|
|
| Precision teaching is a behavioral
technology that uses continuous and precise measurement and charting of
behavior frequencies to assess student progress. By using this approach,
the clinician, case manager and teacher can see immediately
whether an educational or treatment program is working or not.
Use in the Treatment of Problematic Behaviors JRC employs a special system for charting behaviors which, although it does not use the standard precision teaching charts, makes use of many of the ideas that have been developed by Dr. Lindsley, the originator of precision teaching, and by others in that field. For examples of JRC's daily, weekly and monthly charts of student's problematic behaviors, please click here. Use in the Teaching of Academic Skills As applied to the teaching of academic skills at JRC, the components of precision teaching that we use include:
The goal of Precision Teaching as applied to academic skills is to enable the student to achieve fluency in whatever skill is being learned. Fluency is a combination of accuracy and speed. For any given subject matter, fluency may be defined as reaching a certain rate of correct responses while maintaining the rate of incorrect responses at or below some specified level. Precision Teaching at JRC makes use of (1) specially-designed decks of teaching cards, the size of playing cards, which have problems on one side and answers on the other; (2) practice sheets; and (3) specially-designed computer software. Topics covered include Math, Reading, Phonics and English. At JRC Precision Teaching is combined with the use of the principles of programmed instruction to arrange curricula in a step-by-step, easy to learn fashion. Precision Teaching is also combined with JRC's behavior modification procedures to motivate students to learn. Students must first achieve fluency in one small group of facts or skills before advancing to the next logical step of the curriculum. For example, if a student is learning to do addition using the teaching cards, the student may start on the first deck of teaching cards in which he or she learns and facts such as 0+0, 0+1, 1+0 and 1+1, before advancing to any other decks which present more difficult facts. When the student believes that he or she has mastered the facts of each deck adequately, he or she is tested by the teacher, who measures the student's rates correct and incorrect and decides whether he or she has met the mastery criterion for that deck of teaching cards. After this test, the students plot the rate of correct and incorrect responses on a daily chart. Each day the student tries to beat the previous day's scores, and to reach a point at which he or she can complete the lesson or above his or her rate correct target and with zero rate of incorrects. Once the student has passed the current deck of teaching cards, he or she advances to the next deck which will present new material and review previously learned material.
JRC students become invested in this type of learning due in part to the strong point-based reward system that is used in conjunction with the Precision Teaching procedures. If a student has a high score or has finished his or her lesson in record time, the student is given points which can be exchanged for some reward of the student's choice. These rewards might include items such as these: a social opportunity with a preferred staff member; some extra time on the internet; renting a movie from the JRC reward store; and an opportunity to exchange accumulated points for money to spend at one of the local area malls. One of the benefits of Precision Teaching is that it is completely individualized. Each student studies and learns at his or her own natural rate of progress, and competes with his or her own previous performance. If a student is not performing well for some reason, appropriate adjustments are made immediately in the curriculum or motivational system to remedy the problem. We have found that Precision Teaching is most effective when students take responsibility for their learning and chart their own daily results. In this way, a student can be proud of his or her successes and set new performance goals each day. Each student's data is kept on a separate set of charts. If a student is having difficulty with a certain lesson, the teacher and classroom supervisors are able to review the charts daily, catch the problem quickly and provide immediate intervention. The charts also serve to display the progress that the student is making in a certain subject and to give the student a learning picture that shows where the student has been, where the student is now, and where the student needs to go in the future. We have seen a tremendous improvement in our students grades due to the use of our Precision Teaching systems, and we have seen students jump entire grade levels in a very short time. Use in Students’ Self-Management Projects Charts are also used by students in their self-management projects. These are projects in which the students chooses the behavior to be changed, records the daily data, chooses interventions to alter the frequency of the data, and shares the charts with other students in "data-sharing sessions." For further information on the Precision Teaching program at the Judge Rotenberg Educational Center, please contact us at (781) 828-2202. We would also invite you to arrange a personal visit to JRC so that you may view the program first hand. To schedule a convenient time for a tour, please contact our Student Services Department. Programs: |
