RBT Exam Section C

What do Skill acquisition plans do?

They outline the skill that is to be taught and how it will be taught.

Skill acquisition plans should include the following information:

• A definition of the skill that will be targeted

• The specific teaching procedures explaining how to conduct the program and what constitutes a correct response

• Teaching materials and reinforcers needed

• Prompting strategies and hierarchies to use

• How to respond to errors and how to reinforce correct responding

• Data collection procedures

• Criteria for mastery

• Generalization and maintenance plans/guidelines

How should you prepare for your session when using an acquisition plan?

• Reading through skill acquisition plans

• Reviewing current targets and preparing any teaching materials needed for those targets

• Preparing reinforcers, token boards, first-then boards, etc. as applicable

• Prepping your data collection materials—make sure your data sheet(s) and/or device(s) are easily accessible.

• Reading through any BCBA notes and session notes from other RBTs, if applicable.

Wat do Contingencies of reinforcement do?

They describe the relationship between a particular behavior and the reinforcers used to strengthen or increase the behavior.

This occurs when reinforcers are provided every time an individual displays a particular behavior.

Continuous reinforcement

This occurs when reinforcers are provided only some of the time when a particular behavior is displayed.

Intermittent reinforcement

This is then further broken down into four schedules of intermittent reinforcement.

Intermittent reinforcement

The four intermittent schedules of reinforcement are

Fixed interval, Fixed ratio, Variable interval, & variable ratio

Whst is Fixed interval intermittent schedules of reinforcement?

Providing reinforcement after every X number of minutes. In a fixed interval schedule, the interval is the same each time.

What is a Fixed ratio intermittent schedules of reinforcement?

Providing reinforcement after every X number of occurrences of a target behavior. In a fixed ratio schedule, the number of responses required to receive reinforcement stays the same each time.

What is a Variable interval intermittent schedules of reinforcement?

Providing reinforcement after a varying amount of time. In a variable interval schedule, the amount of time that must pass before receiving reinforcement varies but averages out. For example, a VI-5 schedule would consist of reinforcing roughly every 5 minutes

What is a variable ratio intermittent schedules of reinforcement?

Providing reinforcement after a varying number of occurrences of a target behavior. The number of responses required to receive reinforcement varies in a variable ratio schedule.

An RBT requires her client to complete 2–4 programs before earning a break in the playroom. What type of intermittent schedules of reinforcement is this?

Variable (VR) schedule of reinforcement

A child asks for a snack, and her mother says, “wait”—sometimes, she has to wait for only 1 minute. Other times, she might need to wait 4 or 5 minutes. What type of intermittent schedules of reinforcement is this?

Variable interval (VI) schedule of reinforcement

A paraprofessional gives her student a token every five pages they read independently. The number of pages the student must read to get one token does not vary. What type of intermittent schedules of reinforcement is this?

Fixed ratio (FR) schedule of reinforcement

Every two weeks, you receive your paycheck for working the previous two weeks. What type of intermittent schedules of reinforcement is this?

Fixed interval (FI) schedule of reinforcement

Reinforcers are those that are innately valuable to all people from birth. Think of things that are necessary for survival—water, food, a regulated temperature, and sex

Unconditioned reinforcers

Reinforcers are those that become reinforcing by pairing with other reinforcers—for example, books, toys, money, and tokens in a token economy.

Conditioned reinforcers

This is considered a structured method of teaching new skills

Discrete-trial teaching (DTT)

This can be conducted at a table or implemented away from a table.

Discrete-trial teaching (DTT)

What are the three components of DTT?

1. The SD/instruction (and prompt if needed)

1. The learner’s response

2. The consequence (i.e. reinforcement for correct response, or a correction if incorrect)

This type of teaching occurs in a learner’s natural environment. A natural environment could be areas of the learner’s home, community settings such as stores, restaurants, or playgrounds, or the learner’s school or daycare.

Natural Envirornment Teaching (NET)

What is a Task analysis?

A procedure for breaking down a complex task into small, individual components. Like brushing teeth or getting dressed

Thiss shows each of the steps needed in the process.

A task analysis

This is often used for skills that the learner has some competency demonstrating but has not mastered all of the steps in the chain.

Total task chaining procedure

The learner is allowed to complete the steps independently, while the therapist supports with prompts only on steps that the learner hasn’t yet mastered.

Total task chaining procedure

This is conducted by allowing the learner to demonstrate the first step independently, then the therapist prompts (or demonstrates) the remaining steps of the chain.

Forward chaining procedure

This is conducted by prompting the learner through all of the steps of the chain until they reach the final step.

Backward chaining procedure

What is Discrimination training?

teaching a learner to differentiate between stimuli.

A RBT gives the SD “Give me the blue block“ The child picks up a blue block from a messy array of 5 different colored blocks and hands it to the RBT. What is this an example of?

Discrimination training

What are Stimulus control transfer procedures?

They are strategies for fading prompts to transfer the control of a response from one SD to another. When a therapist prompts a correct answer, the response is under the control of that specific prompt.

A RBT uses a physical prompt to help Tim grab and drink from his cup, a few weeks later the RBT says the word cup instead and fades the Physical prompt. Later the RBT fades the verbal prompt and now only gives a pointing gestural prompt to Tim. What is this a example of?

A Stimulus control transfer procedure

Name all 6 types of prompts

1. Gestural prompts

2. Verbal prompts

3. Partial Physical prompts

4. Full Physical prompts

5. Model prompts

6. Positional prompts

Pointing, gazing your eyes, or in some other way gesturing to guide the learner to the correct response. What prompt is this?

Gestural prompts

Vocally stating the correct response. What prompt is this?

Verbal prompts

Providing full physical assistance to evoke the correct response. What prompt is this?

Full Physical prompts

Providing partial physical assistance to evoke the correct response. What prompt is this?

Partial physical prompts:

Demonstrating the correct response. Can be done live or via video modeling. What prompt is this?

Model prompts

Putting the correct target item or picture closer to the learner than other items. What prompt is this?

Positional prompts

How do you fade promptps?

you will systematically reduce and eliminate the prompts until your learner is independently responding accurately.

What are the two most common methods for prompt fading?

Most to least prompt fading & Least to most prompt fading.

The most intrusive prompts are used initially to teach the skill. As the learner demonstrates an understanding of the skill, the prompts slowly fade to less intrusive prompts.

Most-to-least prompt fading

A less intrusive prompt is used initially to teach the skill. If the less intrusive prompt does not evoke the correct response, you move to a more intrusive prompt.

Least-to-most prompt fading

What occurs when an individual demonstrates a trained behavior in different conditions and novel ways?

Generalization

What occurs when an individual learns a behavior and then is able to engage in other similar behaviors?

Response generalization

You teach your client to greet you by saying “hi” upon your arrival. Once they master this, they learn to greet you in other ways, such as saying “hi (name),” “hey,” “hello,” “what’s up,”. This is an example of?

Response generalization

What are 4 strategies you may use to help a learner generalize and maintain skills over time?

• Use several different stimulus examples.

• Teach in different environments.

• Vary your instruction.

• Encourage and reinforce different responses.

if you’re teaching a child to identify clothing names (e.g., shirts, socks, pants, shorts), you would teach this skill with multiple pictures of shirts and/or actual shirts that are different sizes, colors, patterns, etc. This is an example of?

Using several different stimulus examples

if you’re teaching a child to follow the instruction “come here,” you would teach them to follow this in a therapy room, in other rooms in their home or clinic setting, and then perhaps outside, at the park, or in a store. This is an example of?

Teaching in different environments

If a child is learning to wait, some generalized instructions could be “wait,” “hang on,” “wait for a second,” or “give me a minute.” this is an example of?

Varing your instruction.

What is shaping?

a teaching procedure where you systematically reinforce approximations toward an end goal.

you have an end goal for your learner to be able to respond to their name when they are across the room from their therapist, parent, or teacher. The goal involves them saying “what?” when their name is called. What can be used here?

Shaping

What is a token economy?

a reinforcement procedure to increase adaptive or desirable behaviors.

This is done by giving your learner tokens, which are generalized conditioned reinforcers. Through pairing with other reinforcers, tokens become reinforcing.

A token economy

What is a respose cost?

When a learner loses earned tokens when they engage in an inappropriate target behavior.