evaluation of project ImPACT within special education
Project ImPACT is an evidence based program that helps parents stimulate the social-communication skills of their autistic child during daily routines. In De Vinderij – a school for special education – this program is applied in a classroom. The teacher encourages the children’s social engagement, communication, imitation, and play during daily classroom activities. In addition, the children also receive individual speech therapy every day according to the same principles.
What? Project ImPACT
For whom? Autistic preschoolers in special education
Why? To promote social involvement, communication, imitation, and play in the school context
What is the research about?
Development of guidelines on how to use ImPACT in the classroom
Project ImPACT was originally developed for use by parents at home. The first goal of the research is to establish guidelines that can help use ImPACT in a classroom context. This can help teachers in the future to more easily implement the program in their classrooms. The guidelines are drawn up through observations in the classroom and brainstorming sessions with a working group of people involved at school.
How effective is the ImPACT program in improving the social-communication skills of autistic preschoolers at school?
We evaluate the effectiveness of project ImPACT at school through a single case experimental design – this is a study in which we closely monitor the effect of the program on a small number of participants. We observe the children weekly in interaction with the teacher and the speech therapist. This happens in a period before and during the guidance with project ImPACT. We examine whether social communication skills improve after the start of project ImPACT and whether any improvement is maintained until after the summer holidays.
In collaboration with
BuBao De Vinderij
Kelly Cattrysse, Ilse De Groote en Kelly D’Haese
Contact person ACCA
Sara Vanderpaelt
Academic Collaborative Centre for Autism 