Overview on Autism
- 1. An Overview of Autism Spectrum Disorder Karla Saval, M.Ed. Maryland State Department of Education Division of Special Education/ Early Intervention Services
- 2. Overview ●What is Autism Spectrum Disorder? ●Your child has been diagnosed with Autism: Now What? ■Early intervention ■Autism Waiver registry ■Elements of Effective Service Delivery to children with Autism ■Resources
- 3. What is Autism? “Autism is a complex developmental disability that typically appears during the first 3 years of life and is the result of a neurological disorder that affects the normal functioning of the brain, impacting development .” -Autism Society of America
- 4. What is Autism? ●Video from the Centers for Disease Control (3:38) http://www.cdc. gov/NCBDDD/autism/videos/whatisautism. html
- 5. Diagnosis ●Three main criteria: ●Qualitative impairment in social interaction ●Qualitative impairment in communication ●Restricted, repetitive, stereotypic patterns of behavior/ circumscribed interests, activities ●Three main categories: ●Autism ●Asperger’s Disorder ●Pervasive Developmental Disorder, Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS)
- 6. Autism ●Interferes with development of reasoning, social interaction, and communication skills ●Is a “spectrum disorder” ●has implications for an array of social, language, educational, sensory, behavioral, and medical issues
- 7. Autism, by numbers… ●1 in 88 boys will be diagnosed with ASD ●The number of children in Maryland identified as having an ASD has dramatically increased from 260 in 1993 to 8,827 in 2010 ●There are 900 slots for Maryland’s Autism Waiver, and 3,700+ children on the Registry (CDC, MSDE, 2012)
- 8. Autism results in difficulties in the following areas: ●Self Regulation ●Executive Functioning ●Socialization/Communication ●Biomedical Complications/ Comorbid Disorders Let’s explore each of these…
- 9. A Steady Rise in Autism in Maryland Schools Produced by the Maryland State Department of Education 4/20/10 Produced by the Maryland State Department of Education 4/20/10 *
- 10. What are the challenges experienced by youth with ASD? ●Academic ●Behavioral ●Social
- 11. Self Regulation ●As a result of biomedical issues, individuals with Autism may have difficulty with regulating their: ●Attention ●Wakefulness ●Stress ●Frustration ●Response to sensory stimuli
- 12. Executive Functioning ●Children with Autism exhibit deficits in executive functioning, specifically with reference to these domains: ●Planning ●Organization ●Flexibility ●Self-monitoring
- 13. Socialization/Communication Youth with Autism have may have difficulty: ●Communicating wants and needs ●Establishing shared attention with peers ●Monitoring social signals ←→ ●Reading social cues ●Responding to others’ stress ●Reading others’ expression of emotion ●Making social inferences ●Understanding others’ perspectives
- 14. Biomedical Complications/Comorbid Disorders ●Gastrointestinal problems ●Sleep Disturbance ●Anxiety ●Depression ●Seizure Disorder ●Vitamin Deficiency
- 15. Did you know… …that the average child with Autism Spectrum Disorder is engaged in a minimum of 5 complimentary and alternative medical interventions to remediate his biomedical symptoms? ●Dietary regimens ●Psychopharmacological treatment ●Neurological interventions ●Vitamin/Nutritional Supplementation ●Detoxification therapy ●Physical Therapy ●Experimental Therapies (IAN, 2008)
- 16. Challenges to Learning ●Biomedical Complications ●Environmental factors ●Communication ●Choices ●Social/Emotional Competence ●Methodological approach to instruction ●Setting in which IEP is being implemented
- 17. Behavioral Challenges Environmental factors that make youth with Autism “NUTS” ●Novelty ●Unpredictability ●Threatening ●Sense of control is limited (Sonia Lupien)
- 18. Resources ● Autism Society of America ●Education, advocacy, services, research and support ●http://www.autism-society.org/ ●1-800-328-8476
- 19. Resources ● Autism Speaks 100 Day Kit ●Action planning for the first 100 days after a diagnosis of autism http://www.autismspeaks.org/family- services/tool-kits/100-day-kit
- 20. Resources ● Pathfinders for Autism ●We’re newly diagnosed. Where do we begin? http: //www.pathfindersforautism. org/articles/category/newly-diagnosed ●This site provides a comprehensive listing of the variety of supports, services, and resources available in Maryland
- 21. Resources ● Maryland State Department of Education ■ AutismConnect ■This site contains recommendations made in the Autism Task Force Report, released in 2004, as well as MSDE research, education, and advocacy initiatives and partnerships focused on autism. ● www.autismconnectmd.org
- 22. Resources ● Maryland State Department of Education ●The Early Childhood Gateway ●A resource for providers and families with young children with disabilities, birth through five http://www.mdecgateway.org/home
- 23. Family Support Services ●Maryland has Family Support Services Coordinators in each jurisdiction that assist families of children with disabilities ages birth to 21. A directory of Family Support Services is on the web at www.mdecgateway.org. For additional information, call: ● 1-800-535-0182
- 24. Questions? Contact: Karla M. Saval, M.Ed. Interagency Staff Specialist- Autism, Children’s Mental Health Maryland State Department of Education Division of Special Education/ Early Intervention Services 200 West Baltimore Street Baltimore, MD 21201 ksaval@msde.state.md.us (410)767-0827