About TEACCH

TEACCH is an evidence-based service, training, and research program for individuals of all ages and skill levels with autism spectrum disorders. Established in the early 1970s by Eric Schopler and colleagues, the TEACCH program has worked with thousands of individuals with autism spectrum disorders and their families. TEACCH provides clinical services such as diagnostic evaluations, parent training and parent support groups, social play and recreation groups, individual counseling for higher-functioning clients, and supported employment. In addition, TEACCH conducts training nationally and internationally and provides consultation for teachers, residential care providers, and other professionals from a variety of disciplines. Research activities include psychological, educational, and biomedical studies.

The administrative headquarters of the TEACCH program are in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and there are nine regional TEACCH Centers around the state of North Carolina. Most clinical services from the TEACCH centers are free to citizens of North Carolina.

TEACCH is a North Carolina program administered through the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, by Gary B. Mesibov, Ph.D because of its training activities and publications the TEACCH approach is widely known nationally and internationally.

Founded in the early 1970s by the late Eric Schopler, Ph.D., TEACCH developed the concept of the “Culture of Autism” as a way of thinking about the characteristic patterns of thinking and behavior seen in individuals with this diagnosis. The “Culture of Autism” involves:

   1. Relative strength in and preference for processing visual information (compared to difficulties with auditory processing, particularly of language).
   2. Frequent attention to details but difficulty understanding the meaning of how those details fit together.
   3. Difficulty combining ideas.
   4. Difficulty with organizing ideas, materials, and activities.
   5. Difficulties with attention. (Some individuals are very distractible, others have difficulty shifting attention when it’s time to make transitions.)
   6. Communication problems, which vary by developmental level but always include impairments in the social use of language (called “pragmatics”).
   7. Difficulty with concepts of time, including moving too quickly or too slowly and having problems recognizing the beginning, middle, or end of an activity.
   8. Tendency to become attached to routines, with the result that activities may be difficult to generalize from the original learning situation and disruptions in routines can be upsetting, confusing, or uncomfortable.
   9. Very strong interests and impulses to engage in favored activities, with difficulties disengaging once engaged.
10. Marked sensory preferences and dislikes.

The long-term goals of the TEACCH approach are both skill development and fulfillment of fundamental human needs such as dignity, engagement in productive and personally meaningful activities, and feelings of security, self-efficacy, and self-confidence. To accomplish these goals, TEACCH developed the intervention approach called “Structured Teaching.”

The principles of Structured Teaching include:

          * Understanding the culture of autism.
          * Developing an individualized person- and family-centered plan for each client or student, rather than using a standard curriculum.
          * Structuring the physical environment.
          * Using visual supports to make the sequence of daily activities predictable and understandable .
          * Using visual supports to make individual tasks understandable.

Workshop Agenda