at for autistic children

8/4/2019 AT for Autistic Children

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TARGET:TEXASGUIDEFOREFFECTIVETEACHINGASSISTIVETECHNOLOGY

ASSISTIVETECHNOLOGY

CHARACTERISTICSOVERVIEWCHARTVerbalSkillsNonverbalMixed

Verbal

GradeLevelsElementary

Middle/High

CognitiveLevelClassicHighFunctioning

AreasAddressed(Pre)Academic/Cognitive/AcademicAdaptiveBehavior/DailyLiving

BehaviorCommunication/SpeechSocial/Emotional

PK

BRIEFINTRODUCTIONMoststudentswithautismrequirestrategies,equipment,and/orsupporttoreachtheir

potential(Schlosser,Blischak,Belfiore,Bartley,&Barnett,1998).Researchhasshownthatone

suchmeansofsupport,assistivetechnology(AT),iseffectiveforstudentswiththis

exceptionality.

DESCRIPTIONAccordingtotheIDEAAmendment(2004),ATisabroadtermusedtodescribeanyitem,pieceof

equipment,orproductsystemthatisusedtoincrease,maintainorimprovethefunctional

capabilityofachildwithadisability.Furthermore,IDEArecognizedthatATisacritical

instrumentinmeetingtheeducationalandoveralldevelopmentalneedsofstudentswith

disabilitiesinschool(Smith,MurphyHerd,Alvarado,&Glennon,2005).

ATdevicescanbeelectronicornonelectronic.ThreemaintypesofAT,rangingfromlowto

hightechnology,canbeusedwithchildrenwithautism.Eachtypeisdescribedbelow.

Lowtechnology.Lowtechnologystrategiesdonotinvolveanytypeofelectronicorbatteryoperateddevice.Thesestrategiestypicallyincludelowcostandeasytouse

equipment,suchasdryeraseboards,clipboards,laminatedphotographs,photoalbums,

threeringbinders,PECS,etc.Thestrategiescanbeusedtoenhanceexpressiveand

receptivecommunicationskillswithautism.

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Midtechnology.Thesestrategiesusebatteryoperateddevicesorbasic/simpleelectronicdevices.Examplesofmidtechnologyaretaperecorders,voiceoutput

devices,timers,andcalculators.Theyareprimarilyusedasameanstosupport

expressivecommunicationandenhanceclassroomparticipation,focusattentionon

variousskillareas,andassistinthedevelopmentofsocialskills.

Hightechnology.Hightechnologystrategiesarecomplextechnologicalsupportstrategies.Theytypicallyinvolvehighcostequipment,suchascomputersandadaptive

hardware(touchwindow,software,andtrackballs),accessoryequipment(digital

camerasandscanners),videocameras,andcomplexvoiceoutputdevices.

Careful

training

of

educators

and

students

on

the

use

of

devices

is

essential

to

ensure

that

they

are used correctly. AT should be incorporated into every aspect of daily living in order to

improvethefunctionalcapabilitiesofchildrenwithautism.Thus,itisimportanttoconsiderthat

allATdevices,fromlowtechnologytohightechnology,alwaysbeindividualized tomeetthe

uniqueneedsofanychildwithautism.Most important,theoptimalgoalofATstrategies isto

increasethechilds independent functioningskillsbydecreasingtheamountofdirectsupport

neededfromanotherperson.

STEPSTheStudent,Environment,Tasks,andTools(SETT)frameworkisincreasinglyusedby

educationalpersonneltoidentifyandselectATdevicesthatmeetthespecificneedsofastudent

(Smithetal.,2005).ThisframeworkhelpsintheATconsiderationprocessbyinvolvingteam

membersinbrainstormingandcollaboration.Teammembersmeettoevaluate(a)thestudents

needs,(b)thestrengthofthecurrentlearningenvironmentandtheavailabilityofthematerials,

(c)thestudentsIEPgoals,and(d)ATdevicesthatareappropriateforthechild.



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TheSETTFrameworkforConsideringAssistiveTechnology

SETT Questions Responses

Student

Whatdoesthestudentneedtodo?

Whatarethestudentsspecialneeds?

Whatarethestudentscurrentabilities?

Environment

Whatmaterialsandequipmentarecurrentlyavailableinthe

environment?

Whatisthephysicalarrangement?Aretherespecialconcerns?

Whatistheinstructionalarrangement?Aretherelikelytobe

changes?

Whatsupportsareavailabletothestudent?

Whatresourcesareavailabletothepeoplesupportingthestudent?

Tasks

Whatnaturallyoccurringactivitiestakeplaceintheenvironment?

Whatiseveryoneelsedoing?

Whatactivitiessupportthestudentscurriculargoals?

Whatarethecriticalelementsoftheactivities?

Howmighttheactivitiesbemodifiedtoaccommodatethestudents

specialneeds?

Howmighttechnologysupportthestudentsactiveparticipationin

thoseactivities?

Tools

Whatnotech,lowtech,midtech,andhightechoptionsshouldbe

consideredwhendevelopingasystemforthestudentwiththese

needsandabilitiesdoingthesetasksintheseenvironments?

Whatstrategiesmightbeusedtoinviteincreasedstudent

performance?

Howmightthesetoolsbetriedoutwiththestudentinthe

customaryenvironmentsinwhichtheywillbeused?

AdaptedMyles,B.S.(Ed.),(2005).ChildrenandyouthwithAspergerSyndrome:Strategiesforsuccessininclusivesettings.ThousandOaks,CA:Corwin.BRIEFEXAMPLESimonisa15yearoldboywithhighfunctioningautism.Simonhasdifficultyprocessing

informationpresentedorally,buthasnodifficultycomprehendinginformationpresented

visually.Inclass,Simonalwayshasahardtimefollowingwhattheteachersayswhileheistaking

notes.Afterevaluation,SimonsIEPteamdecidesthatanoverheadprojectorandapersonal



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computerareappropriateATdevicestoenhanceSimonslearninginclasses.Ineachclass,the

teacherwillusetheoverheadprojectortoprovideoutlinesandsummariesofthetopicthatare

coveredintheclass.Inaddition,acomputerisprovidedsoSimoncantakenoteselectronically

insteadofusingpaperandpencil.

TIPSFORMODIFICATIONSImportanttipsinselectingandutilizingassistivetechnologywithchildrenwithautisminclude

thefollowing:

Alwaystrylessintrusivelowtechnologystrategiesfirst. Besurethatthetechnologymatchestheneedsandabilitiesoftheindividualchild. Analyzetheenvironmenttoseewhichtypeofdevicewillbestsupportthechilds

participation.

SUMMARYUtilizingATdevicescanprovideaccesstomultipleenvironments,includingthegeneral

educationclassroomanditsrelatedacademic,social,andbehavioralrequirements.

RESEARCHTABLE

Number

ofStudies

10

Ages(year)1017

SampleSize85

Area(s)Addressed

Communication,matching,spelling,problemsolving,

alertness,motivationandbehavior,taskcompletion,

selfhelp,socialinteraction,emotionrecognition,joint

attention

Outcome

+

STUDIESCITEDINRESEARCHTABLE1. LaCava,P.G.,Golan,O.,BaronCohen,S.,&Myles,B.S.(2007).Usingassistivetechnologytoteach

emotionrecognitiontostudentswithAspergerSyndrome:Apilotstudy.RemedialandSpecialEducation,28,174181.Thispilotstudyexploredtheuseofassistivetechnologytoteachemotionrecognition(ER)toeight

childrenwithautism.Theresultsindicatedthatafterintervention,participantsimprovedonface

andvoiceERforbasicandcomplexemotionsthatwereincludedinthesoftware,aswellasfor

complexvoiceERforemotionsnotincludedintheMindReadingsoftware.



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2. Myles,B.S.,Ferguson,H.,&Hagiwara,T.(2007).Usingapersonaldigitalassistanttoimprovethe

recordingofhomeworkassignmentsbyanadolescentwithAspergerSyndrome.FocusonAutismandOtherDevelopmentalDisabilities,22,9699.A17yearoldboywithASwastrainedtouseapersonaldigitalassistant(PDA)torecordhomework

assignmentsinhishistory,English,andscienceclasses.Resultsrevealedamarkedincreasein

recordingofhomeworkassignmentsaftertreatment.

3. Robins,B.,Dautenhahn,K.,&Dubowski,J.(2006).Doesappearancematterintheinteractionof

childrenwithautismwithahumanoidrobot?InteractionStudies:SocialBehaviourandCommunicationinBiologicalandArtificialSystem,7,479512.Fourchildrenwithautismparticipatedinthisstudy,whichinvestigatedtheimpactofthe

appearanceofarobotontheirinteractions.Therobotsservedasinteractivetoystoencourageand

mediateinteractions.Theresultsindicatedthechildrenpreferredintheirinitialresponsetointeract

withaplain,featurelessrobotoverahumanlikerobot.Thus,thechildrensresponsetowardsthe

plain/roboticrobotwasnotablymoresocialandproactivethantoalifesizetheatricalrobot.

4. Robins,B.,Dickerson,P.,Stribling,P.,&Dautenhahn,K.(2004).Robotmediatedjointattentionin

childrenwithautism:Acasestudyinrobothumaninteraction.InteractionStudies:SocialBehaviourandCommunicationinBiologicalandArtificialSystems,5,161198.Threechildrenwithautismparticipatedinthisstudy,whichexaminedtheeffectivenessofusinga

robottoincreasejointattentionskills.Thedatashowedthattherobotprovidedasalientobject,or

mediator,forjointattention.

5. Taylor,B.A.,Hughes,C.E.,&Richard,E.(2004)Teachingteenagerswithautismtoseekassistance

whenlost.JournalofAppliedBehaviorAnalysis,37,7982.Threeteenagestudentswithautismweretaughttorespondtotheuseofavibratingpagertorequest

assistance.Studentsgeneralizedtheirrequestsacrosssettingsandindividuals.

6. Dyches,T.T.(1998).Effectsofswitchtrainingonthecommunicationofchildrenwithautismand

severedisabilities.FocusonAutismandOtherDevelopmentalDisabilities,13,151162.Thestudyexaminedtheeffectsofswitchtrainingonthecommunicationoffourstudents.Results

indicatedthatswitchtrainingimplementedusingasystemofminimalpromptsincreasedthe

numberofcommunicativeinteractionsofallparticipants.

7. Schlosser,R.W.,Blischak,D.M.,Belfiore,P.J.,Bartley,C.,&Barnett,N.(1998).Effectsofsynthetic

speechoutputandorthographicfeedbackonspellinginastudentwithautism:Apreliminarystudy.

JournalofAutismandDevelopmentalDisorders,28,309319.Thisstudyevaluatedtheeffectsofspeechoutputandorthographicfeedbackonthespelling

performanceofa10yearoldboywithautism.Specifically,hewastaughttospellwordsunder

threefeedbackconditionsusingavoiceoutputcommunicationaid.Findingssuggestedthatspeech

outputcontributedtoefficientspelling.

8. Kennedy,C.H.,&Haring,T.G.(1993).Teachingchoicemakingduringsocialinteractionstostudents

withprofoundmultipledisabilities.JournalofAppliedBehaviorAnalysis,26,6376.Fourstudentsweretaughttouseamicroswitchcommunicationsystemtorequestachangein

recreationalstimuliduringsocialinteractionswithpeers.Threeofthemlearnedtousethemicro

switchandincreasedtheirlevelofalertness.



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9. Battenberg,J.K.,&Merbler,J.B.(1989).Touchscreenversuskeyboard:Acomparisonoftask

performanceofyoungchildren.JournalofSpecialEducationTechnology,10,2428.Thisstudycomparedtheeffectivenessofatouchsensitivescreenandkeyboardinimprovingthe

taskperformanceof40childrenwithdevelopmentaldelaysand40typicalchildren.Results

indicatedthattheuseoftouchsensitivescreensignificantlyimprovedthetaskperformanceofall

children,withandwithoutdevelopmentaldelays.Furthermore,thechildrenwithautismperformed

bestusingatouchscreenratherthanakeyboard.

10. Colby,K.M.(1973).Therationaleforcomputerbasedtreatmentoflanguagedifficultiesin

nonspeakingautisticchildren.JournalofAutismandChildhoodSchizophrenia,3,254260.Seventeenparticipantswithautismwereinvolvedincomputerbasedinterventionsthataddressed

languageskills.Positiveoutcomesandimprovementinspontaneousspeechusewerefoundin13

participants.

REFERENCESBattenberg,J.K.,&Merbler,J.B.(1989).Touchscreenversuskeyboard:Acomparisonoftask

performanceofyoungchildren.JournalofSpecialEducationTechnology,10,2428.BernardOpitz,V.,Sriram,N.,&NakhodaSapuan,S.(2001).Enhancingsocialproblemsolvinginchildren

withautismandnormalchildrenthroughcomputerassistedinstruction.JournalofAutismandDevelopmentalDisorders,31,337384.

Chen,S.H.,&BernardOptiz,V.(1993).Comparisonofpersonalandcomputerassistedinstructionfor

childrenwithautism.MentalRetardation,31,368376.Colby,K.M.(1973).Therationaleforcomputerbasedtreatmentoflanguagedifficultiesinnonspeaking

autisticchildren.JournalofAutismandChildhoodSchizophrenia,3,254260.Dyches,T.T.(1998).Effectsofswitchtrainingonthecommunicationofchildrenwithautismandsevere

disabilities.FocusonAutismandOtherDevelopmentalDisabilities,13,151162.IndividualswithDisabilitiesEducationActAmendments,300.5(2004).

Hagiwara,T.,&Myles,B.S.(1999).Amultimediasocialstoryintervention:Teachingskillstochildrenwith

autism.FocusonAutismandOtherDevelopmentalDisabilities,14,8295Kennedy,C.H.,&Haring,T.G.(1993).Teachingchoicemakingduringsocialinteractionstostudentswith

profoundmultipledisabilities.JournalofAppliedBehaviorAnalysis,26,6376.LaCava,P.G.,Golan,O.,BaronCohen,S.,&Myles,B.S.(2007).Usingassistivetechnologytoteach

emotionrecognitiontostudentswithAspergerSyndrome:Apilotstudy.RemedialandSpecialEducation,28,174181.

Moor,D.,Cheng,Y.,McGrath,P.,&Powell,N.J.(2005).Collaborativevirtualenvironmenttechnologyfor

peoplewithautism.FocusonAutismandOtherDevelopmentalDisabilities,20,231243.



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Myles,B.S.,Ferguson,H.,&Hagiwara,T.(2007).Usingapersonaldigitalassistanttoimprovethe

recordingofhomeworkassignmentsbyanadolescentwithAspergerSyndrome.FocusonAutismandOtherDevelopmentalDisabilities,22,9699.

Robins,B.,Dautenhahn,K.,&Dubowski,J.(2006).Doesappearancematterintheinteractionofchildren

withautismwithahumanoidrobot?InteractionStudies:SocialBehaviourandCommunicationinBiologicalandArtificialSystem,7,479512.

Robins,B.,Dickerson,P.,Stribling,P.,&Dautenhahn,K.(2004).Robotmediatedjointattentionin

childrenwithautism:Acasestudyinrobothumaninteraction.InteractionStudies:SocialBehaviourandCommunicationinBiologicalandArtificialSystems,5,161198.

Schlosser,R.,Blischak,D.,Belfiore,P.,Bartley,C.,&Barnett,N.(1998).Theeffectivenessofsynthetic

speechoutputandorthographicfeedbackinastudentwithautism:Apreliminarystudy.JournalofAutismandDevelopmentalDisorders,28,309319.

Smith,S.J.,MurphyHerd,M.,Alvarado,D.,&Glennon,N.(2005).Assistivetechnologysupports.InB.S.

Myles

(Ed.),

Childrenand

youth

with

Asperger

Syndrome:

Strategies

for

success

in

inclusive

settings(pp.107126).ThousandOaks,CA:Corwin.

Taylor,B.A.,Hughes,C.E.,&Richard,E.(2004)Teachingteenagerswithautismtoseekassistancewhen

lost.JournalofAppliedBehaviorAnalysis,37,7982.Tjus,T.,Heinmann,M.,&Nelson,K.E.(2001).Interactionpatternsbetweenchildrenandtheirteachers

whenusingaspecificmultimediaandcommunicationstrategy:Observationsfromchildrenwith

autism and mixed intellectual disabilities. Autism: The International Journal of Research andPractice,5,175187

RESOURCES

AND

MATERIALS

AbleData:http://www.abledata.com/ ThiswebsiteprovidesinformationaboutATproductsandofferstohelplocatecompaniesforspecific

productneeds.Nodirectselling.

AutismCoach:http://www.autismcoach.com/Assistsive%20Technology%20Overview.htm ThislinkstheusertoabasicexplanationofATdevicesforchildrenwhoareunabletousecomputers

intraditionalways.

AssistiveTechnologyforChildrenwithAutism.CooperativeEducationalServiceAgencyNo.7,GreenBay,WI,SpecialEducationServices. AutismInterventionsandStrategiesfor

Success.:http://www.specialed.us/autism/assist/asst10.htm

Thisarticleisfullofideasforteachersandparentsandincludesexamplesoflow,mid,andhightech

assistivetechnology.

AssistiveTechnologyFundamentals.NationalAssistiveTechnologyResearchInstitute:http://natri.uky.edu/resources/fundamentals/funmenu.html

Thisisaresourcethatteachers,families,andadministrators canusetodevelopaplanforusing

assistivetechnology.

http://www.abledata.com/http://www.abledata.com/http://www.autismcoach.com/Assistsive%20Technology%20Overview.htmhttp://www.autismcoach.com/Assistsive%20Technology%20Overview.htmhttp://www.specialed.us/autism/assist/asst10.htmhttp://www.specialed.us/autism/assist/asst10.htmhttp://natri.uky.edu/resources/fundamentals/funmenu.htmlhttp://natri.uky.edu/resources/fundamentals/funmenu.htmlhttp://natri.uky.edu/resources/fundamentals/funmenu.htmlhttp://www.specialed.us/autism/assist/asst10.htmhttp://www.autismcoach.com/Assistsive%20Technology%20Overview.htmhttp://www.abledata.com/


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ClosingtheGap:AssistiveTechnologyResourcesforChildrenandAdultswithSpecialNeeds:http://www.closingthegap.com/index.lasso

ThissiteoffersinformationaboutATresources,aconferencedevotedtoAT,andATrelated

publications.

WhatIsAssistiveTechnology?NationalCenteronAccessibleInformationTechnologyinEducation.UniversityofWashington:www.washington.edu/accessit/articles?109

Thisarticleprovidesaclear,printabledefinitionofATandalinktotheAccessBoardsstandardsfor

useofassistivetechnology.

GENERALRESOURCES

AutismInternetModules(AIM)www.autisminternetmodules.org TheAutismInternetModulesweredevelopedwithoneaiminmind:tomake

comprehensive,uptodate,andusableinformationonautismaccessibleandapplicableto

educators,otherprofessionals,andfamilieswhosupportindividualswithautismspectrum

disorders(ASD).WrittenbyexpertsfromacrosstheU.S.,allonlinemodulesarefree,andare

designedtopromoteunderstandingof,respectfor,andequalityofpersonswithASD.

Currentmodulesare:

o AssessmentforIdentificationo HomeBaseo PeerMediatedInstructionandIntervention(PMII)o PictureExchangeCommunicationSystem(PECS)o PivotalResponseTraining(PRT)o PreparingIndividualsforEmploymento Reinforcemento RestrictedPatternsofBehavior,Interests,andActivitieso

Self

Management

o SocialSupportsforTransitionAgedIndividualso StructuredTeachingo StructuredWorkSystemsandActivityOrganizationo SupportingSuccessfulCompletionofHomeworko TheIncredible5PointScaleo TimeDelayo TransitioningBetweenActivitieso VisualSupports

InteractiveCollaborativeAutismNetwork(iCAN)http://www.autismnetwork.orgiCANoffersfreeonlineinstructionalmodulesonautismspectrumdisorder(ASD). Modules

havebeendevelopedintheseareas:

o Characteristicso Assessmento AcademicInterventionso BehavioralInterventionso CommunicationInterventions

http://www.closingthegap.com/index.lassohttp://www.closingthegap.com/index.lassohttp://www.autisminternetmodules.org/http://www.autisminternetmodules.org/http://www.autismnetwork.org/http://www.autismnetwork.org/http://www.autismnetwork.org/http://www.autisminternetmodules.org/http://www.closingthegap.com/index.lasso


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o EnvironmentalInterventionso SocialInterventions

IndianaResourceCenterforAutism(IRCA)http://www.iidc.indiana.edu/irca/fmain1.html TheIndianaResourceCenterforAutismstaffs effortsarefocusedonprovidingcommunities,

organizations,

agencies,

and

families

with

the

knowledge

and

skills

to

support

children

and

adults

in

typicalearlyintervention,school,community,work,andhomesettings.

o IRCAArticleshttp://www.iidc.indiana.edu/irca/ftrainpapers.html o IRCAModuleshttp://www.iidc.indiana.edu/irca/fmodules.html

TexasStatewideLeadershipforAutismwww.txautism.netTheTexasStatewideLeadershipforAutisminconjunctionwiththenetworkofTexas

EducationServicecenterwithagrantfromtheTexasEducationAgencyhasdevelopeda

seriesoffreeonlinecoursesinautism. Pleasecheckthetraining

page,www.txautism.net/training.html,forupdatelistsofcourses,coursenumbersand

registrationinformation. Currentcoursesincludethefollowing:

o Autism101:TopTenPiecestothePuzzleo Autismo101:Las10piezasprincipalesdelrompecabezaso AspergerSyndrome101Onlineo AspergerSyndrome101Onlineo NavigatingtheSocialMaze:Supports&InterventionsforIndividualswithAutism

SpectrumDisorders

o Communication:ThePowerofCommunicationforIndividualswithAutismSpectrumDisorders

o Communication:ThePowerofCommunicationforIndividualswithAutismSpectrumDisorders
http://www.iidc.indiana.edu/irca/fmain1.htmlhttp://www.iidc.indiana.edu/irca/fmain1.htmlhttp://www.iidc.indiana.edu/irca/ftrainpapers.htmlhttp://www.iidc.indiana.edu/irca/ftrainpapers.htmlhttp://www.iidc.indiana.edu/irca/fmodules.htmlhttp://www.iidc.indiana.edu/irca/fmodules.htmlhttp://www.txautism.net/index.htmlhttp://www.txautism.net/index.htmlhttp://www.txautism.net/training.htmlhttp://www.txautism.net/training.htmlhttp://www.txautism.net/index.htmlhttp://www.iidc.indiana.edu/irca/fmodules.htmlhttp://www.iidc.indiana.edu/irca/ftrainpapers.htmlhttp://www.iidc.indiana.edu/irca/fmain1.html

at for autistic children

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