Debra Kamps

Brief report: increasing communication skills for an elementary-aged student with autism using the Picture Exchange Communication System.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) on the spontaneous communication skills of a 6-year-old girl with autism across her home and school environments. The effects of the PECS were also examined for social interaction. Results indicated increases in spontaneous language (i.e., requests and comments) including use of the icons and verbalizations across those settings in which PECS was implemented. Intelligible verbalizations increased in two of three settings, and changes in peer social interaction were noted in one of the two school settings.

Peer Mediation and Monitoring Strategies to Improve Initiations and Social Skills for Students with Autism

Four students with autism and a group of nondisabled peers were taught to use and monitor social skills while playing games to increase initiations and social interaction skills. Social skills targeted for training included requesting, commenting, and sharing. A multiple baseline design across skills, with a counterbalanced reversal design, was used to document effects for student interactions with peers. In addition, alternating conditions for self-monitoring and peer-monitoring of skill usage were implemented to compare the two strategies. Results indicated that adult teaching and peer mediation of skills, paired with reinforcement for skill use and student monitoring, increased initiations and social interaction time with peers during intervention, as well as use of the targeted social skills. Little difference was noted between self- and peer-monitoring strategies.

Peer Training to Facilitate Social Interaction for Elementary Students with Autism and Their Peers

There is increasing evidence that peer-mediated interventions for students with autism are effective in increasing participation in natural settings. Still unknown are the contributions peers make to the generalization of social behaviors. Results from two investigations of this issue are reported. In Study 1, social interaction with peers increased during interventions compared to controls; however, students in cooperative learning control groups showed higher levels of generalization than those in social groups. In Study 2, videotaped probes of 34 students indicated greater generalization of skills from groups with trained peers, and less from groups with untrained and stranger peers. Implications are discussed regarding the value of ongoing peer training and structured groups to establish relationships and generalization of skills over time.

The Effects of Peer Networks on Social—Communicative Behaviors for Students with Autism:

This study investigated the effects of a peer network strategy on the duration of social interaction and social---communicative skills for 3 students with autism. Typical peers, 5 students per site, were selected based on peer status (popularity with classmates) and teacher nomination. Each network of peers received eight 30-minute training sessions during which social skills---including initiating and responding, conversing, sharing, giving instructions, and saying nice things---were modeled by the experimenter with role-play practice by the students and feedback. The target students with autism received training in the use of an augmentative communication system along with two training sessions in social skills with their peer network. Feedback and reinforcement for appropriate behaviors and interaction continued throughout the intervention phases. A multiple baseline design across settings was employed to document the effects. Dependent variables included durations of social interaction time, use of the augmentative communication system by the target students and peers (trained and untrained), language use during 10-minute samples, and disruptive behavior. Results showed increased social interaction time and use of the augmentative communication system for all 3 students, with increased expressive language for 2 students. Increases were also noted in peer nominations of the target student following the intervention.

Use of Evidence-Based, Small-Group Reading Instruction for English Language Learners in Elementary Grades: Secondary-Tier Intervention

This experimental/comparison study of secondary-level, small-group instruction included 318 first- and second-grade students (170 ELL and 148 English-only) from six elementary schools. All schools served high numbers of ELL students with varying school SES in urban and suburban communities. Experimental schools implemented a three-tier model of intervention. In addition to primary-tier reading instruction, the second-tier, small-group experimental interventions included use of (a) evidence-based direct instruction reading curricula that explicitly targeted skills such as phonological/phonemic awareness, letter-sound recognition, alphabetic decoding, fluency building and comprehension skills; and (b) small groups of 3 to 6 students. Students at comparison schools were not exposed to a three-tier reading program but received (a) an ESL intervention using balanced literacy instruction with a focus on word study, group and individual story reading, and writing activities; and (b) small groups of 6 to 15 students. The ESL/balanced literacy intervention was generally in addition to primary reading instruction. Results indicated generally higher gains for ELL students enrolled in direct instruction interventions. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Social Skills Training To Increase Social Interactions between Children with Autism and Their Typical Peers.

In this study young children with autism and same-age typical peers were trained by special education teachers in social skills that (a) would be effective in a variety of situations (i.e., greeting, imitating and following instructions, sharing, taking turns, and asking for help and requesting things) and (b) were appropriate for the age and the functioning level of the children involved. Free play immediately following training was monitored to determine if the training and the feedback procedures were effective in producing an increase in positive social interactions for participants. The typical peers were given information about disabilities and received training in basic behavior management procedures in addition to the social skills training. A final component, implemented during play time, consisted of a reinforcement and feedback procedure for all children. Results showed increased frequency and duration of interactions for all target students.

Active Teacher Participation in Functional Behavior Assessment for Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders Risks in General Education Classrooms.

This study presents functional assessment data from two second-grade students with behavior and academic problems. Functional assessment procedures included interview, observation, functional analysis, and intervention. Functional analysis conditions, conducted by the classroom teacher, with coaching from the researcher, indicated multiple functions for the behavior. Intervention consisted of teacher attention (praise) and points, and self-management of appropriate responses during group instruction. Intervention during independent seatwork consisted of modeling by the teacher to decrease task difficulty, the use of “help tickets” to request assistance from peers or the teacher, and social attention for task completion. Results indicated improved on-task and decreased disruptive behaviors during function-based intervention. The use of functional assessment in general education settings is discussed.

Effects of Small-Group Reading Instruction and Curriculum Differences for Students Most at Risk in Kindergarten 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.

The Use of Peer Networks Across Multiple Settings to Improve Social Interaction for Students with Autism

A multiple probe design across activities was used to monitor the effects of peer networks and reinforcement on social interaction time for three students with autism. The social intervention (networks) was individualized and implemented in a sequential modification fashion across 4 activities for the students, with baseline conditions remaining in effect for 2 activities. Baseline consisted of students and peers in proximity for the designated activity, with prompting and reinforcement for task completion or behaviors. Intervention consisted of the selection of a group of 2-5 peers as a support network during the activity, structuring the activity to promote interaction for a 10-20 minute time block, the use of task and social scripts, peer and target training/prompting in social skills, verbal and tangible reinforcement for peer interaction, and student feedback. Results indicated increased interaction time for all target students with generalization to non-intervention settings for two students.

Ecobehavioral Analysis of Classroom Instruction

For the past 25 years, massive efforts have been made to reduce the high incidence of academic delay and retardation experienced by students living in poverty. Despite these efforts, a large number of these students remain at risk due to environmental factors. Students are at risk because of both (1) cultural—familial factors related to the home and the community, and (2) factors related to the school. Research at the Juniper Gardens Children’s Project for the past 25 years has sought to address these factors through the development of home, community, and school intervention programs. In the late 1970s, however, it became clear that the problems of academic delay and development of commensurate instructional practices could not be accomplished with the then-current research tools based primarily on behavioral assessment and the manipulation of contingencies of reinforcement. While highly informative, solutions based on this technology were not yet sufficiently comprehensive to impact the entire school program nor did it enable researchers to investigate program variability over long periods of time. The purpose of this chapter is to discuss the development and application of ecobehavioral assessment and the analysis of setting events related to the task of school improvement (i.e., development and evaluation of effective instructional practices). Ecobehavioral assessment has been an effort to create data systems capable of placing student responding within the context of the effort to teach, whether naturalistic teaching efforts or those guided by specific intervention protocols, and the time actually devoted to this effort. These data, coupled with both molar and molecular level analyses of the interaction of behavioral and setting factors has been, and continues to be, an important contributor to our research in urban schools. In this chapter, we illustrate the application of ecobehavioral assessment, the analysis of classroom setting events, and we discuss the implications for future work.