Session Information
04 SES 04 A, Making Use of Evidence
Symposium
Time:
2009-09-28
16:00-17:30
Room:
NIG, HS A
Chair:
Sheelagh Drudy
Discussant:
Sip Jan Pijl
Contribution
with Anita Prunty and Tish Balfe
Commissioned by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) in Ireland to inform educational policy and provision, this international literature review incorporated two main evidence strands: ‘empirical’ and ‘expert’. The empirical strand involved systematic searching of electronic databases featuring peer reviewed empirical studies; from 499 articles identified, 102 articles were retained for review. The expert strand included key selected reports or policy guidelines regarding best practice for children and adults on the autism spectrum, from the UK and Ireland only. Findings highlighted the importance of maintaining a range of educational provision in order to cater appropriately for a wide diversity of need; one type of approach or intervention is unlikely to be effective for all. Behaviourally based intervention approaches from North America, especially for pre-school children, dominated the empirical evidence. The corollary of this was significant gaps in the evidence base, especially with regard to educational provision more widely (as distinct from a specific type of intervention or learning approach); provision for, and experiences of, older children and adults; qualitative exploration of educational contexts and young people’s views; Irish-specific evidence; objective, independent evaluation of programmes, and effectiveness of multiagency collaboration. There is a need for greater collaboration between researchers and practitioners in order to establish what works best for children and young people with autism in real-world classrooms.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
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