Differential Reinforcement: Stimulus Control and Shaping

1. Differential Reinforcement: Stimulus Control and Shaping Chapter 9

2. Big Idea How to promote in-class learning. • Similar behaviors are appropriate depending on the context in which they occur. • Yelling is great at a basketball game but not in your classroom during sustained silent reading. • Saying “144” is appropriate when a student is presented with 122 but not when presented 252. • “Bringing responses the learner already knows under the control of the appropriate cue or signal is called stimulus control.”

3. Shaping One strategy for in-class learning. • “One way of teaching students to do new things is by shaping. • The teacher literally molds or shapes an existing response into the desired behavior”

4. EDSE 410/510 has described students' actions in terms of... Antecedent Behavior Consequence Next slide please.

5. Our focus now is on what precedes behaviors. Antecedent Behavior Consequence Next slide for example.

6. Antecedents that consistently lead to specific behaviors are called discriminative stimuli. Antecedent Behavior Consequence You see red tail lights go on in front of you. SD You apply the brakes on your car. You avoid an accident. Next example.

7. Antecedents that consistently lead to specific behaviors are called discriminative stimuli. Antecedent Behavior Consequence You see a sign that says “Sale.” SD You enter store and make a purchase. You extend your budgeted money. Third example next.

8. Antecedents that consistently lead to specific behaviors are called discriminative stimuli. Antecedent Behavior Consequence You see a FR5 on a test. SD You write “R+ is given when 5 be- haviors are performed.” You get item correct on the test. In-class example next.

9. Antecedents that consistently lead to specific behaviors are called discriminative stimuli. Antecedent Behavior Consequence Student is shown a nickel. SD Student says, “nickel” or “five cents” Teacher says, “You got that Right.” Next slide for S-Delta .

10. Antecedents that do not lead to specific behaviors are called S Deltas. Antecedent Behavior Consequence You see red tail lights. S∆ You accelerate. You pay higher insurance rates following accident Next in-class example.

11. Antecedents that do not lead to specific behaviors are called S Deltas. Antecedent Behavior Consequence Student is shown a nickel. S∆ Student say “dime” or “ten cents” Your correct, “this is a nickel” or this coin is worth 5 cents.” So….

12. This is data-based student learning. Stimulus Control • “A response that occurs in the presence of SD, but not in its absence is said to be under stimulus control. A behavior under stimulus control will continue to occur in the presence of the SD even when reinforcement is infrequent.” So…

13. Example of Stimulus Control • “The first-grader learns that saying ‘went’ in the presence of a flash card with the letters w-e-n-t (SD) results in praise, but that the same response to a flash card with the letters c-a-m-e (SD) does not” Note: The teacher is shaping an appropriate reading behavior.

14. "Many teachers unwittingly make themselves into [discriminative stimuli] for inappropriate behavior by giving it their attention” . Antecedent Behavior Consequence Ms. Handy begins her biology lesson (This should be an SD for quiet down and listen.) Students in the room continue to chat among themselves. Teacher reinforces chatting by paying attention to the distraction and not continuing with the lesson.

15. How it works in life: Much of the everyday behavior of adults is a result of discrimination learning. • We answer telephones when they ring, not when they are silent. We drive through intersections when lights are green, not when they are red.

16. Consequently, our teaching must be clear because… Discrimination based on relatively informal or imprecise patterns of reinforcement develop slowly and are often imperfect. • Thus, the imperfect stimulus control exerted by traffic signals provides employment for numerous police officers, tow-truck drivers and ambulance attendants. This is clear. A caution light that changes too quickly is not clear.

17. Teaching students to respond appropriately to specific stimuli is the teacher’s basic job. “w-e-n-t” in print should result in a student saying “went.” R+ If this happens consis- tently the teacher has achieved her objective. To state with any degree of confidence that the response “went” is under stimulus control, the teacher will have to establish that no other combination of letters occasions the response, including combinations such as w-a-n-t and w-e-t whose shape and spelling closely resemble that of the SD. Discrimination TrainingHow to...

18. Example # 1 • A flashcard indicating POISON should occasion a student with moderate mental retardation to say “Poison…It is bad for you.” and back away, or call an adult.

19. Example #2 • Dad says, “Pick up you clothes” which occasions the son to go to the bedroom and pick up his clothes.

20. A Stimulus Control basic • Notice that for stimulus control to occur, a subject must be able to discriminate between two or more things (e.g., “Poison” and “Popcorn” & “Pick up your clothes” and Put on the Comedy Channel.”) Next…steps to do.

21. Establishing Stimulus Control • Identify the target behavior you want. • For example: When asked by his 6th grade teacher, Phillip will state the ‘squares’ of numbers from 12 to 252, 90% of the time. First

22. Establishing Stimulus Control • Identify the stimulus that you want to be the SD. • For example: Teacher prepares a series of flash cards from 12 to 252. Second

23. Establishing Stimulus Control • Plan a reinforcement strategy. • For example: Teacher intends to initially use a CRF schedule of reinforcement of praise. She will couple this with an FR 5 reinforcement schedule of a pepperoni slice that the student indicates he enjoys. Third

24. Establishing Stimulus Control • Present the stimulus that you want to become the SD for the behavior. • For example: With each flashcard, the teacher “models, leads, and tests.” “This card says twelve squared. 122 is 144. Say it with me… 122 is 144. How much is 122? (Pause) Fourth

25. Establishing Stimulus Control • Consequate the behavior. • For example: Yes! Twelve squared is one hundred and forty-four. (Note: Every fifth correct response produces a thinly sliced piece of pepperoni that is paired with the praise.) Fifth

26. Establishing Stimulus Control • Intermix SDs with the SDs. • For example: Is twelve squared one hundred and twenty-one. (Note: Student should respond “No. Twelve squared is one hundred and forty-four. Eleven squared is one hundred and twenty-one.”) Sixth

27. Language allows humans to acquire knowledge. Concepts are described and, based on these concepts, stimulus control can be established. ACT: How would you ensure that the 5th grader in your resource room learned what an adjective is? Describe the schedule of reinforcement that you would use to teach this concept. Establishing Stimulus Control for Basic Concepts Like Adjectives OYO

28. What happens when you don’t get the target behavior when you try to establish stimulus control? • When a stimulus does not occasion the desired behavior, the behavior is not under stimulus control. • To address this, teachers must resort to promptingafter a desired SD is presented.

29. An actor who fails to respond to his cues is prompted from the wings. Students who fail to respond to an SD are similarly prompted. • Prompts may be presented verbally, visually, or physically. • (Give an example of each.) • The desired response may also be demonstrated or modeled. • (Give an example of each.)

30. See page + 308.OYO see rules for verbal, visual, and modeling. • Hmmm…this looks like Montana to me.

31. To be effective, prompts should focus on the desired SD. To reduce the need for future prompting, the prompt should be as weak as possible. Once the prompt has produced the desired response,fade the prompt as quickly as possible. Avoid unplanned prompts. Prompts

32. Physical GuidanceAKA “Putting through” • Typically used for teaching severely involved persons (e.g., sorting, making eye contact). • Also used with non-disabled persons (See page 314).

33. …too fast and the behavior will not occur frequently enough for reinforcement …too slow and and students may become permanently dependent on the prompt. Fading the PromptConsiderable skill is involved in determining the optimum rate of fading:

34. Decreasing assistance is also known as “most-to-least” prompting. Level of prompting virtually guarantees success. Graduated guidance requires the least amount of assistance from the start. Two Strategies for Physical Guidance

35. Task analysis Fading Chaining Forward Backward Total Presentation Shaping …resort to class notes.