The Foundation Station: Clicker Training 101

Are you new to clicker training? Or, are you using clicker training but remain a bit confused by the terminology and the reasons behind what we do? Is your foundation truly solid?

Here's a crash course on clicker training, learning theory, and the laws governing how learning really works. You'll learn what you need to know about the underlying science in order to get out of the gate fast—or to get back on track. If you start your ClickerExpo experience on Friday with this two-hour Session, you will have the foundation and vocabulary to help you understand, enjoy, and benefit from the rest of the program.

Norwegian presenter Cecilie Køste is co-founder of a chain of European clicker training schools that concentrate on developing top-flight competitors. A medical doctor currently working in child and youth psychiatry, Cecilie will help you understand why clicker training principles work and what the terms really mean. Topics include: laws of learning, classical conditioning, operant conditioning, antecedents, behavior and consequences, types of consequences, extinction, the Premack Principle, cues and cues as reinforcers, and chaining.

Whether you are brand-new to clicker training or have been using the clicker but are not fully familiar with the science behind it, you will find this Session to be extremely worthwhile.

This is the first course in a recommended series of foundation courses at ClickerExpo. The series is intended for new or less experienced clicker trainers and is called the Foundation Curriculum.