OLAV
Teachers who teach students with autism: what do they think, do and know?
The OLAV-study is about strengthening teachers who work with students with autism. What do teachers know about autism? What do they need to take into account? What can they do in the classroom? Teachers may have very different experiences compared to students with autism and their parents. Such questions still need to be answered in Europe.
Background
An increasing number of teachers is teaching students with autism. This is due to the relatively new legislations surrounding inclusive education and the rise in the number of diagnoses. In the OLAV study, we are researching teachers who teach pupils with (suspected) autism. Not only in the Netherlands, but also in Romania.
The research study
The central research question is as follows: What do teachers teachting students with autism think, know and do? In addition, we are investigating: Do experienced teacher differ from pre-service teachers?Can e-learning be used to support teachers?
To answer these questions, we have developed questionnaires for teachers, pupils, parents and pre-service teachers. First, teachers fill out a survey, second, they complete an online course and third, they fill out another survey.
The online course associated with this study was launched in 2019. We expect the project to be finished in 2023. Results will be shared on the OLAV research study website.