Discrete trial training (DTT) is a teaching method for children with autism that breaks skills down into simple steps. It involves one-on-one instruction where the teacher provides a clear prompt, the child responds, and the teacher reinforces the correct response. DTT focuses on developing communication, cognitive, social and self-help skills through intensive teaching sessions with reinforcement. While DTT has benefits like maximizing learning, criticisms include that it may lead to prompt dependency and not generalize skills or look natural.

1. Discrete Trial Training
By: Rubylita B. Flores
Imee D. Corpuz

2. Discrete Trial Training
 A method of teaching in simplified steps pioneered by the
work of Dr. Ivar Lovaas
 Involves an ABA expert providing clear instructions regarding
a desired behaviour, once the child responds in an
appropriate manner, the behaviour is reinforce
 Occurs in one on one environment or small groups
 Most widely studied approach for teaching children with
autism

3. Three Distinct Parts
1. Antecedent – a clear, simple instruction provided to
the student
2. Specific behaviour that we expect the student to
perform in response to our instruction
3. Consequence – either positive reinforcement for
correct responses or a correction for incorrect
responses

4. Four Components
1. Presentation of a discriminative stimulus
2. Targeted response approximation
3. Reinforcing consequence delivered
4. Inter – trial interval

5. Techniques Utilize in DTT
Breaking skills into smaller components
Teaching until mastery is achieved
Intensive teaching sessions
Use of prompts in introduced and then faded as
required
Reinforcement strategies are used for skill
improvement

6. DTT Benefits
 Develop communication, play, cognitive, social as well as self – help skills
 Maximize student’s comprehensive and skills in learning
 Task initially short
 Obvious start and finish to each trial
 Motivation through reinforcement
 Teaches new forms of behaviour
 Stimulus control: clear, consistent, repetition, less confusion

7. STEPS
 Deciding what to teach, as well as assessment and
summarizing results
 Breaking skills into teachable steps
 Setting up a data collection system
 Designating materials
 Gathering materials
 Delivery of trials
 Massed trial teaching
 Conducting discrimination training

8. LIMITATIONS
Prompt dependency
Generalization must be programmed – DTT skills are
not transferable to other environment
Labor intensive – demands a great deal from the
teacher

9. Criticisms of DTT
Boring
Doesn’t teach language
Turns kids into robots
Doesn’t look natural