Group intervention for students with autism spectrum disorder in mainstream schools

Abstract

Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) display a wide range of difficulties in their school adjustment. The present study explored the major skill deficits among students with ASD from different age groups and the relative response to group intervention for common intervention goals among students of different age groups with or without co-occurring language impairment. Findings showed that social-communication was the major skill deficit area of students of all age, with decreasing concern in emotion adjustment as students were promoted to higher grades. ASD students with and without language impairment showed no significant difference in response to intervention. The implications of the study findings on the planning and delivery of group-based intervention for students with ASD were discussed.