Autism Services are Under Attack, Special Learning, Inc is Leading the Way by Disrupting this Trend Through Systematic Supervision Tool to Redefine Quality ABA

MENLO PARK, Calif., March 13, 2020 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Special Learning, Inc has quietly released their new supervision tool to support Board Certified Behavior Analysts® (BCBA®) Supervisors to systematically streamline Supervision for upcoming Behavior Analyst Students. Prior to this tool, supervision is ad-hoc at best. The tool is directly related to the Behavior Analyst Certification Board® (BACB®) 4th Edition Task List which established the minimum requirements to become a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. The Supervision Milestone Task Analysis Assessment and Monitoring Tool has been in development for nearly 4 years with input from multiple experts in the field of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and expounds on the minimum requirements a supervisee must possess to be a competent behavior analyst.

THE GROWTH OF THE FIELD OF APPLIED BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS

The single greatest constraint to the growth and availability of ABA service is the limited number of Board Certified and Licensed Behavior Analysts in the U.S.

Since the creation of the Behavior Analyst Certification Board (BACB)® in 1998, the number of Board Certified Behavior Analysts® has reached over 40,000. The growth of this profession has been unprecedented in the world of healthcare. When a field is comprised of over 53% of practitioners with less than 5 years of experience, relatively speaking, this profession is even younger than one would assume at face value. As of April 2019, there were nearly 40,000 BCBAs in the world. In 2010, there were 8,500 BCBAs. In 2015, there were 22,000 BCBAs. Soon, we will begin to see the pioneering minds in the field disappear; who's left to fill in the gaps is yet to be defined.

The consequences and implications of this explosive growth is profound! Insatiable market demand for BCBAs has left very little time available for new BCBAs to hone their craft by being the beneficiary of extensive training, supervision and mentoring programs available to those who joined the field when demand was more in line with supply – at least in terms of availability of funds to pay for costly ABA services.

Today, we are experiencing the opposite problem. Demand and funds available to pay for ABA services has completely outstripped the supply of BCBAs. This is leading to potential supervisors with no available time to dedicate to supervision, much less the quality of supervision.

Supervision has always been at the core of the BCBA credential. In addition to the educational degrees and relevant course sequence, supervised fieldwork has been one of the primary – some would say the most important – aspects of developing the skills and knowledge of prospective BCBAs to minimal levels of competency.

HOW THE SUPERVISION TASK ANALYSIS MILESTONE ASSESSMENT MONITORING TOOL FILLS THE NEED FOR THE GROWTH OF THE FIELD

This tool was designed for supervisors to guide supervisees in meeting mastery criteria to become an effective, ethical and competent Behavior Analyst, as is similar with other curriculum-based assessment tools. This project was in development for 4 years with input from many BCBAs® across the world.

The Supervision Milestone Task Analysis Assessment & Monitoring Tool task analyzes (sub-domain) the BACB® Fourth Edition Task List (Task List) and Professional & Ethical Compliance Code for Behavior Analysts ® (PECC) by each Task List Item and creates an automated scoring across each sub-domain. In doing so, the Supervisor can analyze the progress of each of their supervisees with ease. This tool serves 5 functions:

1. Facilitates initial assessment of Supervisee on current skills and level of mastery across Task List items and sub-domains
2. Allows ongoing assessment and monitoring of skill deficits
3. Calculates scoring automatically to assist Supervisor to focus on individualized skill development
4. Provides suggested homework and practical examples for a Supervisee to complete
5. Secures and stores completed detailed records of each Supervisee in one-place (i.e. restricted vs unrestricted and assessment method used as outlined by the Task List)

Most supervisors continue to practice ABA in the field and carry a full client case load, all the while monitoring and shaping the next generation of ethical and competent behavior analysts. This presents some obvious challenges. By using the Supervision Milestone Task Analysis Assessment and Monitoring Tool, hours spent in planning and preparing for supervision sessions will decrease. This, in turn, will increase the supervisor's capacity and efficiency in shaping new professionals to carry out and disseminate the science of ABA. Karen Chung, Founder and CEO stated, "Remember, YOU are the key to the future field of behavior analysis. Your charge as a supervisor is to perpetuate the tradition, dedication and exceptionalism of our foundations to make a socially significant impact on your supervisees, their clients and our global society."

DISCLAIMER:
© Behavior Analyst Certification Board®, Inc. All rights reserved. Reprinted and/or displayed by permission granted in 2019. The most current versions of these documents are available at http://www.BACB.com. Contact the BACB for permission to reprint and/or display this material.
The Behavior Analyst Certification Board ("BACB") does not sponsor, approve or endorse Special Learning, the materials, information or sessions identified herein.

The logos, service marks, certification marks and trademarks "Behavior Analyst Certification Board, Inc.®," "BACB®," "Board Certified Behavior Analyst®," "BCBA®," "BCBA-D™" and "Board Certified Behavior Analyst-Doctoral™," "Board Certified Assistant Behavior Analyst®," "BCaBA®," "Registered Behavior Technician™, and ("RBT®") are owned by the Behavior Analyst Certification Board ®.

For more information about the CE offerings, visit the Special Learning website at https://www.special-learning.com

SOURCE Special Learning