Project Description:
Development and pilot testing of the students with autism accessing general education (SAAGE) model.
Principal Investigator (PI): Tristram Smith, Ph.D.
Key Collaborators (Co-PIs): (1) Cynthia M. Anderson (Appalachian State University), (2) Rose Iovannone (University of South Florida)
Duration: 3 years Budget: $1,500,000 ($500,000 per year)
The goal of this project is to develop and conduct a pilot test of a new comprehensive intervention to increase the quality of educational services and access to inclusive settings for students with co-occurring autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and intellectual disability (ID) in elementary school (kindergarten through 5th grade). Our intervention model, Students with Autism Accessing General Education (SAAGE), integrates evidence-based strategies to teach skills to students with ASD in schools, best practices derived from this literature by our research team, a recent guidebook written by the principal investigator, and research on collaboration with community providers such as school teams to implement interventions efficaciously and sustainably. SAAGE begins with strategies to help a school form a cohesive team to oversee implementation of the model in the school. For each student, SAAGE uses a modular approach for identifying goals for a student, selecting appropriate teaching strategies, and systematically monitoring progress and trouble-shooting. The modules center on core and associated features of ASD. Study personnel will use well-established behavioral skills training procedures to coach educators to implement the modules.
We propose an iterative development process that, if successful, will fully prepare us for a Goal 3 project to test the efficacy of SAAGE. Our development process comprises three steps, which will each inform sequential revisions of the intervention and study protocol:
1. We will create training materials and manuals to guide educators in building and maintaining a SAAGE leadership team and in implementing SAAGE modules in school settings. We will obtain qualitative and quantitative data on the usability, acceptability, and perceived helpfulness of the materials and manuals and use the data to refine these resources.
2. To inform further refinements, we will implement the intervention and study protocols with 3-5 students with ASD and ID, along with their teams (estimated ~2 educators per student), at each of the three sites. This step will yield preliminary qualitative and quantitative data on (a) teacher and parent satisfaction with the intervention and coaching and (b) feasibility of delivering the intervention in authentic school settings, carrying out study protocols, adhering to coaching procedures, and establishing fidelity of teacher implementation.
3. We will conduct a pilot cluster randomized clinical trial of a subset of SAAGE modules focusing on social communication and interaction involving two schools at each of the three sites (estimated 3 students with ASD per school, 2 educators per student, estimated student N = 18, estimated teacher N = 36). Although not providing definitive evidence of efficacy, the outcomes of the pilot study will situate the intervention model for future efficacy testing. Specifically, we will assess (a) trends in student performance, (b) fidelity of coaching and teacher implementation, (c) recruitment, retention, and completeness of data collection, and (d) teacher and parent ratings of the intervention.
Unserved or Under-served Populations:
Racial or Ethnic Minorities, Geographic Areas, Rural/Remote, Urban
