Assessing Interdisciplinary Trainees' Objective and Self-Reported Knowledge of Autism Spectrum Disorder and Confidence in Providing Services.

The importance of accurate identification and high-quality intervention for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is indisputable. Clinicians from multiple professions need adequate knowledge of ASD to make appropriate referrals to specialists, conduct thorough evaluations, and provide effective interventions. ASD knowledge development for many professionals may start at the pre-service training level. An interdisciplinary sample consisting of trainees from Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND) programs and University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDDs) across the country (N = 155) was evaluated on their objectively measured ASD knowledge using the ASKSP-R. Self-reported knowledge of ASD and self-reported confidence in providing services to individuals who have ASD was evaluated using a 0-100 scale. Results from an ANOVA demonstrated a significant difference in objectively measured knowledge across disciplines, F(7, 146) = 4.68, p < .001. Specifically, trainees in psychology had significantly higher levels of objectively measured ASD knowledge than trainees in physical/occupational therapy, social work, and non-clinical disciplines. Pre-service and professional development experiences predicted trainees' objectively measured ASD knowledge, self-reported ASD knowledge, and self-reported confidence. Implications and recommendations regarding interdisciplinary training to improve outcomes for individuals with ASD are discussed.

Bilingual and Home Language Interventions With Young Dual Language Learners: A Research Synthesis.

Purpose: The purpose of this systematic review was to determine what bilingual or home language interventions have been found to be effective for 2- to 6-year-old dual language learners who have language impairment (LI) or are at risk for LI. Method: We conducted ancestral searches and searches of electronic databases, hand-searched article bibliographies, and searched 19 journals for experimental, quasiexperimental, or single-subject studies. Results: The review yielded 26 studies that were coded for quality, frequency and duration of the intervention, number of participants, location of intervention, interventionist, language(s) of intervention, and reported or calculated effect sizes. Studies were grouped by those that focused specifically on at-risk populations and those that focused on children with LI. Emerging trends provide support for bilingual and/or home language interventions for both children with LI and those at risk for LI. Conclusions: There were relatively few studies that met inclusion criteria, and the average quality rating for a study was 6.8 out of 9.0 possible points. More high-quality research is needed, particularly with populations that speak languages other than Spanish. Clinicians need more evidence-based recommendations to improve the language and literacy outcomes of the diverse range of dual language learners served in the United States and abroad.

Narrative Intervention for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to determine whether a narrative intervention program that targeted the use of mental state and causal language resulted in positive gains in narrative production for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). METHOD: Five children (2 girls and 3 boys) who had been diagnosed with ASD participated in the study. Children ranged in age from 8 to 12 years and were recruited through an autism clinic. Intervention was provided for two 50-min individual sessions per week for a total of 21-33 sessions (depending on the student). Children's spontaneous stories, collected weekly, were analyzed for overall story complexity, story structure, and the use of mental state and causal language. Following a multiple-baseline across-participants design, data were collected for lagged baseline and intervention phases over a 6-month period. RESULTS: All of the children made gains on all 3 measures of narration after participating in the instruction, with clear changes in level for all 5 children and changes in trend for 4 of the 5 children. The gains were maintained after intervention was discontinued. CONCLUSION: The results demonstrate the efficacy of the 3-phase narrative instruction program for improving the fictional narration abilities of children with ASD.

Academic outcomes of very low birth weight infants: the influence of mother-child relationships.

It is commonly accepted that parent-child interactions are bidirectional and complex and are influenced by many different factors. The current study examined the academic and behavioral skills in the early elementary years of preterm infants and the influence of their early mother-child interactions on these skills. Using a sample of 21 premature infants and their mothers, this study found that positive early interactions during feeding were related to later mutual enjoyment during a teaching task at school age, but early maternal depression was not. Early risk factors of premature infants, specifically the number of days spent on a ventilator, were positively related to maternal perceptions of hassle associated with feeding and negatively related to maternal sensitivity during feeding. Finally, mutual enjoyment was strongly associated with language, cognitive, and behavioral skills at school age. These results suggest that it is not only the infant risk factors following a premature birth that influence later development but also the parent-child relationship and emphasize the importance of understanding and promoting these early positive parent-child interactions for premature infants.