Generalization can be achieved only when an individual can perform a skill in conditions other than that of acquisition. As teachers, when teaching a student to generalize, it is very important that we vary instruction, change the environment and stimuli, as well as have a variety of people teaching the skill to help our students access their skills across a multitude of environments.
Consider this case:
An aide in the classroom has been teaching a student how to button her jacket. The child's mother has provided the aide with 3 different jackets - all winter coats with large buttons. After 3 weeks of practice, the child has mastered the skill. After hearing about the student's huge accomplishment, the teacher decides to give the child a pair of jeans to button to reinforce her for her mastery in the newly acquired skill. The child puts on the jeans, but is unsuccessful with the button. What the aide have done differently to prevent this situation from occurring?
1 comment:
The aids should have used a number of clothing items with buttons to practice with. This would teach the student that there are different types of buttons on different types of clothing. Sometimes buttoning a pair of jeans is more challenging than buttoning a jacket. And what about various shapes of buttons: square, oblong, triangular... Using a variety of clothing items would teach the student to generalize the skill of buttoning rather than just buttoning a jacket.
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