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Autism is a developmental disability that significantly affects verbal and nonverbal communication and social interaction, is generally evident before the age of 3, and adversely affects a student's educational performance.
Characteristics of Autism
Characteristics of Autism
Social-Communication Impairments
Social-emotional reciprocity - taking turns when communicating
Nonverbal communication-body language , gestures, eye contact
Maintaining relationships-adapting behavior to expectations, making friends
Repetitive, Restricted Behaviors and Interests
Repetitive speech, finger flicking, hand flapping lining objects up (more than average)
Excessive reliance on routines, use of verbal and nonverbal rituals
Highly circumscribed and fixated interested that are atypical in terms of intensity or
focus(preoccupation with objects like locks, lights, schedules, or movies)
Unusually excessive or limited reaction to sensory input, excessive touching or smelling
of objects
Atypical Language Development
Interrupting when others are communicating and experiencing difficulty knowing when it
is appropriate to speak
Focusing on one topic.
Problem Behavior
Self-injuries, aggression
Typically serves a communicaive function, enabling students to obtain something
positive, avoid something unpleasant, and/or increase or decrease sensory
stimulation
Sensory and Movement Disorders
Individuals with autism experience intensity, rhythm, frequency, duration, and timing of
movement differently.
Significant difficulty using visual information to guide the nature and timing of they
movements like catching a ball and crossing the street.
Differences in Intellectual Functioning
Autism occurs in children with all levels of intelligence, ranging, from students who are
gifted to students classified as having an intellectual disability.
What causes Autism?
What causes Autism?
What we do know is there are no known factors in the psychological environment of a child that have been shown to cause autism. On the other hand scientists have not been able to nail down the definite cause of autism. Autism is primarily biological in origin and multiple biological factors are implicated, including genes, brain structure and neural pathways.
One consistent finding is in the brain structure of children with autism. Their brains tend to grow at an accelerated rated during the first few years of life. In addition to size differences, the connectivity between different parts of the brain appears to be a cause of autism and is linked to differences in how people with autism process language.
There are also evironmental contributions to autism including toxc exposure to chemicals and radiation. Exposure to certain medicines in early pregnancy like thalidomide, valproic. Immunizations have been in question for many years, and although some studies say there is no real link this is also a very heavily funded research topic with frightening increases in diagnosis across the country.
Process to Identify and Evaluate
Process to Identify and Evaluate
I. Observation-This is where a professional or parent may notice that a student is not achieving certain milestones in their educational career.
II. Screening- This can include student products, intelligence tests, as well as hearing and vision tests.
III. Prereferral- Feedback should be obtained and discussed based on the interventions documents and provided after the screening process.
IV. Referral- This would be a team submission
V. Nondiscriminatory evaluations procedures and standards- There are no such tools that are completely free of bias. In order to minimize this effect we must use multiple instruments to have multiple sources for information to get a better idea of the needs of the student as well as strengths and weaknesses.
VI. Determination- Decision made by multidisciplinary evaluation team.
This evaluation will also include a FBA (Functional Behavioral Assessment). This is a systematic process for gathering information that helps teachers and related service providers determine why a student engages in problem behaviors and how teachers can influence events and circumstances to change these behaviors.
Useful Links and Resources
Websites
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/autism-spectrum-disorders
https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/autism-spectrum-disorder-asd
https://www.autismspeaks.org/autism-support-family-help
People You Should Know
Related Services Personnel:
Special education teacher
Public agency representative (e.g., school administrator)
Qualified to provide or supervise special education services; is familiar with resources available at outside agencies and is able to commit those resources to meet IEP goals
Person qualified to interpret instructional implications of evaluation results (e.g., school psychologist, diagnostician)
Speech therapist
Physical therapist (PT) or occupational therapist (OT)
Others, as appropriate to the needs of the student (e.g., reading specialist, vision specialist)
Supplemental Aids and Services
extended time on testing
different delivery methods of content
peer learning opportunities
classroom paraprofessional
Tips for Parents
Tips for Parents
look for state scholarships to supplement cost of supplemental services
know your rights
look for Facebook or co-op groups with similar needs
talk to your school's teacher, guidance counselor and other professionals soon and often
Classroom Practices
Instructional Strategies:
Differentiate your instruction.
Use assistive technology
Put your research to use in your classroom
Assistive Technology-this can range in uses depending on the needs of the student.
Including Peers:
Help peers understand student behavior
Pair the student with other people who understand their communication style
Provide opportunities for peer tutoring with visual images and music
Help students create social stories to expose the student to a better understanding of an event and to encourage alternative, and appropriate, responses.
Tips for Teachers:
Be passionate about teaching
Encourage self-directed learning strategies (self-instruction, self-scheduling, self-modeling, an self-monitoring)
Encourage families to use visual schedules and to use a routine
Use video self-modeling (student watches video of one-self doing an activity that is targeted for improvement or that they are trying to learn.
Possible Prediction?
Possible Prediction?
Breaking down autism prevalence stats…
Breaking down autism prevalence stats…
From 4-5 in every 10,000 in the 70s to half of all kids in 2025
From 4-5 in every 10,000 in the 70s to half of all kids in 2025
Will half of US kids have autism by 2025? This prediction made by Dr. Stephanie Seneff, Research Scientist from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), may be scoffed at by some, but the latest CDC statistics do indicate rising prevalence rates:
https://www.autismparentingmagazine.com/autism-statistics/
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