Summary of Recommendations:


AUTISM SPECTRUM AUSTRALIA (Aspect)
Aspect EducationalOutreach
Review Consultation:SummaryofRecommendations re
Student: X
Review Date:
School: Z College
ClassTeachers:
Principal:
Learning Support Team Coord:
Present at Planning Meeting:
A review observations checklist was provided at the meeting and a Consultation Information Booklet has been provided previously. This booklet contains advice regarding a comprehensive range of support strategies, including detailed rationales for their use.
Because of X’s current very satisfactory level of progress, it was agreed at our meeting that a focus on high school transition planning would be the most useful option for this review report. It is understood that X will attend ZCollege as a boarder.
Summary of recommended transition strategies to support X through her transitionto Year 7 as follows:
  • Program of additional orientation visitsand familiarisation with Year 7 ‘people, places and procedures’
  • Introductions to school executive and other teachers wherever possible (orientation visits already under way)
  • Drafting of X’s Year 7 Individualised Education Plan in collaboration with X’s parents and current school’s learning support team. I would also be pleased to contribute to this planning if required
  • Assignment of role of key social and academic mentor (X’s main “go-to teacher”) to a Z Collegeteam member and introduction and relationship building with X at her orientation visits
  • Possibility of preliminary familiarisation overnight stay/s in boarding to be explored
  • Familiarisation with new uniforms (school / PE-sport) and uniform expectations
  • Creation of a transition journal/album (‘My New High School’) for X to browse through during the summer holidays and to contain:
  1. social scripts to support X’s understanding of classroom, break-time and boarding social behavioural expectations and rules along with rationales for these rules
  2. schedules / procedural scripts to familiarise X with thepracticalschool and boarding routines
  3. photos of important “people and places” around Z College (photos taken during orientation visits)
  4. copy of staff photo with X’s teachers and boarding assistants highlighted or numbered if possible, along with key to teachers’ subject areas and boarding assistants’ roles
  5. maps / ground plans of school and boarding area, colour coded (e.g. pink for X’s classroom/s, yellow for the various girls’ toilets, green for year 7 break-time grounds, blue for boarding house,etc) and with cross-reference key to photos (pink = student support office - see pix of office & Mrs Jones & Mrs Carter)
  6. other school brochures and new student induction information
  7. sample of a Year 7 week or 2 x week cycle timetable with subject colour-coding
  8. sample of a colour-coded single day’s timetable taken from the larger weeks’ timetable
  9. sample of boarding-specific schedules
  10. samples of any end-of-week transport plans or schedules
  11. establishment of subject-based colour-coding system for X, with corresponding coloured covers on subject’s workbooks, textbooks and related materials and equipment containers
  12. lockers procedures information /orientation practice and sample of a typical locker visit schedule
  13. establishment of subject colour-coded locker compartments / shelves / boxes to expedite X’s locker visits and her subject materials management, planning and organisational skills and general time management
  14. if in the unlikely event that locker management is too problematic for X at first (due e.g. to possible organisational and time management issues and due to social and sensory-motor issues such as noise, crowding, pushing, bumping, equipment sorting, bag unloading and re-packing,etc), the temporary establishment of an alternative system whereby X’s locker is specifically tailored and set up in a separate space e.g. in LST room, where adult assistance will be more readily available
  15. peer education programs may be of benefit in supporting positive peer social attitudes
  16. adults working with Xproactively plan to avoid reference to the word “help” either to or about X because of her known aversion to being singled out in front of classmates and for other reasons as follows:
SOME ADDITIONAL GUIDELINES FOR TEACHERS, SLSOs / TASs / TUTORS & OTHER ADULTS IN LEARNING & SOCIAL SUPPORT ROLES:
Rationale: the role of special support personnel is to help foster as many independent social and learning behaviours as possible in the student with ASD, both in classrooms and on the grounds, rather than closely supervising and ‘managing’ student’s engagement or behavior:
  • Avoid referring to your work with student as ‘help’. Avoid asking him/her if he needs ‘help’. He/she may refuse assistance if it humiliates or singles him/her out. Instead offer e.g. ‘check in’ or “review” or ‘suggestions ’ or ‘team work’
  • Plan appropriately flexible levels of prompting, depending on nature of task and student’s own (probably variable) coping capacity
  • Avoid the risk that the student will become prompt dependent ~ remember, independence and self-direction are the goals
  • Support on-task engagement and comprehension with visual prompts e.g. task scaffolds such as templates and mind-maps, organisational and self-monitoring checklists, quick snippets of advice written and provided discreetly ‘in the moment’ on post-it notes
  • Set student up to proceed independently whenever possible and move away. Circulate amongst other students, while remaining alert to student’s ‘signals’.
  • Sit or stand at a ‘check-in desk/table’’ at a remove from student, and require him/her (and other students) to come to adult for review of progress. This has the added benefit of providing student with a sensory-motor break and some release from the tension, stress and fatigue caused by protracted concentrating, sitting, writing
  • Reduce ‘talk’ and persistent verbal prompts and reminders. Allow time for processing and silent reflection. Avoid ‘nagging’ ~ use a post-it note approach to providing key information
  • In classroom: consider proximity to student and social impact i.e. impact on classmates’ perceptions of student, and impact on student’s own self-esteem and self-regulation of too much adult ‘hovering’.
  • Help organise locker e.g. subject ‘compartments’/ colour-coding, and teach independent locker management skills
  • In collaboration with home, help establish organisational schedules for homework, assessment task and assignment completion. Monitor progress via these schedules through dedicated ‘check-in’time
  • During recess/lunch breaks: active social involvement & participation in break time programs ( if these are in place) are highly recommended, rather than remote supervision
  • In all settings: reduce adult ‘chatter’ around student or about student within his/her hearing (unless of course, it’s to communicate specific praise!) (see ‘Adult Interaction Styles’ and ‘Ways to Praise’ in this booklet)
(Extract from Aspect Educational Outreach’s Consultation Information Booklet)

Aspect Educational Outreach pg. 1