ICAN home about ICAN Tour Modules Glossary Search  
Your Path: ICAN Home > Modules > Environmental Interventions > Family/School Partnerships: Introduction
Characteristics assessment Academic Interventions Behavioral Interventions Communication Interventions Environmental Interventions Sensory Interventions Social Interventions
   

Family/School Partnerships

Forum References FAQ's Quiz Lecture Introduction IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, a Federal law) introduces the concept that schools and families should make decisions together to address the needs of children with disabilities. For children with autism spectrum disorders, the level and nature of that cooperative framework is critical. This is because children with ASD:

  • Have complex profiles
  • Have so many things to learn due to the pervasive nature of ASD
  • Need lots of repetition for practice
  • Experience difficulties generalizing information from one setting to another

The need for a consistent program helps kids with ASD to function better in the home and community, as well as in the school building. Sharing information from one place to another increases the likelihood that the team will address the full range of the child’s needs, and provide the consistency of allowing the child to practice skills in a variety of places and with a variety of people to ensure that the skills are learned effectively. Sharing information among people who come together with very different perspectives can sometimes be difficult, but when everyone has the needs of the child in mind when making decisions, then everyone shares in the success of that child.

Working as a team also enhances everyone’s ability to be creative and effective. This is because it encourages the atmosphere of a ‘team spirit’, offers positive support for team members’ individual efforts, and allows for supports and interventions to be carried through in a variety of settings that would not be possible if school and home were not working effectively together. The goal of such a partnership should be to move the child toward independence from caretakers in adulthood, and to become an active participant within the community. In order for this to occur, consistent instruction needs to take place in all three settings – school, home, and community.

Lecture Content