You are on page 1of 5

Autism (AU) Chapter 7

1. The IDEA (federal) definition of Autism


(i) Autism means a developmental disability significantly affecting verbal and nonverbal
communication and social interaction, generally evident before age three, that adversely
affects a child's educational performance. Other characteristics often associated with autism
are engagement in repetitive activities and stereotyped movements, resistance to
environmental change or change in daily routines, and unusual responses to sensory
experiences.
(ii) Autism does not apply if a child's educational performance is adversely affected primarily
because the child has an emotional disturbance, as defined in paragraph (c)(4) of this section.
(iii) A child who manifests the characteristics of autism after age three could be identified as
having autism if the criteria in paragraph (c)(1)(i) of this section are satisfied.

2. Characteristics of a High Functioning (normal or above intellect) Autism


identified and explained as:
(a) the child does not have additional intellectual disabilities, may have splinter
skills that are relatively superior areas of functioning. A child may draw very well or
remember things that were said a week before but have no functional language and
refrain from eye contact.
3. Characteristics of Autism Spectrum Disorders include: be specific & include all
areas
(a) impaired social interactions
i. aloof
ii. unaware of the presence of others
iii. not physically affectionate
iv. difficulty percieving others emotions
v. difficulty forming attachments/relationships
vi. seldom use social gestures
vii. deficits in joint attention (looking where someone
is pointing, following a gaze)
(b) Communication and Langage deficits
i. about half of children with autism are mute
ii. the other half utilize echolalia for most their speech
iii. may have trouble formulating jokes
iv. may have trouble with figures of speech
(c) Repetetive/unusual behavior paterns
i. stereotypy: persistent, repeated patterns
ii. enamoured with mundane objects (hands, fans,
lights, clicking pens)
iii. the odd behaviors dominate much of the childs
time
(d) Insistence on Sameness/Preservation
i. need the same routine
ii. things need to be in their right place
iii. some children focus on a single subject and exclude
all others
1. may talk incessantly about one topic
(e) Unusual responsivness to sensory stimuli

i. 70-80% of children
ii. underresponsive or overresponsive to stimuli
1. sounds/textures/taste/touch
(f) Intellectual functioning
i. 70-80% have an intellectual disability as well
1. about half are in the severe/profound
range
ii. low-funcioning vs high funtioning autism
1. those with and without additional
intellectual disabilities
iii. may be have savant syndrome
iv. may exhibit overselectivity
1. focus on tiny details rather than the
overall whole
v. May be able to preform some tasks incredibly well
(quoting an entire movie) but may stumble in some more basic academics
(g) Problem Behaviors
i. Self Injury
ii. Property destruction
iii. aggression towards others
iv. Sleep problems
v. eating problems
1. pica: compulsively eating nonfood
items
(h) Asperger Syndrome
i. Deep interest in a particular (sometimes incredibly
obscure) subject area
ii. Clumsiness
iii. Inflexible adherence to routines
iv. Fascination with maps, globes, routes
v. Superior rote memory
1. amass many related facts
vi. Speech and language impairments
1. semantics, pragmatics and prosody
2. pendanic, odd speech patterns
3. formal style of speaking
vii. Due to having superior intelligence and their verbal
tendancies, children with Asperger syndrome are often considered slackers
by teachers and peers
1. may be misdagnosed as ADHD or
OCD
viii. May have difficulties developing and maintaining
friendships
(i) Positive Characteristics
i. quite loving, thoughtful, and creative
ii. May think in pictures or sounds, syntesising
information and catagorizing it
4. Identification and Assessment Process
(a) Based on a behavioral analasys

(b)

(c)

(d)

(e)
(f)
(g)
(h)

i. can be reliably diagnosed at 15 to 18 months of age,


but most children are not diagnosed until five years or older
ii. there are multiple behavioral warning signs in the
12-18 month range, and children can be screened at 18 and again 24
months to check for regression
The most utilized screening tests are:
i. CHAT
1. both parents and a diagnostic
evaluate the child for expected behaviors, failiure results in a
second screening a month later which, if failed, its suggested the
child should be referred to a specialist.
a. does not guarentee the
child has a social-communication problem
M-CHAT
i. slightly different arrangement of the U.K.
developed CHAT.
1. there are 9 critical irems, amongst
the total 23. If a child fails any 2 critical items or any 3 at all,
concerned parents should seek a specialist.
a. does not guarentee a
social-communication problem
SCQ
i. 40-item screening tool that takes less than ten
minutes.
1. despite being developed for children
four years and up, a study found that is correctly identified 89% of
students in the 17 to 45 month range and made zero false positives
if a cutoff score of 11 was used.
ASSQ
i. a 27 item checklist to be completed by parents
and/or teachers
CARS
i. 15 items rated on a 1-4 scale
ADI-R
i. semistructural interview of the primary caregiver
ASDS
i. 50 yes/no questions completed by someone who is
not the child that results in a quotient that predicts the liklihood that the
individual has Asperger syndrome.

5. Explain Applied Behavior Analysis: What is ABA and how might it relate to
students in your class?
(a) An approach to creating and conducting lessons that is based in research that
studies the correlation between the environment and learning.
i. using skill slike positive reinforcement, repeated
practise, and structured lessons to systematically teach and scaffold skills
in a variety of contexts.
(b) A common misconception is that ABA is purely 1 on 1 routine sequence of
activities.
i. DTT consists of

1. the teacher arranging the problems


theyll present to the student in a coherent manner for both parties
2. the student tackles each problem
individually
3. the student recieves positive
feedback for correct answers and a variety of potential responses
for incorrect responses or nonanswers
4. the goal is to teach a new set of facts,
skills or concepts.
ii. DTT and ABA are mutually exclusive, but DTT can
is known for helping students with autism.
(c) Some ABA strategies are
i. shifting from rigid stimuli to more naturally
occuring stimuli
ii. alternative forms of communication
iii. teaching based on functional analasys of behavior
iv. peer tutoring
v. strategies to increase student response duing group
instruction
vi. self-management tactics
vii. methods of errorless discrimination learning
viii. assesing challenging behavior
ix. communication traning
x. strategies for teaching language and social skills
(d) In my class:
i. being able to functionally assess the needs of my
individual students is a big reason I enjoy studying special education. I
enjoy adapting lesson plans on the fly based on the various needs my
students may have, so changing the way the information is communicated
or actively analyzing the needs of my students will be something I do
regularly. Teaching social and communication skills in a natural way is
something every teacher, ideally, should be doing for all their students in
some capacity whether they are diagnosed with a disability or not on any
spectrum at all.
6. Explain Visual Supports
(a) a wide variety of scaffolds that help students in different ways. Whether its
explaining social expectations with a story, illustrating a schedule, or placing a visual
indication of time.
7.
Find a peer-reviewed or evidence-based article regarding students with high
functioning autism as it relates to your major (early childhood, secondary education,
therapeutic recreation, and/or instructional strategies). Attach the complete article with
highlights of what you found important or interesting.
8.
Provide the article citation (APA format), and a brief summary of the journal
article (2-3 sentences).
References
Pennington, R. r., Stenhoff, D. M., Gibson, J., & Ballou, K. (2012). Using Simultaneous
Prompting to Teach Computer-based Story Writing to a Student with Autism.

Education & Treatment Of Children, 35(3), 389-406.

This is another article that highlights a tool that can be used to help teach a student with
diabilities. The student in the article had an ASD (Asperger Syndrome specifically) and had
trouble writing more than three words or copying something he had heard when asked to write
a story. Utilizing a piece of software that offered words and read sentences aloud, the student
was able to create more complex stories. The software did not help to create more complexity
in the way the sentences and stories were written, but the student was able to create stories with
a character, cause, and effect. A drawback of the tool is that, when asked to write on paper as
opposed to with a computer, the student would create almost identical stories to the one he had
made with the software.

9. Website with helpful academic (i.e., science, reading, math, organization, socialization)
information for students with emotional/behavioral disabilities:
1. Parents
http://eden2.org/top-10-autism-websites-recommended-by-parents/
2. Teachers
http://www.nea.org/home/15151.htm
3. Youth
http://www.autismgames.com.au/
10. Find and share a fact about students with Autism Spectrum Disorders in other
countries/cultures.
For example: Are they recognized? Are they served in schools (segregated or inclusion?)?
How do
families deal with the knowledge their child has a learning challenge? Could be a personal
story if
you wish.
In South America ASDs are recognized, but there is not an abundance of training nor are there
good systems in place for these students. In Venezuela it is estimated that roughly 1.1 of every
1000 students have an ASD of some sort, though that may be an understatement due to the lack
of active research. There is limited knowledge and awareness of ASDs in these countries, and
there is a general stigma towards students with these and other developmental disabilities. Brazil
is working towards increasing ASD research, and attempting to increase public awareness of the
disability, alongside funding research foundations and increasing the amount of professional
assistance and public services that exist for people with ASDs.

You might also like