Aprendizaje con y sin error en estudiantes con TEA

Abstract

Errorless learning is one of the most widely used didactic approaches in the teaching of students with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). The main aim of this work is to analyse the performance in verbal labelling and sequential thinking tasks of children with ASD who follow this method. The activities were structured using a protocol approach of discrete trials training (DTT) with manipulative materials (cards to be matched or ordered). Two teaching approaches were compared: one comprising errorless learning (in which physical prompting was used to prevent the subject from making mistakes) and one involving errors (in which mistakes were permitted and corrected, with the appropriate help). Observation records showed significant differences in sequential thinking tasks, where less skilled subjects achieved poorer results in errorless learning conditions. The approach based on a structured sequence of feedback support when the student made errors led to a slightly higher number of correct answers but also some repeated errors. Finally, the implications of these results for the design of learning sequences of students with ASD are discussed, along with the main limitations of the study.