Transition to School Program and School Placement of Children with Autism

摘要

Preparing children with autism to enter inclusive classes is an important goal in early intervention. As the Centre of Excellence in Early Intervention for children with autism, Genius Kurnia has developed a comprehensive school transition program. This program, which aims to ensure a successful transition to schools, provides supports to students, parents, and teachers before and after the students enter mainstream schools. Thus, the purpose of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of this transition program by employing a mixed method research approach using school placement data and a parent survey. Data of 36 students who passed the inclusive placement evaluation were reviewed and an online survey was also carried out to seek parents' views of the transition program. Findings reveal that the transition program has tremendously helped the students to thrive in school. Data show that the number of children from Genius Kurnia in inclusive setting remains the same from January to April 2019, indicating that the children have successfully maintained their placement in inclusive classes. While parents reported that they received helpful information and support which helped them to prepare their children to go to school. This study shares a model of transition program for children with autism followed with discussion on what works which can be either replicated or adapted in other schools. Understanding school transition issues and process is pertinent for teachers, as it will help them to set up a good system to assist students with autism in their schools.