Stromer, R., Mackay, H. A., Howell, S. R., McVay, A. A., & Flusser, D. (1996).
Teaching computer-based spelling to individuals with developmental and hearing disabilities: Transfer of stimulus control to writing tasks.
Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis,
29, 25-42.
Computer-based instruction may yield widely useful handwritten
spelling. Illustrative cases involved individuals with mental
retardation and hearing impairments. The participant in Study 1
matched computer pictures and printed words to one another but
did not spell the words to pictures. Spelling was then taught
using a computerized procedure. In general, increases in the
accuracy of computer spelling were accompanied by improvements in
written spelling to pictures. Study 2 extended these results with
a 2nd participant. After initial training, spelling improved in
the context of a retrieval task in which the participant (a)
wrote a list of the names of objects displayed on a table, (b)
selected the objects from a shelf, and (c) returned the objects
to the table. Nearly perfect accuracy scores declined on some
retrieval trials conducted without a list, suggesting that the
list may have served a mediating function during retrieval.
Transfer of stimulus control of computer-based teaching to the
retrieval task may have been attributable to the existence of
stimulus classes involving pictures, objects, and printed words.
DESCRIPTORS: communication, spelling, matching to sample, transfer
of stimulus control, multiple handicaps