Teaching and Learning
The curriculum used by Southern Autistic School was developed by staff with consideration of DET resources and a knowledge of the specific learning needs of students who have ASD. The school based curriculum allows teachers to write individual learning plans that enable parents, teachers and the student to monitor stages of learning.
Teachers meet with parents and carers four times per year to review student individual education plans through student support group meetings.
The STAR Program (Arick, Loos, Falco, Krug, 2004) teaches children with autism the critical skills identified by the National Research Council. The ABA (Applied Behavior Analysis) instructional methods of discrete trial training, pivotal response training and teaching functional routines form the instructional base of this comprehensive program for children with autism.
The Links Curriculum (Arick, Hoffman, Magee-Arick, 2012) is a comprehensive curriculum designed to promote student independence in natural environments. The Links online system utilizes a curriculum-based assessment to individualize routines for every student. The Links school and community lesson plans provide the user with the tools necessary to teach both individual skills and independence in daily routines.
Evidence-Based and Research-Validated Curriculum
The STAR Program and the Links Curriculum are grounded in evidence-based practices and have shown to be effective in many settings, including public school programs. These curricula transfer research into practice by providing teachers with the tools to implement a comprehensive program using the teaching strategies identified as most effective for students with significant learning challenges.
For further information on the STAR / Links Program visit http://starautismsupport.com