Telehealth to train interventionists teaching functional living skills to children with autism spectrum disorder

The team used Zoom to train four professionals who work with kids with autism. They taught the adults how to coach functional living skills like brushing teeth or making a sandwich.

Each professional worked with one child. The study used a multiple-baseline design across participants to show that changes came from the training, not something else.

All four adults hit 100% fidelity on the coaching checklist after the telehealth sessions. The kids also gained independence; they needed fewer prompts to finish daily tasks.

Skills kept up two weeks later, showing the training stuck.

Lindgren et al. (2020) and Tsami et al. (2019) already showed parents can run FCT via telehealth with big behavior drops. Craig’s team moves the remote coaching idea from parents to paid staff, and from FCT to daily living skills.

Spackman et al. (2025) later used the same coaching model for functional analysis. They got 80% behavior reduction, proving the Zoom approach works across very different ABA goals.

Sump et al. (2018) found telehealth BST equals in-person training for teaching DTI to college students. Craig’s study echoes that result in a real-world autism classroom setting.

You no longer need to drive to site to train staff. A short Zoom series can bring distant teachers or therapists to mastery and still give kids clear skill gains. Use Craig’s checklist, schedule live practice, and watch independence grow while you sit at your desk.