Level of Educational Needs for Pupils with Autistic Spectrum Disorders

Abstract

Pupils with autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) are a group of children with special educational needs, which is the “youngest” of the so-called traditional disability. The authors deal with an objective and comparable assessment of special educational needs of children with ASD. The aim of the paper is to identify the differences in professional diagnosis of special educational needs in the following segments: level/degree of health disadvantage, form of job counselling facility, initiation of contact needed for examination, type of contact facilities and form of work with the clients. The authors applied various research methods and procedures involving the measuring more than 70 thousand contacts of the school counselling facilities with the client (pupils) in 2011. Main of them were analyses of data and maps and evaluation of the measured findings applicable to activities of the school counselling facilities. The paper gives a confirmation of statistically significant differences in the activities of the school counselling facilities in the Czech Republic. It shows significant differences in the process and results of diagnosis of special education needs in pupils with ASD. It provides an overview of the professional activities of psychologists and special teachers for each kind of and diagnostic activities. It also shows territorial differences. The research results in a proposal of systemic approach for diagnosing special educational needs of pupils with ASD which is able to address the key issues related to the education of these pupils.