Reddit reviews Teaching Language to Children With Autism or Other Developmental Disabilities

Don't worry - it gets much, much more complex and comprehensive!

Skinner's Verbal Behavior was a response to the prevailing idea that language can be explained as an innate ability; that it is instead learned in the same way that other behavior is learned and is sensitive to reinforcement and punishment - same as other behavior. Skinner classified different verbal operants - mands are somewhat synonymous with "requests" and are controlled by an antecedent state of deprivation or satiation and reinforced by the specific consequence of what's being requested (for example, I'm thirsty and I prefer milk...I ask for milk, I get milk. Not thirsty? Not gonna ask for milk or any other fluid, probably.) Tacts are basically synonymous with expressive labels, they are controlled by a nonverbal stimulus (sight of a cat, smell of cookies, feeling your stomach rumble, etc.) and reinforced with generalized conditioned reinforcers...typically praise or some other kind of attention which may lead to other reinforcers... ("that's right" or the continuation of a conversation, "yeah, I'm hungry too, wanna get something to eat?") There are many other kinds of verbal operants, too. Skinner's Verbal Behavior is an amazing resource, but it's incredibly hard to get through. I like this book as a practitioner's/laymen's guide and it's pretty cheap:

http://www.amazon.com/Teaching-Language-Children-Developmental-Disabilities/dp/0981835651

Language is super complex and Skinner's account doesn't cover everything, you can also check out relational frame theory and derived relations, which cover higher-level, more complex verbal behavior.

I have tons of respect for SLPs - you guys know multitudes and do great work. I think both approaches are absolutely necessary. A behavioral understanding of language has helped me troubleshoot many times when a client just isn't picking something up - sometimes you'll be trying to teach a functional skill and realize, oh my god, this kid can't answer yes-no questions about an object because they don't already know what the object is, or they say "say" in front of everything because they've always been prompted "say ____" and we gotta fix that, or this kid doesn't label anything at all because praise has never been established as a reinforcer. Solid foundational knowledge of language from a behavioral perspective helps eliminate bad teaching. We're just in the habit of viewing every single thing humans do as part of a complex system of functional relations; we can't see the brain on a day-to-day basis so we look at what's observable and measurable. Often there is so much more at play than what is plainly visible, but a skilled analyst can find the holes. When we're working together, huge leaps can be made.

I hope that helps to clarify! I love talking about this stuff, so if I can answer anything else please let me know!

Edit: I forgot to add that language serves the same functions as other behavior, with language we can access things we want, escape aversive states or situations, get attention from others, or just have fun with it (automatic reinforcement).

Start with the VB-MAPP. It’s really not that difficult to understand. Buy yourself 1 copy of the workbook and use it as a guide to write individualized treatment plans. Not everything in it is useful for every child though, particularly higher functioning kids so you will need to come up with your own goals as well. Just get out there and start gaining the experience and confidence. You will get there eventually. Also, if you need help studying, The CBA Learning Modules helped me tremendously to pass the test. They are expensive but worth it. Here are some more good resources I found helpful when I was in school.

Teaching Language to Children With Autism or Other Developmental Disabilities https://www.amazon.com/dp/0981835651/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_knMqAbP298N1D

The Verbal Behavior Approach: How to Teach Children with Autism and Related Disorders https://www.amazon.com/dp/1843108526/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_9nMqAbDP5Q2SP

Both of these are fairly easy reads with good information. The second book I have given to parents as part of their training to help them understand basic concepts they can apply at home.