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SCIENCE AND THE TREATMENT OF AUTISM: A multimedia package for parents and professionals

The project addressed the acute shortage of suitably qualified professionals in behaviour analysis in Europe who could design, implement, and monitor interventions to address individual needs of children with autism through the science of Applied Behaviour Analysis. Parents of these children also needed training to help maximise the potential benefits of the treatment. In addition, there was a need for home tutors to be trained in ABA who could help parents run programmes. This project addressed this shortage in training opportunities by adapting an innovative multmedia training system for parents and professionals.This project is the first of its kind to bring expertise in science-based training in autism to European partner institutions. The multilingual feature of the multimedia environment increased learning opportunities where currently a vacuum existed. The multimedia environment was a valuable guide for lifelong learning on the part of parents. Parents were able to learn from seeing video clips of treatment procedure that they were able to adapt to meet the individual needs of each child. In addition, making the material culturally sensitive helped to highlight shorfalls in the teaching of the science across participating countries.Given the shortage of training courses across Europe, a standardised multimedia environment helped to ensure transparency in competencies that are essential in the development of practical skills for students and continuous professional development for professionals.The multimedia environment was relatively new to the teaching of the science of behaviour analysis and vocational education and training. As such this Project was specifically targeted as an innovative way of addressing lifelong learning. Currently, training material in the science of behaviour for the treatment of autism is largely confined to textbooks. For vocational lifelong learners, such as parents and professionals not familiar with scientific practices this presents a formidable obstacle. However, by using audio-visual material along with textural material in their own languages it will be possible to teach the principles of science and demonstrate practices that impact on how one maximises the learning opportunities for children with autism. We aimed to help parents become proficient in delivering home programs for their children, this made it easier to coordinate the learning opportunities for the child with those provided within a school.In a general context where opportunities to obtain international qualifications in behaviour analysis (see www.bacb.com) weren severely restricted, this project aimed to develop coherence between the education of children with autism and the vocational education and training of their parents and professionals. As such the project addressed issues concerned with lifelong learning through the promotion and exchange of excellence in scientific training. This had been done via the development and dissemination of innovative multimedia resources for education, based on current scientific evidence. The project raised the quality of vocational training; built on and transfered best practices from all over Europe; developed and customised training materials for the needs of learners in the partner countries; exchanged experiences between teachers, trainers and managers thus increasing the transparency of the different vocational training systems in Europe and fostered their modernisation through learning from each other; offered innovations and improvements in Vocational Education and Training across European countries; engaged in transfer of knowledge, innovation and expertise between various Vocational Education and Training actors through transnational, and interdisciplinary learning.

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