Sociocultural theory emphasizes the importance of the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), and Vygotsky (1978) is widely recognized for his explanation of how children’s learning can be maximized when More Knowledgeable Others understand what a child can achieve within their ZPD. Furthermore, sociocultural theory is concerned with outlining the relationship between learning and development, and the teaching interactions within these two pillars, in the ZPD, are notably significant. Assessment is therefore key to accessing the ZPD as well as fostering best practices to support a child’s learning, which is arguably critical for autistic children. Comparatively, we can see a cyclical process between assessment and instruction as through the mode of mediation, assessment and instruction are interlinked in the same activity; which reveals challenges to a learner’s performance and provides opportunities to overcome the challenges with the teacher. The necessity for teachers to use assessment to better understand the autistic child’s current level of performance in social communication within their ZPD is vital as it provides an indication of performance which can then be exceeded through mediation from others. Social communication for autistic children must be highlighted since we know that deviations for autistic children mean that they have individual experiences as well as challenges relating to peers, transitioning in daily life and manipulating social and contextual cues. The importance of understanding their individuality is imperative, which further strengthens the vital role that the teacher has in the identification of the child’s needs and emphasizes the criticality of using assessment to guide any and all support. This paper presents findings from a national Irish study of 393 primary school teachers which indicates that, in relation to assessment, resources need to be developed and put in place to help teachers use and foster the appropriate means of assessment to support autistic children with social communication within their ZPD. The theme It’s hard to know highlights teachers’ perspectives in relation to assessment and the sentiments they expressed on the topic. Teachers in Ireland are called to use a ‘needs led, problem-solving approach’ through a ‘Continuum of Support’ framework which guides and structures the systems of support for children with additional needs within each school. However, the findings reported in this paper highlight considerable difference in how teachers approached assessment and the need for improved assessments to foster better outcomes for autistic children in social communication. Evidence of gaps in teachers’ use of assessment to measure social communication and variations in the type of assessment across teacher roles are outlined. Findings collated reflect that teachers wanted more formal social communication assessment measures and professional learning to support the use of different measures. By increasing the availability and embedding the use of more appropriate assessment measures for social communication, we will support better engagement with the implementation of evidence informed practices and foster the use of data-driven support for autistic children.

Keywords: Inclusive education, autism, social communication, teacher professional learning, assessment.