Prompt hierarchy
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A prompt hierarchy is an ordered list of support levels, from most to least help or the reverse, used to teach a skill and record independence.
Topic: Measurement and data collection
In plain terms
Common levels include full physical, partial physical, modeling, gestural, verbal and visual prompts, ending with independent. Teams choose most-to-least prompting for new or risky skills and least-to-most for skills the student partly knows. Recording which prompt the student needed is useful data on its own.
How it shows up in an IEP
Goals often include the prompt level in the condition or criterion: "with no more than one gestural prompt." Data sheets that code the prompt for each trial show whether support is actually fading toward independence.
Example
A student learning to wash hands needs a model for step 3, a gesture for step 5 and no help for the rest. The teacher codes M, G and I for each step on the task analysis sheet.
Related terms
- Prompt fadingPrompt fading is the planned, gradual reduction of help so that a student performs a skill independently and does not come to depend on adult prompts.
- Task analysisA task analysis breaks a complex skill into a sequence of smaller, teachable steps that can be taught and tracked one at a time.
- Condition (in a goal)The condition in an IEP goal describes the circumstances under which the student will perform the skill, such as materials, setting or level of support.
- Trial-by-trial dataTrial-by-trial data records the student's response on every teaching trial in a session, usually as correct, incorrect or prompted.
- GeneralizationGeneralization is a student's use of a learned skill in new settings, with new people or materials, and without the original teaching supports.
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