Children and young people with autism may have very specific and individual support needs. Decisions about the most appropriate type of provision will be based on the assessed needs of the children and their families.
A ‘good’ ABA provision, therefore, will be highly personalised and there will be planned emphasis on enabling children to generalise all learned skills into new situations and in providing parents (and all others working with the child) with the skills to respond to their child’s communication, social and behaviour needs across all environments.
Therefore, WHO can carry out an ABA Program?
ABA Therapist
The role of an ABA Therapist in any ABA program is integral to the overall success of a child’s program. An ABA Therapists’ primary role is to teach PLAY, COMMUNICATION, SELF-HELP and ACADEMIC SKILLS to children with a Neurological Disorders such as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).
In broad terms, ABA Therapists use a reward system to teach and reinforce certain learned behaviors. The National Institute of Child and Human Development cites ABA therapy as a viable treatment for autism spectrum disorders, www.nichd.gov. ABA Therapists may also work with developmentally disabled children and adults or in workplace settings focusing on employee performance.
An ABA Therapist works as part of a team, alongside the child’s family and other therapists, and is supervised and trained by an ABA Program Consultant who will provide training and guidance.
Professional certification and Continuing Education
1) Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA-D) ,
Able to supervise and train ABA therapist or design ABA Program
- BCBA certification will be the basis for the Doctoral-level credential that will be designated as BCBA-D. Individuals who wish to become BCBA-Ds must first become certified as BCBAs and then meet any additional requirements
2) Board Certified Behavior Analyst,
Able to supervise and train ABA therapist or design ABA Program
- requires a master's degree behavior analysis or a related area
- 225 hours of graduate level coursework in specific behavior analytic content areas
- 18 months of mentored experience or 9 months of supervised experience in designing and implementing applied behavior analysis interventions;
- and a passing score on a standardized examination
3) Board Certified Assistant Behavior Analyst
Deliver ABA Program Intervention and assist in designing ABA Program under direct supervision by BCBA
- requires a bachelor's degree
- 135 hours classroom instruction in behavior analysis
- 12 months mentored experience or
- 6 months of supervised experience in implementing applied behavior analysis interventions,
- and a passing score on a standardized examination.
