G.7 Select and evaluate stimulus and response promptingprocedures

When teaching new skills, one of the most critical steps is selecting and evaluating the prompting procedures that will best support the learner. Prompting helps ensure learners respond correctly, but not all prompts are the same. Choosing the right type and method of prompting, and then systematically evaluating their effectiveness, can significantly impact the success of the learning process and lead to independent skill acquisition.

Types of Prompts

Prompts can be broadly categorized based on what they modify to facilitate a correct response:

• Stimulus Prompts: These are changes made to the stimulus itself that help guide the learner toward the correct response. They make the discriminative stimulus (SD) more salient or easier to select.

  • Positional Prompt: Positioning the correct answer closer to the learner or in a more prominent location. Example: Placing the correct shape closer to the learner in an array.

  • Visual Prompt: Displaying an image, symbol, or color that provides clues about the correct answer. Example: Highlighting the correct letter in a word or using a larger font for the target.

  • Within-Stimulus Prompt: Altering the SD itself to make it more obvious. Example: Exaggerating the size or color of the target stimulus.

  • Extra-Stimulus Prompt: Adding another stimulus to the environment to prompt the response. Example: A line drawn under the correct answer.

• Response Prompts: These prompts directly affect the learner’s response and are more action-oriented, guiding the learner through the desired behavior.

  • Verbal Prompt: Giving verbal instructions, hints, or clues, such as saying part of the answer, repeating the direction, or providing a rule. Example: "The color is red," or "What do we do at a stop sign?"

  • Gestural Prompt: Using gestures like pointing, nodding, or miming to guide the learner’s response. Example: Pointing to the correct picture or demonstrating a movement.

  • Physical Prompt: Physically guiding the learner through the task. This can range from a light touch to full hand-over-hand assistance. Example: Guiding a learner's hand to pick up a specific object or helping them form a letter.

  • Modeling Prompt: Demonstrating the desired response for the learner to imitate. Example: Showing the learner how to clap hands and then asking them to do it.

Selecting Prompting Procedures

The process of selecting the correct prompting procedure depends heavily on the learner's current abilities, the complexity of the task, and the desired learning outcomes. Here are key considerations and common prompting strategies:

• Errorless Learning (Errorless Teaching):

  • Description: This method aims to prevent mistakes by providing enough prompt support to ensure the learner always makes the correct response in the initial stages of learning. Prompts are provided immediately, before an incorrect response can occur. This strategy is highly effective for new skills, learners with a history of errors, or those who become easily frustrated.

  • Selection Criteria: Ideal for early acquisition, preventing error patterns, and maintaining learner motivation. It's often preferred for discrete skills where a clear correct/incorrect response exists.

  • Implementation: Typically involves most-to-least prompting or stimulus fading. For example, when teaching a student to identify shapes, the teacher might point to the correct answer immediately as they present the stimulus and then gradually reduce this assistance over trials.

• Most-to-Least Prompting (MTL):

  • Description: Begins with the most intrusive or supportive prompt necessary (e.g., full physical assistance, full verbal instruction) and then gradually fades to less intrusive prompts as the learner demonstrates mastery at each level.

  • Selection Criteria: Often used in conjunction with errorless learning. Appropriate for learners who require significant initial support, have difficulty initiating responses, or when errors could be dangerous or highly disruptive. It helps establish a strong connection between the SD and the correct response early on.

  • Implementation Example: For tying shoes, the teacher might begin with hand-over-hand assistance, then move to partial physical guidance, then gestural prompts, then verbal prompts, and finally no prompts.

• Least-to-Most Prompting (LTM):

  • Description: Starts with the least intrusive prompt (e.g., an expectant pause, a gentle verbal hint) and only increases the level of assistance if the learner is not successful after a set time or number of attempts.

  • Selection Criteria: Suitable for learners who are likely to respond independently or with minimal prompting, for skills where errors are not problematic, or for tasks that promote problem-solving. It encourages independent responding from the outset.

  • Implementation Example: When teaching a student to recognize colors, you might start with a verbal hint like “Which one is red?” If the student struggles, progress to a gestural prompt (pointing slightly), and if still unsuccessful, a partial physical prompt.

• Stimulus Fading:

  • Description: Gradually reduces the visual or physical aspects of a stimulus prompt until it is no longer needed. This can involve reducing the size, intensity, or salience of the prompt.

  • Selection Criteria: Used when a stimulus prompt is effective but needs to be systematically removed. Often paired with errorless learning.

  • Implementation Example: If a large picture card is helping the student recognize numbers, you might reduce the size or brightness of the card over time until only the number itself is presented.

Evaluating Prompting Procedures

After selecting a prompting strategy, it is paramount to continuously evaluate its effectiveness. This ongoing assessment ensures that the procedures are appropriate, that the learner is progressing toward independence, and that the prompts are not becoming inadvertently reinforcing or creating prompt dependency.

Key Evaluation Metrics and Considerations:

1. Data Collection:

   • Trial-by-Trial Data: Record the specific prompt level provided on each trial and the learner's response (independent correct, prompted correct, incorrect, no response). This provides granular insight into prompt effectiveness and error patterns.

   • Percentage of Independent Correct Responses: Track the percentage of trials where the learner responds correctly without any prompting. This is a primary indicator of progress toward independence.

   • Latency to Response: Measure the time from the presentation of the SD to the learner's response. A decreasing latency (especially for independent responses) indicates fluency.

2. Prompt Dependency:

   • Observation: Are prompts becoming a necessary part of the discriminative stimulus, rather than a temporary aid? If the learner only responds correctly when a prompt is present, and errors occur as soon as the prompt is faded, prompt dependency may be developing.

   • Evaluation Question: Is the learner still relying on prompts even after many trials? If so, the fading schedule might be too slow, the prompts might be too salient, or the reinforcement for independent responses isn't strong enough.

3. Prompt Effectiveness:

   • Observation: Is the chosen prompt consistently leading to a correct response? If a particular prompt level (e.g., a verbal prompt) frequently results in an error, it may not be effective for that learner or skill.

   • Evaluation Question: Are prompts actually facilitating the correct response, or are they leading to confusion or errors?

4. Error Patterns:

   • Analysis: If errors occur, what type of errors are they? Are they consistent (e.g., always choosing a specific distractor)? Do errors increase as prompts are faded? This helps inform adjustments to the prompt type, the fading schedule, or the distractors.

   • Evaluation Question: Are errors minimal (especially with errorless learning), or are they occurring frequently? High error rates suggest the prompting strategy or fading plan needs immediate revision.

5. Generalization and Maintenance:

   • Probe Data: Periodically test the skill in different settings, with different materials, or with different instructors without prompts. This evaluates if the discrimination has truly transferred beyond the training context and if the prompts were successfully faded.

   • Evaluation Question: Can the learner perform the skill independently when the prompts are entirely absent, in new situations, or over time? If not, prompts may have been faded too quickly, or the skill isn't truly mastered.

6. Learner Engagement and Frustration:

   • Observation: Is the learner engaged and motivated during the teaching process? Are there signs of frustration when prompts are too intrusive or not helpful enough?

   • Evaluation Question: Is the prompting procedure promoting a positive learning experience? Prompting should reduce, not increase, learner frustration.

The Importance of Ongoing Evaluation

Ongoing evaluation ensures that the prompting procedures remain effective and appropriate for the learner. If data indicates a lack of progress, prompt dependency, high error rates, or learner frustration, it signals the need to adjust the type of prompt, the intensity, the fading strategy, or even the instructional method. Regular data collection and systematic observation are the cornerstones of making these informed decisions, ultimately guiding the learner toward independent and lasting skill acquisition.