STEPS: Stepped Transition in Education Program for Students with ASD

描述（由申请人提供）：患有自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）但没有并发智力障碍的年轻人在中学毕业后面临着一系列相当独特的挑战。这些学生通常有能力在高等教育中取得成功，他们中的许多人有兴趣追求更高的学位，但他们的残疾和相关缺陷的性质（例如，糟糕的时间管理和糟糕的自我调节）可能会阻碍他们的成功。个性化、适当的时间和发展敏感的过渡和支持服务可以促进这些年轻人实现最佳结果。这个项目的目标是制定一个全面的计划，以促进自闭症学生从高中到高等教育的成功过渡。我们建议完善并评估一项针对青少年和年轻成人自闭症患者的新型过渡支持和干预计划：STEPS[自闭症学生阶梯式过渡教育计划]。通过针对ASD青少年自我调节（SR）和自我决定（SD）的改善，我们认为该项目在大学适应和功能行为方面可能有积极的结果。虽然该计划将在拟议项目的第一阶段完成，但STEPS由两个级别（或步骤）组成，以满足学生在过渡计划方面的特殊需求。在第一步中，面临转换的学生(即，已经确定他们将参加的大学[2年或4年的机构]，但仍在高中

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Young adults who have Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) without co-occurring intellectual impairment face a fairly unique set of challenges as they transition out of secondary school. These students are often quite capable of succeeding in higher education and many of them have interest in pursuing advanced degrees, but the nature of their disability and associated deficits (e.g., poor time management and poor self-regulation) may impede success. Individualized, appropriately timed, and developmentally sensitive transition and support services may promote realization of optimal outcomes for these young people. The goal of this project is to develop a comprehensive program to promote successful transition of students with ASD from high school to post-secondary education. We propose to refine and then evaluate a novel transition support and intervention program for adolescents and young adults with ASD: STEPS [Stepped Transition in Education Program for Students with ASD]. By targeting improved self-regulation (SR) and self-determination (SD) in young people with ASD, we assert that this program may have positive outcomes with respective to college adjustment and functional behavior. Although the program will be finalized during the first phase of the proposed project, STEPS is comprised of two levels (or steps), which match the student's particular needs in relation to transition planning. In Step 1, students facing transition (i.e., hve identified the college they will attend [either 2-year or 4-year institution] but are still in high school) and their caregivers will receive information to assist in transition planning, undergo readiness self-assessments to identify degree of preparedness for post-secondary school, and participate in interactive sessions online and in person to promote self-knowledge and determination. In Step 2, college students with ASD will receive fairly intensive supports and interventions, including individual counseling, structured support services, social integration activities, and coaching to promote academic and social success. Successful transition programming for students with ASD will be most effective if developed using a 'bottom up' additive approach, with the students' self-identified needs in mind. We therefore propose a two-phase project, first using a participatory process approach to develop the full program (Phase I) and then implementing the program in a small RCT (Phase II). During Phase I, we will iteratively refine the treatment based on consultation with the expert panel (via bi-weekly conference calls and site visits), and feedback from students with ASD and their families. The purpose of the RCT is to establish feasibility of implementation, acceptability to the end-users, and refine methodology (e.g., recruitment, retention) in preparation for a fully powered efficacy trial. The proposed research and its products (training materials, curriculum; also evidence of feasibility and preliminary efficacy) will help to advance current research and clinical/educational practice. This preliminary study represents the first, necessary step toward an evidence-based, user-friendly, and hopefully highly effective transition program for students with ASD.