Data Analysis and Decision-making

Throughout an intervention, the team measures the learner’s progress and makes the necessary adjustments. All decisions are based on data collected during and after the intervention. The Intervention Planning Tool can be useful for recording learner performance during teaching sessions, for confirming that goals have been achieved, and for planning the assessment of the maintenance of a newly mastered skill. The team therefore has access to updated information based on the learner’s progress.

To ensure faithful implementation, the person responsible for planning and support should regularly check the learner’s progress and observe the work of the person responsible for implementing the intervention. See the section Coaching and Supporting Staff which describes the ongoing support in greater detail.

Take a look at an excerpt from Jeremy’s Intervention Planning Tool – BST to see how Jeremy’s team recorded their progress and planned the maintenance assessment.

Tracking Progress

Objective Achieved	Date	Initials	Notes
Success criterion for practice exercise	March 31st	BH
SMART goal	April 10th	BH	We will use the token economy system until the end of the school year.

Maintenance Assessment

Date	Person Responsible	Location	Observations and Initials
April 14th	Mrs. Harvey
April 20th	Mrs. Perry
April 27th	Mrs. Harvey
May 11th	Mrs. Harvey
May 25th	Mrs. Harvey
June 8th	Mrs. Perry

This is how Jeremy’s team ensured the fidelity of the intervention:

Observation Tool for Ongoing Coaching: Jeremy

Here are different scenarios, each one allowing you to practice making decisions based on the interpretation of the data. Read carefully and think about the most appropriate decision in each case according to the information provided.

Maggie
IntBST data 01i

Maggie is 5 years old. The CALI – Functional Skills for Independence allowed the team to determine that she should be taught the skill: Respecting the personal space of others. Here is Maggie’s current level data collection sheet.

Objectives

Determine the average duration of a behaviour from observations of the learner’s current level.
Analyze the current level data in order to write a SMART goal.

Questions
Based on the current level data, what is the average length of time that Maggie demonstrates the targeted skill?

Click here to check your answer.

Here is Maggie’s current level data collection sheet with duration data.

Based on this data, how would you complete the Learner's current level and SMART goal sections of the Intervention Planning Tool — BST?

Click here to check your answer.

Learner’s current level
During the four observation sessions, Maggie stayed at least one arm’s length away from her peers 71% of the time on average. She approached others when she wanted to get an item they had.

SMART goal
By March 25, XXXX, Maggie will be able to stay “an arm’s length” away when approaching peers, without a reminder from an adult, 90% of the time.

Melanie

Melanie is 8 years old. The CALI – Functional Skills for Independence allowed the team to determine that she should be taught the skill: Knowing the difference between a stranger and someone you know. The team planned a BST session and started the implementation.

Here is Melanie’s practice exercise data collection sheet.

Objective
Recognize best practices when collecting data (practice exercises).

Question
For each of the three practice sessions, identify the positive aspects and areas for improvement in the team’s data collection and decision-making.

Click here to check your answer.

	Positive aspects	Areas for improvement
Session 1	Mr. Girard indicated the type of prompt he used.	Melanie made a mistake at the very beginning. Mr. Girard could have provided a prompt on the first try to start the session off on the right foot. The session ended with an unsuccessful try. Must make sure to end on a positive note.
Session 2	Mr. Girard indicated the type of prompt he used. The session started and ended on a positive note. Mr. Girard changed the type of prompt and seemed to have had more success with a textual prompt.	Melanie seems to need a lot of prompts to succeed. Mr. Girard might consider increasing the reinforcement he offers to Melanie when she is independently successful in order to increase her motivation to provide independent responses.
Session 3	The session started and ended on a positive note. Melanie is increasingly successful on her own.	According to the success criterion, Melanie must succeed, unaided, for five consecutive tries. Since she was successful only in three consecutive tries, Mr. Girard should continue the practice exercises.

Eve

Eve is 6 years old. Following the CALI – Functional Skills for Independence, the team determined that she should be taught the skill: Waiting your turn. The team planned a BST session and started the implementation.

Here is Eve’s practice exercises data collection sheet.

Objective
Make data-driven decisions.

Question
Based on the information provided in Eve’s data collection sheet, what decision(s) would you make following the December 10 session?

Click here to check your answer.

Possible responses:

Eve seems to have difficulty waiting for her turn at recess. She is, however, able to exercise more patience in the gym. The team could review the first four stages of the BST with Eve in the context of the playground.
In order to increase her motivation, the team could think about the type and intensity of reinforcement given to Eve when she is properly waiting for her turn at recess.
The team could ask a few students to participate in additional practice exercises on the playground to gradually increase the level of difficulty of the task for Eve.
The team could specify the type of prompt chosen to be able to assess its effectiveness.

Jacob

Jacob is 14 years old. The CALI – Functional Skills for Independence allowed the team to determine that Changing the subject or suggesting a new activity when someone seems bored or disinterested is a skill that he needs to perfect. The team planned a BST session and started the implementation. Instructions were given to Jacob on February 3 in Mrs. LeBlanc’s office. Mrs. LeBlanc then modelled three different examples with Jacob. The practice exercises began immediately after the modelling exercises. Here are the data collection sheets for Jacob's practice exercises and natural environment.

Objective
Complete the Intervention Planning Tool based on the information contained in the data collection sheets.

Question
Based on the information you have about the BST process with Jacob, complete the following sections of the Intervention Planning Tool:

Teaching Sessions
Tracking Progress

Click here for a possible response.

Teaching Sessions

Date and Time	Individual(s) Involved	Location	Steps Performed	Notes and Comments
February 3rd 10:00	Mrs. LeBlanc	Office	☑︎ Instruction ☑︎ Modelling ☑︎ Practice Exercise ☑︎ Feedback ☐ Natural Environment
February 4th 1:00	Mrs. LeBlanc	Not indicated	☐ Instruction ☐ Modelling ☑︎ Practice Exercise ☑︎ Feedback ☐ Natural Environment	Success criterion achieved
February 6th	Mrs. LeBlanc	Cafeteria	☐ Instruction ☐ Modelling ☐ Practice Exercise ☐ Feedback ☑︎ Natural Environment
February 13th	Mrs. LeBlanc	Classroom	☐ Instruction ☐ Modelling ☐ Practice Exercise ☐ Feedback ☑︎ Natural Environment
February 20th	Mrs. LeBlanc	Classroom	☐ Instruction ☐ Modelling ☐ Practice Exercise ☐ Feedback ☑︎ Natural Environment
February 24th	Mrs. LeBlanc	Cafeteria	☐ Instruction ☐ Modelling ☐ Practice Exercise ☐ Feedback ☑︎ Natural Environment	SMART goal achieved

Tracking Progress

Objective Achieved	Date	Initials	Notes
Success criterion for practice exercise	February 4th	JL
SMART goal	February 24th	JL

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Data Analysis and Decision-making