Abstract
The present study investigates effects of class-wide interventions on the class preparation behavior of children with special needs. First-graders (N=16; 7 boys, 9 girls) participated in the study. The intervention was conducted in 1 regular public school classroom. The target behavior was the children's preparation of textbooks and other materials for their classes. The design was baseline, intervention 1, intervention 2, and follow-up. The target behavior was decided after observing the children who showed appropriate class-preparation behavior. During intervention 1, preparation cards that listed the class contents and necessary preparation of textbooks and other materials for the class were shown. During intervention 2 and the follow-up, the children were instructed to raise their hand in response to a “ready” command and a “yes” command for the child in charge for that day. The results showed that the class preparation behavior of the target child, as well as of other children, increased in intervention 2. In addition, in intervention 2, verbal prompts by peers were observed to have an effect. The results suggest that factors in class-wide interventions may influence the occurrence of target behavior in the children in the class.
