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SCERTS Educational Model

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Social Communication/Emotional Regulation/Transactional Support™ (SCERTS) is a system of teaching children on the autism spectrum. It uses a variety of techniques, including Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), Floortime, Relationship Development Intervention (RDI), TEACCH, modeling, and imitation-based interaction. SCERTS can be implemented by both teachers and caretakers, however it is usually done in educational settings by SCERTS-trained special education teachers and speech therapists, who then show parents and caretakers how to use the same techniques at home and in the community. Specific support plans are developed with families to provide ongoing assistance in everyday settings and to foster teamwork among professionals. The SCERTS curriculum was developed for individuals with a developmental level between 8 months and 10 years. It is primarily used in preschools and elementary schools, but may be appropriate for older children, and even adults, with a developmental age of under 10 years.

The basic principles of SCERTS are:

  • "SC" - Social Communication - the development of spontaneous communication, emotion expression, and trusting relationships between children and adults
  • "ER" - Emotional Regulation - helping children to learn how to handle their emotions and develop coping skills
  • "TS" - Transactional Support - the development of supports to help caregivers respond to children's needs and interests, adapt the environment, and provide tools to help children learn (for example, picture communication, written schedules, and sensory supports)

Some examples of SCERTS program goals might include:

  • Developing the use of communication for social interaction (for example: pulling on a hand to request a tickle or waving one's hand to greet)
  • Helping the child use pronouns
  • Working on shared experiences by introducing topics about past and future events (for example: reminding a child about a trip to the grocery store where the child picked out his or her favorite cereal, mom bought the cereal, and planning for the child to eat the cereal for breakfast tomorrow)
  • Increasing the child's ability to acquire and use socially acceptable sensory-motor behavior by helping the child to keep his or her hands still, instead of flapping, or squeezing a stress ball

SCERTS is a newer treatment that was made available after the National Standards Project report was issued. The National Standards Project classified treatments as "Established," "Emerging," and "Unestablished." If the National Standards Project was done today, it is likely that SCERTS would be recognized as an "Emerging Treatment," because it is a multi-component package, involving a combination of treatment procedures that come from a variety of theoretical orientations that have been studied and considered established and emerging treatments by the National Standards Project.

The Center for Autism Research and The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia do not endorse or recommend any specific person or organization or form of treatment. The information included within the CAR Autism Roadmap™ and CAR Resource Directory™ should not be considered medical advice and should serve only as a guide to resources publicly and privately available. Choosing a treatment, course of action, and/or a resource is a personal decision, which should take into account each individual's and family's particular circumstances.