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35 feature. Compare, for example, these two practices:
PERCENT OF CITATIONS 25 and environments
Practitioners consider Universal Design
30
for Learning principles to create accessible
20
Practitioners work with the family to identify,
15
access, and use formal and informal resources
10
and supports to achieve family-identified
outcomes or goals.
0 5 Whereas the latter includes antecedent, practice, and
outcome elements, the former does not include all three
elements (e.g., create accessible environments for what
purpose or outcome?). Close examination of the 2014
DEC recommended practices within and between topic
TOPIC AREAS areas indicates that many if not most are written in quite
dissimilar ways, which necessitates readers to re-orient
Figure 1-4. Percent of the total number of citations
provided by the DEC Topic Area Workgroup leaders their processing skills as they move from one practice to
meeting the criteria for a systematic review or meta- another. Well written text uses similar structure to facili-
analysis for each topic area. tate memory, understanding, and performance (Lohr &
Gall, 2008). The 2014 DEC recommended practices fall
rial in the same way, and especially as part of routine, short in terms of this design feature.
everyday application, “causes the learner to focus on Preparing materials that are easy to read and com-
the meaning of the material thus increasing the depth of prehend necessitates that similar or common terminol-
processing” (p. 107) and performance (Clark & Nguyen, ogy having the same meaning be used to facilitate un-
2008). derstanding (e.g., Brenes, 2017; Cabré, 1999; Thaiss
Cursory examination of the preambles to the 2014 & Zawacki, 2006) and use of intervention practices as
DEC recommended practices topic areas finds that they intended (e.g., Colquhoun et al., 2014; Rabin & Brown-
are written in ways not aligned with the principle of con- son, 2012). A content analysis of the 2014 recommended
sistency (Lidwell et al., 2003). As noted by Lidwell et al. practices finds different terminology used to (presum-
(2003), the usability of any product, including written ably) describe similar practices and practice characteris-
text, is more “learnable when similar parts are expressed tics. For example, the terminology natural consequenc-
in similar ways. Consistency enables people to effi- es; explicit feedback and consequences; and respond
ciently transfer knowledge to new contexts [and] learn contingently; seem to be used interchangeably (but in-
new things quickly” (p. 56). Consider, for example, the consistently) to refer to reinforcement of child behavior.
fact that the introductory sentences to the assessment, The terminology respond contingently and respond in-
family, transition, and to a lesser extent, the interaction tentionally also seem to be used interchangeably to refer
preambles, state the purpose of the topic area practices, to reinforcement provided in response to child produc-
whereas the purposes of the instruction and teaming and tion of specific kinds of child responses. The use of dif-
collaboration topic area practices are buried within the ferent terms to refer to similar behavior indicators serves
preambles. These are but a few examples of a failure to to confuse rather than facilitate common understanding
adhere to the principle of consistency. and use of terms (Cabré, 1999).
Closer inspection of the different sets of recom- Terminology in the 2014 DEC recommended prac-
mended practices finds that they are generally not writ- tices for everyday natural learning opportunities include
ten in ways consistent with accepted guidelines and routines and activities; activities and routines; daily rou-
principles for writing text in ways likely to promote tines; and daily activities. In other instances, the terms
understanding and application (Lohr & Gall, 2008). Ac- routines, activities, and environments; and environments,
cording to Kintsch (cited in Lohr & Gall, 2008), “the routines, and activities; are used interchangeably to re-
organization of text is as important to the meaning as fer to either locations (home, center, and community) or
words themselves” (p. 92). The DEC recommended the activity settings in which child learning opportuni-
practices fail to adhere to this simple text organization ties occur (e.g., Dunst, Bruder, Trivette, & Hamby, 2006;
Dunst, Hamby, Trivette, Raab, & Bruder, 2002). In an-
other recommended practice, the term activity is used to
1 The majority of the research syntheses for the family practices were
provided by the author as part of his initial involvement in the family refer to a specific type of child practice to “maintain or
practices workgroup. improve fitness, wellness, and development,” while in

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