News and Knowledge

In 2013, OAR’s Board of Directors authorized funding for seven new applied autism research studies in 2014. This additional $210,000 in research grants brought the total funds awarded by OAR to over $3 million since its first grants in January 2003. This review is the fifth in a series of seven that will appear in The OARacle before the next grants are awarded in November.

As the prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) increases, so too does the need for programs and interventions for the growing population of students on the spectrum, particularly when it comes to social-communication and engagement, which are pivotal skills for future development.  According to a variety of researchers, social-communication skills have been linked to later language abilities, adaptive functioning, academic abilities, and social outcomes. Engagement is also an important skill for younger students since being able to engage at “normal” levels correlates with an increase in academic gains and language skills.

OAR-funded researcher Jessica Dykstra, Ph.D., Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill, is adapting an intervention method her colleagues created, The Advancing Social-Communication and Play (ASAP) intervention, for use with elementary school children. The goal of the study, Improving Social-Communication and Engagement of Elementary Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders, is to make it easier for educators to properly serve this ever-growing population of students on the spectrum.

Developed in partnership with practitioners and educators, ASAP is currently used in public preschool classrooms. According to Dr. Dykstra, “it is designed to target social-communication and play skills by using engaging activities embedded in regular classroom routines during individual and group instruction.” ASAP uses activities such as reading, games, and art projects.

For her study, four classroom teachers will be trained on how to conduct the intervention with four elementary school children, ranging in grade from kindergarten to fifth grade. Before implementing ASAP, the teachers will establish a baseline of social communication on video with each of the students. The students will then receive at least eight weeks of ASAP, which will be observed, videotaped, and analyzed.

Data that can be used to assess social interactions will also be collected during each student’s group activity. The evaluation system contains six categories that designate increasingly desirable outcomes: unengaged, onlooking, object only, person only, support joint engagement, and coordinated joint engagement.

Because the study is being done in a public school setting, Dr. Dykstra hopes that it will prove useful for administrators who are looking for programs that can provide both social and instructional support.  As part of the study, she also plans to train personnel (including educators and support specialists) from cooperating local districts in ASAP.