Peer Networks Projects: Improving Social Communication, Literacy, and Adaptive Behaviors for Young Children with ASD

Debra Kamps, Linda Heitzman-Powell, Kathy Thiemann, University of Kansas

Ilene Schwartz and Roxanne Hudson, University of Washington

Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Special Education Research: R324A090091

ABSTRACT

The purpose of the Peer Networks Intervention Project will be to examine the effectiveness of a comprehensive social-communication and literacy intervention program that addresses early social-communication and interaction skills, reading and academic skills, and behavioral and adaptive functional skills for young children with ASD. Given the alarming increase in the number of young children identified with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), experimental studies documenting effective interventions are needed. For success in educational settings specifically, we know that key survival skills are necessary including early social-communication skills to interact with peers and teachers, literacy skills as the foundation for all academic content, and classroom functioning and ability to participate in groups (Atwater et al., 1994; Carta et al., 1990). Unfortunately, many children with ASD are not equipped with these survival skills and the gap between these children and their peers widens over time (Prizant, Schuler, Wetherby, & Rydell, 1997; Thiemann & Kamps, 2008). Current evidence suggests that intensive behavior analytic interventions that provide direct instruction for young children are the most effective for long term outcomes (National Research Council, 2001), and that children with ASD can learn in small group formats, and with neurotypical peers (Kamps et al., 2002; Strain & Schwartz, 2001). Consequently this project will test the efficacy of a comprehensive program using a behavior analytic approach with (1) Peer Networks using peer-mediated social-communication intervention and the Play Time Social Time and Connecting Kids curricula, and (2) Peer Networks for academics using teacher-led, early literacy instruction in small groups with neurotypical peers and the Reading Mastery curriculum and peer tutoring to supplement the lessons. The intervention is designed to improve school outcomes for children with ASD. Public school districts in the metropolitan Kansas City, MO and KS area and the Seattle, WA area representing culturally diverse communities will participate.

A randomized trial across the two sites, the University of Kansas and the University of Washington will be conducted with a minimum of 60 children in intervention over the 4 year period, and 60 children in a comparison group. Children will be enrolled in Kindergarten through 1st grade classrooms for the two-year intervention. Outcomes will include multiple measures of academic, social communication, and behavioral performance using pre and post tests, and repeated measures using direct observation. Fidelity will include measures of dosage and procedural quality of intervention, and fidelity measures will be collected for the intervention group (participation in the Peer Networks Intervention) and comparison group (participation in the business as usual literacy and peer group condition). The data analysis for the investigation will (1) determine differential effects between the experimental group and children in the comparison (non-treatment) group for social-communication, literacy, language, and adaptive behavior at the end of first grade using SAS PROC GLM to conduct an Analysis of Covariance; and (2) determine if the Peer Network treatment group has more rapid growth than the comparison group in social-communication, literacy, and language skills using hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) analyses and SAS PROC MIXED. Additional data analysis will determine the degree to which (1) Autistic characteristics, learning rate, and fidelity of intervention impact growth for the treatment group.