As the number of Montgomery students diagnosed with autism has increased by more than sixfold over the past decade, educators are grappling with the best ways to teach them and satisfy concerned parents.

Special education officials reported successes in educating the roughly 1,650 students on the autism spectrum last year, but admitted to the Montgomery County Council’s Education Committee on Monday that the way principals and teachers work with those students and their parents varies among schools, a problem that needed to be corrected.

A Westbrook Elementary School parent who addressed the committee, Julie Reiley, said she had encountered “great providers” for her child with autism, but also said she did not think schools consistently collaborated with parents in a positive way, and that the services originally promised in special education meetings were not always delivered, at least initially.

“Parents too often don’t feel like they’re being heard,” Reiley said.

In a recent report on autism from the council’s Office of Legislative Oversight, educators, parents and county workers reached a consensus that, among other things, earlier referrals for autism services among infants and toddlers would be a significant improvement, as well as expanding autism service capacity at schools.

Council member Philip M. Andrews, a committee member, also said the school system needs to examine the possibility of providing more mandatory training teachers and paraeducators who work with autistic students.

“It’s a specialty. Those teachers are teaching a special program,” Andrews (D-Dist. 3) of Gaithersburg said after the meeting.

Although there is no set of autism-specific “Tier One” (highest priority) training courses that special education teachers with autistic students must take, all top-priority training for those teachers does include sections on autism, along with other educational disorders. Teachers in autism programs must be certified in special education and recertified when required.

Autism is a developmental disorder that affects social and communication skills. Symptoms may include unusual stress when routines are changed, repetition of certain body movements, and unusual attachment to objects.

The school system is working on several initiatives, including closer links with the county’s child care providers and a new parent outreach committee for the autism community, said Chrisandra Richardson, associate superintendent for special education and child services.

For example, school officials are working on a small pre-school program, funded by a grant from the state Department of Education at the Arc of Montgomery County, a group that supports individuals and families with developmental and intellectual disabilities. Additionally, online training courses for paraeducators working with autistic students are being considered, Richardson said.

A revised definition of autism spectrum disorders from the American Psychiatric Association could also alter the number of students being diagnosed, officials noted Monday. The association said that disorders now treated as distinct, such as Aspergers disorder, could be grouped under a new heading of “autism spectrum disorder,” and that the new definition would focus more on the severity of autism symptoms rather than “general labels.”

Citing the additional work and community outreach required from staff, Superintendent of Schools Joshua P. Starr told committee members, “It’s a pretty straight-up resource issue.”

A report from the Office of Legislative Oversight on the school system’s autism services stated that from fiscal 2001 to 2011, the number of students identified as being on the autism spectrum (those diagnosed with an autistic disorder, Asperger’s syndrome, or a pervasive developmental disorder) jumped from 266 to 1,642.

Of those students, 21 percent last year were enrolled in programs specifically designed for those with autism disorders. Another 20 percent are educated in home school settings, while 13 percent are placed in private schools that are best-suited to meet their educational needs. The remaining 46 percent are placed in learning centers, certificate-bound programs, learning and emotional disability services, and preschool programs.

The school system spent $33,000 for every student on the autism spectrum in 2011, compared to $14,351 for the average student. Overall, about 11 percent of the school system’s 146,000 students are classified as special education learners.

The Office of Legislative Oversight’s report stated that parents and staff were pleased with the school system’s variety of special education services, while the state Department of Education gave high marks for administration of special education services.

However, the school system has missed meeting benchmarks for special education students on federal accountability exams like the Maryland School Assessment.

Responding to Reiley’s comments, Richardson noted that among the 17,300 special education students, last year there were only 120 requests for mediation from parents who were unsatisfied with their child’s Individualized Education Program designed by teachers and administrators.

No individual school produced more than two such mediation requests, she added.

“You do see variance from school to school in how parents feel as a result of the IEP meetings,” she said.

aujifusa@gazette.net