THE USE OF ERRORLESS LEARNING PROCEDURES IN TEACHING PEOPLE WITH A LEARNING DISABILITY: A CRITICAL REVIEW

Abstract

The use of procedures which minimise the making of errors is a popular method of teaching skills to people with learning disability. The origin of this approach can be traced to two distinct sources: the work of B.F. Skinner on programmed learning, and the work of H.S. Terrace on discrimination learning. This early work is reviewed and research findings which highlight the negative side affects of an ‘errorless’ approach are discussed. The role of prompting, attention, reinforcement and generalisation is outlined. Recommendations for the development of teaching programmes are made.