session 1 what do i know about asds?. autistic disorder pdd-nos autism spectrum disorders rett...
TRANSCRIPT
Session 1
What do I know about ASDs?
Autistic Disorder PDD-NOS
Autism Spectrum Disorders
Rett SyndromeChildhood
DisintegrativeDisorder
Pervasive Developmental Disorders
Asperger Syndrome The term Autism Spectrum
Disorders is used synonymously with the term autism
non-verbal
The Diversity of Autism
SOCIAL INTERACTION
SENSORY
I.Q
COMMUNICATION
gifted
aloof
verbal
hyposensitive hypersensitive
passive
Repetitive behaviourRestricted interest
severe
active/odd
Learning styles mildmoderate
Social Interaction
Communication
Sensory
Intellectual Ability (IQ)
Learning Style strong visual spatial skills; visual learner; kinaesthetic; gestalt learner; poor executive functioning; detail-focused
mild marked
average
Activity 2.2What do you know about ASDs?
What do you see in your students?
• communication• social• repetitive behaviours and restricted
interests• sensory• information processing
Communication Social RI/RB Sensory Information processing
Characteristics
Implications
Strategies
What are the implications of ASDs on learning and participation?
Planning matrix
Development of communication skills and systems
• Communication impacts on most areas of development.• Impairments in receptive language. • Literal/concrete understanding in AS/HFA• echolalia (immediate, delayed, mitigated)• difficulties initiating and sustaining communicative interaction • differences between use of comments and requests (use
of language)• differences in eye gaze, body language and use of gesture to
communicate• unusual vocal quality and prosodic patterns
What are the key issues for students with an ASD?
Development of social connections• Social deficit the core feature of ASDs.
• Students typically have fewer friends and may prefer the company of older or younger students
• Some students may isolate themselves by choice.
• Others may be aware of friendships and want friends but be perceived as irritating or intrusive.
• May have very different interests and priorities to other students, causing further isolation.
• Social skills issues – greeting, turn-taking, appropriate use of language, empathy.
(Attwood, 2007)
What are the key issues for students with an ASD?
Repetitive behaviour & restricted interests • adherence to routines• difficulty with change• anxiety in unfamiliar situations• interests or obsessions• need to maintain a particular interest or routine • behaviour • relationships• need for sameness• chunk learning style
What are the key issues for students with an ASD?
Sensory-processing issues
• two broad categories of sensory-processing issues – over-sensitivity and under-sensitivity and each sense has a different threshold
• sensory-processing issues may impact significantly on behaviour
• may contribute to the development or maintenance of anxiety disorders
• may impact on the development of some communication skills
• sensory-processing disorders may play a role in social interaction difficulties
What are the key issues for students with ASDs?
Information processing
• attention to detail – failure to see the ‘big picture’
• generalising
• recognising relevant detail
• organisation and sequencing
• social relationships
• attention
What are the key issues for students with ASDs?
Planning matrix
Communication Social RI/RB Sensory Information processing
Characteristics
Implications
Strategies
What do we know works for students with ASDs?
• providing opportunities for communication
• encouraging and teaching initiation• providing communication supports
AND teaching how to use• supporting receptive language
visually
Communication
What do we know works for students with ASDs?
Communication supports for expressive communication
• known as Augmentative and Alternative
Communication (AAC)
• the use of other forms of communication (e.g. pictures,
gestures, signing or voice output) to support speech
• may be high tech or low tech, aided or unaided
• where available, can be supported by a
speech pathologist
What do we know works for students with ASDs?
Supporting language visually
Visual supports can be used to help a student:• understand an instruction• understand routines and structure• cope with transitions• learn how to play• cope with change• learn new skills• manage their behaviour and understand
what is expected of them
What do we know works for students with ASDs?
Positive Behaviour Support (PBS)
• an ‘A-B-C’ approach – finding out the function of the behaviour
• environmental changes – managing antecedents
• teaching replacement behaviours
• positive reinforcement
What do we know works for students with ASDs?
Reactive strategies
PBS will be covered in detail in module 3
Proactive strategies
Sensory Processing Issues
• sensory profiling• adapting the environment• addressing seeking behaviours• addressing avoidance behaviours
What do we know works for students with ASDs?
NB: addressing sensory processing issues is not the same as ‘sensory integration’
Friendships/making social connections
• social skills training is not the only answer
• not all students will desire social interaction
• need to accommodate all students
• consider the hidden curriculum
What do we know works for students with ASDs?
• limited research on effective strategies for students with ASDs
• team approach needed to define bullying and determine consequences
• broad definition of bullying needed – more than just physical injury
• whole school strategies include buddy systems and codes of conduct
• Attwood (2004) suggests students learn to avoid vulnerable situations
• students can learn and practise responses• consider Social Stories™ and cartoon conversations using
speech bubbles
Bullying
What do we know works for students with ASDs?
Dealing with anxiety/mental health issues
• limited research on treatment options,
mostly on medication and psycho-analysis
• cognitive behavioural therapy shown to be
effective
• environmental management and positive
behaviour supports may assist
What do we know works for students with ASDs?
What can be done at school?• utilise strengths and interests
• modify tasks if they are too difficult
• be aware of sensory stimuli and modify environment
• use visuals in the classroom to:
- help student prepare for changes
- help student learn the classroom routines
- help student understand classroom social skills (e.g. how to ask a question, how to join a group)
• education to help student recognise their ‘emotion warning signs’ and their ‘body clues’
What do we know works for students with ASDs?
Three types of adjustmentsAdjustment
s
CurriculumAdapt what is
taught
Instructional Adapt how it is taught and how
learning is demonstrated
Environmental Adapt the
setting – where, when, and with
whom
Florida’s PBS Project at USF website: http://flpbs.fmhi.usf.edu
Meaningful/Functional
Preference/Interest
Difficulty
InstructionalPresentation
Student Response
AlternationModality
Format/MaterialsTask Division
Choice
ModalityFormat/Material
Where When
Who
Adjustment matrix for the individual learner
Comm Social RI/RB Sensory Info proc
Curricula
Instructional
Environmental
Three types of adjustments
Adjustments
CurriculumAdapt what is
taught
Instructional
Adapt how it is taught and how
learning is demonstrated
Environmental
Adapt the setting – where, when, and with whom
Florida’s PBS Project at USF website: http://flpbs.fmhi.usf.edu
Curriculum and instruction
• curriculum provides a blueprint for
learning which teachers can follow
when designing instruction
• curriculum helps an educator meet
community, parental, and student
expectations for quality
in education
Adapted from Shaddock et al. (2007).
Curriculum and instructionHelpful teaching questions:• What do I want my students to learn?• Do i need to make any adjustments at all?• Would technology help at all?• Do some students need material presented
differently?• Should some students present their work differently?• Will all students be assessed in the same way?• Will some students need additional or different goals?
Which learning outcomes are you working
towards?
What does it look like?Break down sequence of
events.
Communication Supports(Level of prompting?)
What do you want your students to learn?
Receptive Expressive
Some****Most****All****
What are the indicators? Sensory supports Behaviour & Social supports
Environmental supports
Lesson GuideIdea for staff organisation: use highlighters to colour-code areas that each member of class staff will be focusing on
Three types of adjustments
Adjustments
CurriculumAdapt what is
taught
Instructional
Adapt how it is taught and how
learning is demonstrated
Environmental
Adapt the setting – where, when, and with whom
Florida’s PBS Project at USF website: http://flpbs.fmhi.usf.edu
Examples – refer to Manitoba Educational handout, Chapter 4 Teaching the student with ASD
Instructional strategies
• errorless learning
• concrete examples/hands-on activities
• generalisation training
• peer tutoring/guidance
• teacher assistants
Social Scripts
Am I in Control ?At school everybody has the right to feel safe.Teachers have the right to feel safe every day they come to school. Teachers prefer to work with students that respect themselves and each other and show that everyone has the right to feel safe.
I have the right to come to school everyday and feel safe, and that people are going to respect me.
Sometimes there are students that try to take away my right to be safe.These students tend to tease and bully other students. Some of these students are trying to tease and bully me into fighting with them.I have two choices; I can fight them or use my self control.If I fight them they will win, because I will get into trouble, and I will still be angry.
Self control is when I make the choices that keep me safe.Self control means telling myself that I am a stronger person.Stronger people can ignore bullying and teasing, leaving the other student standing looking silly.Self control means reacting calmly or not at all.
These students try to push my buttons and get me into trouble. If I can keep my self control and ignore them, I should avoid trouble.Taking deep breaths and keeping my ears closed, is a strong way to ignore others.
Avoiding trouble, remaining calm and being able to get back to work, shows the teachers and other students at school that I respect myself and others right to feel safe.
Literal interpretation of languageRaining cats and dogs
Cats and dogs coming down from the sky
Lots of rain
Language & communication supports
Maths Year 8 - Mr. Waters
8 x (3+2) = _____ 4 – (6 + 5) = ____
2 x (8 – 5) = _____ 9 ÷ (7 - 4) = _____
(2 + 4) x 8 = _____ (6 + 7) x 2 = _____
(6 – 3) x 4 = _____ 42 ÷ (9 – 3) = ____
56 ÷ (11 – 4) = ____ 25 x (5 – 2) = ____
(4 + 5) ÷ 3 = _____ 25 ÷ (7 – 2) = ____
7 x (25 – 13) = ____ 9 + 8 x 6 = ______
Maths Year 8 - Mr. Waters
8 x (3+2) = _____ 4 – (6 + 5) = ____
2 x (8 – 5) = _____ 9 ÷ (7 - 4) = _____
(2 + 4) x 8 = _____ (6 + 7) x 2 = _____
(6 – 3) x 4 = _____ 42 ÷ (9 – 3) = ____
56 ÷ (11 – 4) = ____ 25 x (5 – 2) = ____
(4 + 5) ÷ 3 = _____ 25 ÷ (7 – 2) = ____
7 x (25 – 13) = ____ 9 + 8 x 6 = ______
(2 + 4) x 8 = _____ (6 + 7) x 2 = _____
Activity: Instructional Strategies
Errorless Learning
Concrete examples/hands-on activities
Generalisation Training
Peer Tutoring/ Guidance
Teacher Assistants
Regular (Mainstream) Classroom
Special Education Classroom
Adjustments
CurriculumAdapt what is
taught
Instructional
Adapt how it is taught and how
learning is demonstrated
Environmental
Adapt the setting – where, when, and with whom
Florida’s PBS Project at USF website: http://flpbs.fmhi.usf.edu
Three types of adjustments
Environmental auditSome key points to consider:
1. the student’s expectations
2. the expectations of others in the setting
3. nature of the teaching materials, the activity, the type of instruction
4. length of task or activity, the nature of the activity just completed, the nature of the activity to follow
5. instructional style
6. opportunities for interaction with others
7. opportunities to engage in functional, chronologically- age-appropriate activities
Environmental audit (continued)8. person’s physiological status
9. number of persons, students, adults in the learning environment
10. environmental constraints including the number of staff, time available, number of tasks
11. behaviour of others, for example the modelling behaviour they engage in and the behaviour directed toward student
12. recent changes in environment, sudden changes in activity, schedule, etc
13. distribution of interactions and relative distribution of positive vs. negative interactions
Structuring the physical environment
• organise areas according to the activity/curriculum to be delivered
• a place for everything and everything in a place• mark out physical boundaries e.g. teacher’s area• communicate behavioural expectations (class rules)• review classroom stimuli that may have a distracting
effect (refer to profile)• review classroom set up; proximity of desks, visual
stimuli (posters, charts etc), pathways, mess and clutter factor
To conclude - key adjustments include:• structured, routine & predictable environments• visual supports, scripts, written directions, social
stories• task adaptation & modification of curriculum
where possible• adjust adult expectations• use specific explanations; leave nothing unsaid or
assumed• positive reinforcement• build on special interests, skills and abilities• environmental adjustments; reduce environmental
& social stressors, especially and sensory
What do you know about the Disability Standards for Education (2005)?
• Disability Standards for Education came into
effect in August 2005
• set out the rights of students with a disability
in the area of education
• set out the obligations for adult and
community education providers that develop
and accredit curricula and courses
Students with HFA/AS are likely to:
• have difficulty relating appropriately to others, forming and maintaining social relationships
• be verbal but present with a wide range of language and communication disorders and peculiarities
• have difficulty in successfully following and mastering interpersonal interaction and specific aspects of an unmodified curriculum
• be good at attending to detail and have difficulty understanding the “big picture”
Students with HFA/AS: (cont’d)
• have difficulty generalising information (consider across subjects)
• have difficulty organising and sequencing information
• have powerful interests in particular topics and desire for sameness
• have irregular educational and cognitive deficits which can include splinter skills
• be subject to bullying and mental health issues
Assets of AS/HFA
• memory• factual learning strengths• attention to detail• skills in maths, science, computing areas• specialised interests• indifference to peer pressure• rules-based • refreshingly frank and logical
Students with ASDs + ID may• be nonverbal or have little functional speech
• have very limited social communication skills (difficulty relating
to others)
• have an obsessive interest in environmental sameness
• demonstrate atypical and difficult to understand behaviour
including stereotypic, repetitive and self stimulatory behaviour
• have irregular educational and cognitive deficits which can include
splinter skills
• have difficulty generalising information (consider across contexts)
• have difficulty organising, sequencing of information,
understanding concepts
• have significant sensory issues
Focus points
• enrolment• participation• curriculum development,
accreditation and delivery• student support services• harassment and victimisation
What do you know about the Disability Standards for Education (2005)?
What are these obligations?
• obligation to consult
• obligation to make reasonable adjustments
• obligation to eliminate harassment and victimisation
What do you know about the Disability Standards for Education (2005)?
• ‘on the same basis’ means treating the student with a disability on the same basis as the student without a disability
• moderated by principle of ‘unjustifiable hardship’
• some students may require adjustments and accommodations
What do you know about the Disability Standards for Education (2005)?
All staff need to have the skills,
knowledge and understanding to
implement curriculum in a way that will
be accessible to all students, including
students with a disability
Implications for educators and support staff
What do you know about the Disability Standards for Education (2005)?
What does ‘evidence-based’ practice mean?
What does ‘evidence-based practice’ mean?
• Evidence-based practice involves the conscientious and explicit use of current best evidence in making decisions about the care, education and medical treatment of an individual. ‘Am I doing the right thing in the right way with the right person at the right time in the right place for the right result – and am I the right person to be doing it? …and, is it at the right cost?’ (Cusick 2001, p103).
What does ‘evidence-based practice’ mean?
• systematic review of all relevant randomised control trials
• randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial
• cohort study
• multiple-case study
• single-case study
• expert opinion
• anecdotal/testimonial evidence
Levels of evidence Strongest
Weakest
What does ‘evidence-based practice’ mean?
Be cautious if:
– the research was done by the people
who have designed the treatment
approach
– the research is by people that stand to
profit from its success
– researchers claim they can cure autism
– the evidence relies heavily on anecdotal
information or testimonials
What does ‘evidence-based practice’ mean?
• be mindful of the quality of the facts and figures
• check what any statistics mean and if any changes
would be meaningful to a child with an ASD
• popularity of an approach does not indicate an
evidence base
• check who participated in the research and if your
child/student fits into this group (e.g. research into
Autistic Disorder may not be applicable to children with
Asperger syndrome)
Some tips:
What works? Empirical evidence
Recommended good practice in educational pedagogy for
students with an ASD includes:
• an individualised approach – developing a Learner Profile
• the provision of an autism-specific curriculum* (targets
characteristics of autism within the final curriculum)
• a highly supportive teaching environment and uses a range of
systematic teaching strategies
• using a functional communication and positive behavioural
approach to challenging behaviours
• collaborative team approach that involves families and other
professionalsRoberts & Prior (2006) Ivanhoe, Dunlap, Huber & Kincaid (2003), Howlin (1998).
What makes for a successful school placement?
A positive school climate:• shared responsibility by general and
special educators• school community ownership of the
included student(s) with autism• access to collaborative problem-solving
relationships, multidisciplinary teams• availability of appropriately trained
support personnel• low staff-student ratios
And …
• home-school collaboration
• the development of social skills for the student with autism in inclusive settings
• availability of specialist training for all staff• adequate teacher planning time• recurrent evaluation of inclusion practices
(Simpson et al., 2003)
ASPERGER SYNDROME WEB SITESWhat is the biology of Asperger’s Disorder?
http://www.unmed-edu/publo/ozbayrak/asperger.html
On-line Asperger’s Syndrome Information and Support – O.A.S.I.S.
http://www.udel.edu/bkirby/asperger/
ASPEN of America
http://www.asperger.org/
University Students with autism and Asperger’s Syndrome
http://www.users.dircon.co.uk./-cns/
Asperger’s Teenagers and Young Adults
http://www.geocities.com/HotSprings/Spa/1864
Yale University
http://info.med.yale.edu/chldstdy/autism/page10.html
Asperger’s Syndrome Information Package
http://www.autism-society.org/packages/aspergers.html
Asperger’s Syndrome – educational management issues
http://www.ozemail.com.au/~prussia/asperger/teach.htrn