |
| Area: AUT/EDC; Domain: Service Delivery |
| Chair: Michael Fabrizio (Fabrizio/Moors Consulting) |
| Discussant: Shahla S. Ala'i-Rosales (University of North Texas) |
| CE Instructor: Michael Fabrizio, M.A. |
| Abstract: Providing effective, quality intervention to children with autism and related disabilities requires a very comprehensive approach. It is well recognized that it is not only what we teach our learners, but how we teach them that makes a meaningful difference. When a systematic plan for building and maintaining relationships between children with autism and their teachers is implemented, students are more likely to trust their teachers not only in what they are teaching, but also in how they are teaching. This symposium will discuss the importance of building rapport with our learners, teaching our learners to advocate for themselves, and assessing therapists teaching interactions in different instructional arrangements. |
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| Developing and Measuring Rapport with Learners with Autism. |
| MICHAEL FABRIZIO (Fabrizio/Moors Consulting), Kelly J. Ferris (Organization for Research and Learning), Krista Zambolin (Fabrizio/Moors Consulting) |
| Abstract: Children with autism often face a multitude of teachers throughout the course of receiving intervention services. Because learners with autism characteristically lack the skills required to form new relationships easily, teachers must specifically arrange interactions and experiences with the goal of building a solid history of reinforcement. This paper will share critical pinpoints for assessing the development of rapport between learners with autism and their teachers and present data on both teacher and student behavior. Data will be presented on how rapport data can be used to make clinical decisions related to instructional programs. |
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| Precise Measurement in Naturalistic Teaching Arrangements. |
| KATHLEEN S. LAINO (Organization for Research and Learning), Heidi Calverley (Fabrizio/Moors Consulting), Holly Almon (Fabrizio/Moors Consulting) |
| Abstract: According to the BACB Autism Task List, Board Certified Behavior Analysts working with persons with autism must be proficient at assessing, designing, and implementing interventions tailored to characteristics of autism and individuals with autism. Considering individuals with autism vary greatly in their skill level and learner characteristics, and research has shown some skills are best taught using a particular teaching format, it is critical that behavior analysts are proficient at designing and implementing interventions using multiple instructional arrangements. Although The Organization for Research and Learning (formally Fabrizio/Moors Consulting) is known within the behavior analytic community for designing and implementing well designed individualized Precision Teaching programs for children with autism, we also recognize the importance of using other instructional arrangements empirically validated with children with autism. One such instructional arrangement is naturalistic teaching. The following presentation describes O.R.L.’s precise and systematic method of evaluating the delivery of critical components of naturalistic teaching. Measurement is discussed in terms of environmental arrangements, instructional delivery, data collection and analysis, and reinforcement procedures. Data collected on therapists’ behaviors from the naturalistic teaching portion of O.R.L.’s staff training model will be presented. |
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| Teaching Assent Withdrawal and Self-Advocacy Skills to Persons with Autism. |
| HOLLY ALMON (Fabrizio/Moors Consulting), Michael Fabrizio (Fabrizio/Moors Consulting) |
| Abstract: In order to assure a “goodness of fit” standard in autism intervention programs, it is of utmost importance that students be active and willing participants in his/her learning environments. Therefore, students must be able to advocate for changes to instruction and changes in teacher behavior. If students can appropriately ask for changes in instruction, assent withdrawal during instruction should be either non-existent or infrequent. This paper will address how to teach several topographies of assent withdrawal in a fluency based instruction teaching arrangement, including asking for a break, choosing to “keep going” vs. “stop” timings, and asking to be “all done” with a program for the day. Other strategies related to appropriate assent withdrawal and self-advocacy will also be discussed. |
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