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Overcoming Underachievement in School:Interventions to Promote Executive Skills

(Basis of Intervention)

Ed Link FoundationMay 2006, Manila Pavilion Hotel, Manila

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Objectives

To understand the basis of interventions on Executive

Function Skills in the home, center and the classroom.

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Interventions to Promote Executive

Skills Strategy 1: Intervene at the level of the

environment

Strategy 2: Intervene at the level of theperson

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Intervene at the Level of the

Environment Changing the physical or social

environment

Survey for physical or social impediments tosmooth executive functioning

What can be removed

What can be added

Who are the better fit teachers

Quality of adult supervision

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Intervene at the Level of the

Environment

Changing the nature of the task

Making the tasks: shorter, more explicit

steps, close ended, build in variety/choice,providing scoring rubrics

General rule of modification: type/level of

executive skill demands does not exceed the

students skill that he may need help morethan 25% of the time to complete the task

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Intervene at the Level of the

Environment Changing the way cues are provided

Verbal prompts

Visual cues Schedules

Lists

Audiotaped cues

Pager systems

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Intervene at the Level of the

Environment Changing the way adults interact with

students

Anticipate problems and alter environment Intervene early - before a small problem

becomes big

Reminders can be used to prompt children

Situations can be task analyzed

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Intervene at the Level of the Person Parents/teachers/therapists initially become

the external frontal lobes of the brain

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Intervene at the Level of the Person Motivate skills he has but is reluctant to use

Teach ways to develop or fine tune what

executive skills she needs

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Intervene at the Level of the Person Teaching executive skills

Describe the problem behavior

Be specific, describe those that can be seen orheard

Complains about chores or rushes through

homework making, many mistakes

Not He is lazy. or bad attitude

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Intervene at the Level of the Person Teaching executive skills

Set a goal directly related to problem behavior Paolo will keep his study desk clean and organized

every day.

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Intervene at the Level of the Person Teaching executive skills

Establish a procedure or a set of steps to

reach the goal Usual recommendations: write a checklist, make acalendar

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Intervene at the Level of the Person Teaching executive skills

Supervise the child following the procedure

Remind to begin steps

Prompting child to perform tasks

Observing child as each step if performed

Providing feedback to improve performance

Praising the child as each step if done correctlyand entire task is completed

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Intervene at the Level of the Person

Teaching executive skills

Evaluate the process and make changes

Monitor to identify breakdowns that need to beaddressed

May need to:

Tighten process to add cues

Further break down tasks Let child practice problem solving

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Intervene at the Level of the Person

Teaching executive skills

Fade the supervision

Prompt child for each step but leave the vicinitybetween steps

Get child started, ensure she finishes, move

away as she performs task

Cue the child to start, use the checklist to tick offas each step is completed, report when done

Only prompt use your checklist.

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PARTNERSHIP+ COLLABORATION

+ OPTIMISM______

Successful Learning

Formula

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Reference Dawson P. and Guare R., (2004) Executive Skills in Children and

Adolescents, A Practical Guide to Assessment and Intervention,

The Guilford Press, New York, NY