Administering Successful Programs for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders

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Administering Successful Programs for Students
with Autism Spectrum Disorders

• New Administrators Summit
• March 24, 2004

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Objectives

• Describe the defining features of Autism Spectrum
  Disorders and how they impact the student in the
  school environment.
• Design and implement effective practices for
  students with Autism Spectrum Disorders
• Garner support and training for staff
• Forge strong partnerships with families

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What is Autism

• Developmental disorder of neurobiological origin
• Present from birth or very early in development
• Currently diagnosed based on behavioral and
  developmental features
• National Research Council, 2001

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What is Autism

• Affects essential human behaviors such as social
  interaction, communication, imagination, and
  establishing relationships
• Has life long effects on learning, interacting
  with others, becoming independent, and
  participating in the community
• National Research Council, 2001

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The Spectrum Nature of Autism

• Varies in severity of symptoms, age of onset, and
  association with other disorders
• Manifestations vary across children and within an
  individual over time
• Innumerable combinations of possible symptoms
• No single behavior that is always typical or
  present in every individual
• National Research Council, 2001

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Lets Take a Look

• Autism can look like this
• And this
• And this

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Autism Spectrum Disorders
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Core Features of Autism Spectrum Disorders

• Qualitative Impairment of Social Development
• Qualitative Impairment of Communication
• Restricted repertoire of behaviors and interests
• DSM IV 1994

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Other Common Features of Autism Spectrum Disorders

• Difficulties with novelty
• Sensory differences
• Over-responding
• Under-responding
• Motor difficulties
• Motor planning
• Poor imitation, coordination, fine motor
  (writing)
• Difficulties with adaptive or daily life skills
• Problems with executive functioning such as
  sequencing, organization, sustaining and shifting
  attention, etc.
• Inconsistent performance across settings and
  behaviors

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SoWhat Does This Mean at School?

• Manifestations of the core deficits in the school
  environment
• What are the struggles
• How to help

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Barriers to Communication

• May or may not be able to talkand may use
  alternative method to communicate
• May or may not be able to understand what is said
  or may have very literal understanding of spoken
  language
• Difficulty reading non-verbal communication
• (ie. gestures, facial expressions, sighs,
  proxemics, tone of voice, etc.)

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Barriers to Communication

• Difficulty using non-verbal communication (eye
  contact, gestures, facial expressions)
• May talk incessantly about one topic
• Trouble understanding reciprocity---interrupts,
  talks out, talks over others

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Barriers to Social Interaction

• May or may not be interested in interacting with
  people
• Preoccupation with special interest, objects, or
  aspects of internal or external environment
• Sensory difficulties may prevent participation in
  common experiences
• Difficulties understanding others perspectives

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Barriers to Social Interaction

• Poor awareness of need to behave differently in
  different situations with different people
• Difficulties regulating behavioral and emotional
  responses
• Lack of buffer between private thoughts and what
  is said

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Barriers to Success at School

• Wide range of cognitive abilities
• Variability in demonstration of knowledge and
  behavior
• Difficulty generalizing information and skills
• Trouble learning in group situations
• Difficulty with planning, sequencing and
  organizing tasks, materials, and self

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Barriers to Success at School

• May have severe challenging behaviors
• Trouble adapting to changes in routine or what
  they are expecting
• May or may not understand school rules
• May have motor challenges that effect
  handwriting, imitation and coordination

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Take the Bull by the Horns

• Proactive
• planning
• is a must!!!!

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Plan For

• Transitions---
• From preschool to school age
• Year to year
• Building to building
• Staff to staff (minimize as much as possible)
• Changes in routine---
• Substitutes
• Fire drills
• Assemblies
• Field trips
• Visitation days
• Menu changes
• Indoor recess
• Delays and early dismissals

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Plan For

• Building wide training/education
• Brief autism 101 for all staff (all teachers,
  counselors, therapists, para professionals, bus
  drivers, cafeteria staff, building maintenance
  staff, office staff, playground aides---everyone)
• Brief autism 101 for students

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Plan For

• Teaming---Administrators can set the expectation
  and provide the leadership
• Parents, teachers, speech/language pathologist,
  occupational therapist, para professional,
  guidance counselor, psychologist, behavior
  consultant, outside agency staff

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Lessons from the Field

• Panel Discussion

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Ensuring Student Learning

• Accurate assessment in all areas (cognitive,
  academic, communication, social, sensory-motor,
  behavioral)
• Who?----Additional support needed?

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Ensuring Student Learning Curriculum
Considerations
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Ensuring Student Learning

• Direct, explicit instruction in all areas found
  to be deficient in assessment
• Who?---- Additional consultation and guided
  practice needed?

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Ensuring Student Learning

• Progress Monitoring
• How do we know students are learning?
• Who takes and analyzes data to make instructional
  decisions?----Additional support/training needed?

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Ensuring Staff Success

• Training
• Support and consultation
• Guided practice
• Time for teaming
• Time for planning and preparation
• Mentor/coach

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StaffStudent Fit

• Things to consider
• Ability to work and communicate with families
• Teaming abilities
• Tolerance for consultants and other team members
  in and out of the classroom
• Willingness to learn and take ideas from others
• Ability to integrate various techniques and
  strategies
• Willingness to change strategies when something
  is not working
• Amount of flexibility in understanding variations
  in student performance
• Level of structure and routine inherit in
  teaching style
• Ability to handle stress

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Parents as Partners

• Parents concerns and perspectives should
  actively help to shape educational planning
• National Research Council, 2001

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Parents should be

• Provided opportunities to be active participants
  in all aspects of their child's education
• Informed about the range of educational options
  for their child
• Provided with services/trainings that.
• Address parent concerns in supporting their child
• Foster collaboration between school and home
• Support the family with behavior management
• Connect them with resources
• Provided regular and meaningful information
  regarding their childs progress
• PaTTAN, 2003
• New York State
  Education Department, 2001

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Lessons from the Field

• Panel Discussion

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Resources and Supports

• PaTTAN consultants
• PaTTAN trainings, technical assistance, guided
  practice and resources short term loan kits,
  curriculum resources, website
• IU consultants

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Upcoming trainings in Autism Spectrum Disorders

• Introduction to Teaching Language Through the
  Analysis of Verbal Behavior
• Early Screening and Identification of Autism
  Spectrum Disorders
• ADOS
• National Autism Conference
• Aspergers Syndrome What General Educators Need
  to Know
• Effective Instruction for Students with Autism
  Spectrum Disorders (team series)

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PaTTAN Website

• www.pattan.k12.pa.us