Errors typically occur on the same step(s) of the task analysis

As my junior high daughter would say, "This is a no-brainer!"  If a student is making the same error consistently, without improvement than there is something about that/those steps which are causing difficulty.

Potential Remedy

Research has indicated that students can often learn to do a difficult part of the task analysis through the completion of "mass trials" on that task.  That is, rather than having only 1 opportunity to do a particular step with each time through the task analysis,  the instructor sets up the situation so that the student does the difficult step, in isolation from the rest of the task analysis 5 or 6 or however many times necessary to learn that step.  It could also be that preceding steps cause the student to go off task, or the student hesitates at a step because she doesn't want to do the one following it.  Your data will tell you which of these is the case.

You can email Dr. McNair at jmcnair@calbaptist.edu

Copyright Jeff McNair/jeffmcnair.com