Supporting Pupils On Autistic Spectrum In Mainstream Classroom Education Essay

Supporting Pupils On Autistic Spectrum In Mainstream Classroom reproduction EssayIntroductionThe National Autistic Society (NAS) describes Autism as A lifelong developmental dis business leader that affects how a person communicates with, and relates to, other flock and the world around them. Itis a spectrum condition, which means that, while all bulk with autism sh be certain beas of hassle, their condition pull up stakes affect them in opposite ways.Asperger syndrome is a form of autism. (NAS, website)Autistic Spectrum Dis formats (ASD) bear confine an effect on the ability of a child to learn and participate in the contourroom, unless, at that place ar ways to ensure autistic children learn and participate within the mainstream environment.As a teacher of Support for Learning, I am turn tailal in twain the Primary and Secondary sectors. My role involves standing children with supernumerary necessitate within a mainstream school, either in the strainroom, one -to-one or in small crowds. The scholars I decl be pompousness an array of modified necessitys including those exhi bristled autistic tendencies.Looking at a case teach of a child within a mainstream first school exhibiting autistic tendencies, this assignment discusses the topic of ASD the historical aspects, characteristics, theories and diagnosis, policy and legislation, and support provided.The Case resume ChildPupil N is 10 years old, and in primary 5. When the family moved from England to Scotland he was held back for a year in babys room due to delay development. He had communication and language difficulties which were amplified when he started nursery in a Scots school, non only did he come difficulties perceiveing spoken language, just he now had to contend with the Scottish accent as well.To gain near background information, I knowing a questionnaire for p arnts to complete. The questionnaire was carried bulge start verbally during a telephone convers ation with Ns breed. During the conversation, she besides clarified some of the questions in to a greater extent detail. (See appendix 1)As shown in the questionnaire, and from my own utterances, some of the characteristics displayed by pupil N, which ar determine in the triad of impairments, embarrass lack of eye retain-to doe with, poor sociable skills, difficulty in forming friendships with peers, delayed obstetrical deli very although he now talks fluently, however he does have difficulty in sagacity language liking for sameness, a special interest in tractors, does not initiate and sustain conversation, has had sponsor diarrhoea and issues with going to the toilet, which seems to have improved as he has big(a) older he house to a fault occasionally, swear and display warring behaviour towards others, and gets in trouble for this at school.The Historical aspects of AutismResearch in Autism dates back to 1938, though Wing (1993) stirs in that respect were accou nts in literature former to this, provided states there is no information as to the occurrence of autism forward the second half of the twentieth century, however Volkmar, et al (2005) suggests that in 1867 hydrogen Maudsley possibly made the first step toward a classification by grouping children with peculiar, unhinged behavior under the label insane. He suggested a number of subgroups, one of which he called instinctive insanity, which could indicate that some of the children he discussed had ASD.Studies carried push by dint of by Kanner in 1943 involved children identified as having conditions which were diametrical and unique from anything recognized so far. Around the same time, only when independently, Asperger besides carried divulge work in the same field.All of the children in Kanners composition were opposite but displayed actually interchangeable characteristics the common elements lay down in these children included a lack of emotion, repetitive actions , speech formation problems, ability to manipulate various objects, tuition difficulties, and their levels of intelligence.Kanner noteworthy the symptoms were very quasi(prenominal) to those of schizophrenia however, they waited to manifest at a some(prenominal) earlier age. He off- pick up that ..these children had come into the world with an innate inability to form the usual, biologically provided affective contact with concourse. (Kanner, 1943 p250)Asperger discovered some(prenominal) individuals had similar problems with favorable skills and repetitive actions but did not have trouble with learning or their cognitive abilities. around showed exceptional talents or abilities that were considered break throughstanding.Both Kanners 1943 champaign Autistic Disturbances in affectional Contact and Aspergers 1944 study Autistic Psychopathy in Childhood atomic number 18 crucial in early autism research, though Aspergers study was not translated into face until 1991 by Dr. Uta Frith. (Long, B. 2007, website)Both Kanner and Asperger described autism as a classifiable developmental disorder that had not been clinically described before mountain suffering from it were unduly considered to be mentally handicapped. (Bogdashina. 2005)Defining AutismThere has been much research, and varying theories in the field of autism since the studies of Kanner and Asperger, however there does not turn up to be a single core deficit, nor is there a cure.Authors much(prenominal) as Happe (1994), Powell and Jordan (1997), Sicile-Kira (2003), Bogdashina (2005), and Lathe (2006), discuss the most universally used criteria for defining and study autism which is known as Wings Triad of Impairments. The Triad of Impairments is based on certain behavioural characteristics, described by Schreibman (2005) as deficits, which are exhibited in leash main areas impairments of societal interaction, impairments in social communication and impairments in imagination.Impairment s of Social InteractionWing (2003) suggests this understructure be shown in divers(prenominal) ways, and groups them into four categoriesThe aloof groupProbably the most common social impairment in young children behaving as if other people do not exist, and not responding when spoken to appearing to have empty unexpressive faces unless displaying extreme anger, distress or joy. They tend not to want to be touched, and do not make eye contact kind of they play past or straight by means of you. They show no discernment if you are in pain or confuse, and seem to be in a world of their own. For some it may change as they learn older, but for others it may continue throughout life.The passive groupChildren and adults are not completely cut off and accept approaches from others however they do not instigate social interaction also having difficulties with eye contact but can often make contact when re legal opinioned. Passive children are happy to join in games but can often be left out when games change.Generally, their behaviour is less problematic although some can display disturbed behaviour during adolescence.The active but odd groupPeople in this category can initiate contact with others but this can appear odd and inappropriate, and tends to be with those in charge rather than their peers. They appear to be concerned with their own needs rather than those of others. When not getting the attention they want, they can behave aggressively towards others, due to the lack of understanding of social interaction.The over- baronial, stilted groupThis type of behaviour normally manifests in later adolescence, in those who are more able, with a proper level of language.They tend to be over polite and formal, and try very hard to be well behaved. However, they do not fully understand the rules of social interaction and have difficulty adapting their behaviour to divergent situations.Impairments of social communicationBaron-Cohen (2008) claims that if childr en do not produce single run-in by the age of two, or phrased speech by the age of three they are identified as having language delay. Pupil N did not speak until nursery age, up to now then, he could not form the words justly and was referred for public lecture and Language Therapy (SALT).Wing (2003), suggests that all children and adults with ASD have communication problems however Baron-Cohen (2008) suggests there is no speech and language delay with Asperger Syndrome.Wing (2003) states that speech and language delays are common, some may never speak at all. Those who do speak often start by repeating words echolalia, spoken by others. Echolalia can be immediate or delayed. With delayed echolalia, they can often repeat something randomly that they have heard previously, which could be some time ago.The level of understanding varies most have some understanding although this can be confinesed. They also have difficulties in understanding non-verbal communication much(prenomi nal)(prenominal)(prenominal) as nodding ones head, and facial expressions.A study characteristic is that they take things literally, for example, if they were told it is raining cats and dogs, they would expect to see cats and dogs falling from the sky, whence care is needed when speaking to a person with an ASD figures of speech can be taken at face value, leading to stress and terror.The volume of people with ASD have an odd monotonous tone when speaking, which can be inappropriate, they can occasionally speak besides loud or too quiet some often use their special voice which is different from their own.Impairments of ImaginationChildren with ASD are unable to develop imaginative play. Some do show evidence of imaginative play however it tends to be very repetitive, doing the same thing over and over again. Some may even copy a character they have seen on television or in a book, or a non-living object, but also in a repetitive manor.Other repetitive activities include tapping , tasting, smelling, feeling and prick different surfaces, and some can inflict self-injury in the form of scratching, biting and head-banging. (Wing, 2003)Other features suggested by Sicile-Kira, (2003) includeNot liking change in routine or environmentNot reaching developmental milestones exclusively eating certain foodsEating or chewing unusual things lack of common senseNot understanding simple requestsFrequent diarrhoea, upset stomach or constipation.Theories in AutismTheoretical approaches to research in Autism include neuropathological and neuropsychological.NeuropathologicalNeuropathology relates to the telephone exchange nervous system and chief. Discussed by Frith (2003) and Feinstein (2010), Kemper and Bauman carried out a study which led to autism be treated as a biological disorder. They imbed that cells in the hippocampus, subiculum and amygdala parts of the brain associated with emotions, space, behaviour and memory (OMara et al, 2009), were rock-bottom in size and closely packed, and suggested the irregularity occurred in the cells during early development.Anthony Bailey noted that four out of six people with autism had unusually large life-threatening brains, and Dr. Eric Courchesne reported that he found evidence of rapid brain overgrowth in the first year, in infants who develop autism.Dr Manuel Casanova investigated mini-columns of neurons the smallest unit of cells capable of treat information, and suggested they are smaller and more abundant in autistic people.Gillberg, Kemper and Bauman were raise in two sides of the brain as the left side deals with lingual performance, while the objurgate side deals with non-verbal communications such as, gestures and emotional expression, which are impaired in autism. (Feinstein, 2010)Neuropsychological TheoriesThe non-social features that have been explained by researchers include guess of mind, weak central coherence, executive dysfunction and joint attention.Theory of learning ability Theory of mind is the ability to impute mental states to self and others. (Doherty 2008)Baron-Cohen, Leslie and Frith (1985) suggested that autistic children do not develop theory of mind (ToM). Research was carried out by using the Sally Anne test (See appendix 2) which suggested that they suffer from mind blindness and cannot envisage what others might think.ToM attracted criticism due to the point that dolls were used instead of real people. Baron-Cohen cited by Feinstein (2010), stated that the test produced similar results after world carried out again with real people.Weak central coherenceNormally developing people process information by olfactory propertying at and understanding the whole picture. Frith and Happ cited by Rajendran and Mitchell (2007), suggest people with autism process the component parts individually rather than the whole indicating that they have weak global coherence.Shah and Frith tested central coherence using the Wechsler immobilize design (See app endix 3), which requires children to use separate blocks to construct an entire design. They found that autistic children produced a higher score than others in the test, and were also scurrying in constructing the design. (Frith 1985, Shah and Frith, 1993)Frith, cited by Rajendran and Mitchell (2007), contests that autistic people perform better on these tasks because they lack the understanding of global form.Executive dysfunctionExecutive function (EF) is defined as the ability to sustain problem-solving activities for achieving future goals. EF is used for activities such as planning, organizing, strategizing and paying attention to and remembering details.Researchers have noted that symptoms that are not explained by ToM can resemble specific brain injury symptoms, which has led to Ozonoff theorizing that autism could be explained as a deficit in EF. However, different researchers have produced differing results, which suggests that not all autistic individuals exhibit EF pr oblems, also, these difficulties are seen in other disorders and not exclusive to autism. (Rajendran and Mitchell 2007) occasion attentionJoint attention is the way in which one draws somebodys attention to a stimulation by gazing or pointing. This developmental milestone emerges around six months of age. Charman (2003) suggests impairments in joint attention are among the earliest signs of the disorder.There has been other possible action suggested as causing autism such as the triple MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccinum, implicated by Dr Andrew Wakefield, which is administered to children at eighteen months, around the same time that autism is most unremarkably detected.Rutter, cited by Feinstein (2010), stated that although research has pointed out that there is no associate between autism and the MMR, there are still some evokes who choose to have individual vaccinations for their children.Although many theories have been connected with the origins of autism, the core de ficits of the disorder are still unknown. Kemper, cited by Feinstein (2010), statedthere is not going to be one cause or treatment.DiagnosisSicile-Kira, (2003) states that there is no medical examination test to diagnose ASD, and any diagnosis is based on observation of behavioural characteristics.Medical practitioners base the diagnosis on guidelines set out in the World health Organizations International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10), which requires that all three of the triad of impairments are present at 36 months of age or the American Psychiatric Associations system the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-IV) and (DSM-IV-TR), which also requires that the age of onset should be recorded. (AWARES.org, website)The ICD-10 specifies that at least 8 of the 16 specified items must be fulfilled, which should include 3 from Impairments of reciprocal social interaction, 2 from soft abnormalities in communication, and 2 from Restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behaviour, interests and activities.The diagnosis for Asperger Syndrome is similar to Autism however the diagnosis requires that single words should have develop by two years of age or earlier. (World Health Organization, 1993)The Criteria from DSM-IV specifies there should be a total of six or more items which includes 2 from Qualitative impairments in social interaction, 1 from each of the other areas.For Asperger Syndrome, the DSM-IV also states there should be no significant impairments in language communication. (American Psychiatric Association, lucre source)The guidelines for diagnosing autism differ from each other in that the ICD-10 requires a borderline of 8 manifestations for a diagnosis, whereas, the DSM-IV only requires 6. It appears that a person may or may not be diagnosed with autism, depending on which criteria are used.After many conversations with researchers, Feinstein (2010) suggests that there has been an increase in the prevalence of Autism, possibly due t o the blowup of the spectrum and improvements in diagnostic tools.Dorothy Bishop re-tested adults diagnosed with speech and language disorder as children, but not autism, which resulted in a quarter of them macrocosm re-diagnosed with autism. (Feinstein, 2010)Criticisms of diagnostic criteriaCited by Feinstein (2010), researchers such as Lorna Wing, Dr Patricia Howlin, Christopher Gillberg, and Dr Fred Volkmar who was on the DSM-IV classification drafting committee, have criticized the ICD-10 and DSM-IV, particularly as far as Asperger syndrome is concerned. They suggest it is very feigned both criteria state that spoken language must be normal for an Asperger syndrome diagnosis, when in fact Asperger originally stated that peculiarities of speech and language were a key feature.Fombonne (1999) suggests that there are more boys than girls diagnosed with autism on the other hand, Dr Judith Gould cited by pitchers mound (2009) argues that doctors are failing to diagnose thousands o f girls who have Aspergers syndrome, and suggests that girls are not being noticed in the first place, or if they ask for help, they are being turned away and are often rejected when referred for diagnosis.Pupil N appears to display many signs of autism but does not have a medical diagnosis however he has been diagnosed with speech and language delay, and health issues such as toileting.HMIE (2006), state that for best practice, fostering authorities should not limit support only to those with a formal ASD medical diagnosis.There are many reasons why N may not have an official diagnosis. Autism is very complex therefore it is possible that the behaviours he displays fit into more than one category, or none at all, depending on any criteria used, which can make it difficult to retard. Also, diagnosis can be time consume and perhaps stressful for the child and the parents.A survey carried out by Osborne and Reed (2008) examined how communication between parents and professionals co ncerning ASD and its diagnosis, could be facilitated most parents wanted a quicker and easier process, and would prefer the procedure to be more consistent in content and structure. They also called for better professional training and awareness somewhat ASD, especially regarding the information that professionals possess, and the interpersonal skills of some professionals.Sicile-Kira, (2003) suggests if parents have concerns round their child, it is important to seek advice from a medical professional who is experienced in ASD, and get a diagnosis as early as possible to gain access to services.Another reason which may prevent a parent from requesting a medical diagnosis is the stigma of labeling a child.Labeling can suggest a low overall attainment compared with their peers, have an effect on the attitude and behaviour of teachers towards children, and affect the children themselves. (Hart, et al, 2004)Authors such as Sicile-Kira, (2003) and Ho, (2004) comment that labels ascer tain the eligibility for people to access benefits and services, however, Ho (2004) also argues that it provides an excuse for school officials to read a medical model of learning disabilities, and ignore other problems in our educational and social systems that give rise to a position of students learning difficulties.Policy and LegislationIn 2001, Scottish Ministers commissioned the Public Health Institute of Scotland (PHIS, now NHS) to carry out a needs perspicacity of services for people with ASD in Scotland. The aim was to look at on-going service provision, and provide advice on how the services could better fill the needs of both children and adults with ASD. The report suggested a lack of understanding amongst service providers of the character of ASD and made 32 recommendations, resulting in the National ASD Reference Group being set up by The Scottish Executive in June 2002, to diagnose priorities to support the development of good practice across a range of services . (PHIS, 2001)The Scottish Executive (2006) suggested an study of training in each NHS batting order with a view to predicting training needs and gaps, this corroborates the earlier discussion that parents suggested there is a need for more professional training and awareness about(predicate) ASD, however, the Scottish Executive (2006) only discussed training for health practitioners and not education.In the past, pupils with additional needs would have been educated within a special school recent legislation and policy such as The Standards in Scotlands Schools etc Act 2000, and The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act, 2004, places a duty on education authorities to meet the needs of all pupils in a mainstream environment, where possible, on base their peers, including those with additional support needs. Children are described as having additional support needs if they require additional support to enable them to make turn up in their learning.My local authority provides guidance to schools for supporting children with autism, with a re-create intervention procedure to meet the needs of children and young people on the autistic spectrum, whichacknowledges the role of multi-agencies in developing consistency in both school and home.HMIE (2006) implies that some education mental faculty feel they do not have enough knowledge and understanding of ASD therefore, training for all staff involved in the education of pupils with ASD is an important area to develop. They also argue that parents are not always kept fully informed about the range of provision available for their children, implying there is a greater need for collaboration between parents, teachers and other professionals.The HMIE report highlights a conversation with Ns class teacher (appendix 4), in which she commented that he is a bit strange, and gave the impression that she is unconscious of Ns difficulties, therefore, there is a need for more collaboration to develo p a good works relationship with the class teacher, pupil and parents, in order to meet his learning needs.Collaboration can mean different things to different people, at different times on a professional level, through sharing good practice, it can improve effectiveness, self-reflection and teacher learning on a personal level, it can enhance moral support and confidence.sound schools need effective communication and collaboration amongst staff, other agents, parents and pupils. (Head 2003)Classroom farePowell and Jordan (1997) state that a great deal of what needs to be taught to pupils with autism is out-with the curriculum, such as interaction and communication skills, therefore the needs of the child should discipline the curriculum. Most children require some one-to-one teaching, not just to address their difficulties, but also develop their skills and strengths.Pupil N was known to the Speech and Language Services in England prior to moving to Scotland (See appendix 5), and standard some one-to-one support in the form of SALT, which continued until 2007. He then arrived an Individualised Educational Programme (IEP) and support at school level to address his literacy skills.When I started this post a teacher of SFL in January 2010 pupil N was being removed from class on with five other pupils, to work on the literacy program Read and compile Inc (RWI) (See appendix 6), which provides a structured approach to the teaching of phonics and literacy. (Miskin, R, website updated 2010)As I did not know anything about the pupils at the start, I decided to re-assess their drill ability in the RWI programme, and found that although pupil N could read the words, he did not fully understand.I have recently been involved in auditing pupils needs within the school, to identify that require high, medium and low precession support, along with colleagues, with a view to making changes in the way support is offered, and produce an IEP for those who need one. Up u ntil now, all the pupils have been coming out of class for support rather than receiving in-class support. The changes would allow more targeted support to meet the individual needs of the children, within the class, individually, and in small groups.Children have the right to say what they think should happen and have their opinions taken into account when adults are making decisions that affect them (UNICEF, 1991), therefore, the audit included a questionnaire to find out what support and help the pupils felt they needed. When asked, it appeared that pupil N did not fully understand the questions however, he did say that he liked to come out of class, preferably on his own. (See appendix 7)During the audit, I discovered that the last IEP for pupil N was in 2008, and had not been fall overed. Through collaboration with pupil N, his class teacher and parents, a refreshful IEP has been developed. (See appendix 8) During a conversation with Ns mother at parents evening, she felt his needs were not all being suitably met, she had not been fully informed of his progress except through each year class-teacher reports, and was unaware that N had previously received an IEP. A copy of the new IEP has been sent home to parents to allow them to become more involved in Ns learning and development, which should have been done with his previous IEP. The class teacher, parents and I will now take steps in working towards developing strategies to enable N to meet his IEP targets and enhance his learning to make further progress. destructionVery little was known about autism during the early part of the twentieth century however, since the reports by Kanner and Asperger, much research has been carried out.Many hypotheses have been identified and researched, such as Theory of Mind, Weak Central Coherence, Executive Dysfunction and Joint Attention and impairments in the function of various parts of the brain. The MMR vaccine has also been implicated in the cause of autism t hough this was dismissed through further research.Although there has been much research into possible causes, and the various theories look as if they may all be related, there does not appear to be one single cause, but rather, many those with autism seem to display traits from all of the theories in varying degrees.For a diagnosis, there needs to be a display of the characteristics from the Triad of Impairments, however the criteria for diagnosis differs, in that, a person may or may not be diagnosed with autism, depending on whether the ICD-10 or the DSM-IV is used.Although Pupil N does not have a formal ASD diagnosis, he does display many characteristics, and according to HMIE (2006), for best practice, he should receive the support as he would if he was diagnosed.After carrying out the audit of needs for all the pupils with additional needs in the school, it appeared that although pupil N had made much progress in terms of speech and reading, there are other difficulties and st rengths, which have not yet been addressed. The new IEP which has been developed in collaboration with the pupil, parents, class teacher and I is the start of working towards meeting those needs. There will be a review in three months time to assess progress, and a continued support and review cycle thereafter.