This study investigated bilingualism effects on the production of focus in 5- to 9-year-old Cantonese-English bilingual autistic children's L1 Cantonese, compared to their monolingual autistic peers as well as monolingual and bilingual typically developing children matched in nonverbal IQ, working memory, receptive vocabulary and maternal…

Background and aims: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused unprecedented disruption to people's lives, especially for families, whose children have been taken out of schools during lockdown restrictions and required to learn from home. Little is known, however, about the perceived impact of the lockdown restrictions on the educational experiences of…

Background & aims: Due to the complexity of early diagnostic decision making, we examined the predictive value of an early diagnostic classification and early abilities on later best estimate diagnosis for 22 clinically referred children with language difficulties. Methods and procedures: Four years after initial evaluation (Time 1), the…

Little is known about the quality of life of college students with autism as there is a dearth of literature on the topic. With an increasing number of students with ASD entering higher education institutions, this paper highlights the life of college students with ASD and strategies to help minimize bumps along the road. Life of college students…

Currently, the rate of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is growing and further research is needed to understand what evidence-based practices are effective for this population. To contribute further to the already existing literature, the three studies expand on previous reviews and studies by adding information on whom these…

Identification of reinforcers is critical to the effectiveness of behavioral interventions. Stimulus preference assessments (SPA) are a frequently used method to identify putative reinforcers. Given the fluctuating nature of individual preferences, there is need for efficient training of providers that may regularly implement SPAs. The present…

Good health is positively related to children's educational outcomes, but relationships may not be causal. Demonstrating a causal influence would strongly support childhood and adolescent health as important for education policy. We applied genetic causal inference methods to assess the causal relationship of common health conditions at age 10…

Most social communication tests used to measure change in young children with autism spectrum disorder have not undergone rigorous psychometric evaluation. Notably, and most relevant to the early intervention literature, there is little information on the sensitivity of these measures to change over time, despite their frequent use. Further, most…

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to discover Direct Support Professionals' (DSPs) perceptions of a staff development session for creating a literacy-based social skills strategy known as social stories or story-based instruction. The participants in this study were six DSPs employed by a non-profit agency in the…

Many educators struggle to deal with challenging behavior from students diagnosed with one or more emotional disorders, often including oppositional defiant disorder, autism spectrum disorder, and attention deficit disorder. Any combination of these disabilities can make learning challenging for the students and make classroom management even more…

Autistic children and adolescents and their parents are likely to have been disproportionally affected during the COVID-19 pandemic. There has been little focus on how the mental health of these vulnerable families developed during the pandemic and how it compared to those with other special educational needs and disabilities. Questionnaires were…

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a pervasive developmental disorder that has grown in prevalence over the past few decades and has a tremendous impact on families that struggle with adjustment to this disorder. Initial exposure to such a disorder may be a significant source of stress and tribulation for Chinese families who are not familiar with…

The challenging behaviours of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have been widely described as one of the most significant sources of stress for teachers. However, less attention has been paid to the potential of teachers' perspectives as a source of knowledge to improve their practice. The purpose of this study was to explore teachers'…

Purpose: This study aims to illustrate how environmental systems shape the peer interactions of an autistic student within the classroom. Method: Drawing on the bioecological model of human development, this situated discourse analysis used thematic coding and microanalysis to examine data from semistructured interviews and 10 sessions of direct…

Children with intellectual disability and autism often receive support which is organised with interprofessional collaboration in early childhood education and care (ECEC). In Finland, a new ECEC curriculum was launched in 2022. The core curriculum and renewed legislation on ECEC emphasise collaboration between professionals and parents. In this…