Self-Assessment

Description of the Strategy

Self-assessment is a self-management strategy designed to improve the quality of student responding, especially when teacheror other-directed assistance is not available. Self-assessment is one of three types of self-management strategies that are taught to and used by students. Self-assessment is defined by behaviors in which students match the dimension of their behavior against a criterion and indicate whether the criterion has been met (through, e.g., self-recording, self-graphing, self-verbalization, report to others). Self-manipulation of antecedent events is defined by behaviors in which students add, remove, or modify antecedent stimuli or variables that affect the likelihood of a behavior being occasioned (e.g., setting a performance goal, reading directions before starting an assignment, putting homework on desk to increase likelihood of submitting on time, asking a friend to call in the morning so the student will get to school on time, verbal cue [“think before I talk”]). Selfmanipulation of consequences is defined by behaviors in which students add, remove, or modify consequence stimuli or variables that affect the likelihood that a behavior will be reinforced or punished (e.g., self-verbal praise or reprimand, access or not to treat or preferred activity).

Self-management in general and self-assessment in particular are important strategies for facilitating generalized responding. When teacher-directed instruction, prompting, or consequences are not available (i.e., generalization settings), self-assessment behaviors offer a means of extending or transferring stimulus control from the instructional to a noninstructional setting.

Cautions and Requirements

Self-assessment has a number of defining features that increase the likelihood of improved academic and behavioral outcomes. First, target or desired behaviors that are being assessed and improved must be in the student's behavioral repertoire. Second, self-assessment behaviors must be taught to fluency (i.e., accurate, smooth, consistent, and appropriate rate). Third, students must be taught to engage in self-assessment behaviors when specific cues (discriminative stimuli) are present. Fourth, self-assessment behaviors must be efficient and contextually appropriate to increase the likelihood that students can do them and that the behaviors are reinforced positively. Fifth, students must be taught the criterion for judging whether their behaviors match the criterion. Sixth, use of self-assessment strategies must be positively reinforced by teachers to strengthen and maintain their use and must be paired with naturally occurring reinforcers that are associated with the target behavior. Finally, fading of selfassessment practices should be based on whether the practice is contextually appropriate and socially valid.

Research Support and Relevant Populations

A long history of research has demonstrated the use of self-management practices in general and selfassessment in particular. Verbal and nonverbal young children, adolescents, and adults have been taught to self-record, self-graph, and self-report information about their behavior. Students with and without disabilities also have benefited from being taught selfmanagement behaviors and strategies designed to improve academic achievement, study skills, and social skills and to decrease a range of problem behaviors (e.g., out of seat, disruptive classroom behavior).

Explanations vary about the mechanism that explains the effects of self-assessment. For example, improved behaviors may be associated with selfassessment practices that enhance the (a) discriminative strength of naturally occurring stimulus conditions (e.g., carrying self-recording cards directs attention to target behavior), (b) reinforcement characteristics of natural consequence events (e.g., self-recording increases strength of contingency between behavior and consequences), or (c) link between behavior displays and more delayed or intermittent reinforcement (e.g., self-recording turning-in-homework completion bridges the delay for homework being graded or increases the reinforcement strength of the delayed consequence).

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