Glenys Jones

International review of the evidence on best practice in educational provision for children on the autism spectrum

There is considerable debate regarding the most appropriate and effective ways of supporting the learning of children and young people on the autism spectrum. This international review provides a synthesis of empirical research and expert evidence (dated 2002–2008) to identify best practice in educational provision for these children. Five bibliographic databases were systematically searched using clearly defined keywords, and abstracts assessed according to explicit inclusion and exclusion criteria; 92 research papers that focused on children and young people were included. Expert evidence was drawn from policy documents and government strategies, or research reports, from the UK and Ireland. Findings show that there is insufficiently strong evidence regarding the effectiveness of one type of intervention approach compared with another. A range of educational provision should be maintained in order to cater appropriately for a wide diversity of needs. Interventions most often researched were those involving intensive behavioural techniques and some studies showed these can be successful in teaching specific skills to some children. There was limited evidence regarding the needs of older children as well as consideration of educational provision more widely, including the effects of type of setting (as distinct from a specific type of intervention or learning approach). More research is needed on other types of educational interventions currently used by parents and in schools as well as greater collaboration between researchers and practitioners to establish what works best for children and young people on the autism spectrum.

Implications for practice from ‘International review of the evidence on best practice in educational provision for children on the autism spectrum’

This paper summarises the implications for practice arising from the ‘International review of the evidence on best practice in educational provision for children on the autism spectrum’ and it focuses on key priorities for policy makers, families, practitioners and researchers. Findings highlight that there is little evidence to indicate how different types of provision deliver education or to identify how they impact on outcomes for individual children. Furthermore, the process of deciding on an educational intervention is clearly more complex than the results of individual research papers can tell us. Choice of intervention needs to take account of what is best suited to the child and adults concerned, including the childs characteristics, parental preference, staff expertise and the goals selected. There is a need to focus on the developmental areas of functional spontaneous communication and language, social understanding and joint attention, peer interaction and appropriate toy play. Ongoing parent and teacher collaboration is essential as is a need to develop good collaboration between different professionals, both within and outside settings. Wider inclusion of the perspectives of individuals on the autism spectrum would be welcomed. Training is an important priority as practitioners and parents need specialist knowledge and understanding of the specific needs of children and young people on the autism spectrum. Finally, there is a need for researchers, practitioners, parents and individuals on the autism spectrum to work together much more closely than they do currently in order to determine jointly research agendas and methodologies and to discuss the implications of research findings.

The Effect of Adult Interactive Style on the Spontaneous Communication of Young Children with Autism at School.

This research explored the effect of adult interactive style on the spontaneous communication of children with autism. It focused on the frequency of children’s communication, the functions of their communication, the methods they used and the impact of four different school activities (i.e. sensory room, snack time, soft play and 1:1 work) on their communication. Theoretically, the study drew upon the transactional model of child development and the social model of disability. It was an action research study having a mix of quantitative and qualitative data which took place over an eighteen month period. The study was conducted within an Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) class in a specialist school for pupils with autism. Six children and three members of staff took part. The researcher developed a set of principles in conjunction with the staff which formed the basis for the Adult Interactive Style Intervention (AISI). The findings showed that staff increased their use of the AISI principles over time and all children considerably increased the frequency of their spontaneous communication, their communicative functions and methods. In the follow-up phase, twelve months later, it was found that these changes had been maintained in both children and staff.

Parents Suggest Which Indicators of Progress and Outcomes Should Be Measured in Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Evaluation of interventions for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is hampered by the multitude of outcomes measured and tools used. Measurement in research with young children tends to focus on core impairments in ASD. We conducted a systematic review of qualitative studies of what matters to parents. Parent advisory groups completed structured activities to explore their perceptions of the relative importance of a wide range of outcome constructs. Their highest ranked outcomes impacted directly on everyday life and functioning (anxiety, distress, hypersensitivity, sleep problems, happiness, relationships with brothers and sisters, and parent stress). Collaboration between professionals, researchers and parents/carers is required to determine an agreed core set of outcomes to use across evaluation research.