Educational and vocational engagement

We determine and promote the best learning and vocational pathways for Autistic people at all levels of education and in volunteer and paid employment.
Research program leader:
Associate Professor Jennifer Spoor
Researchers:
Cheryl Dissanayake, Susan M Hayward, Darren Hedley, Amanda Richdale, Simon Bury, Rebecca Flower, Josephine Barbaro, Melissa Gilbert, Lauren Lawson
Our work aims to benefit Autistic people, employers and broader society by:
- increasing the rates of Autistic people in high quality jobs
- ensuring an individual differences approach to supporting Autistic strengths at work.

New Research!
“Maybe no one knows we need help” - Explore the Experiences of Autistic Working Mothers in Australia in this online summary presentation by PhD candidate Kate Gore based on her Masters research published in Autism in Adulthood.
The SENSIBLE approach for Accessible Learning
As a result of a 2022 project commissioned by the Queensland Department of Education, OTARC Director Professor Alison Lane and colleagues delivered a Rapid Evidence Assessment (REA) of the literature about sensory processing challenges in school settings. This review assessed the evidence for various interventions, including weighted vests, alternate seating, classroom amplification systems and multisensory environments and provided recommendations for their use.
The findings from this review were incorporated into developing training and resources for teachers and learning support staff, specialist advisors, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, principals and teacher's aides. The findings of focus groups with school staff indicated a need for more knowledge amongst teachers in mainstream schools about how sensory processing challenges may impact student behaviour and learning. Further, decisions regarding the strategies used by school staff to address these challenges were not always grounded in evidence .
The suite of resources includes a flow-chart-style poster to guide decision-making regarding sensory needs, two webpages explaining sensory issues, and explaining inclusive education principles, all linked to the Department resources, together with a manual setting out the overall approach.
These materials were developed using a practical framework comprising five decision-making phases, called "a SENSIBLE approach: SENSory-Informed Best practices for LEarning". This framework assists school staff in implementing strategies that facilitate inclusive access, active participation, and academic success for all students, regardless of their sensory processing challenges. It also encourages integrating evidence-informed practices and inclusive education principles when creating learning opportunities that accommodate sensory variations.
This approach is unique because it is designed for education teams within schools rather than focusing solely on classroom teachers. The SENSIBLE approach is currently being rolled out in Queensland government schools, with evaluations of its impact planned.
This is an excerpt from the OTARC response to the Western Australian's Education and Health Standing Committee's Inquiry into support for Autistic children and young people in schools. You can read the full submission here.
- Unwin, K., Wales, K., Johnson, T., & Lane, A. (2022). Supporting Students with Sensory Processing Challenges: Rapid Evidence Assessment (REA). La Trobe University, Bundoora.
- Lane, A.E. & Leonard, C. (2023). A sensible Approach SENSory-Informed Best practices for Learning Decision-Making Framework Manual. Queensland Department of Education, Brisbane.
Supporting a neurodiverse workforce
This toolkit was designed to support the mental health and wellbeing of autistic workers.
It has up-to-date, evidence-based information and strategies about mental health and wellbeing. These can be used as an in-depth information source with useful resources or a training course to create workplace competency in mental health and autism.
The toolkit provides information for different end-users:
- Executives and supervisors
- mentors/colleagues
- autistic workers
The toolkit was developed in partnership with DXC Technology (The Dandelion Project) and ANZ Bank.
Download the toolkit [PDF 1.1MB]
In-person and train-the-trainer training now offered
The in-person training and train-the-trainer packages were developed with support from Untapped Holdings.
For information about the package, or the upcoming online training, please contact Simon Bury
This site presents information from the Supporting transition to and participation in tertiary education for students with an ASD study undertaken by OTARC and funded by the Department of Human Services, Victoria.
- Businesses coached to support workers with Autism - ABC am
- A world-first toolkit to assist workplaces to better support the mental health of Autistic employees - La Trobe News
- Supporting a neurodiverse workforce - The Canberra Times
- I struggled with office life. Now others are alive to benefits of remote working - The Guardian
- Autism in the workplace - ABC Radio Hobart
- Career hope for people with Autism - La Trobe News
- Ask me first: What self-assessments can tell us about Autism - Spectrum News
- Workforce success for Autistic employees - LTU News
DXC Technology -The Dandelion Program: Autism employment
The creation of the Dandelion Program by multinational Hewlett Packard (now DXC Technology) in 2015 began with the dual aims of:
- Providing meaningful employment for a small group of Autistic young people
- Tracking the success of the DXC’s alternative workplace approach in supporting Autistic employees.
The impact of this initial small-scale program has spread far beyond that small group of individuals and their families, to now encompass:
- A freely-available protocol for other companies to follow in emulating the success of the Dandelion Program
- Programs in the Department of Human Services (DHS) software testing area; in cybersecurity at the Department of Defence, and most recently, in Records Information Management, at the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services.
- 80 Autistic people employed at DXC via the Dandelion Program
- 220 other organisations have downloaded material from Social Impact Practice, the DXC division devoted to spreading the approach pioneered at DXC.
Specialisterne Australia, DXC Technology and the Department of Human Services
Specialisterne Australia, DXC Technology and the Department of Human Services ran The Dandelion Program to provide skilled employment for Autistic people from 2014-2017. OTARC has an ongoing research partnership with the three organisations.