SOCIAL COMPASS CURRICULUM AND SOCIAL SKILLS OUTCOMES FOR STUDENTS WITH AUTISM

Course overview

This course is based upon material published in the journal Sage Open and is available as an open access article. ABSTRACT The Social Compass Curriculum (SCC) was investigated for its effectiveness in improving core social skills in three descriptive case studies of students with autism. Treatment fidelity of the SCC was also measured in the school setting. The Social Responsiveness Scale and the Autism Social Skills Profile were completed by parents to measure pre- and postintervention social skills for three students aged 8 to 11 years who participated in the present multisite pilot study. Fidelity of implementation data were collected via a checklist during observations for three educators who implemented the intervention. Results indicate that the SCC improved core social deficits based on standardized rating scales measures. Fidelity observations revealed that 83 percent of teaching components were completed correctly after 3 hr of training. The results of this study aligned with the National Autism Center¿s call for ongoing research of school-based interventions and school-friendly interventions for people with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). This course on the treatment of autism with the social compass curriculum is designed for professional counselors, social workers, psychologists, and nurses who do clinical work. This course is appropriate for beginning, intermediate and advanced level practitioners who wish to develop their understanding of this specific intervention for addressing social skills in children with autism. It may also be useful for licensed clinicians who require clinical continuing education courses for license renewal. The course is based on a journal article which includes research. It is a case study design which does not statistical analysis. One of the benefits of reading research based articles for continuing education is that it allows the practitioner to keep current on the latest findings in their field. Authors: Boyd and Ward Learning Objectives: This course will provide the practitioner with detailed information regarding the use of a specific intervention to enhance social skills in children with autism. Specifically, a professional will: Identify other current social skills training programs and their effectiveness Describe the social compass curriculum. Describe the effectiveness of the social compass curriculum for children with autism. Citation: Boyd, L. E., and Ward, D.M. (2013). Social compass curriculum: Three descriptive case studies of social skills outcomes for students with autism. SAGE Open Come visit us on the web at www.ce-classes.com