Your professionalism is evaluated daily at your practicum site. This includes arriving on time, implementing discrete trial sessions as scheduled, maintaining appropriate attire and language, and accepting feedback professionally. Your grade may be affected by inappropriate behavior. The expectations aim to ensure you conduct yourself professionally and provide quality services to clients.

1. Professionalism
Your session supervisor evaluates your professionalism daily. Professionalism directly reflects
your performance in the practicum itself. Feedback will be given on an as needed basis. Your
grade will be affected if you engage in inappropriate behaviors at the practicum site.
This list is not all-inclusive and may be updated to meet the needs of the practicum.
Arrived on time: 8:30/10:30/12:30 (3pts per day)
Took reinforcer bin to assigned booth (3pts)
Brought pencil, child's procedure book, and materials to booth (3pts)
Did not miss any phase changes (one point for each)
Went to wait for child's bus to arrive (3pts)
Implemented ADLs as scheduled and as described in the course pack (3pts)
Left all unnecessary materials away from child and out of the discrete trial session (keys,
coffee, pop, etc.) (3pts)
Prompts child while they participate in scheduled activities (i.e., speech) (3pts)
Worked until end of session 10:30/12:30/2:30 (3pts)
Did not leave child unattended (any time) (3pts)
Cleaned booth after session (threw away trash, picked up food, returned child’s book) (3pts)
Followed dress code (including not showing underwear while sitting) (3 pts)
Wore reinforcer apron and ID badges (3pts)
Used icon ring (3pts)
Blew the whistle on a procedure correctly/timely (3pts)
Implemented feedback given during discrete trial sessions or seminar sessions (will vary)
Behaved professionally when interacting with the classroom teacher, supervisors, aides,
parents, peers, and other WoodsEdge staff (will vary)
Accepted feedback professionally and appropriately (eye contact, asked for suggestions,
etc.) (will vary)

2. • All practicum students are subject to the rules and regulations of Kalamazoo Regional
Educational Services Agency (KRESA). – For instance, verbal or physical abuse will not
be tolerated. If a WMU student engages in verbal or physical abuse of any kind, then the
student will be terminated as a staff member of KRESA and the WMU student must drop the
course. If it is too late to drop the course, then the WMU student will receive an “E” for the
course.
• Implement DTT as instructed – Teaching the child in your own way is NOT professional.
We are providing instructions and feedback to practicum students based on the research
results and years of experiences in teaching children with autism. If you have disagreements
in the way that we conduct training, please talk to your TA. We are open to your suggestions.
• Dress Code - WoodsEdge is a professional site and you are expected to adhere to the dress
code. Your clothes should look appropriate for the parents of the children and any related
professionals including teachers, occupational therapists, school nurses, school psychologists,
etc. You will lose 3 professional points for wearing inappropriate clothes at WoodsEdge. Be
aware that what you may consider “appropriate” may be “inappropriate” from their
perspectives.
o Examples of acceptable attire: clean, dark jeans, khakis, casual dresses and
skirts, sweatshirts, tennis shoes, and sandals (with backs).
o Examples of unacceptable attire: Any dirty, torn, patched, or stained clothing,
cut-offs, beach wear, low-cut shirts, bare-midriff shirts, stretch pants or leggings,
short skirts or shorts ("Daisy Dukes"), anything with writing on it, and clothing
worn inside out or backwards.
o Do not wear T-shirts with contents inappropriate for an educational setting (sex,
drugs, alcohol, etc.), or with any writing.
o Do not wear any clothes that do not cover your underwear or private parts of your
body. (Low-rise jeans may be inappropriate if someone can see your underwear
when you bend over.)
• Language - Use school-appropriate language. Remember that you are working at a public
school. Using swearwords, making negative comments, and talking about parties and who
you’re dating are NOT appropriate. Choose appropriate topics at school. Believe it or not we
actually see a fair amount of this….even in front of children and parents.
• Accepting feedback is a large part of professionalism at WoodsEdge. We are open to
suggestions as you will become very aware of the strength and weaknesses of your child,
however we ask that you are respectful in both receiving feedback as well as addressing any
issues with your child or supervision.