Teachers' Knowledge Regarding Autism Spectrum Disorder(ASD): A Systematic Review

The increasing number of students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in mainstream education environments require teachers to know how to identify their needs, being capable to adapt their education processes and make their inclusion easier. The purpose of this study is to conduct a systematic review about teachers' knowledge of ASD, including teachers from any stage and specialization. The research has been conducted from four databases (Web of Science, Scopus, PsycInfo and Google Scholar) during the period of 2015-2020. In total, 25 articles were analyzed. The results show that, in general, teachers' knowledge of ASD is poor. It depends on the education stage (being higher in early childhood teachers and in university professors), prior training and possible prior contact with students with ASD

Analysis of Spanish Parents' Knowledge about ASD and Their Attitudes towards Inclusive Education

To make possible the inclusion of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in mainstream settings, parental knowledge and attitudes towards the disorder play a key role between the home and the school setting. However, prior literature has not carried out an in-depth analysis of parents' knowledge about ASD and their attitudes toward the inclusion of children with this diagnosis. This study examined the parental attitudes towards inclusion and knowledge about ASD. Participants were parents of children with ASD (n = 75), parents of children without ASD whose children had prior or current contact with peers with ASD (n = 44), and parents of children with no previous interactions with a peer with ASD (n = 51). The Attitudes of Regular Educators Towards Inclusion for Students with Autism Survey and the Autism Knowledge Questionnaire were filled out. Nonparametric statistical tests were used. Results showed that parents of children with ASD have better knowledge about this disorder and hold more favorable attitudes towards the inclusion of children with ASD than the other parents. These findings suggest that the benefits of inclusive schooling are limited to the school setting and do not appear to affect families of children without ASD

Do labels matter? Analysis of teachers' self-efficacy towards the autism spectrum disorder depending on the diagnostic label used (ASD or Asperger's)

Changes in the classification of autism and Asperger's syndrome led to changes in social perception of ASD. Since last criteria, studies indicate higher levels of stigma towards ASD than towards Asperger's. These prejudices are barriers to inclusive education. Thus, it is relevant (1) to evaluate preservice teachers' self-efficacy towards the label of ASD; (2) to evaluate pre-service teachers' selfefficacy towards the label of Asperger's and (3) to compare those results to analyse whether the use of different diagnostic labels brings about different levels of self-efficacy. One hundred and eighty-six primary education pre-service teachers participated in the current study. Two adaptations of the Autism Self-Efficacy Scale for Teachers (ASSET) were used: a version with the label of 'ASD' (n = 96) and another for 'Asperger's' (n = 90). The scores obtained by the group asked about ASD were high according to the ASSET score range, while the scores obtained by the group asked about Asperger's were medium. After comparing the results, participants asked about the label ASD showed higher levels of self-efficacy than participants asked about Asperger's. These results could be a consequence of the consolidation of the ASD diagnosis among society and the higher presence of children with ASD in schools and cultural products, among other factors

Today Is My Day: Analysis of the Awareness Campaigns' Impact on Functional Diversity in the Press, on Google, and on Twitter.

Every day, people with functional diversity face different kinds of difficulties that pose a barrier to their social inclusion. These difficulties often go unnoticed by most citizens. Social networks are a powerful tool to sensitize the population. With this objective, different organizations such as associations, federations, foundations, and other institutions have promoted campaigns through the celebration of world days for different types of functional diversity. This research aims to monitor and analyze the impact of these social campaigns in Spain, including Asperger's syndrome, rare diseases, Down syndrome, autism, hearing and visual impairment, cerebral palsy, dyslexia, ADHD, spina bifida, disability, and dyscalculia world days, between 2015 and 2020. (2) The impact of each campaign on the press, Google, and Twitter has been analyzed using: MyNews, Google Trends, and Trendinalia. (3) The results suggest a close relationship between the impact on the number of pieces of news generated in the press, the searches on Google, and the hashtags in high positions on Twitter. (4) The campaigns with the greatest levels of success are those whose diagnoses involve greater difficulties in adaptive behavior. These results can provide some practical implications for future campaigns

What Motivates Internet Users to Search for Asperger Syndrome and Autism on Google?

Social campaigns are carried out to promote autism spectrum disorder (ASD) awareness, normalization, and visibility. The internet helps to shape perceptions of Asperger syndrome and autism. In fact, these campaigns often coincide with the increase in searches for both diagnoses on Google. We have two study objectives: to use Google Trends to identify the annual time points from 2015 to 2019 with the highest Google search tra c in Spain for the terms 'autism' and 'Asperger', and to identify news and trending topics related to ASD that took place during the weeks with the highest number of Google searches for these terms. Google Trend, MyNews and Trendinalia were used to analyze the volume of searches and trending topics related to ASD. As a result, social marketing campaigns, social networks and the publication of news items act as powerful voices that can provide a realistic or sensationalist picture of the disorder. For this reason, we concluded that campaigns play an important role in the normalization of ASD, and that it is important for organizations concerned with the visibility and social inclusion of people with ASD to check the way ASD is portrayed through the internet, media, and social networks

Teachers Attitudes toward Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review

Teachers' attitudes toward the inclusion of students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in mainstream schools influence daily educational practices. Depending on whether these attitudes are favorable or not, inclusive education could be fully or partially reached. This systematic review aims to analyze teachers' attitudes toward ASD and to determine the variables that moderate them. (2) We conducted a systematic review in WoS, Scopus, and PsycINFO databases, obtaining an amount of 16 studies included in this review. (3) The results revealed inconclusive levels in teachers' attitudes: Some of the teachers reported positive attitudes, some neutral, and some negative. (4) Among the variables that probably moderate attitudes, we found knowledge, experience, training, and gender. Future research and implications for pre‐service and in‐service teachers, school administrators, and policy makers are suggested

Interventions for Improving Reading Comprehension in Children with ASD: A Systematic Review.

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often have comorbid learning difficulties in reading comprehension, an essential skill in accessing any area of the curriculum. The aim of this systematic review is to analyze the effectiveness of reading comprehension interventions in students with ASD. We conducted a search for scientific articles published from 2000 to 2019 using the keyword 'autis*' in combination with the terms 'reading comprehension' and 'intervention' or 'instruction' in Psyc Info and Scopus databases. After applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, a total of 25 studies were selected. The content analysis of these studies shows that when specific interventions are carried out, students with ASD are able to take advantage of the instruction they receive and compensate for difficulties. Understanding inferences and the main idea of the text are the most common reading comprehension topics, and direct instruction is the most widely-used intervention method in the reviewed studies. Nonetheless, it must be kept in mind that some of the reviews do not specify which sub-processes are addressed in the intervention. Future work should include this aspect, consider the importance of the interventions being implemented by teachers, and take specific aspects of ICT into account that can contribute to improving reading comprehension

La accesibilidad cognitiva en el punto de mira. Análisis de una experiencia de futuros docentes sobre la evaluación del entorno

Cognitive accessibility refers to the characteristics of environments that make them easier to understand. In school environments, cognitive accessibility is crucial for children with specific educational support needs, so teachers must have adequate training to make environments more accessible. In the present study, 38 Pre-Primary Education pre-service teachers participated and completed a questionnaire with Likert-type and short-answer questions about cognitive accessibility in the university environment. The results show that cognitive accessibility was an unknown concept to students before the training activity, but after its completion, their knowledge of the topic increased, they maintained a high level of motivation, and expressed their intention to carry out actions to improve cognitive accessibility in educational centres in the future.La accesibilidad cognitiva hace referencia a las características de los entornos para que sean más sencillos de comprender. En entornos escolares la accesibilidad cognitiva es especialmente importante para los niños y niñas con necesidades específicas de apoyo educativo, por lo que el profesorado debe tener la formación adecuada para hacer los entornos más accesibles. En el presente estudio se llevó a cabo una experiencia de formación inicial de profesorado sobre la accesibilidad cognitiva en el entorno universitario. Participaron 38 estudiantes del grado de Maestro/a en Educación Infantil que cumplimentaron un cuestionario con preguntas tipo Likert y de respuesta corta. Los resultados muestran que la accesibilidad cognitiva era un concepto desconocido para los estudiantes antes de la actividad formativa, pero que tras su realización aumentaron su conocimiento sobre el tema, mantuvieron un nivel de motivación elevado y manifestaron su intención de llevar a cabo en el futuro acciones para mejorar la accesibilidad cognitiva de centros educativos

Efectos de la estimulación sensorial en la conducta adaptativa del alumnado con TEA: un estudio de caso

Las personas con trastorno del espectro autista (TEA) presentan habitualmente dificultades para procesar e integrar la estimulación sensorial de su entorno. Estas dificultades pueden verse reducidas con la intervención adecuada, especialmente en edades tempranas. El objetivo de este trabajo es evaluar los efectos que produce un programa de estimulación sensorial sobre la conducta y la inclusión educativa de un niño con TEA de educación primaria. MÉTODO: Se presenta un estudio de caso con un participante de 7 años con diagnóstico de TEA. La intervención ha constado de 52 sesiones de estimulación sensorial diseñada de acuerdo al perfil sensorial del participante. La efectividad de la intervención se ha evaluado mediante registros de observación, el Perfil sensorial Koynos, el Short Sensory Profile y el Sistema de Evaluación de Niños y Adolescentes. RESULTADOS: Los resultados de la intervención han mostrado una disminución de la frecuencia de conductas desadaptativas, lo que redunda en mejoras en los procesos de inclusión. CONCLUSIONES: El alumnado del aula ordinaria ha mostrado interés en el alumno con autismo y sus conductas desadaptativas han disminuido considerablemente. Esto sugiere que la intervención aplicada ha propiciado efectos positivos y que la estimulación sensorial es una buena solución ante los déficits de integración sensorial

El debate educativo de 1978 a través de Twitter. Una experiencia de formación de profesorado

The understanding of the political debate that the Spain’s Constitution of 1978 aroused due to the education field can be a complicated task for pre-service teachers. However, this knowledge is of notable interest in teacher training. In order to facilitate the learning of legislation and alleviate this feeling of rejection, previous studies have used Twitter as a tool to make easier the learning process. Therefore, the aim of this study is twofold: from the description of a task carried out with social networks so that university students understand the political debate that aroused the drafting of article 27 of that Constitution, to analyze the perception of the degree of knowledge and motivation of the students involved in the use of this methodology; and, to compare the perception of the acquired learning degree and the motivation experienced with two other usual teaching practices. In total, 30 students completed a questionnaire created expressly for this research. The results show that both variables (the level of knowledge and the motivation perceived by the students) scored high, using Twitter. In addition, these reported levels were higher than with the use of the other two more traditional methodologies proposed. This could be due to the fact that the use of digital references (close to the students) increases the appeal of the tasks and allows teaching to be closer to the university students’ learning process.La comprensión del debate político que provocó la Constitución Española de 1978 en materia de educación puede resultar una tarea complicada para los futuros docentes. No obstante, se trata de un conocimiento de notable interés en la formación del profesorado. Con el fin de facilitar el aprendizaje de la legislación y paliar ese sentimiento de rechazo, estudios previos se han servido de Twitter como una herramienta facilitadora del aprendizaje. Por ello, el objetivo del presente estudio es doble: a partir de una actividad llevada a cabo en la formación inicial de futuros docentes, analizar la percepción del grado de conocimientos y motivación de los estudiantes implicados con el uso de esta metodología; y, comparar la percepción del grado de aprendizaje adquirido y la motivación experimentada con otras dos prácticas docentes habituales. En total, 30 estudiantes cumplimentaron un cuestionario elaborado ad hoc para la presente investigación. Los resultados muestran que, tanto el nivel de conocimiento como el de motivación percibida por los estudiantes, usando Twitter, fue elevado. Además, estos niveles reportados eran más elevados que con el uso de las otras dos metodologías más tradicionales propuestas. Ello podría deberse a que el uso de referencias digitales cercanas al alumnado aumenta el atractivo de las tareas y permite acercar la enseñanza al proceso de aprendizaje de los universitarios