Social network support is associated with teacher's perceptions of transition planning for their autistic students

Abstract

Background: School transitions are accompanied by disruptions in routines and increased social and academic demands, creating challenges for autistic students, who often have difficulty coping with change. These transitions are also challenging for teachers, who often report feeling unprepared to guide their autistic students through the transition process. Methods: This study examined teacher and student factors that contribute to teachers’ perceptions of transition planning for their autistic students. At four sites (Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Rochester, and Sacramento), 126 teachers responded to survey questions regarding their perception of transition planning for their autistic students, their students’ classroom behavior as they were preparing to transition, their own burnout, and a social network survey about the people they relied on to support their autistic students. Results: Teachers reported being somewhat satisfied with their schools with the way that schools prepared their students for transition and that the transition planning was somewhat effective. Teachers also reported that they received little support from their schools during their students’ transition planning. Results of Generalized Linear Mixed Effects models indicated that teachers with positive perceptions of their students’ transition planning had larger support networks, Conclusions: The findings of this study underscore that teachers’ support networks play an important role in helping teachers negotiate the transition process.