From 1 April 2011 the role of the Autism Education Trust will become focused on developing and delivering the first ever national standard competency framework, qualification and training in autism education. As part of the Government’s Improving outcomes for children, young people and families – a national prospectus initiative, the AET has been awarded £1.2m over two years from the Department for Education’s Voluntary and Community Sector grant.
Currently there are no nationally recognised standards for teachers in autism education yet all teachers, including NQTs and teaching assistants, should expect to teach a child or young person on the autism spectrum. An estimated one in 100 children are on the autism spectrum. Autism affects each individual differently so it is essential that teachers have appropriate tools and strategies to ensure that all pupils are able to learn.
There are three main aims that the AET will endeavor to achieve through the grant;
- to improve standards through increased teacher confidence in teaching young people with autism
- to enable parents to be involved locally, make more informed choices and have increased confidence in their child’s education
- to enable young people with autism to be involved locally and supported effectively.
Sarah-Jane Critchley, AET Project Head, says that offering formal autism training to teachers at the earliest opportunity is the key to improving outcomes for young people.
“Awareness of autism has ballooned in the last 10 years but parents still tell us that finding appropriate education provision for their children is a challenge. We believe that all teachers – from those newly qualified to experienced headteachers – should receive training in appropriate teaching strategies and techniques.”
She continues:
“It is no longer enough to rely on teaching instinct. We have a duty to do better for our young people with autism and the AET looks forward to delivering tried and tested teaching practice for all education settings.”
The AET training model will be designed and developed during 2011 and aims to have delivered training to over 20,000 teachers by March 2013. Further details about the initiative will be released as and when they are available.