Collaborative work between teachers and families to improve learning in students with autism spectrum disorder
Keywords:
inclusive education; ASD; school–family partnership; parental involvement; inclusive mainstream classroomAbstract
Introduction: The inclusion of students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) requires more than their physical presence in mainstream classrooms. It calls for consistent support, ongoing communication, and shared participation between teachers and families, particularly when addressing academic, social, and emotional needs. Objective: This study aimed to design guidelines based on collaborative work between teachers and families to improve learning among students with level 1 ASD at Portoviejo School No. 25. Materials and Methods: A mixed-methods approach with a non-experimental, descriptive-propositional, and cross-sectional design was used. Participants included three students with level 1 ASD, six teachers, and three legal guardians. Data were collected through an observation guide, semi-structured interviews, and a Likert-scale survey. Descriptive statistics and thematic analysis were applied, followed by triangulation of the findings. The proposed guidelines were assessed by five experts. Results: Students achieved an overall favorable performance of 67.2%, with their strongest response occurring when teachers provided inclusive support (86.1%). The main difficulties involved peer interaction and self-regulation. Teachers acknowledged the value of family-provided information but described communication as mostly reactive and identified workload, limited specialized training, and the absence of institutional protocols as barriers. Families rated collaboration positively, with an average score of 4.0 out of 5, and associated it with improvements in learning and school adjustment. The findings show that coordination becomes more effective when it leads to stable agreements and shared strategies. Conclusions: It is concluded that students with level 1 ASD learn more effectively when schools and families provide consistent support. The proposed guidelines combine regular communication, task organization, routine anticipation, self-regulation, social interaction, and institutional follow-up.
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