School-based Paraeducator Education for Engagement at Recess (SPEER)

The purpose of the proposed three-site study is to test whether an educator-level implementation strategy, coaching, with or without a school-level implementation strategy, school-based teams, will maximize paraeducators' use (fidelity and sustainment) of an evidence-based social engagement intervention, Remaking Recess (RR). RR aims to improve peer related social skills for autistic students and their non-autistic peers who are socially isolated or peripheral and need support during recess.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Neurodevelopmental Disorders; Autism Spectrum Disorder
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Remaking Recess; Other: TEAM

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 350
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Kemmerly Chipongian; Phone Number: 206-543-3750; Email: chipokem@uw.edu

Study Locations

• United States
  • California
    • Los Angeles, California, United States, 90095
      • Not yet recruiting
      • University of California Los Angeles
      • Contact: Consuelo Garcia; Phone Number: 310-825-4775; Email: cogarcia@mednet.ucla.edu
  • Oregon
    • Eugene, Oregon, United States, 97403
      • Not yet recruiting
      • University of Oregon
      • Contact: Stephanie Shire, PhD; Phone Number: 541-346-2141; Email: sshire@uoregon.edu
  • Washington
    • Seattle, Washington, United States, 98115
      • Recruiting
      • University of Washington
      • Contact: Freda Liu, PhD; Phone Number: (206) 987-3295; Email: fredaliu@uw.edu
      • Contact: Kemmerly Chipongian; Phone Number: (206) 543-3750; Email: chipokem@uw.edu

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Child; Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Students: Elementary aged students in K-5th grade who are autistic or have a neurodevelopmental disorder (Age 5-12)
• Educators: Paraeducators, teachers, or other school personnel that work with K-5th grade students in a public school in the United States (Age 18+)

Exclusion Criteria:

• Students or educators that have previously participated in Remaking Recess studies will not be eligible to enroll in this study.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Health Services Research
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Factorial Assignment
• Masking: Double

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: Remaking Recess; Remaking Recess is a school-based social engagement intervention designed to enhance elementary school contextual factors to better support peer engagement during recess. Remaking Recess is delivered to educators through direct training and in vivo coaching by a certified Remaking Recess Coach.	Behavioral: Remaking Recess; Remaking Recess (RR) is a school-based social engagement intervention designed to enhance elementary school contextual factors to better support peer engagement during recess. Remaking Recess is delivered to educators through direct training and in vivo coaching by a certified Remaking Recess Coach.; Other Names: RR
Experimental: TEAM; Schools that are randomized to the TEAM condition will receive an additional implementation support intervention. TEAM will leverage existing human resources in the school to specifically focus on developing an implementation blueprint to foster a supportive implementation context for paraeducators to use Remaking Recess.	Behavioral: Remaking Recess; Remaking Recess (RR) is a school-based social engagement intervention designed to enhance elementary school contextual factors to better support peer engagement during recess. Remaking Recess is delivered to educators through direct training and in vivo coaching by a certified Remaking Recess Coach.; Other Names: RR; Other: TEAM; Schools that are randomized to the TEAM condition will receive an additional implementation support intervention. TEAM will leverage existing human resources in the school to specifically focus on developing an implementation blueprint to foster a supportive implementation context for paraeducators to use Remaking Recess.; Other Names: TEAMS; school-based teams

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Remaking Recess Fidelity	This 20-item observation measure rates how well educators are observed to be using core Remaking Recess strategies with students on the playground. Minimum score 1, maximum score 5. Higher scores indicate better outcome.	Baseline, 4 months, 8 months, 12 months, 16 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Playground Observation of Peer Engagement (POPE)	This observation-based instrument measures children's engagement with activities and peers. It rates children's engagement states and the frequency within a set amount of time.	Baseline, 4 months, 8 months, 12 months, 16 months
Friendship Survey	This 5-item free response survey asking students to identify their preferred peers at school. The results of the survey will be analyzed to identify student social network centrality in their classroom (Nuclear, Secondary, Peripheral, or Isolated).	Baseline, 4 months, 8 months
Teacher Perceptions Measure	This 12-item measure asks teachers to report on their perceptions of their target student's social skills. Minimum score 1, maximum score 3. Higher scores indicate better outcome.	Baseline, 4 months, 8 months
Acceptability of Intervention Measure (AIM)	This 12-item self-report measure asks educators to rate how acceptable the interventions (Remaking Recess and TEAM) were. Minimum score 1, maximum score 5. Higher scores indicate better outcome.	Baseline, 4 months, 8 months, 12 months, 16 months
Cost Measure	This survey measure asks educators how much time they spent on study-related procedures (Remaking Recess and TEAM) each week. The measure then calculates the average dollar cost each week of study-related procedures based off of the educator's salary in order to better understand the cost of implementation and intervention.	Baseline, 4 months, 8 months, 12 months, 16 months
Provider Report of Sustainment Scale (PRESS)	This 3-item self-report measure asks educators to reflect on the sustainment of the use of the target intervention (Remaking Recess) at their school. Minimum score 0, maximum score 4. Higher scores indicate better outcome.	12 months, 16 months
School Implementation Leadership Scale (S-ILS)	This 25-item measure captures educator perceptions of their school leadership and how well the leadership supports the use of the intervention (Remaking Recess). Minimum score 0, maximum score 4. Higher scores indicate better outcome.	Baseline, 4 months, 8 months, 12 months, 16 months
School Implementation Climate Scale (SICS)	This 21-item measure captures educator perceptions of their school culture and how well the intervention (Remaking Recess) fits in. Minimum score 0, maximum score 4. Higher scores indicate better outcome.	Baseline, 4 months, 8 months, 12 months, 16 months
Team Process Survey Measure (TPS)	A 10-item self-report measure to capture team process. Minimum score 1, maximum score 5. Higher scores indicate better outcome.	Baseline, 4 months, 8 months, 12 months, 16 months
Quality of Play Questionnaire	A 19-item measure for parents/caregivers to complete about their child's playdates. Items 1-17 are a numerical rating of how much time a child spends on an activity in their play, with score ranging from a minimum of 0 to maximum of 3. Items 18-19 are a free response numerical frequency rating for parents to report on the number of playdates their child had in the last month.	Baseline, 4 months, 8 months, 12 months, 16 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Washington
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Freda Liu, PhD, University of Washington

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): July 1, 2024
• Primary Completion (Estimated): August 1, 2029
• Study Completion (Estimated): August 1, 2029

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: August 15, 2024
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 15, 2024
• First Posted (Actual): August 19, 2024

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimated): August 15, 2025
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 11, 2025
• Last Verified: August 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Mental Disorders; Child Development Disorders, Pervasive; Autism Spectrum Disorder; Neurodevelopmental Disorders
• Other Study ID Numbers: STUDY00020326; R324A240031 (Other Grant/Funding Number: Institute of Education Sciences)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No
• product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.: No