Data Collection Procedure - Essay Example

PROJECT Prof’s Observation s The observation was done on three male agedbetween 17 years to 20 years, they were X, Y and Z. I observed each student twice every week for a period of five weeks. The observation was based on three parameters per student. They primary aspects that I was looking at in the research were behavioral and communication skills. After making the observation, I recorded the number of times each student repeated the observable behavior on checklist and on a tally sheet. I observed undesired behaviors and desired behaviors and recorded them in a score sheet. Additionally, I recorded the observed behavioral and communication skills on a checklist. I observed that in each session that the student had, it improved his behavioral and communication skills. Observation requires attention; I took a period of about an hour to observe each student. In the process, I kept involving the student to ensure their attentiveness and reduce chances of boredom. Some activities were physical activities that included doing puzzles and job activities or super brain exercises which encouraged communication and interaction as well as developmental activities such as Webber Photo Cards and Jenga game. Data collection procedure During data collection, I used the tally sheets to check on their behaviors both the desired and undesired. To enhance accuracy, I assigned a score sheet to each student where I recorded their outcome for every session. To ensure consistency of data, I held meeting twice every week for a period of five weeks with each session being one hour long. In the undesired tally sheet, it had four behaviors I was supposed to observe in each student. The first thing that I was checking was the capability of a student to pay attention. In this, I wanted to identify and then record on a tally sheet the number of times a student failed to pay attention in an ongoing procedure or activity. If in a day a student failed to pay attention three times, I would tally thrice for that student that day. The second thing I was checking was the number of times the student went off the allocated task. My observation was therefore based on the tendency of a student to leave the task for other activities. I recorded data for three sessions in a week for five weeks. Additionally, I also checked for the student’s incomplete work behavior and out-of-seat behavior during all the sessions that I had with them for the whole duration. As for the behaviors, I was looking out for the desired behavior presented by each student in every session for five weeks. The first desired behavior that I was looking for is the number of times the specific student followed instructions to the letter during the assigned activities. In every session, I noted the number of times each student followed the recommended procedure while carrying out the activities and recorded in their tally sheet. I was also checking for any instances where the student came out and asked for help. I dedicated time and effort to check if the students were able to transit from one activity to another. I observed the number of times they were unable to transit and recorded on the tally sheet. Finally, I checked if the student was able to remain busy during the whole activity. I recorded the number of times the student managed to remain busy during the whole study period. Concerning observation, I was now left with a checklist for each student that I was supposed to look for behavioral and communication skills in each student in every session that they presented themselves. In the checklist, I indicated the name of each student as well as their age. It required that I fill in every session that I had with the student, twice every week for a period of five weeks. My primary aim was to check if the student could cooperate with their peers, follow any instructions given, maintain an eye contact, take turn when it was time, control their voice, ask questions where they were not sure, show excitement, be in a position to practice safe and appropriate work habits and capability to return material to proper place that they were supposed to be in. Against each behavior, there was a space where I was expected to fill the number of times that each student displayed the behavior. The data I collected was analyzed and presented in form of bar graphs with each of them conveying a different message from the rest. The information contained was concerning the desired and undesired behavior for each student and their behavioral and communication skills. The data showed that with time, the student were able to improve their behaviors for the better. For example, if a student had shown certain undesired behavior at the beginning, they improved with time. The student’s communication skills became appealing with time. The improvement can be attributed to teamwork and interaction with their peers. According to the reviewed literature, curing autism is difficult but interventions can be put in place to improve the undesired behaviors. Through working together, the clients identified with autism disorder are able to learn from each other and improve their behaviors collectively. The aspect of teamwork enables one to improve their communication skills and their behaviors as demonstrated in the data collected (Law, 2006). The data shows that as time lapses in the process of the client interacting with like peers, they are capable of improving. The analyzed data showed that the tendency of not paying attention reduced each day the students had an interactive session. Interactive sessions were what these students needed most. It was after the interactive sessions that the students were able to communicate among themselves and with their teacher. They gained the courage to ask questions where they thought they were not sure. Although their communication skills were poor at the beginning, as time went by they were able to improve (Law, 2006). The students were now able to maintain an eye contact during which boosted their attention. The second objective of research was that a peer-mediated school intervention significantly improved the social skills and playground interactions of children with autism spectrum disorder. According to the reviewed literature, student with autism find it easy to interact with their peers in the various activities that they engage in and especially the ones taking place in an open environment. The student’s interaction capabilities improved the more they interacted with their peers. They will with time freely interact with each other and share ideas (Law, 2006). According to the data obtained, all students; X, Y and Z improved their cooperation with peers after every week of interaction. According to objective of effectiveness of a workplace training program for improving social, communication and emotional skills for adults with autism and intellectual disability in Hong Kong, was is a challenge for children with autism to work together. Most autistic persons remain unemployed because they are unable to form groups where they can interact with their peers (Law, 2006). However, with time they get used to each other and adapt a tendency of interacting and working together. From the data gathered and analysis done, the problem facing those suffering from Autism can be addressed through ensuring they work together. There was consistent encouragement on the student to adapt safe and appropriate work habits in their workplace and in the process accord a lot of value to interactions. Initially, it was hard but with time they learned and improved. They also followed the set instructions during their activities and remained busy working all hours. When children with autism were given a chance to carry out an activity of their choice, they actively engaged in different activities with each of them according the activity high concentration. According to the reviewed literature, it is not only children with autism that acts freely but the same would happen if any person was given freedom (Law, 2006). The communication skills among the teenagers were sharpened during their activities. The results analyzed showed that the student carried out the activities with excitement, they took a turn, controlled their voice and after their activities they returned materials to the proper place. When they were given a choice, the students were able to follow directions in the course of the activities and were able to complete the assigned tasks. Initially, the teenagers were unable to properly engage in the activities of their choice, but their skills improved each from session to session. When they came for the last session, these students showed improved communication and behavioral skills. This is bearing in mind the fact that each student had a choice of how to carry out the task and the tasks to carry out. It came out that if they were given a choice, they would prefer to remain on their seats and still complete their activities. However, the behavior disappeared along the sessions. Autism is an ailment that limits multiple abilities in an individual. However, occupation therapy seeks to help the student develop skills that will help them live a normal life as others. For any improvements in communication skills of children with autism, social interaction must be a consideration. The sessions for this research enabled the children to develop skills including keeping an eye contact, transiting between activities and cooperation with peers among others. However, the children needed considerable amount of time for them to develop the skills. When they were set free from the sessions, they portrayed improved behavioral and communication skills. Reference Law, M. (2006). Autism spectrum disorder and occupational therapy. Ontarario: Canadian Assosiation of Occupational Therapists. Read More