I almost missed it - ten years ago today...
Ten years ago today, I embarked upon this strange and wonderful journey. It was the day I started my training in Lovaas-style Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA). I was one member of a five-person team of therapists who would be coming in to the family's home to work with their three-year old son. He would be scheduled for over 40 hours per week, so
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ABA is incredibly intensive and unnatural. Here's a bit more information for you, since you seem interested. :)
Imagine doing that stuff for 40 hours per week, two hours at a time, when you're three years old (or younger; I once worked with a two-year old).
Doing the programs doesn't usually take long, but they can be incredibly boring.
Here's how a drill (one sitting of a program) goes, when a new item is being introduced. We'll do Receptive Labels. For fun, this kid is a fast learner.
Therapist sitting on one side of the table, student on the other. There is a toy car on the table. Therapist holds out one hand, palm up.
Therapist: Give car.
Therapist uses free hand to take student's hand, places student's hand on car, picks up car, and places car in open hand.
Therapist: Good job! That's the car!
Therapist gives student a candy and replaces the car on the table. When student is finished eating the candy, therapist holds out one hand, palm up.
Therapist: Give car.
Therapist waits for a count of three to see if student will make a move independently. In this case, student picks up car and places it in therapist's open hand.
Therapist: Good job! That's the car!
Therapist gives student a candy and replaces the car on the table. When student is finished eating the candy, therapist holds out one hand, palm up.
Therapist: Give car.
Therapist waits for a count of three to see if student will make a move independently. In this case, student picks up car and places it in therapist's open hand.
Therapist: Good job! That's the car!
Therapist gives student a candy and replaces the car on the table. When student is finished eating the candy, therapist holds out one hand, palm up.
Therapist: Give car.
Therapist waits for a count of three to see if student will make a move independently. In this case, student picks up car and places it in therapist's open hand.
Therapist: Good job! That's the car!
Therapist gives student a candy and takes quick data on the data sheet: P+++ 3/4 75%. When student is finished eating the candy, therapist says, "Go play." Student gets up from table and engages in activity of choice.
If, later on, the student performs inadequately, the therapist begins the "No-No-Prompt" routine, in which the student gets the wrong answer and is told "No" in a non-committal tone of voice and is then given the same command again. If the student again gets it wrong, there is another "No" and the therapist prompts immediately on the third trial (command). Then there is one more trial, to see if the prompt triggered the correct response in the student.
All commands are given in an authoritative manner; all praise is hyper-enthusiastic, and all "No"s are done in a non-committal tone of voice.
For 40 hours per week.
With preschoolers.
Meanwhile, it's possible to teach all of this stuff to autistic kids while playing with regular toys in a more typical manner. A few things require that isolation, but not all of them.
ABA is good teaching. It's good parenting. But in the therapy setting, it's not very much fun and it can be abusive and damaging for the child.
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Initially, I had no problem with it. And I was a very good therapist. But over time, as I got to know more kids and adults, I realized what I was doing.
There are other types of ABA out there, but the ones I've had training in are just as disrespectful of the child and the Lovaas type I described here.
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