Forward chaining later steps need a written completion plan. The learner performs the first unmastered portion of the chain while a partner supports or completes later steps according to the procedure. The record should show who acted, which prompts occurred, whether the whole routine reached its outcome, and how the client participated. Completed-for-the-learner steps should never be scored as independent learner performance.
Plan forward chaining later steps
Name the current learner-performed prefix, the first teaching step, and every remaining step. The BACB outline distinguishes chaining, prompts, and integrity as examination content. For each later step, state whether a partner models, prompts participation, completes it, or uses another arrangement.
Protect outcome access
Some routines have a meaningful natural result, such as a prepared snack, sent message, finished art project, or ready workspace. The Ethics Code supports client involvement and risk review for covered people. Decide whether completing later steps gives timely access to the result at acceptable effort and duration.
Report authorship accurately
A partner-completed step belongs in a separate category. So does a step completed after a prompt. Whole-routine completion can be reported alongside learner-independent steps, but the two measures answer different questions.
Read the small study in scope
Bancroft and colleagues compared teacher completion, manual guidance, and no completion for untrained steps during forward chaining with seven autistic children. Learning occurred across conditions and efficiency varied. The study cannot decide how another person's later steps should be completed.
A practical example
Elena learns a six-step photo-upload routine. She opens the app and selects the album; a support person completes privacy settings, caption review, and upload confirmation. Data show 2 of 6 independent steps, three partner-completed steps, and one shared confirmation rather than 6 of 6 independence.
Questions families can use
Who completes each later step? Can the client observe or join? Which result becomes available? How long does completion take? Are partner and learner actions reported separately?
Sources
- Association for Behavior Analysis International, Basic Principles in Behavior Analysis
- Behavior Analyst Certification Board, BCBA Test Content Outline, 6th edition
- Bancroft and colleagues, A Comparison of Procedural Variations in Teaching Behavior Chains
- Klett and Turan, Teaching Feminine Hygiene Skills to Young Females With Autism Spectrum Disorder and Intellectual Disability
- Behavior Analyst Certification Board, Ethics Code for Behavior Analysts
- American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, Augmentative and Alternative Communication
Finni resources
