We ask students, parents and care givers what their goals are for participating in our program.  Each year we follow up with having them rate us on how their student progressed towards their goals, ask what they think the strengths of our program are, ask how we can improve our service as well as for any additional comments.  Below is the response of one parent over the past three years and comments from the instructor for that class.

Parent Goals Fall 2008 Follow up April 2009

1) Improve ability to sequence motor functions

2) Improve body awareness

3) Improve ability to participate in group activity

On this sheet the parent rated very satisfied for each goal on a 5 point scale between very satisfied and very dissatisfied

Question 1. Please tell us how you feel the amount of classes attended affected your student's achievement:

Once per week was often enough for her to retain and build upon skills presented previously.

Question 2. Please tell us what you think the strengths of the M.A.T. program are: Instructors ability to work around/minimize students' distracting habits while making significant instructional progress.

Question 3. Please tell us what areas you would like to see M.A.T. improve in: Verbal instruction is often above my child's receptive language skills, but she usually picks up the moves visually.

Question 4. Please add any remarks: The class is great! In a short time, my child has progressed to participating in a group activity for an entire hour.

Parent Goals April 2009 Follow up September 2009

1) Appropriate participation in a group activity

2) Improved motor planning skills

3) Maintain attention to follow multi-step directions

On this sheet we changed our scoring system fro satisfied to a 1-10 scale with 1 being low and 10 being high. We were given an 8 for the first two goals and a 6 for the third goal.

Question 1. Please tell us how you feel the amount of classes attended affected your students' achievement:

Consistent attendance positively affected her retention of the rules and routines.

Question 2. Please tell us what you think the strengths of the M.A.T. program are:

- High expectations

- Clear explanation and demonstration of kicks, etc.

- Firm, but positive, correction

Question 3. Please tell us what areas you would like to see M.A.T. improve in:

Most of the test questions are far beyond her language abilities.

Question 4. Please add any remarks:

Considering where she began, she has made great progress toward the three goals listed above.

Parent Goals September 2009 Follow up October 2011

1) Follow multi-step directions

2) Group participation with less prompting

3) Right and left distinction

On this feedback sheet we were graded a 7 on the first goal an 8 on the second and a 5 on the third goal.

Question 1. Please tell us how you fell the amount of classes attended affected your students' achievement:

Once per week is appropriate and sufficient for retention and progress.

Question 2. please tell us what you think the strengths of the M.A.T. program are:

Instructors ability to work with students of varied abilities as a group, high expectations for fitness and active participation, peer mentoring.

Question 3. Please tell us what areas you would like to see M.A.T. improve in:

My child's inability to count affects her ability to perform moves correctly.  Naming the expected action three times might be more effective than counting to three.

Question 4. Please add any remarks:

Very satisfied with class. My child consistently performs at a higher level than I thought possible.

Instructor Reicher's comment

When training new staff, contractors or volunteers I was always amused at how I would introduce this particular student.  When standing still in line she appears to be a sensitive sweet little girl with pig tails, a big smile and all.  I would have to let them know that interactions with this student provided an example of what to expect during a Martial Arts Therapy class when it comes to safety.  This was not because she was malicious but due to her having no idea of her own spatial or body awareness.  If the class was moving she was going to move with us.  A reoccurring instance of this may be when I ask everyone in line to do a palm strike, then I act as a partner by providing each student with an entrance to perform the technique, and as I approach her, I observe that she uses any given variation of movement including arms and legs.

There have been times when people observed our class and have stated we are teaching above our students comprehension.  Our response has been; we prefer to focus on repetition especially that of physically modeling and asking questions.  It is up to us to provide the correct expectation of the skills we teach.  She is not unsuccessful because due to her performing physical movements other than the instruction given, she's considered to be successful because she demonstrates active participation, social partnership, and modeling skills to the best of her ability.

M.A.T. classes function on our efficiency of bridging martial arts study and working toward parent/caregiver goals with underlying hidden ADL's.  We use behavioral shaping techniques and tactile reinforcements to build physical and cognitive responses to class activities.  This makes for a fun environment where students have the ability to feel a sense of accomplishment while we strive to make it as realistic as possible.