Association for Behavior Analysis International

Three presentations analyzing the application of TAGteach in the public school setting will be discussed. TAGteach is a technology based on the use of "markers" or auditory stimuli paired with the delivery of reinforcement to teach new behaviors. "TAG" stands for Teaching with Acoustical Guidance and is demonstrated in Dr. Julie Vargas' new book, Behavior Analysis for Effective Teaching. Practitioners of TAGteach argue for its effectiveness in many endeavors across a wide range of populations. One setting TAGteach has demonstrated its effectiveness is in the educational setting. It starts from a point of success for the learner and the teacher, creates positive communication, eliminates nagging, and delivers instant reinforcement; all of which are important skills when working with children with various disabilities and skill deficits. The3 presentations will address the application of TAGteach in the public school setting and examine the fidelity of the implementation of TAGteach for a group of educators who participated in a TAGteach Primary Certification Course.

TAGteach employs the use of teaching with acoustical guidance to shape and reinforce target behaviors. TAGteach has several advantages in that it starts from a point of success for the learner and the teacher, creates positive communication, eliminates nagging, and delivers instant reinforcement. The TAGteach methodology has been used in several fields including management and business, sports, medical, animal training, and education. One of the unique features of the TAGteach training is that individuals with varied backgrounds and education can understand and apply the TAGteach methodology to their specific field immediately after attending the training. Arkansas has been fortunate to have multiple TAGteach trainings focused on applying the principles of TAGteach to the public school setting. Participants attending the trainings range from paraprofessionals to therapists to administrators. This presentation will explore how participants transfer the skills learned in TAGteach to their educational setting. Specific examples, including video examples, demonstrating the use of TAGteach within various school settings will be shared.

This study examined the training of3 behaviors (increasing transitioning speed, increasing accuracy and frequency in midline crossovers and wall taps, and response latency to teacher instruction) in a single subject who has total blindness. TAGteach or Teaching with Acoustical Guidance incorporates the use of a tagger (audible marker) while pairing it with positive reinforcement and shaping in order to quickly teach a vast repertoire of skills to individuals in a variety of populations. An auditory marker, or TAG was employed as a secondary reinforcer for shaping the desired behaviors. The intervention followed the tenets of applied behavior analysis and learning theory. The study was directed by personnel with TAGteach certification. A single case design with A-B-A withdrawal was utilized to implement the intervention, as well as increase the ease of collecting data. The interventions took place in a natural environmental setting where each child's behaviors were ecologically balanced. Thus far, the data indicates that the behaviors could be maintained at a level well above baseline. Data is still being collected and will be completed by presentation time. The implications of these results are discussed.

As with all applied behavior analysis (ABA) interventions, a level of fidelity when using TAGteach is needed to ensure positive outcomes. In the current student, 10 participants attended a TAGteach certification course and earned certification as a primary level TAGteacher. All of the participants work in a public school setting, have varying levels of education (high school diploma to PhD level), and had varying knowledge of the principles of ABA. During the TAGteach certification course, participants learn the TAGteach methodology and participate in several practical experiences to ensure a thorough understanding. Each participant's TAGteach lesson presented at the end of the training was scored by both trainers (Inter-observer Agreement (IOA) was 96%) using 6 of the skills presented during the training as being the key components of a TAGteach lesson. Participants will be observed again 4 to 6 weeks following the training and Functional Interview (FI) data will be collected and compared to the initial data to determine if skills learned in a TAGteach certification course are maintained.