Annual Activity Report 2010

Dissemination of Methods for Delivering Efficient, Cost-Effective, Evidence-Based Behavioral Technology

7. Behavioral Technology Delivery Systems.

This Institute program aims at the development of solutions with adequate cost-benefit ratio for demands for ample dissemination of evidence based procedures to teach symbolic repertoires. Procedures for computerized individualized teaching that showed validity and feasibility in small scale tests in natural environments are now being transposed for large scale tests. One of the main developments at the Institute in 2009 was de software Platform Gerenciador de Ensino Individualizado por Computador (GEIC, Manager of Computerized Individualized Teaching). Research on the evaluation of the viability of application of the teaching programs on reading and writing in this new mode and in large scale is being conducted using this platform. It involves 10 schools and more than 400 students which will generate data on more than 4000 teaching sessions; the global data collected in 2010 will yield a reliable analysis of the system’s viability. If the evaluation is successful, access to the program modules will be extended for use in the classrooms. Along the same line, curriculum modules will be designed and evaluated for the teaching of Mathematics as well as for distance audio rehabilitation (under the supervision of speech therapists and parents) for cochlear implant users.

Publications: References of Journal Articles, Books and Book Chapters
Details of research methods and results obtained during the period covered by this report are described in published and in press reports (papers, books, and book chapters), listed below (and also in master’s theses and doctoral dissertations listed in the Academic Program section). The papers’ full texts are available at http://www.ufscar.br/ecce. Extended abstracts of selected papers are presented in the Appendix.
Figure 3 shows the frequency distribution of publications: 59 journal articles (36 in Brazilian journals; 23 in International journals), five books, and 14 book chapters. The average number of articles for researcher (n=24) was 2.45 and average of all items was 3.25.

Figure 3. Distribution of published and in press articles, books ad book chapters during the project´s first year (2009-2010).

These numbers do not include publications of participants from the UMMAS, unless they were co-authored by Brazilian participants, nor papers published in 2009, but dated as earlier than 2009 (in cases of  a journal’s schedule being late). Compared to previous publications rates of this group (data available in the original proposal, p.115) the percentage of published papers was 61.5 % higher than the average during the period between 1998 and 2008 (19.2 per year) and 24% higher than the average (25) in 2006 – 2007.  Based on the number of in press (26) and submitted articles (15), and on the commitment of the Institute members in submitting papers in preparation along this year, we estimate a larger increase in the publications rates for the next year. The Institute is also committed to looking for an increase in publications in international journals.

The following list of references of articles and books presents published items and in press items separately.