Autism• Marked by severe impairment of communication, social,

and emotional functioning• Characteristics

– Apparent sensory deficit– Severe affect isolation– Self-stimulation– Tantrums and self-injurious behavior– Echolalic and psychotic speech

• Prevalence– The Autism Society of America estimates that autism occurs

in 1 in 500 children

• Causes of autism– Recent research shows a clear biological and organic origin

• Effective treatment for children with autism– Intensive, behaviorally based early intervention has helped

some children learn communication and social skills

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Severe and Multiple Disabilities

Severe disability• Significant disabilities in intellectual, physical, and/or social

functioning

Multiple disabilities• Multiple disabilities means concomitant impairments, that

causes such severe educational problems that they cannot be accommodated in special education programs solely for one impairment

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Characteristics and Prevalence

• Characteristics– Slow acquisition rates for learning new skills

– Poor generalization and maintenance of newly learned skills

– Limited communication skills

– Impaired physical and motor development

– Deficits in self-help skills

– Stereotypic and challenging behavior

• Prevalence– Estimates range from 0.1% to 1% of the population

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Causes

• In almost every case of severe disabilities, a brain disorder is involved– Chromosomal disorders

– Genetic or metabolic disorders that can cause serious problems in physical or intellectual development

• Severe disabilities may develop later in life from head trauma

• In about one-sixth of all cases, the cause cannot be clearly determined

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Curriculum: What Should Be Taught?

1. Functional skills - activities of daily living skills (ADLs)2. Age-appropriate skills3. Making choices skills4. Communication skills5. Recreation and leisure skills

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Instructional Methods: How Should Students Be Taught?

• Instruction must be carefully planned, systematically executed, continuously monitored– The student’s current level of performance must be assessed– The skill to be taught must be defined clearly– The skill may need to be broken down into smaller component

steps– The teacher must provide a clear prompt to cue the child– The student must receive feedback and reinforcement– Strategies that promote generalization and maintenance must

be used– The student’s performance must be directly and frequently

assessed

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Partial Participation, Positive Behavioral Support, and Small Group Instruction

• Partial participation– Students can be taught to perform selected components

or an adapted version of the task

• Positive behavioral support– Use of functional assessment methodologies to support

student’s placement

• Advantages of small group instruction– Skills learned in small groups may be more likely to

generalize– Provides opportunities for social interaction– Provides opportunities for incidental or observation

learning from other students– May be a more cost-effective use of teacher’s time

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Where Should Students with Severe Disabilities Be Taught?

• Benefits of the neighborhood school and inclusion– More likely to function responsibly as adults in a

pluralistic society– Integrated schools are more meaningful instructional

environments– Parents and families have greater access– Helps develop range of relationships with nondisabled

peers– Students with severe disabilities are more likely to

develop social relationships with students without disabilities if they are included at least part of the time in the regular classroom

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The Challenge and Rewards of Teaching Students with Autism and Severe Disabilities

• Teachers must be sensitive to small changes in behavior

• The effective teacher is consistent and persistent in evaluating and changing instruction to improve learning and behavior

• Working with students who require instruction at its very best can be highly rewarding to teachers

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