ASD team members provide consultation to school teams in a variety of ways in order to build capacity and increase student success.

Examples include:

• Providing coaching, modeling and consultation on the implementation of EBPs to teachers, specialists, parents and instructional assistants

• Assisting teachers to develop individualized education plan (IEP) goals and providing additional individualized program planning that supports IEP goals such as monitoring progress and analyzing data

• Contributing to the development of functional behavioral assessment (FBA) and implementation of behavioral intervention plans (BIP)

• Coaching and modeling for new evaluators performing the components of the ASD evaluation process

• Maintaining records, such as documentation of services provided and time spent on tasks designated to support students with ASD and the teams they work with inside and outside the classroom setting

• Lending books and materials from the NWRESD ASD Professional Library for teachers and parents to read and/or “try before you buy”

• Providing access to sample visual systems and supports

• Collaborating with outside agencies that provide services to students on their caseloads such as developmental disabilities (DD) services or vocational rehabilitation

• Leading district teams through the Oregon Commission of ASD/ODE’s ASD Program Self-Assessment and Action Plan and supporting those teams by prioritizing and implementing identified goals

For a fee, districts can contract for ASD team members to perform direct instruction for their students. Additional contracted services can include but are not limited to:

• Teaching social skills groups, including creating scope and sequence of instruction that encompasses IEP goals and objectives, lesson and materials preparation and progress-reporting to case-managers.

• Providing one-on-one social coaching for students

• Providing structured, regular weekly support in classrooms to implement or support curriculum (e.g., STAR, Edmark, FACTER/LINKS).

• Executing special projects to support district initiatives or for specific students or classrooms that require focused and extensive support

ASD Team members may participate as members of multidisciplinary teams conducting evaluations for the purpose of determining eligibility under the category of ASD. For a fee, districts can contract with NWRESD for these services.

While implementing teaching and intervention strategies for students with autism, we- as the NWRESD are obligated to center on evidence-based practices. The concept of evidence-based practice indicates that the research and outcome responses have been consulted and the techniques we are using are confirmed to be the most successful based on the most current research. For a practice to be identified as evidence-based, the techniques needs to be implemented in specific research trials, meeting many pre-determined factors and conditions. In 2014 the National Professional Development Center on Autism Spectrum Disorder developed a list (due for update soon) of 27 identified best practices in working with students identified as experiencing autism.

Helpful Resources from NWRESD

• Resources for Parents

National Autism Organizations 

• National Autism Center
• National Professional Development Center
• The National Clearinghouse on Autism Evidence & Practice

• Autism: A Closer Look