Dr Prithvi Perepa

Dr Prithvi Perepa

School of Education
Lecturer in Autism

Contact details

Telephone
+44 (0)121 415 8283
Email
p.perepa@bham.ac.uk
View my research portal
Address
School of Education
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston, Birmingham
B15 2TT, United Kingdom

Prithvi is the joint programme leader for the distance learning Autism Children programme, and teaches the on-campus autism module in Birmingham and on our Dubai campus. He is also a member of the Autism Centre for Education Research (ACER). 

Prithvi started his career as a special needs teacher and worked with children on the autism spectrum across the age range (from early years to further education) in India and UK. He was an advisory teacher for children with autism within mainstream schools where he mainly supported children and staff in early years and primary school settings. Later he worked as a disability advisor at the London South Bank University. In addition to educational settings, he has experience of working in adult care, both in supported living and independent living settings. He has worked with various national and regional charities where he developed parent support groups, established family support teams, and managed play schemes.

Previously he has worked as a lecturer at the University of East London and the University of Northampton.

His research has focused mainly in the field of autism and family experiences. Recently he has lead a project which developed a national strategy for autism in the Sultanate of Oman. He particularly interested in culture and autism. In addition to teaching and researching at the university, Prithvi has delivered training to a range of professionals and parents across a wide range of topics related to autism. 

Qualifications

  • Doctorate in Philosophy (Autism and Cultural Perceptions), University of Birmingham 
  • Postgraduate Certificate in Speech Difficulties, University of Sheffield 
  • Postgraduate Certificate in Research in Education, University of Birmingham 
  • Post Graduate Certificate (Learning and Teaching in Higher Education), University of East London 
  • Master in Education (Autism), University of Birmingham

Teaching

Autism (Children) 

Webautism University Certificate

Postgraduate supervision

Autism
Cultural perceptions of disability
Bilingualism and SEN

Research

Prithvi is interested in being involved in research in the field of autism which leads to practical benefits. He undertook some small scale studies on interventions such as use of aromatherapy and yoga with children on the autism spectrum. His doctoral research was on cultural perceptions of autism and related social skills. He provided consultation work to various organisations such as London borough of Southwark, Autism Education Trust and UNICEF (Oman). His recent projects include feasibility of the Autism Education Trust training for social workers, and for UNICEF in the Sultanate of Oman where he led a team from the University of Northampton which developed a ten years autism strategy and a five year action plan.

Other activities

External examiner for a doctoral student at the University of Bedford (2017), and a doctoral student at the University of Birmingham (2016). 

Internal examiner for a doctoral student at the University of Northampton (2015) 

External examiner for an MPhil student at the University of Birmingham (2012) 

External examiner for University of Roehampton MA in SEN, PGCert in Autism, PGCert in Dyslexia, SENCO award (2012-16) 

External examiner for Sheffield Hallam University for the MA in Autism and PGCert in Asperger Syndrome (2012-16)

Publications

Recent publications

Book

Perepa, P 2019, Autism, ethnicity and culture: working with children and families from minority communities. Jessica Kingsley Publishers, London. <https://www.jkp.com/uk/autism-ethnicity-and-culture.html>

Wu, H-F, Perepa, P & Billington, T 2019, The emotional lives of young people with autism: Parents' voices from UK and Taiwan. Cambridge Scholars Publishing, Newcastle upon Tyne. <https://www.cambridgescholars.com/the-emotional-lives-of-young-people-with-autism>

Perepa, P 2016, Autismus im Kleinkindalter. Junfermann Verlag, Paderborn.

Perepa, P 2015, Autism: a practical guide for parents and teachers. 2nd edn, Prachee Publications, Hyderabad, India.

Article

MacLeod, J & Perepa, P 2020, 'Early years practitioners’ knowledge of early signs of autism in England', Support for Learning, vol. 35, no. 2, pp. 192-204. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9604.12299

Swan, C & Perepa, P 2019, 'Police awareness of autism and the impact on individuals who wander', Good Autism Practice, vol. 20, no. 2, pp. 70-76.

Dawood, A, Turner, S & Perepa, P 2018, 'Affective computational model to extract natural affective states of students with Asperger syndrome (AS) in computer-based learning environment', IEEE Access, vol. 6, pp. 67026-67034. https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2018.2879619

Tolikas, T & Perepa, P 2018, 'Perceptions of students with autism regarding higher education support services', Journal of Inclusive Practice in Further and Higher Education (JIPFHE), vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 20-39. < https://nadp-uk.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/JIPFHE.ISSUE-10.1-Winter-2018-1.pdf>

Landor, F & Perepa, P 2017, 'Do resource bases enable social inclusion of students with Asperger syndrome in a mainstream secondary school?', Support for Learning, vol. 32, no. 2, pp. 129-143. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9604.12158

Perepa, P 2014, 'Cultural basis of social ‘deficits’ in autism spectrum disorders', European Journal of Special Needs Education, vol. 29, no. 3, pp. 313-326. https://doi.org/10.1080/08856257.2014.908024

Chapter (peer-reviewed)

Perepa, P 2019, A curriculum for the dual disability of autism and severe intellectual disability. in R Jordan, J Roberts & K Hume (eds), The SAGE handbook of autism and education. First edition edn, SAGE Publications, pp. 322. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781526470409.n26

Perepa, P 2013, Diversity and autism spectrum conditions. in E Chaplin, L Underwood & S Hardy (eds), Autism Spectrum Conditions: a guide. Pavilion, Brighton, pp. 97.

Perepa, P 2013, Implications of special needs and multiculturalism for the early years curriculum. in L Ang (ed.), The Early years curriculum: The UK context and beyond. Routledge Falmer, Oxford, pp. 69.

Commissioned report

Perepa, P & Preece, D 2018, A feasibility study for the application of the AET professional development model for the children’s social work community. London.

Howley, M, Perepa, P, Preece, D, Garner, P & Rose, R 2015, Situational Analysis on Inclusive Education and Action Plan for Children with Autism in Oman: Comprehensive Literature review. UNICEF, Oman.

View all publications in research portal