Teacher Implementation of the Early Achievements Intervention Improves Preschoolers' Social and Communication Outcomes

Sunday, May 15, 2022

At the International Society for Autism Research annual meeting in Austin Texas on May 12, 2022, Dr. Rebecca Landa, Ms. Anne-Michelle Engelstad and Dr. Calliope Holingue presented the results of an Institute of Education Sciences-funded randomized control trial focused on teacher-implemented intervention with autistic preschoolers in public school settings. Teachers were randomized to the Early Achievements intervention (Landa et al., 2011) or a Workshop Only condition.

The study team found that teachers receiving workshops and job-embedded coaching to implement the group-based Early Achievements intervention provided instruction using significantly more evidence-based strategies than did the Workshop Only teachers. Autistic preschoolers in the Early Achievements condition had significantly better social and communication outcomes than did children in the Workshop Only condition. These results indicate that children with autism can access high-impact intervention from trained teachers during their regular school day, decreasing costs to families and improving child outcomes in developmental areas that area foundational to school achievement and community quality of life.

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