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Facilitating Family Involvement: Barriers and Enablers Does My Practice stand up?

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Families should be part of the team involved in the development of priority goals and intervention plans. (Ministry Of Health, 2008, p.87) Parents are the experts on their child with ASD and should be involved in every stage of decision making from selecting target skills and interventions, to assessment and evaluation. The school has a responsibility to facilitate family involvement by being proactive in this process. The more a school involves and includes the parents and family the more the parents and family become involved in their childs education. A family Centred approach can assist schools by increasing the amount of information about the child that is available to them and facilitating generalisation of skills to other settings Family input is also a key element in the Ministry of Educations Evidence-Based Practice model.

To facilitate this family-centred approach it is necessary to be aware of potential barriers to this process.

The next section of this article considers how these barriers can be overcome and how my classroom practice reflects this.

Enablers to family involvement Informing peers and staff


Encourage parents to talk to class about their child Parents produce an introductory letter to send home to other class families Parents produce a photo book about their child for peers to share Transition questionnaire for next teacher

My Classroom
one family have made a photo book to leave in class presence of family at Meet the Teacher evening so they can talk briefly about child or informally during refreshments Use of Sue Larkeys Programming for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder Profile for Individual Student questionnaire Use of Ministry of Education Narrative Assessment approach Sharing of photos of children by email Home/school communication books Informal chats before and after school most days Ask the family what their goals for their child and for the meeting is a few days prior to meeting Translate any jargon or acronyms used in the meeting as we go a long Ensure the parents voice is heard throughout the meeting not just at the start and the end Flexibility over meeting times Start meetings with general chat, rather than rushing in Provide kai at meetngs Parents usually attend school trips Parents in class before and after school Parents contribute to class learning e.g.

Assessment
Share in gathering assessment information Regular feedback on childs successes Identify strengths

IEP/Meetings
Families invited to identify best day/time for them Provide documents to be shared at prior to meeting allowing them to familiarise themselves and form any questions Avoid special education jargon Provide a special education Dictionary Have an interpreter present if a second language is being used Be aware of transport issues and timings for parents Offer childcare at school if necessary Encourage student to be present and have a voice in meeting if able

Presence at School
Invite parents in as volunteers in class or on school trips Make them welcome in class before and after school

Help them to develop links with other families in the class

Communication
Value and use information provided by parents Open, honest communication Accept that there will be differences in opinions Ongoing informal communication at the start and end of the school day Home/school book Emails, phone calls, texts

Parent Knowledge
Training provided by school e.g. Tips for Autism, workshops run by school staff Inform families of independent training e.g. agency or services running workshops

information about a childs iwi and hapu; demonstration of an apple peeling machine for Simple Machines topic Families transitioning from kindy have 4 morning sessions in the class with the child and parent, this is often increased for children with ASD Include parents in conversations with other families before or after school Use of email with a single mum worked well as we were not talking about her child in front of other adults or when she was attempting to get both her children with ASD to or from school. It also gave us both thinking time to consider responses and suggestions and was a great source of support for us both Home/school books have worked well but are time consuming during a busy day Phone texting is working well with one family Weekly class newsletter and blog for general information Email link set up and maintained from first pre-enrolment visit. Use of Eye-Jot to send messages to children before returning after term break Attended a Tips for Autism course with one family Strengthening Familys sessions have worked with another family in our syndicate I have attended 2 workshops run by Autism

Provide links to outside agencies and services

Generalization of Goals
Select goals that can be generalised across home/school setting e.g. toileting, peer social interactions Provide necessary materials and training Communicate goals and progress Home visit Share awareness of importance of learning opportunities at home and in the community.

Family preferences, values and motivation


Have a clear understanding of the familys preferences, values and motivations Assess familys motivation using Family Needs Survey developed by Bailey and Simeonsson, 1990 Use Child Preference Indicators, developed by Moss, 2006, to share information about the child with the school Learn about parents knowledge and views on treatment and support services using the Autism Spectrum Disorder-Parental Participation Questionnaire ( ASD-PPQ) developed by Hunter and Wilcyznski Use Autism Spectrum Disorder-Student Participation Questionnaire (ASD-SPQ) developed by Hunter and Wilcyznski, to find out about students preferences around skills to target and interventions.

NZ with the parent of a child in my class, a great opportunity to learn together and bond Development of a leaflet listing agencies and services in our local area Developed my one contacts in some of our local agencies One formal home visit, one informal one for a childs birthday party Provided family with copies of visuals developed at school Shared home/school goal on toilet training with same reinforcers and schedules used across both settings Same instructional language used with child at home and at school Narrative assessment to be extended to include home setting I try to get to know the families well and learn about their values this way. Use of Sue Larkeys transition questionnaire and ASD questionnaire supplied by RTLB Meetings with family to hear what they want for their child next year Informal discussions Development and use of questionnaires to inform parent perspectives from ASD Domain 1 Frequent communication with parents to inform artefacts and learning on this program

Family options/choices
Encourage the family to ask questions Provide different options for the family to consider Set up parent ASD support group in school Offer links to other families of children with ASD in the school or area Share strategies that have worked with other children in the past Ensures strategies are manageable at home Invite parent or family member to observe the child in the school setting providing a better understanding of how symptoms present differently across settings Respect the parents as experts on their child Communicate concerns clearly with accessible documentation providing evidence for the concern Encourage parents to collect data so that interventions can be evaluated and effectiveness monitored Acknowledge parents request for specific interventions Be aware of familys cultural values, beliefs and practices Seek advice on familys culture from the family or colleague If possible include a team member from the same culture Be aware of cultural differences in behaviours e.g. eye-contact, physical contact Provide information in familys first language When modelling behaviours attempt to include a peer from the same culture Demonstrate cultural responsiveness during home visits Be aware of my own culture as the dominant culture

Ensure parents have a voice in all meetings I have provided options for parents regarding class placements for children for the coming year. As yet offers to introduce families of children with ASD to each other have not been followed up by parents. I have invited parents to observe in class but they all felt that the child would alter their behaviour because they were there and so not present a true picture of what was happening in school. On one occasion a childs auntie came to observe, a very informative session for her. I frequently consult with parents as to how they would deal with a specific challenging situation if it occurred at home. An increase in awareness of practices, values and beliefs in Mori culture has helped me to develop a trusting relationship with a Mori family in my class whose child has ASD. Liaison with local language school that a mother attended to ensure family fully understood information I was sharing with them.

Different Perspectives

Culture

Conclusion
Looking at this table I am surprised by how many strategies I am using to engage parents of children with ASD. On most occasions this has been made easy as the families have a drive to be involved in their childs schooling. However, I have encountered a few families where this relationship has not developed as easily or smoothly. Ideas suggested in the readings provide new strategies to work with, such as, setting up a support group in the school. Every child with ASD is unique so are their families. A strategy used successfully with one family may never even get off the ground with another. It is our responsibility as professionals to search for ways that will effectively strengthen the home/school link with all families we support. Just because a family seems disinterested does not mean they do not want to get more involved. For a child to achieve their full potential home/school collaboration is essential, autism does not stop and start at the school gate. By sharing our passion for a child and common goals families and professionals can support each other to achieve the best outcomes for the child.

References
Larkey, S. (n.d.). Programming for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder . Retrieved October 2013, from http://www.suelarkey.com/media/Tip_Sheet_-_Programming_for_Students_with_Autism_Spectrum_Disorder_-_Student_Profile_for_T ransistion.pdf Ministry of Education. (n.d.). Enhancing Effective Practice. Retrieved September 2013, from http://specialistteaching.net.nz/file.php/83/5_Evidence_based_Practice/EBP-from_Minedu_Springboards_to_Practice.pdf National Autism Centre. (2011). Evidence-based practice and autism in the schools. Massachusetts. Watney, B., Te Kooro-Baker, G., & McPeak, C. (2007). Parental suggestions for facilitating acceptance and understanding of autism. Kairaranga, 8(2), 15-20.

This document was also informed by information collected from interview conducted with ASD experts from first year students on the Specialist Teaching Program ASD Endorsement.

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