Session data collection is the raw material for everything that follows: the goal graph, supervision decisions, and the report for the family. Data recorded in the moment, using the same standard across the team, is worth more than a detailed description written at the end of the day.

What to record for each trial

A trial is each time the child has the chance to emit the response targeted in that step of the plan. For each one, record the result in one of three categories:

  • Independent: the child responded independently, exactly as the step requires.
  • Prompted: the response only occurred with some type of prompt.
  • Incorrect: the response did not occur, even when the trial was presented.

Record at the moment it happens. Entering everything from memory at the end of the session tends to round performance up or down.

How to record the prompt level

When the response required a prompt, it is worth noting which one. The most common prompts, from most intrusive to least intrusive, are:

  1. Physical: the therapist guides the movement.
  2. Modeling: the therapist demonstrates the response.
  3. Gestural: pointing or another gesture indicates the response.
  4. Verbal: a spoken instruction or cue.

Knowing which prompt was used shows whether the child is moving toward independence, even before the success rate rises.

The step criterion

Each step of the plan has a criterion, agreed upon with supervision. A common format is a minimum number of trials with a number of independent responses, for example "10 trials with 8 independent."

Two recommendations:

  • Keep the criterion visible during the session so the therapist knows how many trials are left.
  • Record when the criterion has been met. The decision to advance the step or mark it as mastered is more secure with this history.

Behaviors and ABC analysis

In addition to the plan's goals, the session usually involves tracking behaviors, such as a behavior one wishes to decrease. For each one, use the collection technique defined by the team:

  • Frequency: how many times it happened.
  • Duration: how long it lasted.
  • Latency: how long it took to start after an instruction.
  • Intensity: the strength, on the scale agreed upon by the team.

When an occurrence requires functional analysis, also record the antecedent (what happened before), the behavior observed, and the consequence (how the environment responded). This ABC data helps supervision form hypotheses about the function of the behavior.

Session notes

Close the session with a short note in objective language: how the child arrived, what changed in the environment, something the next therapist needs to know. Define who the note is visible to: team, supervision, or family.

A quick checklist

  • Did I record each trial at the moment it happened?
  • Did I note the type of prompt when one was used?
  • Did I check the criterion for each step?
  • Did I record behaviors using the defined technique?
  • Did I leave an objective note for the team?

Recording via mobile in Proaba

In Proaba, the session shows the plan's active steps with the criterion alongside, and the therapist records each trial as independent, prompted, or incorrect via mobile. Behaviors use the collection technique chosen for each, ABC analysis stays in the same flow, and what was recorded becomes, without extra work, the plan's graphs and the session PDF.