ABA/VBA Program
Development
using the ABLLS-R
All effective ABA/VBA programs are
based on systematic evaluation of the child's abilities and the development of a
structured treatment program. The
ABLLS-R is the foundation for developing our ABA/VBA treatment plans at Reinforcement
Unlimited.
ABLLS-R stands for Assessment
of Basic Language and Learning Skills - Revised.
The ABLLS-R,
is a device for assessing skills in children with language and learning deficits
and is most commonly used when developing a behavioral
program for children in the autism spectrum.
The ABLLS-R has many advantages in guiding the development of a program for a
child with language deficits because it is an assessment, curriculum guide, and
skills tracking system. The ABLLS-R contains a task analysis of the many
skills necessary to communicate successfully and to learn from everyday
experiences.
The ABLLS-R examines 25
categories of behavior across a wide range of skills sets. Skills measured
range from essential abilities like orienting on people and objects to complex
skills like talking about pleasant things that are not immediately present
(i.e., "How was your day?"). The largest subcategory of skills
examined are language abilities with the categories defined by function of language and
not by traditional abstract categorization. While the literature is
crystal clear that increases in communication skills can indirectly result in
decreases in dysfunctional behaviors, the ABLLS-R is not meant to directly
address inappropriate behaviors or dysfunctional behaviors as is done through a
Functional Behavioral Assessment and the subsequent Behavior Intervention Plan.
The overall goal of the ABLLS-R is to refine the level of examination of skills
so that teaching can occur in increments that are manageable and likely to
result in meaningful, and permanent, gains for the child. Therefore, each
of the skills is clearly operationally defined with measurable increments
identified. The hierarchical nature of the ABLLS-R means that, generally,
earlier skills within each category are necessary for the independent and
sustained demonstration by the child of skills later in the hierarchy.
This has a practical impact on the use of the ABLLS-R in that gaps in skills
that occur earlier in each category typically are given higher priority in the
writing of initial goals for the child's treatment program.
In general, behaviorists agree that
direct observation of skills is the gold standard for measuring a person's
abilities. That standard applies, again generally, to the use of the ABLLS-R.
The main mechanism for collection of skills data for completion of the ABLLS-R
should be direct observation by the evaluator of the child demonstrating the
skills in question. However, there are a variety of life circumstances
that can prevent direct observation of the full range of skills assessed via the
ABLLS-R. Therefore, interview of key caregivers is an alternative and
complimentary process that can be used to complete areas of the ABLLS-R which
might be inaccessible for logistical reasons to the examiner. The overall
goal of the ABLLS-R, as with any device, is the accurate summarization of the child's
skills in order to facilitate as accurate and meaningful a treatment program as
possible. The recommendation by the authors, and one that I endorse for
functional reasons, is that when in doubt about the mastery of a skill by the
child the examiner should under-estimate the skill in question. This may
result in attempts to teach skills that the child already possesses, fine.
What it does not do is stress the child unnecessarily by pressing them to
demonstrate skills they do not possess thereby potentially creating an aversive
situation for the child that can negatively impact subsequent therapy.
The end result of the ABLLS-R
assessment, which can take 10-12-14 hours, should be a set of recommendations
that fit the child like a finely tailored suit of clothes. In addition to
being a treatment planning guide, the ABLLS-R is meant to be repeatedly
adminnistered in order to help objectively monitor the child's progress. The ABLLS-R is meant to be redone every 6-12
months in order to fulfill that role as a treatment progress monitoring tool.
Finally, the ABLLS-R is only as
useful as the accuracy of the information that went into completing it and the
skill of the administrator in both completing the ABLLS-R and sorting through
the potential recommendations for future goals. While it is popular to say
that anyone can complete an ABLLS-R, it has been our experience that without an
understanding of the behavioral principles underlying it the resulting profile
is less accurate and informative. We recommend that the ABLLS-R be
completed by someone who is likely to be objective about a child and their
abilities who also has significant experience with children with language delays
and other behavioral deficits commonly associated with autism spectrum
disorders. It has been our experience that the resulting profile is more
likely to be a good fit with the child and the resulting recommendations much
more likely to hit essential core skills that when addressed will have the
greatest impact on the child's life in the shortest timeframe.
We hope that this brief overview of
the ABLLS-R has been informative and helpful.
If you have any questions about the
ABLLS-R, how we at Reinforcement Unlimited use it, training
on the ABLLS-R offered at our clinic, or anything related to our services
please do not hesitate to contact
us or call us at 770-591-9552.
Thank you.
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