Beyond Skills - Concept Development
Gerald Harris and Joyce Olson
What is the difference between a concept and a skill?
Skill: An ability to do a learned physical task
Concept: The understanding of something, the idea or mental representation of it.
CONCEPTS VS. SKILLS
Skills - Concepts
Ability - Understanding
(to do) (what & why)
Making Sense of the World
A skill is the ability to perform a task. Concepts provide the understanding of "why" we are doing the task. For example, a student can learn to load the dishwasher, but do they understand why they are doing it? Does the individual have an understanding that only dirty dishes go in the dishwasher? How do we know if it's dirty? What is clean? Why is it important to know the difference?
Learning concepts, not just skills helps the student with Deafblindness make sense of all parts of life.
Skills relate to abilities to do things, while concepts relate to understanding what you are doing and why.
A BAD EXAMPLE: Nicole and the Test Tubes
We once designed a wonderful routine for a student in Middle School.
The student was totally blind, had a moderate hearing impairment, stood and walked with assistance, had good receptive understanding of object cues and some understanding of tactile sign, and her formal expressive communication with object cues was just beginning.
The routine was cleaning test tubes and beakers for science in her classroom. We were very proud of it.
The routine was excellent in: being functional - it worked on educational goals for mobility, gross and fine motor, interaction with classmates, vocabulary building (particularly for concepts “wet/dry” and “dirty/clean”), it performed a service; and it was inclusive, bringing Nicole into the classroom participating in a purposeful way.
She had responsibilities in: getting the cleaning brush, meeting her helper, walking to the sink, standing at the sink, getting the soap, filling basins with warm water, taking beakers from a bin, washing, rinsing, handing to classmate for drying, putting dry beakers on a tray, and putting away her materials.
Do with, not for. Start-Middle-End. It was excellent, but a member of our staff pointed out one large and terrible problem: NICOLE HAD NO IDEA WHAT IT WAS ALL ABOUT.
Nicole was supposed to be a little robot that plugs in and does her job. It made no sense to her, so why should she care about it or have any motivation to learn?
Nicole’s classmates would not have had the same difficulty making sense of the task. They saw and heard the test tubes being used, saw the experiments, understood what the materials were used for, had personally used them, and knew they would need them clean for next week.
For students with Deafblindness there can be a huge gap between skills and concepts, abilities and understanding. Nicole might possibly have developed lots of skills while totally lacking any concept of what she was doing and why.
Why Do Concepts Matter?
Motivation: When something makes sense, it is more motivating because you know why you are doing the activity. Being a participant in life is intrinsically motivating. There is satisfaction in the many little cycles that make up our lives (such as wearing and washing clothes; making, eating and cleaning up food, etc.)
Problem Solving: When something goes wrong, the robot just stops, while the person with the concepts may solve the problem.
Transfer & Generalize: What if it is a different washer in a different setting? A different laundry routine in a new house? If the student has concepts they can quickly adjust to the new situations.
Strategies for Concept Development
1. Participate in Whole Cycles of Activities
When does laundry really make sense? It makes sense when you have got your own shirt unmistakably dirty, identified it as “dirty”, taken it off, washed and dried it, identified it as “clean”, and put it on again. It is important for the student with deafblindness to be given opportunities to participate in the whole cycle of laundry. What are some other natural cycles?
2. Base Curriculum in Activities that “Make Sense” to the Student
Students are most motivated to learn in activities that are meaningful to them, in which they have some larger understanding to provide context to the activities.
Activities can “Make Sense” (be meaningful) because they:
- fulfill personal needs (like eat, toilet, dress, go home, shop)
- are fun (like swimming, band class, sensory games)
- enable the student to participate with other kids (like buddy reading, gym and recess)
- are of service to others in real life (like setting table, laundry, taking attendance)
3. Analyze the Concepts as well as the Skills in Activities
eg. Laundry may be about: wet/dry, hot/cold, in/out, dirty/clean.
4. Attach Language to All Participation
All concepts are carried by language. Use a total communication approach (multi-mode). Model the language that goes with the concept even if the student doesn't know the word. A sighted, hearing child hears words hundreds of times before they attach meaning to them. A child with deafblindness needs the same opportunity and exposure to language before it becomes meaningful; the difference is they may need thousands of repetitions to make the same associations between the word and the action or the concept it represents.
eg. Laundry is about: “put in”, “take out”, “shirt wet”, “shirt dry”, “red sock”, “same”, etc.
5. Use Teachable Moments
A moment when the student is fully interested in something is a moment when concepts can sink in.
Be always on the lookout for those moments, and give the language for them.
eg. Student falls in the puddle and has a wet and muddy shirt that is really bothering him. This is the perfect teachable moment for “dirty” and “clean” in the real world experiences of the child.
6. Total Communication Approach
Use body language, facial expressions, touch cues, objects, sign, voice, pictures, whatever works to help your student understand. Remember, a student may get partial information from each of several modes.
7. Generalize Concepts to Many Situations
eg. if student is learning to “put in” laundry, what are ten other moments in the day when “put in” also occurs?
Encounter the same concept in many places.
8. Start with Concrete, Functional Concepts (eat, ball, stand) Before Abstract Concepts (red, three, yes)
It is easier to learn the labels for for an action or an object and the functional use of an object, than it is to learn more abstract concepts, because the child can actually touch the object and interact with it. Once the student has the understanding that objects and actions have names, then it will be easier for to learn the more abstract concepts such as attributes (big / little, colour, shape), directions (up / down, here / there), positions (over / under, in / out), emotions, time, manners, etc.
Summary
Any Activity
Skills
Concepts Language
For any activity, people need to think about both the skills and the concepts, and to provide the student with language for them.
A GOOD EXAMPLE: C. and Bella Biscuits
Making sense of his world is particularly difficult for C. who is totally blind, profoundly deaf and has a seizure disorder.
We had a hard time developing educational routines for C. because his mom insisted that they must mean something to him. We tried to develop routines in recycling, vacuuming, and plant care, but his mom always asked, “What sense will this make to him?” We couldn’t answer.
C. got a trained companion dog, named Bella, who was permitted to be at school with him. She gave us an idea that really did make sense to C. We said, “What if C. regularly makes biscuits for Bella, and feeds one to her?” Thus the idea of Bella Biscuits was born.
C. can understand what all the parts are for: mixing, baking, bagging, set-up and clean-up. He understands “food for Bella”.
The team used the activity to work on all of his educational goals (fine and gross motor, communication, choosing, social interaction) because the activity fundamentally makes sense to him. He got the basic concepts.
Concrete Experience Vs. Abstract Learning
To “make sense” of the world, the child needs experience with real objects and real actions in real life. Concepts are learned best engaging in real life.
Measuring Concept Development
How do we know when students get concepts?
With skills it is relatively easy. Eg. Independently lifting the yogurt container out of the lunch kit - a skill - the student does it or doesn’t. Skills are easier to measure because they relate to physical actions.
How do we ever know whether a student understands what he is doing, as opposed to shuffling automatically through a learned sequence of actions?
WAYS TO ASSESS CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT:
1. Observe Positive or Negative Responses by Child.
eg. A. overheard his Intervenor say the word “switch” to another person, smiled and made the body motion for activating his switch.
eg. B. smiled and gazed intently when the picture of his mom was put on the light box.
What concepts do A. and B. probably understand?
2. Observe Appropriate Responses Outside of the Normal Context.
eg. J., at his calendar box, put the object cue for “snack” into his mouth, but none of his other object cues.
eg. A. could “find” his red Art “shirt” with his gaze at the start of Art period even when it was not in its characteristic spot in the Art room.
What concepts do J. and A. probably understand?
3. Observe Consistent or Frequent Responses to Things.
eg. M. will turn her head to touch her vibrating caterpillar whether it is offered to her right or her left, rather than a jar of bubbles offered on the other side.
eg. C. will push off her bed any stuffed toy that is not her Clifford.
What concepts do M. and C. probably understand?
4. Test for Use of Skill in New Setting.
eg. A. will try to bring his “Arms in” at doorways on request anywhere.
eg. C. will get upset if you sign “bath” or “bed” when he is at school.
What concepts do A. and C. probably understand?
5. Observe “Wrong” Use of Calendar System.
eg. N. often skips the first two slots in her calendar box and grabs the object cue for “music”. When you correct her she goes right back to it.
eg. B. resists putting his “Play” symbol in the “Finished” box.
What concepts do N. and B. probably understand?
6. Teach the Student Specific Skills to “pick up”, “give”, “go to” a named object so he can show you on request.
eg. Setting the table, M. can “give” his mom a “spoon” or a “fork” on request.
eg. B. can “pick up” red, yellow, or blue objects on request.
What concepts do M. and B. probably understand?
Theory Into Practice
Concept Development
Gerald Harris – Consultant
Watering Plants
The student is learning “wet” and “dry” as part of his job with plant watering. The concept can be learned as part of a real and purposeful task of caring for plants.
a) He feels the soil and it is “wet”.
- He gives the symbol for “wet” to his Intervenor, signs “wet”, and does not water the plant.
b) He feels the soil and it is “dry”.
- He gives the “dry” symbol to his Intervenor, signs “dry” and then gives the plant water.
This is learning within a meaningful activity, an example of learning by doing.
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