EVIDENCE–BASED PRACTICES FOR STUDENTS WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of California State Polytechnic University, Pomona In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Doctorate In Educational Leadership By Lindsey M. Denniston 2017 SIGNATURE PAGE DISSERTATION: EVIDENCE-BASEDPRACTICES FOR AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER AUTHOR: Lindsey M. Denniston DATE SUBMITTED: Summer 2017 College of Education and Integrative Studies Dr. Amy Gimino Dissertation Committee Chair Department of Education Dr. Joanne Van Boxtel Department of Education Dr. Shannon Avery Principal Pinion Hills Elementary School ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I want to thank my family and friends who offered support from simply asking “How is it going?” to listening to me rant and rave over the last three years. Every word was helpful and meaningful to me. To my committee for offering support and pushing me to better myself in ways I would not have thought possible three years ago. Thank you. A special thank you to my sisters Jamie and Amber, and brother-in-law Joe who stepped up and listened to me talk endlessly about my topic and lent an ear for me often. Maybe one day you “will actually read” the whole thing. You were and are appreciated. Mom, you “always knew I was smart”. From the bottom of my heart I love you and thank you for shaping me into the person I am today. That little girl with her hair sticking out everywhere, papers flying, and dragging her jacket became a doctor! Kalise and Kylan, I love you more than anything in the world. I’ll remember working on “homework” while watching endlessly the Lion King, Cars and your latest obsessions as “cuddle time”. Anything worth doing requires working hard. Roger, I know I drove you crazy and you returned my stress with love even if not the dishes. I would never have done this without you. Thank you for always trying to be a better man and making me a better woman right along with you. Meh! Lastly, I dedicate this paper to my dad and grandpa Garcia. You may not have lived to see this day, but I was always your “A student”. I know “my best friend Chito” is watching me now proudly with a smile and laughing when I reveal my “A student” status. Look Dad, now I am “Dr. A student”. ABSTRACT Evidence-based practices (EBP) are required to be used for all students including those students with Autism spectrum disorder (ASD; Individuals with Disabilities Education Act [IDEA], 2004; No Child Left Behind [NCLB], 2002; Education Sciences Reform Act, 2002); yet, there continues to be a research to practice gap with the percentage of special educators utilizing EBP around 30% (Hess, Morrier, Heflin, & Ivey, 2008; Lilienfeld, Marshall, Todd, & Shane, 2015; Spencer, Detrich, & Slocum, 2012; Stahmer, Collings, & Palinkas., 2005). This survey study investigated elementary special educators’ current definitions of EBP for students with ASD, the sources of information they consult for information about EBP, and their use and beliefs about EBP for students with ASD. A modified version of the Autism Treatment Survey [ATS] (Morrier, Hess, & Heflin, 2006) was administered to special educators in an Inland Empire District in Southern California. Results indicated that respondents defined EBP as researched practices with positive outcomes and utilized three sources for information regarding EBP: conferences and trainings, pre-service programs, and online materials. All of the respondents reported using six practices: naturalistic interventions, differential reinforcement (reinforcement), extinction, modeling, prompting, antecedent based interventions, and functional behavior assessments. Practices that fell below the acceptable reported use threshold of 70% included: pivotal response training (PRT), cognitive behavior therapy, scripting, video-modeling, and self-management. All practices, except for pivotal response training (PRT), had a greater reported use than reported belief that the practice was an EBP. Implications, limitations and directions for further research are discussed. ii Table of Contents SIGNATURE PAGE .......................................................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................. i ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................ ii LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................... viii LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................... ix CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................... 1 Defining and Diagnosing Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) ............................................ 2 Prevalence .................................................................................................................. 6 Characteristics of Students with ASD........................................................................ 7 Autism and Education ....................................................................................................... 11 Identification of Evidence-based Practice ........................................................................ 16 EBP Training ........................................................................................................... 20 Problem Statement ............................................................................................................ 21 Context for the Study ........................................................................................................ 23 Purpose Statement ............................................................................................................. 25 Research Questions ........................................................................................................... 25 Definition of Terms........................................................................................................... 25 Assumptions ...................................................................................................................... 27 Generalizability ................................................................................................................. 28 iii Significance....................................................................................................................... 28 Summary and Organization of this Study ......................................................................... 28 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW .......................................................................... 30 Equity, Caring, and Competency ...................................................................................... 30 Equity ....................................................................................................................... 31 Caring ....................................................................................................................... 33 Competency ............................................................................................................. 35 Effective professional development. ......................................................................... 39 Durlak and DuPre’s Implementation Model ..................................................................... 41 Evaluating Research for Evidence-Based Practices ......................................................... 48 What Works Clearinghouse ..................................................................................... 49 Best Evidence Encyclopedia .................................................................................... 52 Evaluative Method for Determining EBP in Autism Tool ...................................... 52 Other Individual Researchers ................................................................................... 54 National Professional Developmental Center .......................................................... 55 Categories of Evidence-Based Practices for Students with ASD ..................................... 57 Evidence-Based Practices ................................................................................................. 58 Communication ........................................................................................................ 59 Social Skills ............................................................................................................. 63 Academic Skills ....................................................................................................... 66 Multiple Domains .................................................................................................... 67 NonEBP ............................................................................................................................ 72 iv Communication ........................................................................................................ 73 Behavior ................................................................................................................... 73 Multiple Domains .................................................................................................... 76 Interventions to Service Students with ASD .................................................................... 80 Summary ..........................................................................................................................