A 7-year, 11-month-old, learning disabled boy with attentional problems was taught to self-monitor his on- and off-task behavior by using an audiotape recorder to cue his self-recording. Using a combination of multiple baseline across responses (handwriting and math) and reversal designs, on-task behavior increased dramatically under treatment conditions for both handwriting and math. Academic response rate also increased for handwriting and, especially, math. In an attempt to “wean” the child from possible reliance on the external (tape recorder) signal to self-record, two other treatment conditions were added. The subject was first instructed to self-record without the aid of tape-recorded signals; then, self-recording was discontinued and he was simply to praise himself for being on task. Both conditions led to high levels of on-task behavior and academic output. A one-month followup for math after the experiment found a continued high level of on-task behavior. The relative efficacy of external reinforcement treatments versus more cognitively based approaches such as self-monitoring is discussed.

A reversal design with multiple-baseline features was used to assess the efficacy of self-instructions, self-correction, and a combination of the two on an LD boy's handwriting performance. The boy's presenting problem was very poor handwriting skills. Results indicated that a set of self-instructions designed to provide the student with a strategy for writing appropriately was highly effective, as was a self-correction condition and a condition combining the two treatments. A “booster” was employed to maintain treatment effects.

An 11-year-old LD boy was taught two different strategies, both of which markedly improved his handwriting performance on a paragraph-copying task. The first strategy involved a review of typical rules just prior to copying the paragraph. The rules included reminders about punctuation, staying on the line, and the correct proportioning of letters. The second strategy involved circling quality work on the paper immediately following the handwriting task. Results for the first 72 days of the 81-day study indicated that allowing the student his choice of strategies produced better performance than did teacher-determined choices.

In two experiments, the effects of self-assessment and self-recording were compared as treatments for increasing on-task behavior and academic productivity. In Experiment 1, both procedures caused increases in attention to task and academic productivity for one student, but neither procedure was more effective than the other. In Experiment 2, self-assessment by itself was neither effective in increasing the students' on-task behavior nor their academic productivity. However, the introduction of self-recording after a period of self-assessment resulted in increased on-task behavior, but not increased productivity. Based on these results, self-recording appears to be a more effective procedure than self-assessment for increasing attention to task.

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