IDEAS: Inventing, Designing, and Engineering on the Autism Spectrum

目前的研究表明，每68名儿童中就有1人患有自闭症，因此，制定相关计划，帮助患有自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）的学生在工作中充分发挥潜力，这一点至关重要。这个为期三年的项目将汇集一组研究人员，来自纽约科学馆的创客项目开发人员，在支持自闭症学生方面具有专业知识的教育工作者，以及自闭症谱系的学生，共同创建一个正式/非正式的混合项目，为有或没有自闭症的中学生做好发明家、设计师和工程师等职业的准备。我们的目标是让该项目在纽约市的ASD包容性中学中由这些学校的教育工作者持续实施。该项目不仅将使全国最大、最多样化的ASD包容性项目的学生、教育工作者和工作人员受益，还将成为合作项目开发和实施的典范，其他城市学区的ASD包容性项目可以效仿。该项目将推动学生和教师创新技术体验（ITEST）项目的努力，以更好地理解和促进提高学生在科学、技术、工程或数学领域追求职业的动机和能力的实践，为支持自闭症学生的理论基础、基于研究的技术如何融入创客项目提供新知识。以及如何在正式和非正式的包容性教育环境中实施这些项目。这将扩大我们对ASD中学生设计和工程劳动力准备的理解，为如何将非正式的STEM项目转化为基于学校的环境提供一个模型，并展示利益相关者如何根据不同的教育环境量身定制这种交叉设置的项目。透过此计划所提供的资源将支持其他地区对该计划的改编。研究人员将使用克莱门茨（2007）的课程研究框架来构建一个协作的共同设计方法，围绕以下工作阶段进行组织。阶段1：协作程序重新设计。测试和重新设计一个以博物馆为基础的“设计与制造学院”课后项目，包括支持自闭症学生的技术，并在课后项目中增加课堂和午餐的组成部分。第二阶段：中试和修改。对重新设计的程序和研究工具在三所包容性中学进行试点测试，并根据结果进行修订。第三阶段：研究研究。实施修订后的计划，并进行研究，以检查它是否有希望(a)帮助计划参与者学习工程设计过程，(b)增加计划参与者的科学和工程兴趣和职业动机，以及(c)为城市ASD包容性计划创建一个可持续的计划和实施过程。

With current research indicating that up to one in 68 children is on the autism spectrum, it is critical to create programs that prepare students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to achieve their full potential in the workforce. This three-year project will bring together a team of researchers, Maker program developers from New York Hall of Science, educators with expertise in supporting students with ASD, and students on the autism spectrum to create a hybrid formal/informal program that prepares middle-school students with and without ASD for careers as inventors, designers, and engineers. The goal is for the program to be sustainably implemented in New York City's ASD inclusion middle schools by educators in those schools. Not only will this project benefit students, educators, and staff in the largest and most diverse ASD inclusion program in the country, it also will serve as a model of collaborative program development and implementation that other ASD inclusion programs in urban school districts can follow. This project will advance efforts of the Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program to better understand and promote practices that increase students' motivations and capacities to pursue careers in fields of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics contributing new knowledge about how theoretically grounded, research-based techniques for supporting students with ASD can be incorporated into Maker programs, and how to implement such programs in formal and informal inclusion education settings. This will expand our understanding of design and engineering workforce preparation for middle school students with ASD, provide a model for how to translate informal STEM programs to school-based environments, and demonstrate how such cross-setting programs can be tailored by stakeholders to various educational contexts. The resources made available through this project will support the adaptation of the program by other districts.The researchers will use Clements' (2007) Curriculum Research Framework to structure a collaborative co-design approach, organized around the following phases of work. Phase 1: Collaborative program redesign. Test and redesign a museum-based Design and Fabrication Make Academy afterschool program to include techniques for supporting students with ASD, and to add classroom and lunchtime components to the afterschool program. Phase 2: Pilot test and revise. Conduct a pilot test of the redesigned program and research instruments in three inclusion middle schools, and make revisions based on findings. Phase 3: Research study. Implement the revised program and conduct research that examines whether it shows promise for (a) helping program participants learn the Engineering Design Process, (b) increasing the science and engineering interest and career motivation of program participants, and (c) creating a sustainable program and implementation process for urban ASD inclusion programs.