Efficacy of the ASAP Intervention for Preschoolers with ASD: A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial.

The advancing social-communication and play (ASAP) intervention was designed as a classroom-based intervention, in which the educational teams serving preschool-aged children with autism spectrum disorder are trained to implement the intervention in order to improve these children's social-communication and play skills. In this 4-year, multi-site efficacy trial, classrooms were randomly assigned to ASAP or a business-as-usual control condition. A total of 78 classrooms, including 161 children, enrolled in this study. No significant group differences were found for the primary outcomes of children's social-communication and play. However, children in the ASAP group showed increased classroom engagement. Additionally, participation in ASAP seemed to have a protective effect for one indicator of teacher burnout. Implications for future research are discussed.

Assessing Quality of Program Environments for Children and Youth with Autism: Autism Program Environment Rating Scale (APERS).

The purpose of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Autism Program Environment Rating Scale (APERS), an instrument designed to assess quality of program environments for students with autism spectrum disorder. Data sets from two samples of public school programs that provided services to children and youth with autism spectrum disorder were utilized. Cronbach alpha analyses indicated high coefficients of internal consistency for the total APERS and moderate levels for item domains for the first data set, which was replicated with the second data set. A factor analysis of the first data set indicated that all domain scores loaded on one main factor, in alignment with the conceptual model, with this finding being replicated in the second data set. Also, the APERS was sensitive to changes resulting from a professional development program designed to promote program quality.

The Association between Adult Participation and the Engagement of Preschoolers with ASD.

The ability for a child to engage in the classroom is associated with better academic outcomes. Yet, there is limited information on how child characteristics of autism and adult behavior impact engagement. This study examined (1) the pattern of adult participation and child engagement in preschool classrooms that serve children with ASD, (2) the associations between child engagement and adult participation, and (3) how characteristics of ASD (autism severity, language ability, and challenging behavior) moderate the relationship between adult participation and child engagement. Overall, children were less likely to be engaged when adults were actively or passively participating with them. Moderators impacted this relationship. Children with higher levels of autism severity were more likely to be engaged when adults were actively or passively participating with them. Similarly, children with lower language abilities were more likely to be engaged when adults were actively or passively participating with them. Finally, children with higher levels of challenging behaviors were less likely to be engaged when adults were actively or passively participating with them. These findings have important implications for how adults can best support the engagement of children with ASD.

Brief report: concurrent validity of autism symptom severity measures.

The autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnostic classifications, according to the DSM-5, include a severity rating. Several screening and/or diagnostic measures, such as the autism diagnostic and observation schedule (ADOS), Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) and social responsiveness scale (SRS) (teacher and parent versions), include an assessment of symptom severity. The purpose of this study was to examine whether symptom severity and/or diagnostic status of preschool-aged children with ASD (N = 201) were similarly categorized on these measures. For half of the sample, children were similarly classified across the four measures, and scores on most measures were correlated, with the exception of the ADOS and SRS-P. While the ADOS, CARS, and SRS are reliable and valid measures, there is some disagreement between measures with regard to child classification and the categorization of autism symptom severity.

Effectiveness of the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) on communication and speech for children with autism spectrum disorders: a meta-analysis.

PURPOSE: The Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) is a popular communication-training program for young children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). This meta-analysis reviews the current empirical evidence for PECS in affecting communication and speech outcomes for children with ASD. METHOD: A systematic review of the literature on PECS written between 1994 and June 2009 was conducted. Quality of scientific rigor was assessed and used as an inclusion criterion in computation of effect sizes. Effect sizes were aggregated separately for single-subject and group studies for communication and speech outcomes. RESULTS: Eight single-subject experiments (18 participants) and 3 group studies (95 PECS participants, 65 in other intervention/control) were included. Results indicated that PECS is a promising but not yet established evidence-based intervention for facilitating communication in children with ASD ages 1-11 years. Small to moderate gains in communication were demonstrated following training. Gains in speech were small to negative. CONCLUSIONS: This meta-analysis synthesizes gains in communication and relative lack of gains made in speech across the PECS literature for children with ASD. Concerns about maintenance and generalization are identified. Emerging evidence of potential preintervention child characteristics is discussed. Phase IV was identified as a possibly influential program characteristic for speech outcomes.