Academically Able And Autism PROJECT ACCESS 1 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
CONNECTING TO: ACCESSIBLE RESOURCES FOR EDUCATORS SUPPORTING INDIVIDUALS WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER (AND RELATED DISABILITIES)
Shannon Locke, M.S., CCC-SLP Terri Carrington, M.A., CCC-SLP Autism Resource Specialist Associate Director ShannonLocke@MissouriState.edu TCarrington@MissouriState.edu (417) 836-5751 (417) 836-4080 MSU/MO-DESE Project ACCESS Visit us @ www.ProjectACCESS.MissouriState.edu
Project ACCESS Staff and Contact Information Joanie Armstrong, MS, LPC Director joanarmstrong@missouristate.edu 417-836-6657 (office) 417-836-6916 (desk) 866-481-3841 (toll free) Melissa Ringer, BS in Ed.; Program Coordinator Mringer@missouristate.edu 417-836-6657 (office) 866-481-3841 toll free
Project ACCESS Staff and Contact Information, cont. Tina Neal, Data Collection & Marketing Specialist TinaNeal@missouristate.edu 417-836-6657(office) 866-481-3841(toll free) Mike Garton, Instructional Technology Support Specialist MikeGarton@missouristate.edu 417-836-6657 (office) 866-481-3841 (toll free)
Learner outcomes: 1. The learner will understand the impact of autism on educational performance and preparing for post-secondary life beyond the academic skills needed to ‘make the grade’. 2. The learner will gain specific strategies to identify, assess needs, and support the learning of students with autism receiving minimal to no special education minutes.
Who are these students? Jim is an amazing math student. He outperforms all of his classmates. However, he is close to failing. He appears to put no effort into anything but math. Kaylee’s grades are OK and has no behavior problems, but she doesn’t really participate in school activities. She flies “under the radar.” Teachers don’t realize she is very depressed. Dustin wants a girlfriend in the worst way. He, however doesn’t know what to say to the girls in his school. When he tried to talk to a girl, he said the wrong thing, and ended up in the principal’s office, and the girl’s parents were threatening to file a harassment charge. 7 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
And Why Does it Matter? Many students may never meet eligibility for an IEP or 504 given their academic and testing strength. But these are the very students who are at great risk for social, emotional and academic problems. ◦ Michelle Garcia Winner Youth with intellectual or developmental disorders, such as autism, are at greater risk of mental health problems. ◦ Youth Mental Health First Aid 54% of adults with ASD had at least one mental health condition (Drexel, 2017) 8 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
Why does it matter? (cont.) Individuals with “soft skills” such as good social skills, sociability, good work habits and conscientiousness, as well as those who participate in extra curricular activities are more likely to make more money, be employed, and attain higher levels of education than those with good grades and high standardized test scores. ◦ Quoted from a TASH PowerPoint (TASH.org international leader in disability advocacy) 9 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
2017 National Autism Indicators Report: Drexel University Developmental Disability Services and Outcomes in Adulthood How Are Adolescents & Adults With ASD Doing? • 2 years post -HS, over 66% not employed or enrolled in Vocational or Post-Secondary Ed. •Paid, community -based employment was LEAST common outcome for adults w ASD! Only 14% held a job for pay • Worse than ANY other disability group • Advocacy & professional support is critical Not too good 10 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
Jean Blosser, EdD, CCC-SLP ASHA Online Conference: Communication Interventions Creative Strategies for Special Education for Adolescents and Adults with Autism JBlosser23@gmail.com Complex Challenges, Complex Needs • Transition to post -secondary education & vocational experiences are difficult – Limitations in executive functioning – Lacking social skills, communication, & insights – Barriers to accessing the curriculum – Reduced attention to tasks – Decreased self-perception, self-regulation – Difficulty with perspective-taking – High levels of frustration & anxiety – Problems with meaningful work experiences 11 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
What Do Employers Want? ATTRIBUTE % OF RESPONDENTS Leadership 80.1% Ability to work in a team 78.9% Communication skills (written) 70.2% Problem-solving skills 70.2% Communication skills (verbal) 68.9% Strong work ethic 68.9% Initiative 65.8% Analytical/quantitative skills 62.7% Flexibility/adaptability 60.9% Technical skills 59.6% ~ Source: Job Outlook 2016 , National Association of Colleges and Employers 12 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
What Do Employers Want (cont.)? ATTRIBUTE % OF RESPONDENTS Interpersonal skills (relates well to others) 58.4% Computer skills 55.3% Detail-oriented 52.8% Organizational ability 48.4% Friendly/outgoing personality 35.4% Strategic planning skills 26.7% Creativity 23.6% Tactfulness 20.5% ~ Source: Job Outlook 2016 , National Association of Colleges and Employers 13 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
Ensuring Independence & Academic Success = more than academics We MUST Teach Social Competence & Executive Functioning to achieve Independence 14 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
Key Educational Outcomes Develop independent individuals Develop contributing/engaged members of society Foster happy, self-regulated adults Develop individuals that know how to learn 15 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
2017 National Autism Indicators Report: Drexel University Developmental Disability Services and Outcomes in Adulthood How are Adolescents and Adults with ASD doing in terms of INDEPENDENCE? Living Arrangements : 49% Lived with parents or other relatives. Of these , 81% had been there over 5 years. Independence and Rights : 53% Had a court-appointed guardian on a limited or fulltime basis. Not too good 16 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
Eligibility? Consider these! • High IQ/Low Academic Performance • Disorganized; can’t keep track of assignments or belongings • Poor social skills, inappropriate with others, withdrawn, no friends, does not interpret nonverbals, does not work well in small group assignments • Excels at special interest area, but disinterested in other non- restrictive areas, unable to perform at the best of his/her ability unless a special interest topic 17 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
Eligibility? Consider these! • In trouble at school, mostly for minor infractions • Other medical conditions affect academic performance or engagement, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, ADHD, seizure disorder, etc. • Demonstrates signs of depression or anxiety disorder • May have difficulty self-regulating to be able to learn, has sensory differences that impede learning readiness 18 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
Eligibility Review: Once you have autism, you always have autism! History is included when initially determining and re-evaluating for the autism category… The QUESTION is…Does it negatively impact the students’ learning? 19 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
FREE Checklist: Social Competency http://ncautismteam.ncdpi.wikispaces.net/file/view/pragmatic-protocol-prutting-and- kirchner.doc “ Prutting Pragmatic Protocol” Adapted from Prutting & Kirchner: Pragmatic Aspects of Language (1987) Made available by UNC-CH https://fineartscomm.lamar.edu/_files/documents/speech- hearing/prutting_checklist_article.pdf Original Article with attached protocol. SEE HANDOUT! 20 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
APPROPRIATE OPPORTUNITY APPROPRIATE TO OBSERVE SOMETIMES ABSENT ALWAYS NO DEFINITION COMMUNICATIVE ACT EXAMPLES/COMMENTS VERBAL ACTS Speech Acts Speech act pair The ability to take both speaker and listener role appropriate to analysis the context Variety of The variety of speech acts or what one can do with language such as comment, assert, request, promise, and so forth speech acts Topic The selection of a topic appropriate to the multidimensional Selection aspects of context Introduction of a new topic in the discourse Introduction Coherent maintenance of topic across the discourse Maintenance Change of topic in the discourse Change Turn Taking Initiation of speech acts Initiation Responding as a listener to speech acts Response The ability to repair a conversation when a breakdown occurs, Repair / and the ability to ask for a repair when misunderstanding or revision ambiguity has occurred 21 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
The Social Thinking Dynamic Assessment Protocol Means of identifying and quantifying real-life social cognitive/social language ◦ Better understanding of the student's pragmatic language skills and social interactive functioning ◦ Identifies ability to apply social knowledge to the academic curriculum ◦ Gives teachers and others an understanding of the "unseen" challenges the student grapples with on a daily basis that affect learning and ability to benefit from educational programming. ◦ Michelle Garcia Winner 22 Project ACCESS MO-CASE FALL CONFERENCE 2017
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