tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2537423038299488222.post1888736904642181482..comments2024-02-04T18:59:01.614-08:00Comments on Verbal Behavior Approach: TAGteach and AutismMary Lynch Barberahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06756992998189210654noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2537423038299488222.post-88347717943072093922013-06-25T16:57:13.511-07:002013-06-25T16:57:13.511-07:00Thank you so much for publishing this article. I ...Thank you so much for publishing this article. I just found out about clicker training and tag teach this week from a dog breeder's website who sent us to clicker training.com. We have a son on the Autism Spectrum and were thinking about getting a dog for him next year when we move into our new house.<br /><br />He's currently doing some ABA, but we are still working on skills like getting dressed, tying shoes, verbal perseverations, etc. I think we could do a LOT with this method to help motivate him to learn these things that aren't intrinsically motivating for him to do.<br /><br />I jut bought a clicker and put two of Karen Pryor's books on hold at the library (on clicker training). I am interested in the TagTeach program, but at $300, even the online course is a bit expensive for me. I may try to "figure it out" on my own based on the dog training methods. <br /><br />Do you think that is reasonable, or am I missing something big? I'd love to take the course, but Autism is SO EXPENSIVE, that we just don't have a lot of wiggle room in the budget for extra's...<br /><br />Thanks for a great article!<br /><br />EmilyNatural Health For Lifehttp://naturalhealthforlife.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2537423038299488222.post-7371020353386633702012-04-26T00:13:31.750-07:002012-04-26T00:13:31.750-07:00This is really nice info.Thanks for such a wonderf...This is really nice info.Thanks for such a wonderful post.shaanhttp://www.shaan.net.aunoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2537423038299488222.post-73533210572777076722010-12-15T08:05:08.921-08:002010-12-15T08:05:08.921-08:00@Jeannie;
We hear all the time that people canno...@Jeannie; <br /><br />We hear all the time that people cannot master handling the clicker, and so they drop the method. I am a dog trainer, and I work with a wide variety of students and dogs and they have varying degrees of talent when it comes to using the clicker and I can tell you a number of things about this problem.<br /><br />The first thing I can tell you is that clicker training and TAG teaching is NOT the box, or the coin tapping the table, or the chirp of a whistle. I will use clicker training because this is what I am most familiar with-but the concepts apply to TAGteaching too.<br /><br />Clicker training is about marking the behaviour you want. With a deaf dog we might use a finger flash (close your fist and then point and make the fist again really quickly), and with a whale we might use a whistle because of the ability to carry the sound below the water, and with dogs we most often use the clicker. So what you need to do is to find a method of marking the behaviours that your student is doing that you like. So stop worrying about the clicker itself and find something that works for you-an accomodation if you will to your inability to use the clicker, with the child and the dog in hand.<br /><br />The next thing I can tell you about clicker training is that it is a mechanical skill; and once you have mastered the skill doing it while you are standing on your head is actually no big deal; been there, done that, so to speak. The problem is that you need to practice on someone OTHER THAN your therapeutic subject-I really think we need to take care not to learn our techniques on the dogs and humans who need our help the most. So if you are interested in learning TAGteach, learn it, and then apply it.<br /><br />The final thing I can tell you about people learning to clicker train. It is as much another way of thinking as it is a method. It is a way of learning to look at training problems and take them apart and to put behaviours back together, and use that acquired behaviour. And the people who master this are the people who are willing to learn to look at problems in a different way. If you are the kind of learner who wants to build your skills one by one, and not challenge your brain to reach and put together unconventional ideas that don't seem to work together, then you may find that learning clicker training is a bit tough. I encourage you though to explore this. It is a powerful tool in the tool box and can be really helpful.suenestnaturehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00429076792704899312noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2537423038299488222.post-22364394840807921982010-06-03T17:36:39.666-07:002010-06-03T17:36:39.666-07:00TAGteach works. For people on the autistic sprctr...TAGteach works. For people on the autistic sprctrum with cognitive issues, it forces me to break teaching a skill into the most fundamental steps. I introduced a client to TAGteach today in a speech and language therapy session. He LOVES the sound of the loud clicker! I introduced the clicker to him by letting him click it first. Once he was comfortable with the clicker, I introduced use of the clicker with a reward to reinforce vocalization. He caught on fast.<br /><br />Because I use lots of music (songs and the Autoharp), both my hands are usually occupied. When working with a client who requires full attention, it's helpful to have a parent or aide or even another learner work the clicker for TAG points.<br /><br />For my daughter, on the severe end of the spectrum, I recently began tagging her during voice lessons for staying focused and following the teacher's coaching. Usually she spends half the lesson with self directed, rote language about preferred topics, usually Disney movies. The voice teacher had tried to use TAGteach herself, but she has both hands busy playing the piano with her attention focused on Kerry. Having me sit in to TAG and to redirect her attention worked miracles!<br /><br />The presentation you posted yesterday, Mary, is wonderful. I sent the link on to friends.<br /><br />Cathy in MACathy Beyerhttp://www.youtube.com/KerrysMomnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2537423038299488222.post-54342549707494812942010-05-12T11:37:07.981-07:002010-05-12T11:37:07.981-07:00I'm going to sound like I'm shilling for a...I'm going to sound like I'm shilling for a product, but I like the<br /><a href="http://store.clickertraining.com/newiclick.html" rel="nofollow">i click</a><br />because it's easier to use than the traditional "box" clicker, and you can turn it over if you have a relatively hard floor and tag with your foot (helpful, when I've had to have 2 hands free). A loud "tap" on a surface with a coin or similar has worked well for me (I learned that trick from Richard McManus at the Fluency Factory), as long as it is audible and consistent. FWIW, I didn't anticipate it, but my ASD child likes the sound of the "click" and it seems to have reinforcing properties.<br />The use of the tagger/clicker as a conditioned reinforcer in TAGteach is great because it's fast and TAGteach emphasizes systematic positive reinforcement (accentuate the positive) not punishment as a behavioral change agent, and that gets a thumbs up in my book, besides your and other reports that it may be more efficient than relying on trial and error with corrective feedback. <br /><br />The process as I understand it is behavioral shaping by successive approximations, which B.F. Skinner demonstrated in his experimental work. It's nice to see it expanded to good use with students.<br /><br />Thanks for the shout out on your symposium Mary, I'll try and swing by.Regina Claypool-Freyhttp://www.precisionteaching.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2537423038299488222.post-68224780570536804702010-05-11T19:41:50.684-07:002010-05-11T19:41:50.684-07:00Hi, Mary,
I had a great talk with Theresa McKeon ...Hi, Mary, <br />I had a great talk with Theresa McKeon at the beginning of the year about TagTeach and children with autism. I think it is great to have a "mixed bag" of approaches in working an ABA classroom with children, but I just can't coordinate using a clicker with the 6 year old I'm working with now. Our Therapy dog is written into her IEP, and I just don't have enough hand s to work the clicker ! With the constant thought of this child bolting, even from a sitting position, I don't think I'll be using the clicker !Jeannie Bolstridgehttp://www.autismdogs.orgnoreply@blogger.com