Early Interventionists' Appraisals of Intervention Strategies for Toddlers with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Their Peers in Inclusive Childcare Classrooms.
Melissa Maye, Victoria E Sanchez, Angela Stone-MacDonald and 1 others
PMID 32193762WHAT IT FOUND
Early interventionists rated 31 autism strategies as more effective for typical toddlers than for autistic toddlers, yet eight of the top ten strategies overlapped for both groups.
Most top-rated strategies for autistic children are already standard practice in accredited childcare.
Key findings
01Eight of the top-10 rated strategies for effectiveness and practicality with toddlers with autism also fell within the top-10 for all toddlers.
02Early interventionists perceived the majority of identified strategies to be significantly more effective for all toddlers than for toddlers with autism.
03Nine of the top-10 highest rated strategies for toddlers with autism are similar to activities already included in standard observational assessments of childcare classroom quality.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study surveyed early interventionists, not childcare providers, so it reflects the views of specialists rather than the teachers delivering the strategies daily. Participants rated each strategy against only one specific behavioral target, so a strategy might have been rated low for that target even if it is effective for other behaviors. The sample was predominantly female, highly educated, and recruited via convenience sampling, which may limit how well the results apply to other regions or educational backgrounds.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that strategies rated as highly practical and effective for all toddlers are automatically effective for toddlers with autism. The study found that most strategies were rated as significantly less effective for autistic toddlers compared to their peers, even though they overlapped in the top-10 rankings for practicality.