Penn State Course Helps Teachers Adapt to Reach Autistic Students
University Park, Pa. -- Currently, there are more than 8,000 autistic children enrolled in Pennsylvania's schools -- many of them taught in the general classroom, alongside non-autistic children. However, in a recent survey of more than 1,100 teachers in the state, only 8t percent characterized themselves as proficient in teaching students with autism. This April, in observance of National Autism Awareness Month, 18 Penn State campus locations will offer a professional development course designed to help general classroom teachers become more effective in working with autistic students.
The course, "Students with Autism in Inclusive Settings," consists of two components --face-to-face classroom interactions with local autism experts, and DVD lectures delivered by Pamela Wolfe, associate professor of special education and academic director of Penn State's autism certificate and autism specialist programs. By participating in the 12-classroom hour course, which can be taken for two credits or Act 48 credit hours, teachers can learn about classifications and assessments of autism and related conditions, approaches for teaching children with autism, and strategies for partnering with specialists and parents.
"So many general classroom teachers in Pennsylvania are faced with the special challenges of working with autistic kids," said Ed Donovan, director of education and health programs for Penn State Continuing Education, "But they feel they are not adequately trained to do so." Penn State, he noted, is in an "ideal position" to deliver consistent training to classroom teachers because of its statewide campus system.
Diagnoses of autism are on the rise, with the most recent statistics available indicating a national average of one in 150 children afflicted with the disorder. For the past eight years, Penn State has worked closely with the Pennsylvania Department of Education and its Pennsylvania Training and Technical Assistance Network (PATTAN) to address the increasing demands on special education teachers in the state. The University also hosts the largest National Autism Conference in the United States, with more than 2,700 attendees in 2006. In addition, Penn State has received several national awards for autism programs, including a 30-minute documentary, "Children and Autism: Time is Brain," which is featured in "Students with Autism in Inclusive Settings."
More information is available at http://www.outreach.psu.edu/cape/autisminclusive online.
This press release courtesy of Penn State's Department of Public Information
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