Many times, people see ABA therapy and think Discrete Trial Instruction (DTI). This style of teaching is usually characterized by seated table work, quick repeated questions, and candy or another similar treat as a reinforcer, however ABA is much more than that. Discrete Trial Instruction is one way to teach skills but is not the only way a Behavior Analyst can work on skill acquisition. One other key evidence-based method is Natural Environment Teaching (NET) which can be utilized across many environments because of its flexibility and use of reinforcers. Whereas, traditional DTI uses a script:
(1) task demand - what
color is this?
(2)
a behavior -
either saying the correct color or the incorrect color
(3) a consequence -
a reinforcer (maybe one M&M) for a correct response or a representation of the task demand with a prompt to teach the correct answer
NET uses a modified environment. This method of instruction, by giving a short demand, measuring their ability to do it, and reinforcing the correct answer, can work great for targeted skills, however is not the only method for teaching a skill using applied behavior analysis.
