Inclusive and Supportive Education Congress
International
Special Education Conference
Inclusion: Celebrating Diversity?
1st - 4th August 2005. Glasgow, Scotland
about the conference
programme
registration
accommodation
contact
|
Inclusive and Supportive Education Congress 1st - 4th August 2005. Glasgow, Scotland |
home about the conference programme registration accommodation contact |
Dr. Kevin J. Miller
University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA
kjmiller@mail.ucf.edu
Dr. Kevin Koury
California University of Pennsylvania, California, PA, USA
koury@cup.edu
Dr. Katherine Mitchem
West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, USA
Kate.Mitchem@mail.wvu.edu
Dr. Gail Fitzgerald
University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, MO, USA
fitzgeraldg@missouri.edu
Dr. Candice Hollingsead
Andrews University, Berrien Springs, MI, USA
hollingc@andrews.edu
Helping children to gain self-control in order to reduce problem behaviors and increase desirable behaviors seems to be a never-ending goal for educators. Likewise, facilitating the development and use of organization and planning skills by children can be challenging. For many, the traditional method to help children in this situation is to tell them what they are doing wrong and then if the child is lucky, have the teacher or parent tell them what they are supposed to do. Sometimes the teachers or parent will accompany the verbal interaction with direct instruction of the desired behavior. This traditional method requires the child to comprehend what s/he has been told and/or practiced and then remember the information the next time the situation arises so as to comply with the expectations.
The Need
The provision of behavior intervention plans and the use of research-based best practices are currently mandated in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) also referred to as “No Child Left Behind” and the recently re-authorized Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA, 2004). Yet, the availability of tools and resources to support teachers and children with disabilities are often hard to obtain. The KidTools Support System (KTSS) is one resource educators may use (Fitzgerald & Koury, 2003; Fitzgerald, Koury, Miller, Hollingsead, & Mitchem, 2004).
Description of KidTools Support System (KTSS)
KTSS offers a support system that directly targets the use of behavior and academic performance support software for children who have learning disabilities and/or emotional and behavioral problems. The software includes researched-based tools and provides easy-to-use templates for children to personalize and use independently in school and home settings.
KTSS consists of two software programs, KidTools and KidSkills, with a third program, Strategy Tools, currently in development. The KidTools program includes template tools to assist children in self-management, problem solving, and making plans and contracts. KidTools also contains a series of teacher tools and resources to assist teachers in the implementation process. The teacher tools consist of examples of completed tools as well as directions for their use. Generalization plans, contracting, cost and payoff analysis, token economy procedures, social skill, anger control, conflict resolution, and cognitive restructuring teaching materials and instructional procedures are among the templates and directions in the KidTools program. KidSkills contains organizational and planning tools and a variety of learning strategies templates. An assignment card, KWL chart, new word card, text organizer, flash card, project planner, getting information card, big picture card, working together card, and project evaluation card are among the templates in the KidSkills program. A series of teacher resources is provided to explain and give examples for teachers who assist children in using KidSkills.
Electronic Performance Support Systems (EPSS)
Electronic Performance Support Systems (EPSS) offer potential for addressing the problems youth face regarding self-regulation, strategic learning and self-determination. Features within the EPSS software were developed to facilitate the use of the strategies and tools by students and educators. EPSS contains a variety of research based strategies and helpful tools, information and training on how to use the tools, and “help” options to provide educators and students assistance at the precise time it is required as the tools are being utilized (Laffey, 1995; Gustafson, 2000). The basic EPSS components of: 1) information that is easily accessible, 2) guidance for the user, 3) tutorials, and 4) the tools themselves are included in the KidTools Support System . As suggested by experts (Gustafson, 2000; Wilson & Myers, 2000), the ongoing development and enhancement of KTSS tools are increasing in sophistication, tutorials have multimedia instructional components for novice users, and embedded training/practice components are contextualized in the student’s “real world” of the school.
Implementing EPSS
While the KidTools and KidSkills programs are intended to allow students to be as independent as possible, for the materials to be successful, instruction must be provided in behavior change techniques, the specific strategies related to templates selected for use, and the computer software. After the children are taught the necessary skills, the programs can be used with minimal help. How much time it will take to train students to use KidTools will vary from student to student. It took approximately one hour to train fourth and fifth grade students with learning disabilities and a total of one week to train a class of 17 children with learning disabilities. The first day consisted of a thirty-minute general presentation and introduction. The students helped the teacher navigate the KidTools program. A question and answer period followed. For the remainder of the week, each student was allowed a thirty-minute free explore time with the KidTools software. In a second grade class, there was no need for formal training by the teacher. Remarkably, a second grade student who used KidTools as a first grader taught his second grade classmates how to use program.
Mini Case Examples
Implementations of two strategies from KidTools are presented below. The first describes the use of a self-monitoring point card from KidTools by a ninth grade student in a general education science classroom. The second implementation incorporated the “Turtle Plan” self-control strategy from KidTools in a self-contained special education Kindergarten class. The Turtle Plan was used with a student with developmental disabilities. The goal for this student was to prepare her to eventually be placed in a general education setting for all or part of her instructional day.
Jim: Jim is a ninth grade bilingual student who has been referred for special education services due to his poor academic performance. He has a difficult time remaining on task and appears to be easily distracted in his science class. The target behaviors selected for improvement were (a) staying on task until completion and (b) raising hand and wait for permission to speak, instead of looking around the room, playing with his pencil, and waving his arms as if he was practicing martial arts. As part of the intervention plan, Jim used a self-monitoring point card system from KidTools to track his behavior in the science class. During direct instruction and individual or collaborative assignments, the teacher set a timer for five minutes. When the timer sounded, Jim recorded his behavior as on-task or off-task. The teacher then reset the timer for five minutes. At the end of each five-minute interval the timer sounded and Jim again recorded his behavior as on-task or off-task. This was repeated for the entire class session. At the end of the week, Jim earned points if he was “on-task” for an average of at least 80% of the momentary time sampling opportunities. The points were used to purchase items Jim identified when he completed a reinforcement inventory. During a three-day baseline period, Jim averaged six momentary time sampling observations of out of seat behavior per class period. During the first three days of the intervention period Jim progressed from being off task on five time sampling observations, to 100% on-task behavior. As reported by his teacher, the intervention was very successful as the occurrence of off-task behavior decreased and the student’s on-task behavior increased. Over a two-week period, as Jim’s behavior improved, adjustments to the criteria for earning points were made. After a careful review of Jim’s initial progress and response to the intervention, the teacher change the structure for awarding points from an average of 80% on-task behavior for the week, to 80% on-task behavior for each class period during the week. The point card from KidTools was an important component in Jim’s intervention plan. It provided him the opportunity to take ownership for his behavior within a positive behavior management system developed by the general education science teacher.
Jenna : Jenna is a five-year old Kindergarten student who is labeled as developmentally delayed. Her teacher identified two challenging behaviors Jenna exhibited. The first was the lack of impulse control and the second was the minimal use of socially appropriate behavior . The specific target behavior selected for improvement was remaining in seat during instructional activities. As part of the intervention plan, the teacher incorporated the “Turtle Plan” strategy from KidTools within a positive reinforcement system managed by the teacher. The “Turtle Plan” intervention was introduced to Jenna after five days of baseline data were collected. The expected behavior (stay in seat) was reviewed and discussed with Jenna. During the intervention period, the teacher intermittently reviewed the Turtle Plan Chart with Jenna and redirected out of seat behavior. A Turtle Plan Chart from KidTools was also used as a visual cue when the teacher redirected Jenna. When Jenna remained in her seat or returned to her seat after a prompt, she was provided immediate verbal praise. The teacher also provided a sticker for every three positive praises Jenna received. Over a ten-day period, the teacher reported a notable improvement in Jenna’s behavior. Jenna’s teacher commented that the “Turtle Plan” was age appropriate and easy to implement. This case illustrates the integration of tool usage with other positive behavior reinforcement procedures implemented by the teacher.
Summary of Teacher Comments on Kidtools
Behavioral Benefits
Most teachers who implemented strategies from the KidTools Support System reported changes in behavior of children. Teachers stated that using KidTools and KidSkills slowed the children down and helped them think before acting. One teacher commented, “KidTools has tremendous potential, it allows children to think for themselves.” Strategies from KidTools were used to help students improve hand raising behavior, self-regulation and on-task behavior, increase focus and attention to task, and reduce negative interactions with peers.
Academic and Social Benefits
In addition to the positive impact on behavior, several academic and social benefits were realized. The benefits, though not targeted, were a welcome incidental learning outcome. In one class, five computers with KidTools were linked to one printer. The teacher reported this helped foster cooperation and communication skills as students took turns waiting to use the printer. Another teacher noted, “academic grades improved and assignments were now turned in on time.” Younger students learned to spell their names. One student went from resisting work to a total focus on reading improvements. Grammar and sentence writing improved as well. One teacher commented, “At first J’s behavior included yelling out and being off-task. Now he is off the program, there was generalization and then he made a card for taking his time. J now makes less silly mistakes on reading comprehension sheets.”
Recommendations and Lesson Learned
Teachers and behavior specialists have used KidTools in a variety of ways. Based on their feedback and comments, several recommendations and tips for using KidTools are presented. When using KidTools or KidSkills in a classroom with a limited number of computers , have a designated area for students to access the computer, printer, and software. It is important to be consistent in the use of the software. As one teacher noted, consistency was the key to the successful incorporation of the KidTools strategies in her classroom. Meet with each student to record a list of behaviors on index cards. Students then use the index cards to choose behaviors for the day or week. The index cards should model correct spelling and grammar. During implementation, monitor and occasionally check students on self-monitoring. Since both KidTools and KidSkills provide audio instructions for students, having headsets available is recommended. Remember that KidTools and KidSkills are not enough by themselves and they are not a panacea. These EPSS programs can be easily incorporated into any existing classroom management system. We recommend integrating Kidtools and KidSkills into a comprehensive positive classroom and behavior support system with movement from external control to internal control and self-responsibility for strategic learning.
Summary
Teachers, students and parents have used the templates and an array of instructional procedures to prepare and implement intervention materials in a variety of grade levels and settings. The strategies implemented helped teachers and parents to effectively teach behavior, organization, and learning strategies. More importantly, through the research-based intervention strategies and corresponding templates, children were empowered to gain control over problem behaviors. The feedback from students, parents and teachers support the notion that KidTools and KidSkills hold great promise.
Presently the software is available in CD format and in downloadable versions from the KidTools website (http://kidtools.missouri.edu). Orientation materials, practice activities, implementation videos, discussion lists, and user supports are also provided for adults who assist children in learning and using these tools.
home . about the conference . programme . registration . accommodation . contact
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |