The ABA and PT Podcast

Jack Auman and Dr. Abigail Calkin, two previous guests, are both returning in this episode as we explore how simple gestures like smiles and waves can have an enormous impact on another’s verbal behavior. We discuss the power of charting positive interactions and the ripple effect, butterfly effect as Jack describes it, of positivity in a world often overshadowed by negativity. We also share our thoughts on personal data collection in behaviour analysis, examining how using this data may impact inner behaviour of thoughts, feelings and urges. In this episode, you’ll learn about: How Jack was inspired to create the Precision Positive Interaction Project (PPIP). Why shifting from protest to positive action can be proactive rather than reactive. The possibility of recognizing positivity amidst chaos and world events beyond your control. How historical figures like Pavlov inspire modern personal data tracking methods. Why positive affirmations and mindfulness practices are so useful in challenging environments. How charting personal data aids in understanding and managing one's own behaviour. How positive interactions can shift mindsets and influence daily life trajectories. A story about addressing trauma in military personnel using positivity. Insights gained from monitoring students' positive and negative statements. How a positive upbringing shapes your outlook and approach to life. Dr. Abigail Calkin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abigail-calkin-62305334/ Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/abaandptpodcast Join our The ABA and PT Podcast Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/397478901376425 The Standard Celeration Society https://celeration.org/

Dr. Hank Pennypacker, a pioneer in the Science of Human Behavior, shared profound insights about the standard celeration chart in amongst the many wisdoms he describtes in this podcast. Despite its limited adoption, he emphasized the immeasurable value of the chart to those wanting to make accurate predictions about behavior. Dr. Pennypacker passionately advocates for the widespread use of precise measurement to fields involving human behavior and why percent correct lacks the arguably greatest contribution of B.F. Skinner's, being Rate of Response, and Hank's contribution of celeration as a measure to predict future performance. He also talks about his contributions to identification of early breast detection through this program, Mammacare. Join us as we delve into the Hank's 6 decade career in Behavior Science and his discussions of the Standard Celeration chart in his advice to Try the Chart! Join our The ABA and PT Podcast Facebook Group to get access to the following resources: Facebook group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/397478901376425 Check out the podcast on your favorite platform! Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-aba-and-ot-podcast/id1538336498 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7ieqLjFH8ekw2DA0VTWJno Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZGJlYW4uY29tL3RoZWFiYWFuZG90cG9kY2FzdC9mZWVkLnhtbA== Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/the-aba-and-ot-podcast Podbean: https://theabaandotpodcast.podbean.com Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/abaandptpodcast HIGHLIGHTS 0:05 Dr. Hank Pennypacker’s journey: From teaching psych to transforming behavior 15:00 The success and challenges of incorporating self-charting and personalized learning 21:45 Collaborating with Ogden: Pioneering precision teaching and behavior change 30:11 Developing technology and training for effective breast self-examination 39:17 Hope for the future of precision teaching and charting 49:11 The challenges of promoting the use of the chart in the field of ABA and its value in making accurate predictions and anticipating behavior RESOURCES About Dr. Hank Pennypacker: https://www.abainternational.org/constituents/bios/henrypennypacker.aspx Link to Engineering the Upswing (book): https://www.engineeringtheupswing.org The MammaCare Method: https://mammacare.org/ QUOTES 41:05 "The power of the measurement system lies in the recognition of the fact that the frequency is the correct measure of behavior." - Dr. Hank Pennypacker 49:26 “It's not easy. I don't pretend otherwise but that doesn't make it invaluable.” - Hank Pennypacker 49:51 “If you're in any kind of activity in which you have to anticipate what's going to happen, and what's going to happen is behavior, you're better off if you're using a device which allows you to make accurate predictions.” - Dr. Hank Pennypacker

Be prepared for Dr. Kimberly Berens’ extraordinarily important message regarding learning disabilities! In the US, 20% of kids are considered to have a learning disability of some kind. Dr. Berens explains in Episode 14 of the podcast that only a tiny fraction of children—less than 1%—have a real neurological impairment. This suggests that more kids are being labeled with learning disabilities that are Explanatory Fictions, as opposed to measuring learning across time and assessing for skill deficits that account for why a child struggles with reading or other learning. This episode explores the reasons behind children's academic difficulties, the truth behind neuropsychological testing, and the damaging effects that the DSM-5 learning disability labeling of children has. Dr. Berens explains that labels that children are given are predominantly a result of ineffective instructional environments as opposed to a made up reason for what is occurring in the brain. Most importantly, Dr. Berens explains what we can do to disrupt this vicious cycle and improve children's learning abilities. She explains that for the majority of children, “school does not work” and why. She makes it clear that she is not blaming teachers, but rather that teachers need explicit training in behavior science and effective teaching practices. You’ll hear Dr. Berens' real anger at a professional that after testing a student’s performance on one occasion, then makes a profound leap to explain that the reason for the performance is due to something in the brain that cannot be measured, and that there is no scientific support for the label given to the child. Dr. Berens then reviews a case study of a student with a Neuropsychological Report versus the type of report that a Precision Teacher would produce, to look at skill deficits a child has to account for their reading challenges, as opposed to a hypothetical construct of why the student performed badly on a test one time. Dr. Berens is a scientist-educator, a precision teacher, and the founder of Fit Learning. She is also the author of the book, Blind Spots: Why Students Fail... and the Science that Can Save Them. Her stand is to transform education on the planet through the use of behavior science, and how that science can change the world. Join our The ABA and PT Podcast Facebook Group to get access to the following resources: Facebook group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/397478901376425 Check out the podcast on your favorite platform! Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-aba-and-ot-podcast/id1538336498 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7ieqLjFH8ekw2DA0VTWJno Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZGJlYW4uY29tL3RoZWFiYWFuZG90cG9kY2FzdC9mZWVkLnhtbA== Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/the-aba-and-ot-podcast Podbean: https://theabaandotpodcast.podbean.com Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/abaandptpodcast HIGHLIGHTS 3:19 The truth behind neuropsychological testing and learning disabilities. 6:11 The types of assessments that neuropsychologists conduct. 8:04 What distinguishes a scientific method from an Explanatory Fiction? 21:48 Common forms of disabilities, backed by neuroscience. 28:21 Why does Dr Berens think school is ineffective? 51:51 The application of behavior science to video game creation. 54:37 Imitation is the main method by which infants learn; it is not a genetic trait. 1:00:17 What can we do to change this vicious cycle? 1:17:41 Scientific illiteracy: The difference between neuroscience and neuropsychology. 1:24:22 A sneak preview of what Dr Berens will discuss at the Annual Conference of the Standard Celeration Society in Denver in November 2022 as the keynote speaker. RESOURCES Learn more about Dr. Kimberly Beren’s work: https://www.drkimberlyberens.com Listen to her podcast episodes: https://www.drkimberlyberens.com/new-pageNow to Next with Nanton featuring Kimberly Berenshttps://p

If you were Dr Ogden R. Lindsley’s student, you were either all in or you weren’t, because precision teaching necessitates passion, dedication and an adherence to B.F. Skinner’s discovery of Rate of Response as the primary and most sensitive measure of behavior. From the first time Patrick McGreevy heard Ogden speak he was “all in”! This is Part 1 of the recording of my interview with Dr Patrick McGreevy, or Brother Pat as Og called him. In part 1 he shares how he fell in love with teaching children with severe disabilities, which led him to change his career path from psychology to special education. Patrick goes on to share what he learned from Ogden back when he was a doctoral student, his dedication to teaching others and passing on Og’s commitment to the Standard Celeration Chart - precise measurement and closely attending to the learner. He acknowledges all the mentors he’s had along the way - the Long Timers as he calls them - who have been and continue to be all in! Join our The ABA and PT Podcast Facebook Group to get access to the following resources: Facebook group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/397478901376425 Check out the podcast on your favorite platform! Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-aba-and-ot-podcast/id1538336498 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7ieqLjFH8ekw2DA0VTWJno Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZGJlYW4uY29tL3RoZWFiYWFuZG90cG9kY2FzdC9mZWVkLnhtbA== Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/the-aba-and-ot-podcast Podbean: https://theabaandotpodcast.podbean.com Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/abaandptpodcast HIGHLIGHTS 3:57 Pat switches careers from psychology to special education. 9:55 How he and Ogden met. 14:43 Ogden’s expectations of his students. 27:46 His collaboration with “Dr. Fluency”, Eric Haughton. 37:40 About the Essential for Living assessment. 41:29 Why "percent correct" is not a measurement, and Ogden’s commitment to Rate of Response as the most sensitive measure of behavior. 47:41 Pat's vision for the precision teaching community and the world of standardized measurement. RESOURCES Patrick Macgreevy’s book: Teaching and Learning in Plain English: An Introduction to Precision Teaching and Precision Tutoring (*Goodreads) Ogden’s article in the Journal of Precision Teaching: Say Reward, Relief, Punishment or Penalty Ogden’s book: Skinner on Measurement Visit Essential for Living’s website. QUOTES 07:41 “I wasn't particularly interested in teaching children to read. That didn't interest me. I was more interested in teaching daily living skills to kids that couldn't communicate, the kids that couldn't toilet properly, the children that didn't know how to feed themselves, and the children who had orthopaedic impairments. Those were the kids that really interested me.” 32:50 “You have to decide the context in which to teach it because a lot of kids with more severe disabilities don't experience generalization like the rest of us do, so you've got to teach it. You've got to teach the right skills—the skills that matter. You got to teach them into context. You see, and then you have to teach them the fluency. Yeah. And then you have to have the teaching procedures to get you there.”

This episode tells the story of a humble, passionate, and inspiring human being who gave his all for the science of Precision Teaching. Dr. Carl Koenig was instrumental in the creation of the behavior chart, now called the Standard Celeration Chart and the foundations of Precision Teaching. Carl spent over a decade of his life working alongside Dr. Ogden Lindsley through the highs and lows of shaping Precision Teaching in the 60s and 70s. In this episode, he will take us on a journey beginning with his early work experience at Kansas University, how he met Ogden, the development of precision teaching, and their efforts to spread the work to professionals and parents, amongst other things. Join our The ABA and PT Podcast Facebook Group to get access to the following resources: Facebook group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/397478901376425 Check out the podcast on your favorite platform! Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-aba-and-ot-podcast/id1538336498 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7ieqLjFH8ekw2DA0VTWJno Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZGJlYW4uY29tL3RoZWFiYWFuZG90cG9kY2FzdC9mZWVkLnhtbA== Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/the-aba-and-ot-podcast Podbean: https://theabaandotpodcast.podbean.com Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/abaandptpodcast HIGHLIGHTS 3:15 Carl’s childhood and his early work experience. 6:57 How he met Ogden Lindsley and how he got to Kansas University. 8:45 The development of Precision Teaching. 22:09 About his master’s degree and dissertations. 29:01 Carl’s findings that behavior multiplies and divides. 32:33 Workshops and other tested publishing alternatives to spread the word about Precision Teaching. 38:00 What the Behavior Bank was and how the state of technology got in the way of what could have been a state of the art hub for knowledge about behavior. 42:36 Two other attempts to apply the science: learning screening and PT 2. (Squared). 53:19 Carl’s life now that he’s retired. RESOURCES Our Aims, Discoveries, Failures, and Problem by Ogden R. Lindsley (dissertation) Handbook of the Standard Celeration Chart, Deluxe Edition (book) My Time with Ogden and Precision Teaching Reminisces by Dr. Carl H. Koenig (pdf) - Check out our Facebook Group for this and many more resources! QUOTES 30:45 “Behavior generally changes not in equal steps.” 50:21 “It’s not too late to make good science.” 57:21 “Accept the fact that technology is improving and improving and improving and it's better than sometimes we could do.”

Michael Maloney is a researcher and educator with over 50 years of combined experience in both private and public schools. Together with his colleague, Eric Haughton, he integrated behavior analysis, direct instruction, and precision teaching into a highly effective learning approach. Michael takes us on a journey through his life, from being fired for disrupting the learning system at the school where he worked to meeting remarkable individuals that contributed to his incredible work. Join our The ABA and PT Podcast Facebook Group to get access to the following resources: Facebook group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/397478901376425 Check out the podcast on your favourite platform! Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-aba-and-ot-podcast/id1538336498 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7ieqLjFH8ekw2DA0VTWJno Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZGJlYW4uY29tL3RoZWFiYWFuZG90cG9kY2FzdC9mZWVkLnhtbA== Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/the-aba-and-ot-podcast Podbean: https://theabaandotpodcast.podbean.com Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/abaandptpodcast HIGHLIGHTS 00:01:24 Michael’s childhood and why he decided to become the first teacher in the family. 00:05:07 His educational background. 00:12:40 Why he got kicked out of school and what he did after. 00:17:39 Combining instruction and precision teaching with Eric Haughton. 00:28:35 Integrating behaviour analysis, direct instruction, and precision teaching. 00:32:34 Why are teachers hesitant to use his method? 00:42:55 Installing the program on computers to help 20,000 kids. 00:53:19 How he influenced the Morningside Center’s program. 1:00:21 Why is the discipline not growing? 1:05:02 How Carmen Marcy reduced the recidivism rate. 1:24:19 How did our field get to the point where we've lost touch with some of our most effective tools? RESOURCES The Maloney Method: https://www.maloneymethod.com Learn more about The Good Behaviour Clock by Edward S. Kubany: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0005791671900553 The Fluency Factory: https://www.fluencyfactory.com QUOTES 31:07 “You're not going to get fired if a third of these kids don't learn to read this year. In fact, you're going to get rewarded, you're going to get another contract, you're going to get another year of pension, you're going to get a raise, you're going to get two months off in the summer. There's just no accountability in the system and it doesn't start and end with the teachers. It goes all the way to the top.” 33:16 “You can barely find an educational institution that teaches the chart, or that teaches direct instruction, or for that matter, even does a good job of teaching behaviour analysis. I mean, I see these graduates, so they got master's degrees and their BCBAs and 28% of them ever use either direct instruction or precision teaching.” 1:01:21 “Essentially, until we can do things that people don't have to go sit and listen to somebody and get involved in what I call drive-by consulting, there's no accountability.” 1:02:49 “If you gave the teachers the opportunity to learn these skills, which they've never had, they would do a much better job. If they learn direct instruction only, they do a good job. If they paired that with precision teaching, they do an excellent job.”

Elizabeth Haughton is a highly recognized educational consultant, the Founder of the Haughton Learning Center, and recipient of both the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ and the ‘Our Teacher Award’ from the Standard Celeration Society. Elizabeth spent roughly 5 decades of her life helping children using her research-based methods to improve teaching and learning strategies. It’s a privilege to have Elizabeth back on the show to talk more about her insightful discoveries and learning methods. In this episode, we’ll dive into understanding what pinpointing is and how essential it is in precision teaching as she talks about how she used this method to clearly describe students’ behaviors and developed practice plans to help them. Join our The ABA and OT Podcast Facebook Group to get access to the following resources: Facebook group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/397478901376425 Check out the podcast on your favorite platform! Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-aba-and-ot-podcast/id1538336498 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7ieqLjFH8ekw2DA0VTWJno Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZGJlYW4uY29tL3RoZWFiYWFuZG90cG9kY2FzdC9mZWVkLnhtbA== Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/the-aba-and-ot-podcast Podbean: https://theabaandotpodcast.podbean.com Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/abaandptpodcast HIGHLIGHTS 1:53 Understanding what pinpointing is. 11:26 Important parts or elements to describe what you are observing and recording. 14:00 An example of what a learning statement might be. 26:45 Examples and non-examples of pinpoints 33:57 How Elizabeth establishes a practice plan for a kid. 40:05 How to use countoons to describe a behavior. 56:40 How they discovered the Learning Channels using the Performance Matrix by Eric Haughton. 58:32 Combining channels to practice and find out more effective ways. 1:00 Kid’s struggle with the Think channel and strategies to overcome them. RESOURCES Learn more about the Haughton Learning Center on Elizabeth’s website: https://haughtonlearningcenter.com/ Learn more about foundation skills and applications at http://www.fluency.org Fluency and Remembering by Carl Binder: http://haughtonlearningcenter.com/carls_article.html Check out Eric Haughton’s Performance Matrix / Planning Matrix: http://binde1.verio.com/wb_fluency.org/Unpublished/Haughton1980b.pdf QUOTES 16:28 “Studying channels is a lot for some people, it confuses them but I think if they understand that there's about seven intake channels, and there's hundreds of outputs but those two things are important for the pinpoint.” 23:59 “Do it yourself. Do it with a student if you're working with a complicated student.” 32:34 “No matter how much I pinpointed, the key to Terry Harris's success, besides us knowing the chart and the pinpoints and the things in precision teaching is practice.” 52:04 “Being as clear as we can about that movement cycle or the skills description and then multi-channeling it, rather than get uptight, people need to have fun with it.” 1:04:00 “A scientist is exploring all the time. We all need to be scientists and explore and use our observations to see what's there. I mean, we know so much he but we still have so much to learn.”

Dr. John Eshleman has dedicated his life to making our science successful for all. Standing in Ogden Lindsley's wish for the use of plain English in Precision Teaching, he has the ability to express complex scientific phenomena in understandable language. John joins us in this episode to discuss a variety of topics from the richness of SAFMEDS to his explanation of Ogden's “Common Language for Analyzing Behavior”. He shares his views on how our rich underpinnings have been watered down in a rush to train behavior technicians in order to make the demands for frontline staff for the autism field. He also questions the reason behind the initiative to limit the BACB certifications to North America. HIGHLIGHTS 04:41 Who were John's early influences that led him to pursue a career in Psychology and Precision Teaching? 13:42 John on his career after graduate school, including his projects with Aubrey Daniels & Associates 23:34 On the benefits of using manual flashcards 26:18 What were some of the applications that John has used SAFMEDS for? 31:18 John describes Steve Graf's dissertation topic on word responses 41:01 On the use of plain English in Precision Teaching 58:06 On the current state of ABA 1:17:07 On the current state and future hope for Precision Teaching 1:29:18 Helpful resources for students pursuing Precision Teaching and charting RESOURCES Learn more about the Standard Celeration Society on their Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/celeration.org/ Learn more about the Standard Celeration Society on their website: https://celeration.org/ Check out Carl Binder’s The Fluency Channel on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/189260084444139/ Visit the Fluency Project's website: https://fluency.org/ Check out Richard McManus’ Fluency Factory videos on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/richardinhingham/playlists Learn more about Steve Graf on this website: https://www.stevegraf.org/ Read the book, Precision Teaching--A Practical Science of Education by Norris G. Haring (Author), Margaret (Peggy) S. White (Author), Malcolm D. Neely (Author): https://www.amazon.com/Precision-Teaching-Practical-Sciene-Education/dp/1597380342 Get a copy of the book, Handbook of the Standard Celeration Chart from the Cambridge Center Website: https://behavior.org/product/handbook-of-the-standard-celeration-chart-deluxe-edition-color-2/ Join our The ABA and PT Podcast Facebook Group to get access to the following resources: Facebook group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/397478901376425 QUOTES 30:09 John: "Here's one of the things about instructional design— that's part of my philosophy at least— is that why make personal learning on something if they already know it? I'm always an advocate of 'if somebody knows something, can they test it out?' That way they don't have to waste their time or your time going through a learning program about something they already know." 45:48 John: "Lindsley's whole idea with COLAB was to use as much plain English as possible, presented accelerating consequence. There's nothing technical about that, right? It's presented, it's not taken away. It's accelerated, not decelerated because you have presented decelerating consequence too, as opposed to a punisher." 52:04 John: "Precision Teaching itself, as a term, is a euphemism. Euphemism is a better-sounding word that has less baggage or less controversy." 1:13:58 John: "To the extent that Precision Teaching can maintain some independence, it always was somewhat independent of ABA because they both come from different lineages and they only partially overlap. Precision Teaching is about a lot of positive things. I mean, we're teaching. So we call our client 'learners'." 1:19:09 John: "As long as we respect what the background is of Precision Teaching, what its main purpose was, using the actual chart and not being dogmatic about any of this. Being willing to graph things other ways too— that's the least dogmatic it can

In this episode, we welcome back Dr. Abigail B. Calkin as she continues to share her extraordinary journey through Behavior Analysis and Precision Teaching, especially on her move to Kansas to earn a Ph.D. under the supervision of Ogden Lindsley. She also taps into some interesting parts of her life where she developed the one-minute timing method in order to change her behavior and relationships, how she learned Russian using SAFMEDS, and how charting has helped her find out and minimize her epileptic episodes. She then talks about ‎AimStar Lite, a project that aims to make charting much easier and faster for users of the standard celeration chart. HIGHLIGHTS 03:16 Abigail's very close friendship with Diana Dean led her to get a Ph.D. in Kansas under Ogden Lindsley's guidance 21:36 Abigail describes some of their family projects which include counting their behavior, and talks about exposing her 5-year-old son to Precision Teaching 26:15 Her views on Errorless Learning and how she learned Russian using SAFMEDS 34:27 Precision Teaching and the classes she took at Kansas University 41:03 How Abigail practiced the 'one-minute timing' technique to change her behavior and relationships 57:57 How her supervision and mentorship with Ogden looked like and her thoughts on how the Behavior Bank was contributed to Behavior Analysis 1:13:54 Abigail's life and career after completing her Ph.D. and on learning about her epilepsy 1:19:08 What charting has shown her to minimize the effects of epilepsy 1:42:00 Abigail remains hopeful on the use of Standard Celeration Chart not just within Behavior Analysis but also in other fields of work 1:47:40 Introducing the AimStar Lite— a project in which Abigail is involved in RESOURCES You can learn more about Abigail on her website: http://www.abigailbcalkin.com/ Learn more about the Standard Celeration Society: https://celeration.org/ Join our The ABA and PT Podcast Facebook Group to get access to the following resources: Facebook group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/397478901376425 QUOTES 31:18 "Did I worry about whether I made an error? No. When I do a reading of something I've written (...) you know, it's nice to be able to read absolutely fluently and never make a mistake but that's not me. And so I gloss over and I cover it up, I go back, something like that. I figure in learning, you make mistakes. A mistake is an opportunity to learn how to do something better." 38:15 "You have to have standardization on measurement. Blood pressure is standardized. Carbon dating is standardized. All of these things that my father would bring home as ideas and talk about, they're standardized. And so why not standardize the measurement of learning?" 44:02 "I started doing a one-minute timing and in 2 weeks, I had flipped it around. I was counting all day; positive feelings, negative feelings, positive thoughts, negative thoughts, missed opportunities for both... and that made the difference. It took the negative, unpleasant thoughts and feelings down, and it boosted the positive ones."

In this bridging episode of The ABA & PT podcast (formerly known as The ABA & OT podcast), Mandy explains the podcast relaunch with the new direction— which is now centered around the journeys and discoveries of the giants in the field of Precision Teaching & ABA. RESOURCES Join The ABA and PT Podcast Facebook Group to get access to the following resources: Facebook group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/397478901376425

This episode is a continuation of the previous episode featuring Liz Lefebre and Amy Evans, both highly acclaimed practitioners of Precision Teaching. They highlight a thinking process of how to get precise when writing your goals. Combining measurable data in the SMART approach, practitioners can set even more attainable goals for the learners. HIGHLIGHTS 02:14 Being Specific on what you’re teaching and what the students are supposed to do06:59 Setting measurable frequencies09:43 Making the goal Attainable within a given time. 11:44 Relevance of the goal11:58 Timebound: How quickly can your score be achieved? GLOSSARYSMART-Acronym on how to pinpoint a goal. ( Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevance, Timebound).Pinpoint - A specific way of describing what a single countable behavior is. RESOURCESOctave Training Website Join our The ABA and OT Podcast Facebook Group to get access to the following resources: Facebook group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/397478901376425 EXTERNAL RESOURCES Organization for Research and Learning Dr. Aditi the OT Website The Databased OT Facebook Group QUOTES02:54 When you’re looking at that goal, then you want to think about it and make sure that the language that you use is actually real, like behavior. 09:13 When you’re using ‘percent correct,’ it could be anything and that leaves it up to the person that is in charge, whereas if you write a goal that says 8/10 across four days in a row, then it’s very clear what you’re looking for. 10:16 For these small things you might be able to get that learner to practice it much more often without you necessarily being there. So, once you’ve established a behavior then it’s just a matter of practice. 13:21 The mode of precision Teaching is that the learner is always right. If the learner is exhibiting a skill deficit or a certain behavior, it’s because of the conditions that are the contingencies that are in place, the environment, and the motivation. So, they’re right and it’s our job to change to fit their needs. 15:38 Part of the learner always being right is taking the right kind of data so that we can see if we’re making progress on a daily basis.

The ABCs of behavior is an important tool to analyze whether a certain behavior is likely to happen again or not. The key here is that consequence matters. For OTs, it is possible to measure the effectiveness of interventions by hypothesizing and data-taking. Discussed today is the case of Johnny's rocking and some antecedent (environmental) interventions that could usher in permanent change and affect the consequences of this action. Also discussed today are ways to get assent from clients to help ensure that interventions will have favorable outcomes. HIGHLIGHTS 02:18 Shoutout to the World Health Organization for developing Self-Help + 04:55 The ABCs: Is it reflexive behavior or is it sensory? 15:02 The consequence matters on whether a behavior will happen again 22:28 Hypothesizing can help OTs measure the effectiveness of interventions 29:20 Case study: Johnny's rocking and implementing antecedent interventions 36:02 Modifying ABCs to improve client progress 40:30 How to get assent from clients GLOSSARY Operant behavior - This refers to behavior that can be modeled by its consequences. It often corresponds closely to behavior colloquially called voluntary or purposive. As this behavior is related to its consequences, it is said to be emitted rather than elicited. Antecedent intervention - A strategy to manipulate an environment prior to the occurrence of a behavior. This is utilized to increase the likelihood of the desired behavior to occur and to decrease the occurrence of maladaptive behavior. RESOURCES Join our The ABA and OT Podcast Facebook Group to get access to the following resources: Facebook group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/397478901376425 EXTERNAL RESOURCES Scalable Psychological Interventions for People in Communities Affected by Adversity by the WHO Dr. Aditi the OT Website The Databased OT Facebook Group QUOTES 15:00 "The consequence matters. So when you're trying to determine why is a student doing this thing? Why is this occurring? The first question to look at is what is the consequence? It's the consequence that matters." 15:25 "If the behavior is something we want less of or there is a behavior we want more of, we need to look at what is occurring after behavior to either strengthen or weaken it." 18:01 "If you're going to put interventions in place and look at their effectiveness, don't do it immediately in the presence of behavior you don't want more of if it's potentially a pleasant consequence to that student. Do it prior to the behavior." 29:03 "Are they deprived of something or are they satiated on something? This motivating variable before the behavior, looking at the environment is very important to determine why the student is engaging." 41:54 "Ensuring that you are strengthening and reinforcing behavior that has a student engaged, that it's a pleasant task that's involved, and that great things happen when the student is engaged and involved in the activity."

Taking data vastly improves the performance of both students and teachers alike. ABAs and OTs can determine the best course of action for increasing or reducing behaviors with data to back them up, while students also feel more motivated with their increased awareness. Discussed today are the practical reasons for taking data, specific steps you can take to start taking data, and the common barriers to taking good data. Data collection goals between ABAs and OTs may also be different, so Mandy and Aditi break down how they view these goals and how they can achieve them. HIGHLIGHTS 03:24 Shoutout to CentralReach Institute 04:20 Evidence-based interventions and why ABAs take so much data 08:49 OT barriers to data collection 11:23 How to begin collecting data 15:30 OT data collection on goals and strategies to achieve that 25:48 Taking data increases motivation and improves performance 28:30 Using standardized charts to measure fluency 35:13 Case study: Similarities and differences between ABA and OT goals GLOSSARY Dead Person Test - A test that says if a dead person cannot do it, then it is behavior, and if a dead person can do it, it is not behavior. RHUMBA - How Relevant is it, How long, Understandable, Measurable, Behavioral, and Achievable COAST - Client, Occupation, Assist Level, Specific, and Time-bound SMART - Significant, Measurable, Achievable, Relates to the person, and Time-based RESOURCES Join our The ABA and OT Podcast Facebook Group to get access to the following resources: Facebook group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/397478901376425 EXTERNAL RESOURCES Aditi's Website Progress Monitoring and Documentation During Virtual School-based OT Service Delivery via Telehealth CentralReach Institute Rick Kubina: Using Precision Measurement to Derive Meaningful Performance Metrics and Analytics Reading with Precision (Precision Teaching Aims) QUOTES 04:33 "Ethically, we are required and therefore obligated to demonstrate that our interventions are effective and evidence-based and it's absolutely impossible to do that without data." 13:29 "In order to measure something, you must define first what it is that you're teaching or a behavior that you're trying to increase or some behavior that you're trying to reduce." 23:00 "If you use a Standard Celeration chart and you apply how many opportunities the student performed in a period of time, it'll give you a really good trajectory of how long it's going to take to master that goal." 25:48 "The sheer act of taking data with a student improved their performance. I was like oh my gosh because they are so much more aware of their own performance." 29:59 "It's got a fixed X and Y axes and it's always the same. As opposed to what I call a stretch to fill chart where you can alter the X and Y axes to make your data look better than it really is and data on those types of charts are not comparable."