The ABLE Tiered Approach to Skill Acquisition

Applied Behavior Analysis

Behavior Analysis is the science of behavior. Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is the process of systematically applying interventions based upon principles of learning theory to improve socially significant behaviors to a meaningful degree (Baer, Wolf & Risley, 1968/1987; Sulzer-Azaroff & Mayer, 1991).

Over the past 40 years, thousands of research studies have documented the effectiveness of ABA across a wide range of populations including children and adults with developmental disabilities, learning disorders, behavior disorders, and mental illness. ABA has resulted in measurable positive change in individuals in the areas of language, socialization, academics, leisure skills, and functional life skills.

Just as no two people are the same, no two behaviors are the same. While two individuals may display similar behaviors, or similar challenges with skill acquisition, a careful analysis is required to determine aspects that are maintaining a problem behavior or blocking a new skill from being acquired.

ABLE’s ABA program includes the following steps:

Selection of interfering behavior or behavioral skill deficit
Identification of goals and objectives
Establishment of a method for measuring target behaviors
Evaluation of the current levels of behaviors/performance (baseline)
Design and Implementation of interventions to teach new skills and/or reduce interfering behaviors
Continuous measurement of target behaviors to determine the effectiveness of the intervention, and
Ongoing evaluation of the effectiveness of the intervention, with modifications made as necessary to maintain and/or increase both the effectiveness and the efficacy of the intervention.

Verbal Behavior and Skill Acquisition

Skill Acquisition programs identify specific target behaviors for each learner. Skills range from language skills (developing a functional form of communication), to learning to read, write and compute, to learning and applying skills necessary to develop and maintain social interactions. Treatment programs employ only scientifically validated procedure. Data is collected at every stage of treatment in order to maximize learner performance and determine treatment effectiveness. Skill acquisition programs are implemented in 1:1 and small group setting, utilizing carefully selected materials depending upon each learner’s needs.

Breaking Behavioral Barriers

Behavioral science informs us that behaviors will continue when they are reinforced.

When an infant babbles, mom and dad typically clap, smile, and give kisses. Because the baby enjoys this feedback, he may be more likely to babble in the future in the presence of his family. This is a basic, but integral component of behavior analysis.
If a child has difficulty consistently repeating sounds or clearly stating words, an analysis might find that the child is not forming his mouth muscles or holding his tongue correctly to produce clear speech. Once this skill deficit is determined, the skill is directly taught and reinforced with praise and appropriated speech. Because the child enjoys the praise and feels good about producing accurate speech, he will be more likely to practice the skill required.
If a child enters an area where a group of children are playing and gravitates away from the group, self-isolating, it is either because the child finds something else in the environment more appealing (reinforcing) or because the child lacks the social skills necessary to engage with the other children and maintain quality interactions. Through an individual analysis, missing skills are identified and carefully instructed, both independently and within a small group of children. As the child acquires and applies targeted skills, specific procedures are implemented to fade adult assistance while gradually increasing the size of the group of the children. This process results in skills that generalize to new environments.

The strength of intervention at ABLE Academy lies in the ability of the highly qualified staff to assess and instruct the child based on individual needs and behavioral history to affect measurable change.

Learning in a Positive Environment

Learning new skills can be challenging. We learn best when the conditions of learning are individualized, positive, and carefully facilitated.

Items and topics that are favorites of the child are used to teach integral skills. Learning to use verbalizations for children who are vocal and sign language or other augmented communication forms for children who are nonvocal is done first through teaching a child to ask for desired items and events. Socialization instruction begins with a focus on topics that are important and meaningful to the child. Learning important cognitive, language, and academic skills and concepts can be achieved initially through the use of a child’s favorite toys, animals, games, and topics.
Learning occurs most rapidly under conditions that are positive. At ABLE Academy, the instructor starts by forming a bond with the child through the creation of a fun, safe, and productive learning environment. When targeting a new skill, children are provided with high levels of reinforcement and abundant prompting to ensure that the child responds correctly. Children learn new skills best from their successes and not their mistakes. Errorless teaching employed at ABLE Academy by experts in the field results in rapid acquisition of new skills.

Education Across Environments

When children learn skills exclusively in isolation, they are less likely to generalize those skills to various items and across environments. From the onset of instruction at ABLE Academy, each skill acquisition program is designed with generalization in mind. Children learn multiple examples of the same concept and are required to demonstrate skill competency across instructors and environments within the clinic facility. This is achieved through ABLE Academy’s Three-Tiered Approach to Skill Building. Generalization, or the transferring of behavior form one situation to another (e.g. from communication with caregivers in the home to interacting with classmates at school), takes precedence using this exclusive method. Each learner’s program includes highly individualized and precise teaching procedures across the following tiers of instruction:

Tier One: Behavior Therapist to child ratio 1:1. Tier One instruction allows for intensive instruction through Errorless teaching in order for the child to acquire new skills.

Tier Two: Behavior Therapist to child ration 1:2-1:6. Tier Two offers strongly facilitated, small group instruction during which the child demonstrates skills previously acquired in Tier One. In Tier Two, the intensive instruction methodology utilized in Tier One is maintained, but new instructors and peers are introduced.

Tier Three: Behavior Therapist to child ratio 1:2-1:6. Tier Three offers therapist designed, but child led naturalistic teaching opportunities in which the child demonstrates acquired skills with limited or no direct instruction. Tier Three encourages development of interactive peer structures in which skills can be demonstrated in their most meaningful application.

Rates of Services

Some learners attend ABLE Academy for 1:1 therapy services, while others spend up to 30 hours/week in our clinical classroom program. Participation levels and the associated fees for each learner vary based upon individual needs and time spent in each of the three tiers.

ABLE Academy is a McKay approved school. Some insurance carries cover ABA services, though each insurance carrier has specific policies and regulations.

ABLE Academy offers tuition assistance in the form of scholarship funding when available. As a non-profit organization, ongoing fundraising efforts are made and when funds are available, families may be awarded scholarship funding. Scholarship applications are made through a third party and no scholarships are guaranteed by the ABLE Academy.

Please note that some of our programs have waiting lists. Space in our programs is not guaranteed. Our Tier Two environment requires careful consideration to ensure appropriate peer grouping. Therefore, our wait list varies. Some learners are offered services immediately upon the completion of the assessment, while others may receive services in Tier One only until an appropriate Tier Two grouping is established.