Connections: Parent Feedback to Improve Social Skills Training for Persons with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) often have social and communication deficits that impede sustained employability. The authors replicated a successful social skills curriculum and program model, called Connections, and simultaneously ran focus groups with parents. A parent group led by local advocates provided feedback to improve program delivery and curricula. This article highlights focus group results regarding a promising social skills intervention and is designed to inform professionals serving adults with ASD seeking employment.

Designing for Social Interaction and Social Competence in a 3D-VLE

The purpose of the iSocial project is to support the development and practice of social competence for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) through a social-skills curriculum and online social interaction delivered via a 3D virtual learning environment (3D-VLE). This chapter describes the background and rationale for developing iSocial, gives an overview of the system, and reports some of the results from a field test of a partial system implementation. The field test provides lessons about the initial system design and recognition of challenges to be faced. The key challenges include (1) finding best approaches for adapting effective teaching approaches to a 3D-VLE, (2) supporting online social interaction for a target population challenged to be social, and (3) amplifying the engagement of youth in support of achieving desired learning outcomes.

Designing for Social Interaction and Social Competence in a 3D-VLE

The purpose of the iSocial project is to support the development and practice of social competence for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) through a social-skills curriculum and online social interaction delivered via a 3D virtual learning environment (3D-VLE). This chapter describes the background and rationale for developing iSocial, gives an overview of the system, and reports some of the results from a field test of a partial system implementation. The field test provides lessons about the initial system design and recognition of challenges to be faced. The key challenges include (1) finding best approaches for adapting effective teaching approaches to a 3D-VLE, (2) supporting online social interaction for a target population challenged to be social, and (3) amplifying the engagement of youth in support of achieving desired learning outcomes.

Postschool Outcomes for Students with Significant Emotional Disturbance following Best-Practice Transition Services

Six best practices—vocational intervention, paid work experience, social skills curriculum, interagency collaboration, parent involvement, and individualized plans/planning—were linked to postschool outcomes of employment and community adjustment for students with significant emotional disturbance (SED). Telephone and in-person interviews were conducted with 30 (57%) of 53 former students who had participated in supported employment and entrepreneurial education transition grant projects between 1989 and 1994. The former students answered questions about their employment, residential situations, community involvement, recreational pursuits, and citizenship activities 6 months, 12 months, and 24 months after leaving school. Univariate analyses of individual interventions and student outcomes showed that students out of school for 6 months who had been employed for long periods of time while in school had higher rates of employment than those who had not worked. Students out of school for 7 year whose parents were actively involved in their educational programs were more likely than their peers with uninvolved parents to have a successful community adjustment. Recommendations for further study include pursuing the development of appropriate definitions and assessment of transition services and interventions and exploring further interventions over which educators have direct control.

Social Skills

A systematic social skills curriculum should be given high priority in the education of LD students.