The Effects of a Technology-Based Self-monitoring Intervention on On-Task, Disruptive, and Task-Completion Behaviors for Adolescents with Autism.

Individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) often present with difficulty in sustaining engagement, attention, and have disruptive behavior in classroom settings. Without appropriate intervention, these challenging behaviors often persist and negatively impact educational outcomes. Self-monitoring is a well-supported evidence-based practice for addressing challenging behaviors and improving pro-social behaviors for individuals with ASD. Self-monitoring procedures utilizing a handheld computer-based technology is an unobtrusive and innovative way of implementing the intervention. A withdrawal design was employed to assess the effectiveness of a technologically-delivered self-monitoring intervention (I-Connect) in improving on-task and task completion behaviors and decreasing disruptive behavior with four adolescents with ASD. Results demonstrated improvements in on-task and task completion behaviors across all four participants and disruptive behavior improved for two participants.

Exploring paraprofessional and classroom factors affecting teacher supervision.

BACKGROUND: Paraprofessionals serve a primary role in supporting students with disabilities in the classroom, which necessitates teachers' supervision as a means to improve their practice. Yet, little is known regarding what factors affect teacher supervision. AIMS: We sought to identify how paraprofessional competence and classroom type affected the levels of teacher direction. METHODS AND PROCEDURES: We administered an adapted version of the Paraprofessional Needs, Knowledge & Tasks Survey and the Survey for Teachers Supervising Paraprofessionals to teachers supervising paraprofessionals in elementary schools. Structural Equation Modeling was used to examine the link between paraprofessional competence and classroom factors affecting the level of teacher supervision. OUTCOMES AND RESULTS: Our results indicated that when teachers perceived paraprofessionals as being more skilled, they provided more supervision, and when more supervision was provided the less they thought paraprofessionals should be doing their assigned tasks. Additionally, paraprofessionals working in classrooms with more students with mild disabilities received less supervision than paraprofessionals working in classrooms with more students with moderate-to-severe disabilities. Those paraprofessionals in classrooms serving mostly children with mild disabilities were also perceived as having lower levels of skill competence than those serving in classrooms with students with more moderate-to-severe disabilities. CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS: By understanding the factors that affect teacher supervision, policy and professional development opportunities can be refined/developed to better support both supervising teachers and paraprofessionals and, in turn, improve the outcomes of children with disabilities.

CLASS-WIDE FUNCTION-RELATED INTERVENTION TEAMS (CW-FIT): Student and Teacher Outcomes from a Multisite Randomized Replication Trial.

The purpose of the study was to conduct a randomized controlled trial (RCT) to demonstrate efficacy of the Classwide Function-Related Intervention Teams (CW-FIT) program. The study was designed to replicate an initial RCT conducted by the CW-FIT developers in 1 site, with 2 additional research groups not involved in its development. The study was conducted across 3 states, in 21 culturally diverse schools, and with 83 teachers (classrooms) assigned to CW-FIT and 74 teachers (classrooms) assigned to the comparison group. The CW-FIT intervention included teaching prosocial skills and use of differential attention (teacher praise and points) for appropriate behaviors using a group contingency, class teams, goal setting, points, and rewards. Class-wide student on-task behavior improved, teacher praise and attention to appropriate behaviors increased, and reprimands decreased in the CWFIT classes with significantly fewer changes over time for the comparison group.

Managing Student Behavior in Dual Immersion Classrooms: A Study of Class-Wide Function-Related Intervention Teams.

Classroom management in dual immersion classrooms includes unique challenges. The teacher must instruct and correct in the L2 language, in which students are beginning learners, and effective classroom management strategies appropriate to the L2 context. Class-Wide Function-Related Intervention Teams (CW-FIT) is a positive classroom management program that teaches social skills and uses group contingencies to improve behavior. The present study examined the ability of French immersion teachers to implement CW-FIT in the L2, including the effects of CW-FIT on teacher praise and reprimand rates and as well as on students' classroom behavior. Social validity was also assessed. A single-subject multiple baseline design with embedded reversals was used to evaluate impact in second-, third-, and fourth-grade dual immersion classrooms. Results indicated that dual immersion teachers were able to implement CW-FIT in L2 with fidelity. The intervention significantly increased teacher praise and improved classroom on-task behavior. Changes in teacher reprimand rates were inconsistent. Students and teachers reported CW-FIT to be socially valid.

Impact of a Teacher-as-Coach Model: Improving Paraprofessionals Fidelity of Implementation of Discrete Trial Training for Students with Moderate-to-Severe Developmental Disabilities.

Ensuring educational progress for students with moderate-to-severe developmental disabilities requires exposure to well executed evidence-based practices. This necessitates that the special education workforce, including paraprofessionals, be well-trained. Yet evidence regarding effective training mechanisms for paraprofessionals is limited. A multiple baseline design across five teachers was used to evaluate the impact of online instructional modules and a Practice-Based Coaching (PBC) model with teacher-as-coach on their paraprofessionals' fidelity of discrete trial training (DTT). Implementation of the instructional modules yielded little to no change in paraprofessionals' DTT fidelity, however, a clear functional relation between PBC and improvement in paraprofessionals' fidelity of implementation of DTT was demonstrated. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.

Technology delivered self-monitoring application to promote successful inclusion of an elementary student with autism.

The ever-increasing prevalence of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is paralleled in public educational settings, including general education classrooms. Challenges with social/behavioral functioning, including limited self-management and behavior inhibition, can lead to off-task and disruptive behaviors that interfere with acquisition of academic and social skills. Without effective and efficient interventions, opportunities to participate in inclusive settings will likely be reduced. Self-monitoring (SM) is an intervention with strong evidence for increasing prosocial behaviors and decreasing challenging behaviors for students with ASD in educational settings, although the cuing mechanisms (e.g., timers, stopwatch) and tracking materials (e.g., paper, pencil) can be cumbersome and obtrusive. I-Connect is an SM application that allows for customizable prompts, recording, and data monitoring. The purpose of this study was to evaluate, utilizing an ABAB design, the functional relationship between implementation of I-Connect SM intervention and increases in on-task behavior with concurrent decreases in disruptive behavior for an elementary student with ASD in a general education classroom. Results indicate an immediate increase in on-task behavior as well as a decrease in disruptive behaviors with each introduction of I-Connect. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.

A Group Contingency Plus Self-Management Intervention Targeting At-Risk Secondary Students' Class-Work and Active Engagement.

The purpose of the present study is to show that an independent group contingency (GC) combined with self-management strategies and randomized-reinforcer components can increase the amount of written work and active classroom responding in high school students. Three remedial reading classes and a total of 15 students participated in this study. Students used self-management strategies during independent reading time to increase the amount of writing in their reading logs. They used self-monitoring strategies to record whether or not they performed expected behaviors in class. A token economy using points and tickets was included in the GC to provide positive reinforcement for target responses. The results were analyzed through visual inspection of graphs and effect size computations and showed that the intervention increased the total amount of written words in the students' reading logs and overall classroom and individual student academic engagement.

Class-Wide Function-Related Intervention Teams "CW-FIT" Efficacy Trial Outcomes.

The purpose of the study was to determine the efficacy of the Class-wide Function-related Intervention Teams (CW-FIT) program for improving students' on-task behavior, and increasing teacher recognition of appropriate behavior. The intervention is a group contingency classroom management program consisting of teaching and reinforcing appropriate behaviors (i.e., getting the teacher's attention, following directions, and ignoring inappropriate behaviors of peers). Seventeen elementary schools, the majority in urban and culturally diverse communities, participated in a randomized trial with 86 teachers (classrooms) assigned to CW-FIT, and 73 teachers (classrooms) assigned to the comparison group. Class-wide student on-task behavior improved over baseline levels in the intervention classes. Teachers were able to implement the intervention with high fidelity overall, as observed in adherence to 96% of the fidelity criteria on average. Teacher praise and attention to appropriate behaviors increased, and reprimands decreased. These effects were replicated in new classrooms each of the 4 years of the study, and for all years combined.

Use of a Self-monitoring Application to Reduce Stereotypic Behavior in Adolescents with Autism: A Preliminary Investigation of I-Connect.

Many students with autism engage in a variety of complex stereotypic behaviors, impacting task completion and interfering with social opportunities. Self-monitoring is an intervention with empirical support for individuals with ASD to increase behavioral repertoires and decrease behaviors that are incompatible with successful outcomes. However, there is limited evidence for its utility for decreasing stereotypy, particularly for adolescents in school settings. This study evaluated the functional relationship between I-Connect, a technology-delivered self-monitoring program, and decreases in the level of stereotypy for two students with ASD in the school setting utilizing a withdrawal design with an embedded multiple baseline across participants. Both students demonstrated a marked decrease in stereotypy with the introduction of the self-monitoring application. Results and implications for practice and future research will be discussed.

Implementation of a self-monitoring application to improve on-task behavior: A high school pilot study.

Technological innovations offer promise for improving intervention implementation in secondary, inclusive classrooms. A withdrawal design was employed with two high school students in order to assess the effectiveness of a technologically-delivered, self-monitoring intervention in improving on-task behavior in a science classroom. Two students ages 14 and 15 with diagnoses of specific learning disability (student 1) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD: student 2) were selected by case manager referral due to difficulties with on-task behavior despite long-term administration of psychostimulant medication. After baseline data were collected, both students were trained in the use of a self-monitoring application (I-Connect) delivered via a handheld tablet. On-task prompts were delivered at five min intervals in an ABAB withdrawal design. The intervention resulted in positive, stable improvements in the primary dependent variable of on-task behavior for both students and less clear improvement in the generalization variable of disruptive behavior.

The effects of goal setting, contingent reward, and instruction on writing skills.

Writing is one of the primary skills that children learn in school. Interventions that address performance deficits and skill deficits have been shown to improve aspects of elementary school children's writing. This study demonstrates performance-based interventions (goal setting, feedback, and contingent reward) and a skill-based intervention (instruction) on the writing skills of a 10-year-old child. Results indicated that the performance intervention increased the number of correctly spelled words, and the combination of performance and instructional intervention increased the number of complete sentences.

The Relationship of Error Rate and Comprehension in Second and Third Grade Oral Reading Fluency.

This study explored the relationships of oral reading speed and error rate on comprehension with second and third grade students with identified reading risk. The study included 920 2nd graders and 974 3rd graders. Participants were assessed using Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) and the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test (WRMT) Passage Comprehension subtest. Results from this study further illuminate the significant relationships between error rate, oral reading fluency, and reading comprehension performance, and grade-specific guidelines for appropriate error rate levels. Low oral reading fluency and high error rates predict the level of passage comprehension performance. For second grade students below benchmark, a fall assessment error rate of 28% predicts that student comprehension performance will be below average. For third grade students below benchmark, the fall assessment cut point is 14%. Instructional implications of the findings are discussed.

Effects of small-group reading instruction and curriculum differences for students most at risk in kindergartenL: two-year results for secondary- and tertiary-level interventions.

This article describes the implementation of small-group reading instruction as secondary- and tertiary-level components of a three-tier model of prevention and intervention. The study consisted of 83 students who were targeted in the winter of kindergarten as being at high risk for reading failure. Intervention consisted of evidence-based curriculum delivered in groups of one to six students during 30- to 40-min sessions a minimum of three times per week over a 2-year period. Outcome data were collected for early literacy skills, using the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills and Woodcock Reading Mastery Test, with comparisons across the different curricula. Results indicated that students in the more directed, explicit intervention groups generally out-performed students in the comparison group. Implications for future research and practice implementing schoolwide three-tier prevention models are discussed.