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IntroductionIt is crucial to provide a quality educational response to the needs of autistic children across various mathematical domains. However, there is no consensus on which of the early skills have the greatest predictive effect in the short and long term within these domains. Therefore, this research aimed to a) compare early numerical skills and mathematics domains, and 2) analyze the predictive value of early numerical skills into mathematics domains.MethodsForty-two children (twenty-one autistic children and twenty-one non-autistic children) aged 6-12 years participated in the study. Three areas were evaluated through different tasks: 1) control tasks: reading, impulse control and manual speed, 2) early numerical skills: counting, verbal subitizing, magnitude comparison and estimation, and 3) mathematical domains: arithmetic calculation and arithmetic word problems.ResultsSignificant differences were found in subitizing and estimation tasks. Both groups showed similar mathematical skills in arithmetic calculation and arithmetic word problems. For autistic students, several non-symbolic tasks predict performance in mathematical domains, whereas for non-autistic students, symbolic tasks were predictors.DiscussionAlthough mathematics does not seem to be an area of concern for autistic children, future studies should explore early numerical and mathematical domains in children with cognitive support needs through longitudinal research.

There is very little knowledge regarding autistic adult services, practices, and delivery. The study objective was to improve understanding of current services and practices for autistic adults and opportunities for improvement as part of the Autism Spectrum Disorder in the European Union (ASDEU) project. Separate survey versions were created for autistic adults, carers of autistic adults, and professionals in adult services. 2,009 persons responded to the survey and 1,085 (54%) of them completed at least one of the services sections: 469 autistic adults (65% female; 55% 50% responded “don’t know”). Five of seven residential services features recommended for autistic adults were experienced by

The Autism Spectrum Disorders in the European Union (ASDEU) survey investigated the knowledge and health service experiences of users and providers to generate new hypotheses and scientific investigations that would contribute to improvement in health care for autistic adults. An online survey designed for autistic adults, carers of autistic adults, and professionals in adult services was translated into 11 languages and distributed electronically by organizations and in-country adult service facilities in 2017; 522 autistic adults, 442 carers, and 113 professionals provided answers to the health questions. Professionals, the majority in non-medical services, appeared to be poorly informed about whether certain co-occurring conditions were more frequent in autistic adults than typical adults—especially some medical conditions, suicide attempts, accidents, and pain. A minority of autistic adults reported preventive health behaviors such as routine health check-ups. The majority of users and providers expressed the desire to make health care services more user-friendly for autistic adults. Among the three groups,