Designing for Success: A Systems Approach to Supporting Autistic Learners Through Assessment, Universal Supports, and Evidence-Based Practice

This session presents a quality-of-life framework for supporting autistic learners, organized through a Multi-Tiered System of Supports. Best practice is defined not as reducing behavior or completing work, but as building conditions for participation, communication, belonging, and access to meaningful routines. Participants will work through the recurring assessment loop of universal screening, skill assessment, functional assessment, and progress monitoring; the Tier 1 universal supports every classroom should have — including structure and visual schedules, positive behavior supports, communication systems such as AAC, social skills instruction, and evidence-based curriculum; and the selection of evidence-based instructional practices matched to both learner and context. The framework measures the system as well as the student, using program-level indicators such as implementation fidelity, coaching cycle completion, and screening coverage. 1.0 CE hour available. Sponsored by Anderson Center for Autism. Free for all.