Date of Award:

5-2015

Document Type:

Dissertation

Degree Name:

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department:

Special Education and Rehabilitation Counseling

Department name when degree awarded

Special Education and Rehabilitation

Committee Chair(s)

Richard P. West

Committee

Richard P. West

Committee

Timothy A. Slocum

Committee

Charles L. Salzberg

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to assess the effectiveness of two interventions used to train instructors to increase PN ratios. The first intervention (workshop training) followed a didactic workshop-training model. The second intervention (coaching) included the components of the didactic workshop model with the addition of modeling, role-play, and performance feedback. In this study four instructors in an after-school program were randomly assigned to one of two groups to participate in training programs. These programs were designed to help them increase PN ratios when interacting with students during homework time in the after-school program. Group 1 received only the workshop training. Group 2 received the workshop training as well as the coaching intervention.

Instructor behaviors were recorded during 15-minute observation sessions, and PN ratios were calculated for each instructor. Student behaviors (engaged, off-task, and disruptive) were also recorded during 20-minute sessions directly following the instructor observations. All observation sessions took place in the context of homework time during regularly scheduled after-school programming at a rural elementary school. The study used an AB/ABC design to assess the successfulness of the two training models. Instructors in Group 1 showed no increases in the frequency of positive interactions or PN ratios. Instructors in Group 2 showed an increased frequency of positive interactions as well as increased PN ratios in the Coaching condition. In the two classrooms where instructor PN ratios increased during Coaching, Engagement was increased and Off-Task was decreased. Levels of student behavior remained relatively unchanged during Workshop Training. Results are discussed in terms of increases and decreases in the frequency of positive and negative interactions as well as the overall increases in PN ratios.

Checksum

bdcca24dca9ada36489e106380ec557b

Download

Share

COinS

Copyright for this work is retained by the student. If you have any questions regarding the inclusion of this work in the Digital Commons, please email us at .