Applied behaviour analysis: What do teachers of students with autism spectrum disorder know

With rising numbers of school-aged children with autism educated in main stream classrooms and applied behaviour analysis (ABA) considered the basis of best practice, teachers’ knowledge in this field has become a key concern for inclusion. Self-reported knowledge of ABA of special needs teachers (n=165)was measured and compared to their actual knowledge of ABA demonstrated inaccurate responses to a multiple-choice test. Findings reported here show that teachers’ self-perceived knowledge exceeded actual knowledge and that actual knowledge of ABA was not related to training received by government agency.Implications for teacher training are discussed.