Report autism final rev2 - ARCMIT01arcmit01.uncw.edu/dem7820/reportautism.pdfAutism! levels of behavior of the Autistic children. The results provided a snapshot of the particular

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Autism Brunswick County Schools

Unlock The Potential Of Autistic Students In The Classroom

Prepared for: Brunswick County Director of Exceptional Children Melissa Quinlan

By: Ryan Barclay and David Munson 3-18-2013

Unlock The Potential Of Autistic Students In The Classroom 2

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Autism

Table of Contents Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................................3 Section I

The Operating System……………………………………………………………………………...5 The Problem…………………………………………………………………………………………6

Operating System Analysis………………………………………………………………………..7

What is the Operating System Like Now?...................................................................7

Real Objectives………………………………………………………………………….8

Present Activities……………………………………………………………………….9

Important Side Effects…………………………………………………………………12

Relevant Resources…………………………………………………………………….12

Fixed Constraints………………………………………………………………………13

Management Systems………………………………………………………………….13

What Should the Operating System be like?............................................................................15

Probable Cause of the Problem………………………………………………………………..17

Section II

Possible Solutions……………………………………………………………………………….18

Analysis of Solutions………………………………………………………………………...…20

Instructional Development and Delivery Capabilities……………………………..24

Comparing Solutions…………………………………………………………………..26

Recommended Solutions…………………………………………………………...…28

Appendix A………………………………………………………………………………………………30

Appendix B………………………………………………………………………………………………35

Appendix C…………………………………………………………………………………………........36


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Autism

Executive Summary

Brunswick County is the largest county in North Carolina. The Brunswick County school system

consists of 20 schools with 763 certified teachers. It is the job of those 763 teachers to instruct

students from various ethnic, religious, socio-economic backgrounds, as well as children with

disabilities. Brunswick County services pre-k through 12th grade in core subject areas including

Math, Science, Social Studies, English, as well as vocational and Exceptional Children classes.

The basic operating system is the Brunswick County Department of Exceptional Children. The

Department of Exceptional Children is a federally funded program designed to help students

with disabilities, by providing educational support services, accommodations, and modifications

in the least restrictive environment. There are 20 schools that are staffed with qualified

exceptional children teachers as well as support staff to assist in meeting the needs of the

Exceptional Children population.

The mission statement of the Brunswick Schools Exceptional Children’s Program is; ” to assure

that students with disabilities develop mentally, physically, emotionally, and vocationally

through the provision of an appropriate individualized education in the lease restrictive

environment.” The goal of the program is to help all students in the Exceptional Children

program reach there educational and social/emotional potential with the aid of accommodations

or modifications in the least restrictive environment without prejudice to a student’s area of

eligibility.


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Autism

The problem that teachers have expressed to management is how to work with the increased

population of children with Autism in their classrooms. One of the fastest growing populations

of students with disabilities in Brunswick County, are the students diagnosed on the autism

spectrum. Autism is a spectrum disorder, which means there could be a variety of symptoms.

They have identified some commonalities that all autistic children exhibit. Some of the core

symptoms are:

• Difficulty in the area of relationships and social interaction.

• Verbal and nonverbal communication

• Behavior

• Sensory perception

The State of North Carolina has identified the autistic student population consisting of 12,717

autistic children ("Autism society of," 2004). In Brunswick County alone there are 113 children

diagnosed on the Autism spectrum with some students that are higher functioning are diagnosed

as other health impaired.

The main problem is that teachers are seeing are an increased number of students diagnosed on

the Autism Spectrum in their classrooms, and do not know how to effectively accommodate or

modify instruction to meet the needs of their students. The teachers are highly qualified in

special education but seem to lack the additional training needed to assist students with Autism

especially in the younger grades with their academic and social functioning needs.


5

Autism

The potential cause of this gap is a lack of skills and knowledge of how to effectively meet the

individual educational goals of the students with Autism in the classroom. Although there are in

service trainings or conferences that teachers can attend, there are no effective measures in place

to follow up with teachers to see if the strategies they have learned are working in the classroom

or are inconsistent with the best practices. In addition, Autism is a spectrum disorder and there is

no one solution that will fix all potential behavior problems teachers will face which makes it

difficult to pinpoint one solution.

The performance objective is for all teachers to be skilled in behavior modification and

facilitation of best practices in the classroom when working with students diagnosed on the

Autism spectrum. There will be two ways to which this objective will be met: First, on education

of the components of the of Autism spectrum. Second, there will be training and development for

teachers to students with Autism on behavior modification skills in the classroom. There will be

professional learning communities to discuss effective strategies that work for your classroom in

compliance with the individual education plan.

Section I

Operating System

The Brunswick County Schools Exceptional Children Program is a subsystem of the super

system of the Department of Public Instruction. It is a federally funded program designed to

provide accommodations and modifications for students with disabilities within the least

restrictive educational environment.


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Autism

The management subsystem is guided by the county director Melissa Quinlan and the 3 regional

coordinators. Highly qualified, educated, and dedicated special education teachers provide

services directly to students that are outlined in an individual education plan for each student

within the program. Support Staff provide services depending on the needs of the student, or the

number of students in a classroom designated by the state and federal guidelines. The classroom

settings vary depending on the grade level and functional capacity of the student. Each school

and or classroom is designed to meet the individual needs of the students that are served. The

parameters for instructional modification are limited by the Individuals with Disabilities in

Education Act (IDEA). IDEA outlines state and federal law for what a teacher can and cannot

provide as far as services for a student with a disability. The funds provided are based on the

number of active current individual education plans that a school has. The monitoring system for

that process is called NC CECAS or the North Carolina Comprehensive Exceptional Children

Accountability System.

Problem

Brunswick County Schools Exceptional Children Program (BCS EC) is a multifaceted system.

The components of the system are dynamic and don’t fit congruently into a traditional system.

The BCS EC program serves a population of students that are in need of accommodations or

modifications for one of several reasons; either mental, physical, or emotional. The current

system provides for a number of areas of eligibility. In the last 5 years there has been over a

100% increase in the number of students diagnosed with autism, and the levels of variability in


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Autism

behavior, communication, sensory perception, or interrelations with peers and staff. Survey

results show that 70% of teachers are in need of strategies and training for dealing with students

with autism in the classroom. By the end of 2013 Brunswick County Schools would like all new

and existing Exceptional Children teachers to be trained in working with students with autism.

Operating System Analysis

Current System Now

The data collection process utilized by the instructional design team included several methods.

First, we interviewed the Director of Exceptional Children Melissa Quinlan. Melissa is a veteran

Exceptional Children teacher and subject matter expert (SME) that has a specialty in behavior

intervention. She was presented with a format of open-ended questions that she was asked to

complete regarding the needs of the Exceptional Children teachers in Brunswick County.

Second, the instructional design team conducted an online anonymous survey of all Exceptional

Children teachers in Brunswick County to assess the needs in their classroom environment. The

questions were qualitative and quantitative in nature to allow teachers the opportunity to express

concern without the fear of recrimination.

Third, based on the results of the survey, the team conducted observations of EC classrooms of

Elementary, Middle, and High School Exceptional Children classrooms within the Northern

region of Brunswick County. The Team created an observation checklist regarding numbers and


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Autism

levels of behavior of the Autistic children. The results provided a snapshot of the particular needs

of the classroom teachers.

Other data collection methods used were online resources from the North Carolina Department

of Public Instruction, which included Exceptional Children Statistics, and a breakdown by area

of eligibility for EC services.

Real Objectives

The mission statement of the Brunswick Schools Exceptional Children’s Program is; ” to assure

that students with disabilities develop mentally, physically, emotionally, and vocationally

through the provision of an appropriate individualized education in the lease restrictive

environment.” The goal of the program is to help all students in the Exceptional Children

program reach their educational and social/emotional potential with the aid of accommodations

or modifications in the least restrictive environment without prejudice to a student’s area of

eligibility.

1. To define behaviors exhibited by Children on the Autistic Spectrum.

2. To identify best practice for redirecting behaviors of the Autistic children in a classroom.

3. To provide resources for extreme cases of Autism.

4. Identify classroom entities that trigger behavior.

5. Identify skills to manage mainstream children in classes with Autistic Children.

6. How to provide support groups for students with Autism.


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Autism

Data suggests that these skills are being met on a basic level, but with the increase in numbers

and types of behavior, considerable room for improvement exists.

Present Activities

Brunswick County Schools provides educational services for 11,593 students. Of those students,

the Division of Exceptional Children handles all students identified with a disability that directly

affects their academic performance in some way. The Exceptional Children teachers provide

services for students across all spectrums of disabilities. What makes Brunswick County

Exceptional Children program successful is the 88 highly qualified and dedicated teachers that

design meaningful instruction for every student according to their IEP’s goals and objectives.

The Exceptional Children program is a unique program in many ways. At each grade level and in

each area of the county the classes take on their own identity based on the student population

within that area.

After interviewing several teachers, the only data that suggests how well a student is doing, or if

effective instruction is taking place, is subject matter testing. There was not sufficient qualitative

data that shows that teachers handle situations related to behavior other than discipline reports,

neither of which are effective measures of how a student with autism is progressing socially

within a classroom or school environment. The teachers had progress monitoring notes that were

attached to IEP goals, but did not have well defined definitions of progress.


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Autism

Interviews suggest that teachers have a basic knowledge of how to deal with disabled students.

They gain much of their knowledge from previous reports, parent feedback, or trial and error.

Each student on the Autism spectrum presented different behaviors unique to their diagnosis, but

there are some best practices that teachers could utilize to help with classroom management.

The classes that we visited were regular education classes, life skills classes, and occupational

prep classes. In each setting there were different levels of autism. The expectations of the student

and the objectives of the classes were all different. In the life skills class we observed a non-

verbal and blind autistic child who was working on signifying yes and no by tapping his side

once or twice when given questions related to basic life skills. The teacher expressed that she

would like for him to work on more tactile skills.

In the OCS program we observed teachers working with a student that appeared to be

developmentally delayed but was autistic. They presented signs of schizophrenia when they

appeared to be talking to someone that was not there. The teacher redirected and modified

instruction to bring the student back on task; A one on one aid was there to assist the student as

well. Another student in the same class that had autism seemed to comprehend the material by

giving well thought out responses but would not make eye contact and was very nervous.

In the regular setting we observed teachers along with students that were not disabled and also

one or two students with Aspberger’s Syndrome. Aspberger’s syndrome is on the autism

spectrum and is primarily a social functioning disorder. The student appeared to be intellectually

well adjusted to content but would make comments at inappropriate times or exhibit behavior


11

Autism

that was well below their age appropriate peers. Teachers in a regular setting did not seem to

have a well developed understanding of how to handle the inappropriate behaviors.

Through our investigative process we determined that a gap existed in behavior management

technique, but was not consistent across age and grade level. The ability of teachers to address

specific deficits varied by demographic, number of students with autism in the classroom, grade

level taught, as well as where the student was identified on the autism spectrum. The concerns

expressed by teachers were primarily qualitative in nature. Because the gap described is new in

nature there isn’t any valid quantitative data, besides numbers of students with autism. The need

to support teachers with students on the Autism Spectrum is exhibited by some of the qualitative

data summarized below:

1. How to redirect students that present autistic behavior in class.

2. How to identify triggers of behavior for children with autism.

3. How to create a sensory friendly environment in the classroom.

4. How to handle extreme behavior by children with autism.

5. What are the appropriate numbers of children within a classroom setting of students with

autism.

Based on current data, teachers believe with proper training and support they will be able to

better serve this population within their classrooms and address their academic needs.


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Autism

Important Side Effects

Evidence suggests that due to lack of knowledge or training teachers feel that more can be done

to address behaviors that are exhibited by students with autism so they do not miss instructional

time. Due to the number of students with Autism in classes, it can be time consuming and affect

the amount of content that is being taught due to behaviors beyond their control.

The first side effect deals with the ability of teachers effectively conduct class and manage the

classroom behavior. If it is not controlled then other students can be distracted and lose out on

instructional time. Also, the students with autism will miss out on content related to their

educational goals.

According to Brunswick County Statistics, the number of students in a class diagnosed with

autism is on the rise. The problem is not a localized issue. According to the National Autism

Association 1 in 8 children are diagnosed with autism, boys are four times more likely to autism

then girls, 1 in 54 boys are diagnosed with autism, and 40 % do not speak (Autism Society,

2011). Without support for this population the students with autism will not be successful in the

classroom setting.

Relevant Resources

The resources currently available are the 20 schools in Brunswick County Staffed with 88 highly

qualified teachers. In addition, there are the support staff and outside agencies that work in

conjunction with the school system to provide support to the autistic population. The funds are


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Autism

provided to the EC population by the Federal government and equipment and instructional aids

that are provided are determined on an individual basis, based on the need of the student and the

IEP goals.

Fixed Constraints

The constraints on the system are the amount of money allotted for each student within the EC

setting and the policies and procedures set by IDEA. The only other constraint is the physical

conditions of the school that the student attends. If the school does not have the physical aids that

the student needs to be successful in that area then they may have to attend another school that

has the needed elements.

Management system

The management system is designed as a top down reverse pyramid. The top level of

management is the policy and procedures handed down from the federal government to the North

Carolina Department of Public Instruction. The next level of management is the local county

level. At the county level there are some local policies and procedures that can be utilized if they

do not conflict with federal parameters and the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act.

There is one county EC director in Brunswick County, Melissa Quinlan. Melissa has 3 regional

directors that oversee the Elementary, Middle, and High schools in the North, South or West

region.


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Autism

In each individual school there is an Exceptional Children Chairperson that is responsible for the

following compliance issues:

• EC forms compliance

• Individual education plans

• Interviewing new EC personnel

• EC discipline

• EC staff meetings

• EC scheduling

• Testing accommodations and Modifications

• Maintaining current EC student enrollment list

• Teaching

• Organizing special Transportation or other related services

• Case management lists of EC teachers

The management system also includes NC CECAS (North Carolina Comprehensive Exceptional

Children Accountability System) system that is a database of all EC students in North Carolina.


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Autism

What Should the Operating System be like?

To understand the Operating system and its functional capabilities the team consulted the 2 main

subject matter experts - Melissa Quinlan, the county director and subject matter expert, and

Shannon Barham, a county Autism Specialist and regional director. Based on interviews with the

SME’s we developed a picture of optimal performance of the system where all EC teachers are


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Autism

trained to work with children with autism. There are 4 main facets that need to be in place in the

classroom to address the multi-dimensional spectrum of autism.

First, when speaking with the SME’s, it is clear that every situation will present a different set of

challenges. One of the main components prior to placement in the classroom is to have sufficient

data from all entities involved with the student so that a detailed instructional aid can be put in

place to assist teachers. A detailed instructional aid of the individual students particular

symptoms, triggers, functional capability, sensory aversions, intellectual capacity,

communication aids, modifications and accommodations, as well as other relevant data so that

when issues arise the teacher knows exactly how to handle the situation. Teachers should be

prepared to discuss with non-disabled students what autism is and use difficult situations as

teaching moments.

Second, teachers should develop a daily routine schedule, which is a key component in the

classroom so the student knows what they will be doing each day and should be notified if there

are going to be any modifications to the routine that could trigger anxiety and adverse behaviors.

Many students with autism present symptoms of obsessive behavior and any change to that can

short- circuit their current level of behavior.

Third is a place for where students with autism can go when they are having a difficult day or to

work on social skills deficits directed by a subject matter expert. Students with autism often lack

the capability to understand social interaction and relationships on an appropriate level. These


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Autism

skills that are inherent to others need to be practiced so that students with autism can identify the

appropriate behaviors for different situations.

Fourth, teachers should meet regularly with the other teachers that have the same student to

collaborate and discuss instructional strategies that are and are not working with the student. The

personal learning communities can make sure that all instructors are on the same page to meet

the needs of the student educationally, socially, and emotionally.

Right now it is difficult with all that EC teachers are doing to address all the needs of the

students; Often the behaviors are misunderstood and are labeled deviant or defiant behavior. The

training and education of our current and new teachers of children with autism is essential in this

field to meet the needs of the population. Teachers will feel enabled and be more comfortable

with resources available to assist them, reducing the incidence of students being left behind or

missing out on instruction.

Probable Cause of Problem

The current issues that exist based on the data analysis and interviews conducted suggest that the

cause of the problem is lack of knowledge or skills of teaching students with autism. The

increased number of children with autism across instructional settings, as well as the variance

and levels of extreme behavior exhibited by the target population are affecting student and

teacher performance.


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Autism

To gain perspective on the process, the team interviewed teachers on the training they have

received related to autism. Most teachers have received some training related to autism, through

continuing education conferences, or meetings with the county Autism Specialist. Formal

training is not done for the entire county. The only method of evaluating whether the students

have met their instructional goals depends on the setting, IEP progress notes, and where the

students fall within the Autism Spectrum.

Sufficient prior data is not available to truly assess whether the skills taught in previous trainings

are being utilized in the classroom effectively. The current information gathered suggests that

teachers in Brunswick County continue to need explicit training on how to deliver effective

instruction to children with autism.

Teachers should be able to redirect behavior and create an atmosphere conducive to instruction

including children with autism. With proper training and evaluation the students should be able

to thrive and show evidence of growth within their individual education plans.

Section II

Possible Solutions

The identified gap in performance in Brunswick County Schools can be resolved with the

following proposed solutions below. Each proposed solution is based on the objectives

determined by our interviews, survey, classroom observations, and analysis discussed earlier in

this report.


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Autism

Our identified solutions are:

• Examine the hiring process of all new EC teachers.

• Provide more in-depth documentation of Autistic best practices

• Provide better resources for EC teachers for handling autistic behavior in a constructive

manner.

• Deliver in-service training for all EC teachers.

One of the first solutions that we propose is to re-examine the hiring of all new EC teachers.

Currently EC teachers are hired with a Bachelor’s degree in Special Education, although many of

these new hires do not have experience in working with children on the Autism Spectrum. As a

possible solution to the current lack of EC teachers with autism training, all new EC teachers

must have autism training or experience before being employed by Brunswick County Schools.

By hiring all new EC teachers with autism training/experience, the gap in EC teachers with no

autism or training would slowly begin to close and would require no monetary expense by the

school system.

There also needs to be more in-depth documentation of Autistic best practices training. Currently

there’s insufficient data to support the fact that all EC teachers have been given sufficient

training in working with students with autism. We propose better record keeping of training


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Autism

given to EC teachers overall, including autism training. By implementing better record keeping,

ideally done within a central computerized database, the school system would have a better

understanding where training deficiencies exist and which EC teachers could benefit from

specific training in autism.

The school system could also provide better resources for EC teachers on how to handle autistic

behavior in EC classrooms. These resources could be in the form of job aids describing behavior

and possible solutions along with identifying triggers of autistic behaviors. The resources may

also include a notebook binder with additional information on children with autism and perhaps

web links such as www.nationalautismassociation.org .

Another possible solution that we would also recommend is in-service training for all EC

teachers. The training would focus on autism and could be delivered synchronously or

asynchronously. In our opinion, we feel the training would be most effective if delivered in a

synchronous manner and in a small group setting. Ideally the training should be developed

specifically for each region of the school system (North, South, and West) and for each school

level (elementary, middle, and high school) since each area has different autistic behaviors that

are more prevalent and require a different skill set by EC teachers.

Analysis of Solutions

For us to recommend a solution, we need to analyze the practicality of each solution and its

effectiveness. The first solution involves re-examining the hiring process of all new EC teachers

so that all new EC teachers brought into the Brunswick County School System would already


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Autism

have experience and/or training in teaching children with autism. This solution would initially

take a bit more time in human resources since all the prospective teacher resumés will need to be

looked at in more detail to select applicants with an EC background who also have

training/experience in working with children with autism. This solution is the most cost effective

since this process would use existing materials and personnel already in place. All that would be

required is a small change in procedure in reviewing the applicants’ resumés and there would be

no affect on organizational structure.

There would be a minimal cost incurred with the few extra minutes for human resource

employees to sort out qualified applicants and minimal push back from the human resource staff

since their hiring routine is barely unchanged. Although the benefit to the school system is

tremendous by having all their new EC teachers experienced in teaching children with autism,

the amount of time required to implement this process is considerable. One needs to take into

account the current number of EC teachers and the number of years that would be needed to have

a complete turnover of the entire EC teaching staff.

The second solution to examine is to provide more in-depth documentation of autistic best

practices. The school system has personnel data on all its teaching staff, although the detail of

data on the EC teaching staff’s individual experience in teaching children with autism and the

amount of training (past and current) is considered to be incomplete. The cost effectiveness of

this solution may be minimal or it can be expensive depending on the route the school system

decided to take. Cost could be minimized by surveying each individual EC teacher on their


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Autism

background, experience, and previous training with children with autism and then updating

current records. The cost incurred would be to administer the survey and update the personnel

records. Cost could be expensive if the school system decided to purchase new human resource

tracking software and computers to run the new software. The costs would include software

purchase, computer purchases, and personnel to administer the survey and input the responses

into the new database. This solution has benefits to the school system since any gaps in training

would become apparent after the training data was collected and analyzed. Autism training could

be targeted towards the EC teachers lacking experience or deficient in previous training.

The third solution is to provide better resources for EC teachers for handling autistic behavior in

a constructive manner. The current autism resource for EC teachers is the one Autism Specialist,

Shannon Barham. She is the sole Autism Specialist for the Brunswick County Schools; A school

district area encompassing the largest county in North Carolina that begins at the South Carolina

border stretching all the way to Waccamaw in the west and Wilmington in the north. Needless to

say, this resource is stretched very thin. Job aids (instructional aids) can be created in assisting

EC teachers in behavior management and also identifying possible triggers of autistic behavior

once the school system’s objective is identified for these job aids.

The costs associated with this solution would be hiring an instructional designer to design the job

aids since the school system doesn’t have an instructional designer on staff, along with the cost

of printing the job aids and delivery to the EC teaching staff. This solution may be of some

assistance to the EC teachers and would serve as an immediate ‘go to’ resource but would not be


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Autism

as fully effective as an autism training session. In reality the job aids would function as an

enhancement to training.

The last solution is to deliver in-service autism training to all EC teachers in the school system.

The results of the survey that we conducted show over 70% of EC teachers in the school system

are in need of strategies and training for dealing with students with autism in the classroom. This

training could be delivered synchronously or asynchronously. Since the school system is so large

and each area and grade level (elementary, middle and high school) has different prevailing

autistic behaviors, the training would need to be customized for each area. This type of training

lends itself better to synchronous small group training with direct feedback from a trainer as

being more cost effective rather than the costly development of area specific customized

asynchronous computer based training. Although an instructional designer would need to be

hired in both instances to design the training initially, asynchronous computer based training

would involve many more billable hours in developing the training modules along with the cost

incurred for computers to run the module.

Many school systems have in-service training days scheduled each school calendar year thereby

negating having to pull EC teachers out of class for training and incurring the cost of several

substitute teachers. The in-service autism training would be the most effective way of

guaranteeing that all EC teachers receive the same consistent training that meets the school

system objectives.


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Autism

Instructional Development and Delivery Capabilities

The Brunswick County School System has no formal training department and no formal training

team. The school system currently has an Autism Specialist that serves as a trainer for the EC

teachers; Her training services are scheduled by each individual school on an as needed basis

with the training taking place at that individual school. Interviews with several EC teachers have

revealed that the autism training delivered by the Autism Specialist is on different topics for each

school as requested. While we feel that autism training being specific for each area of the school

system (North, West, South and elementary, middle and high school) is important, it appears that

there is no overall standard unified training to meet the school system’s objective.

Although there is no formal training department, the school system’s Autism Specialist is

considered a Subject Matter Expert (SME) along with the 3 Regional Coordinators and the

Brunswick County Director of Exceptional Children. Through interviews with the Director of

Exceptional Children we have learned that she enjoys training her EC teachers and is committed

to see that her EC teachers have the needed resources to succeed.

With that being said, all of the above individuals have all been teachers at one point in time and

have experience in teaching. Granted it is not in adult learning, however the required training

skill set exists and these 5 SMEs would be able to deliver autism training to the 88 EC teachers

in the school system. The cost to the school system would be minimal since current staff would

be used as trainers. The only additional needs that we may see with implementing the 5 SMEs as

trainers is having them take an adult learning class to help insure their training success.


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Autism

In an ideal world, an instructional designer would be recommended to design the autism training

for the school system unfortunately the reality of school budgets exist. Again, the Autism

Specialist, the Brunswick County Director of Exceptional Children and the 3 Regional Directors

have teaching experience and are considered Subject Matter Experts so they should be able to

design a standardized training program to meet the needs of the school system.

Each Regional Director has the unique knowledge of what his/her EC teachers need and would

offer valuable input in designing the standardized training and whatever customization they may

feel necessary for their region. As former teachers in the classroom, each has also had to design

and implement lesson plans for their classrooms at some point in time so designing and

implementing a standardized training program would utilize prior knowledge. The costs

associated with the SMEs designing the training program would be in materials, time, and a train

the trainer class to help these leaders refine their training skills, develop effective assessment

practices, and develop/design a standardized training program.

In order to evaluate the effectiveness of the training, the school district would need to do a follow

up at a 3, 6, and 12 month interval from initial training. The survey that was initially sent to all

EC teachers would again be sent with responses being anonymous in order to measure the

change in the answers to each question. As an example, if the an answer showed an increase in

the teachers’ positive perception of how well they are now able to deal with a child exhibiting

autistic behavior then the training could be viewed as being effective. By doing a pre-assessment


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Autism

and post assessment using the same questions, the school system would effectively be able to

measure the impact of the autism training.

According to our survey of EC teachers and interviews, the EC teachers are very receptive and

are eager to have autism training to help them deal with the increase in children with autism in

their classrooms. By developing and delivering a standardized training in-house, Brunswick

County School System would minimize costs yet be effective in meeting their goal of all EC

teachers in being trained in handling students with autism.

Comparing Solutions

The solutions that we would recommend to the Brunswick County School System is to

implement a standardized training program for the EC teachers along with being more proactive

in the hiring process of new EC teachers that already have experience/training in working with

students with autism. Both of these solutions work together to help solve the school systems gap

in performance that we determined was a lack of skills/knowledge in the EC teachers in working

with children with autism.

After examining all the proposed solutions in the chart below, it is evident that both solutions

could be designed and implemented in-house by the school system with minimal impact to the

school system. The benefits of both solutions to the EC teachers (individuals) and the

organization (school system) are far greater than any potential losses.


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Autism

The table below is: - for negative, + for positive, 0 for neutral

Table 1

Possible

Solutions

Time

Environment

Consideration

Organizational

Change

Space

Equipment

Environment

Cost

Benefit & Loss

Individual

Benefit & Loss

Organization

Examine hiring

process of new

EC teachers

-

+

+

0

0

0

+

Provide more

documentation

of Autistic best

practices

-

+

0

-

-

+

+

Provide better

resources for

EC teachers

-

+

+

-

-

+

0

Deliver in-

service training

for all EC

teachers

-

+

+

0

0

+

+


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Autism

Recommended Solution

The Brunswick County School system should implement a combination of solutions. We

recommend that the school system develop, design, and implement a standardized training

program for its EC teachers in working with students with autism. We also recommend that the

school system adopt a more proactive process in hiring new EC teachers who already have

experience/training in working with students with autism. The other solution that we recommend

is that the school system develop job aids to assist the EC teachers in dealing with autistic

behaviors and to help identify triggers.

Although a current Autism Specialist exists in the school system, her training is only delivered

on a requested basis along with the fact that her expertise and skills are stretched across the

entire school system. By utilizing the current Autism Specialist, the Brunswick County Schools

Director of Exceptional Children, and her 3 Regional Coordinators, a standardized training

program can be developed, designed, and implemented by these 5 Subject Matter Experts at a

minimal cost to the school system. They would also be responsible for delivering the training

during in-service days already scheduled on the school calendar.

Many of the EC teachers have indicated that they have had some minimal training on working

with children with autism, therefore this new standardized training would not be a foreign topic

to them. It would be considered user-friendly since it was designed in-house by the SME’s that

know the school system and each area’s needs. By implementing this standardized training,

Brunswick County School System can begin to close the gap in performance in skills/knowledge


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Autism

of their EC teachers. The training would also benefit the students with autism by providing a

more knowledgeable staff capable of meeting their needs and ensuring their future success.

The school system can also ensure future success of their EC teachers and students with autism

by beginning to hire new EC teachers that already have experience/training in working with

children with autism. This change would be very easy to implement since it would already fit

into the current hiring process with little to no disruption and essentially no cost to the school

system. This hiring change will also help Brunswick County School System begin to close the

performance gap in skills/knowledge since all new EC teachers will already be trained although

this hiring process would take a long time to show results since EC teacher turnover will take

many years.

Lastly we recommend developing a user-friendly job aid to assist the EC teachers in handling

autistic behaviors and identifying triggers. This job aid would go hand in hand with the

standardized training given to the EC teachers and would be used as a reference in the classroom.

The only problem that we foresee is budgetary since job aids do require time, materials, and

printing costs.

By implementing the above solutions, we believe that Brunswick County School System can

begin to meet their goal of having all EC teachers trained in working with students with autism

along with also meeting the needs of the ever increasing population of students with autism.


30

Autism

Appendix A: EC Survey

EC Survey Results

1. If you could have any training for exceptional children what would it be and why?

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Technology

IEP

Autistic

TA-‐‑paperwork

Behavior Interaction

Specific Disability Training

How to deal with parents

Manifestation

OCS Instruction

Differential Instruction

Medication

Sign Language

Activities for older students w/ severe

Interpreting Testing

Series1


31

Autism

2. What would help exceptional children teachers the most, when writing an individual education plan?

0 2 4 6 8 10 12

Central Person to Write IEPs

Writing IEPs for students with Cognitive Disabilities that

Time

True Diagnosis

Team Input

Common Core Goals

Data Collection

Consistent IEP expectations

Input from regular Ed

Earlier input from Therapist

Audit Examples

Series1


32

Autism

3. What additional skills do you need to be most effective when teaching EC students?

0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4 4.5

EOC Prep

Speech

Autism

Books Aligned with Common Core

Break Down tasks/smaller steps

TA training

Behavior Modification

Paperwork

Time

Differentiated Instruction

Technology Training

Series1


33

Autism

4. What systems that are currently in place need to be changed or modified?

0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4 4.5

CECAS improved

Classes too large

More qualified and beèr trained TAs

Having to teach to the test

Train new teachers in online records

Inconsistent Rules applied to Teachers

Updated and working Computers

Redundant BCS-‐‑1

More Time to do Paperwork

Change handicapped testing

Beèr ways to transition EC students

Beèr Cooperation between EC and

OCS Vacational Opportunities

Self-‐‑Contained classes need planning

Compliance Specialists Needed Again

Series1


34

Autism

5. Rank the following topics from most important (1) to least important (4) as for need for additional EC training.

0 5 10 15 20

1

2

3

4

Technology

Classroom Management

IEPs

Teaching Strategies


35

Autism

Appendix B: Observation Sheet

1. How many students with autism are in the class? 2. What type of formal training has the teacher had with Children with Autism? 3. Is the teacher confident in their ability to work with Children with Autism?

4. What type of resources are available help the teacher with instruction for children with Autism?

5. Is there a teacher aid to assist in the classroom Instruction? 6. Are their enough resources in the classroom appropriately meet the needs of the children with Autism in the classroom? Yes N0 7. In the last five years has the number of children with Autism increased, decreased, or stayed the same? 8. Does the teacher feel the training they had on autism was effective? 9. What evaluation techniques the teacher use with students with autism? 10. What does the teacher feel would help the most with meeting the needs or the students in her class?


36

Autism

Appendix C: References

Autism society of nc. (2004, 2011). Retrieved from http://www.autismsociety-nc.org/

Autism Society. (2011, November 16). Autism society. Retrieved from http://www.autism-society.org/

(n.d.). Retrieved from website: http://ec.ncpublicschools.gov/reports-data/child-count/reports/december-1/2012/disability-age-setting6-21.pdf

. (2008). Retrieved from http://www.bcswan.net/education/components/scrapbook/default.php?sectionid=1

Documents

Report autism final rev2 - ARCMIT01arcmit01.uncw.edu/dem7820/reportautism.pdfAutism! levels of behavior of the Autistic children. The results provided a snapshot of the particular