A study conducted by the researchers from Drexel University’s A.J. Drexel Autism Institute found that the inequality of access to resources can have a significant impact on the chances of an autistic child’s successful school transition. It provides an insight into the importance of team dynamics in shaping the success of children with autism from lower resourced families in public school settings.
The study, titled ‘Disrupted Care Continuity: Testing Associations between Social Networks and Transition Success for Children with Autism’ on Social Sciences. It investigates the correlation between the perceived success of autistic children from low-income families studying in public schools and the ‘team-around-the-child’ (TAC) during disruptive school transitions
“The current study found that engaging families in problem-solving, promoting trust within teams, and addressing any child problem behaviours promotes successful school transitions for children with autism during the post-transition period,” said Elizabeth McGhee Hassrick, the lead author of the study. She added, “These findings highlight the importance of providing the Team-around-the-Child with support and resources to build trust to address the complex needs of children with autism during times of major school transitions.”
The participants for the study were recruited from public schools in three different states in the USA, including key home, school, and healthcare providers. Each of the participants was responsible for providing intervention support for children with autism experiencing a school transition during a milestone developmental period.
The data was collected during both, pre and post-transition periods, which was then analyzed vis-à-vis the relationship shared between the children and the TACs to draw conclusions.
