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Building Student Independence

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Getting re-connected

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ReflectionO Do you find your students only display correct

responses for you, but not in the presence of other education assistants or teachers?

O YES or NO

O Do you find yourself frequently needing to prompt your students to start, continue or complete tasks?

O YES OR NO

O Do your students have frequent opportunities to demonstrate responsibility for their own learning?

O YES OR NO

O Do your students know how to evaluate their own behaviour or learning?

O YES or NO

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Working definition of independence

O The ability to be in an environment and to:O Identify what needs to be doneO Have the skill(s) to do itO Recognize that the tools for doing it are

availableO Do it

O Once it is done, assess and proceed or do something different if necessary.

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Find the mistake

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The Lesson to be Learned

O The student will NEVER be independent if s/he cannot learn to “see, read or hear” and respond to the natural cues.

O If we continue to introduce unnatural cues or indicators, the student will never be able to respond to the natural indicator.

O It is crucial students are taught to respond to the natural cues/indicators.

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Natural CuesO A signal to say or do somethingO Sounds, smells, objects, visuals or tactile

representations that are consistently or predictably in the environmentO Bell to signify the end of recessO Teacher directions or pause to gain attention

O Important to draw student’s attention to the natural cues as they give directions (assistance) to the student

O A prompt is usually not present in the environment, but must be provided by another person. EAs are an accommodation / personnel that have been inserted into the classroom environment – so they are not a natural cue, nor what they do or say is viewed as “natural” when it comes to providing support.

Natural Cues8

Natural Cues9

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Cues

OSomething a teacher does or says to start instruction

OIts purpose is to elicit a specific skill or behaviour from a student

OTwo basic typesOVerbal (directions or questions)ONon-verbal (gestures,

environmental, activity based)

Verbal Cues

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Directions

• Count the crayons• Stand up please• Choose a learning

center• Wash your hands• Give Jade the books

Questions

• What colour is this?• What could you say?• What letter does your

name start with?• What comes next?

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Non-verbal cues: what are these signaling to the student?

OPassing a student a bowl of popcorn?OPatting the seat of an empty chair?OFlicking the light switch 2 times?OProviding only some of the supplies for

a task?OLifting your hands to gesture, “I don’t

understand”.

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Principles of Effective Instructional Cues

O Given after the student’s attention is gainedO Given once

O To support the student learning to respond when a direction given, not after hearing a direction several times

O Remember to provide time (wait time) to respond (rather than repeating the direction again and again)

O The student needs think time to formulate what to say or to begin to take the appropriate action.

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Principles of Effective Instructional Cues

O Are clear and specifically stated, particularly when a student is first learning

O Elicits a student’s responseO Needs to involve some type of question, direction or

action that requires a response from the student

O Concise and not too many instructions at one timeO Start with only a few directions at one time

(depending on the learner as it can be difficult to work through several or long instructions to find the appropriate response)

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Principles of Effective Instructional Cues

Stay around to see that the student has completed the request – then move away, if appropriate, or continue to support the student in the least intrusive way

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What are prompts?O A prompt is used to increase the likelihood that

an individual will engage in the correct behaviour at the correct time and place

O A prompt induces a person to perform a behaviour / response that would otherwise not occur

O Given before or during a behaviourO Increases learningO Reduces frustrationO Provides opportunities to reinforce appropriate

behaviour

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When do you prompt?Instruction

Response

Reinforcement

Correction

Prompt

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Many varieties of prompts

O Gestures (subtle hand movements)

O LooksO Movements toward or

away from someoneO ProximityO Relative position of

materials

O PausesO Questions /

directions “Keep going.”, “Use your glue stick.”

O Physical guidanceO Relative order of

presentation of materials

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Physical Prompts

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Hand washing with prompts

Partial physical prompts (most intrusive) Visual (task analysis)

prompts (less intrusive)

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Gestural Prompts

A point or other gesture to prompt the expected

response

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Visual Prompts

The object or images acts as the stimulus for the response

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Verbal Prompts – 2 types

Verbal instructions to perform

the required actions –

direct

Indirect “What’s Next?”

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Modeling

Demonstrate yourself or with props

Demonstration of the

behaviour to be

performed

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Physical Prompts

Partial Physical – touching / guiding

hands, arms or shoulder to start or move through the

response

Full Physical – assisting a person through the whole

response

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Education Assistant Actions #1

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Types of Prompts

Natural Cue

Gesture

Verbal

Visual

Modeling

Physical

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When do you prompt?Instruction

Response

Reinforcement

Correction

Prompt

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Prompting

OPrompts are used to increase the likelihood that a student will engage in the correct behaviour at the correct time and place

OGiven before or during a taskO Introduced during the time when a

student is learning or acquiring - discontinue after student has acquired skill or routine

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Prompting

O The purpose is to assist the student to:O Attend to teacher instruction

independentlyO Attend to other students when they

respond independentlyO Complete seatwork accurately and

independentlyO Follow classroom routines

independently

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Prompting

Prompts should ensure that the student can be successful with the activity

3 Keys

1. Add as little as possible to help the learner succeed

2. Fade the prompts as soon as possible

3. Certain types of prompts are much easier to fade than others

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Prompting Hierarchy

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Most-to-least promptsO Starts with physical support, so considered the most intrusiveO Move, systematically, from the most up the hierarchy as

student acquires the skillO Fade across trialsO Need to consider student’s responses to touch (sometimes

simply asking or letting a student know you are going to physically guide them can make a difference to any resistance)

O May limit errors – so often used when a student is first learning an activity (though must remember the abilities of the learner as this can be too much support for some students)

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Least-to-most promptsOProvides student with an opportunity to

perform the response with the least amount of assistance

OThe student always has an opportunity to respond and the instructor is guided by the student’s behaviour in terms of determining the degree of assistance necessary

OMay lead to more errorsOUsed once a skill is learned

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Education Assistant Actions #2

Keys to Success1. Use the least

amount of prompting as necessary

2. Fade the prompts as soon as possible

3. Remember verbal prompts are the most difficult to fade – minimize the use and amount of talk

The Downside of Prompts!!

OPrompt Dependency

OLearned Helplessness

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Prompt dependency

OAn overreliance or dependence on adult support, thus inhibiting independence

OA particular concern with student who receive significant amounts of one-to-one support

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What is prompt dependency?

OOver-reliance or dependence on adult support as a result of how students are taught

OOften a result of significant amounts of 1-1 instruction

OStudents become ‘used to’ being prompted and don’t try to respond on their own

OStudents learn they ‘might as well wait’

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The student is thinking:

Why bother? You’re going to help me do

it anyway.

Prompt dependency examples

OThe student looks at you before saying or writing an answer in academic tasks

OYou tell the student how to unpack his bag and hang up his coat every morning

Prompt dependency examples

OThe student needs to be told to take a bite of her favourite food

OYou follow the student into the bathroom and narrate his actions

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Fading PromptsDelivered after or with the

presentation (item or direction)Most to least prompts

System of least prompts

Graduated Guidance

Time Delay

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Graduated GuidanceOShadowing:

O The instructor follows the student’s movements with their hands very near, but not touching the student.

O Systematically increase the distance of hands from the student

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Time Delay (aka Wait Time)

O Insert a delay between giving an instruction and stepping in and prompting

O Minimizes errors while learning a new skill

O Sometimes the most effective (and hardest) thing to do is WAIT

O Always give wait time!

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Wait Time / Time Delay O Following a direction or

question, WAIT for the student toO Process what you saidO Formulate his/her

responseO Instead of prompting a

student to initiate a task, WAIT

O Increase length of pause over time to promote independence

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Time Delay / Wait TimeO Usually 3-5 seconds,

but may need to be longer or shorter depending on the student

O Pair with a “expectant look” (not a verbal prompt if possible, as a verbal prompt is harder to fade)

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Education Assistant Actions #3

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10 Ways to Prompt without talking

1. Touch the student lightly

2. Model it

3. Point to / tap book or paper

4. Use a high lighter

5. Draw a picture (small dry eraser boards work well)

10 Ways to Prompt without talking

6. Move closer

7. Write on a post it note

8. Use a pen-light

9. Use gesture / sign (thumbs up, expectant look, shrugging of shoulders)

10. Have peer give assistance