Autism Essay

Wehmeyer (n.d.) explains that there has been what he describes as three waves of educational practices for individuals with disabilities. In short, these waves, or generations, have moved the ideas and opinions of educating children with disabilities from the use of a functional model to one that now focuses on instruction in the general education classroom. The third generation, educations current focus, first “presumes a student’s presence in the general education classroom” (Wehmeyer, n.d., para. 21). This is not to say that functional skills are no longer necessary or that providing a more restrictive setting is no longer needed. As mentioned earlier, IDEA (2004) requires that individual with disabilities be provided a free and appropriate public education (FAPE) and also requires that they are provided access to the general curriculum. What this change in practice does is move the idea of educating children with disabilities with their non-disabled peers from simply providing access to, first, including them in the general education setting (Wehmeyer, n.d., p. 23). What most people do not realize are the positive effects that this has on the rate of learning for children with

Social justice can be applied in all the expressive therapies, but I will briefly explain how it is being used now and what my recommendations are. I chose this topic because I am very interested in this research and I feel as though we did not get to go into detail about this topic in class. In our readings, there were a few sections that mentioned this client population, but I wanted to do more research to see if the expressive arts would be a good fit for the beginning stages of getting to know these clients. I am currently being trained in working with selectively mute children in my internship. The training is coming from a cognitive-behavioral model, but there are components of

In a deep, dark blue ocean, an astonishingly beautiful and colorful creature with a crescent moon body shape swims through shimmering waves of light. This mysterious animal goes to a seashore everyday to meet his life-long best friend who, unlike itself, has two legs instead of long, slippery, streamlined flukes. Now, they are sharing one of the best moments in their lives. This is the scene I have always seen in my dream whenever I wish to have a dolphin friend with whom I can freely swim and interact. When I see their eyes, it seems like dolphins are reading my mind, and I also feel like I can read their minds, too. It is uncommon for a person to get an opportunity to interact with that lovely creature and get a feeling of healing.

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) are a collection of heterogeneous disorders that share the characteristics of social and communicative deficits, highly focused and restricted interests, and repetitive behaviors (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). The estimated prevalence of the disorder in 2014 was 1 in 45 (2.24%) children and adolescents age 3 to 17 (Zablotsky et al., 2015). Behavioral symptoms typically become evident in the first 2 years of life and involve abnormalities in language development, social attention, and emotional reactivity (Landa & Garret-Mayer, 2006; Dawson et al., 2004). The symptoms of this disorder often have a negative impact on the quality of life of the individual,

Campaigning for exclusion, quoting Mary Warnock (2005), Cigman (2007, p. 23) debates that children with ASD have quite specific needs that most often are difficult or even impossible to meet in a mainstream classroom. Mixing autistic children in mainstream schools exposes them to a loud, brightly light and dynamic environment that they find frightening. Furthermore, providing a one-to-one assistant does not seem to work at all. It is seldom to find someone with the right qualifications and skills needed to teach an autistic child to work as a teaching assistant. Children with these difficulties need their own space in a small, highly organised classroom with enough experienced and skilled teachers to provide sufficient one-to-one teaching time for each individual.

If your odds were one in 68 would you play the lotto? With odds that good it would be hard not to, but these are not the odds for the lottery - this is the chance that your child will have autism. Autism is a challenging disorder not only for the child, but also for the parents and family of the child. A long road begins for the family once this disorder is diagnosed and it takes a strong support structure for all that are involved. In today’s society, every person and profession will at some point encounter a child or an adult with autism. It is important that everyone has a basic understanding of this disorder.

There are many diseases and disorders that plague today’s society, but one of the most serious of those disorders is autism. Autism is not nearly as widely known as the familiar Down’s Syndrome, yet, surprisingly, autism is far more widespread. In fact, autism is the third most common developmental disability, affecting 400,000 people worldwide (Autism Society of America). As of yet there is no cure for this debilitating disorder, only a variety of treatments.

“Sometimes my mind feels noisey, but i’d never wish for my autism to go away. It helps me focus.” -Delaney Rodgers , a young woman who was diagnosed with asperger’s syndrome when she was eight years old (Parks 30). Autism is one of 5 developmental disabilities also known as Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), which include autistic disorder (autism), Asperger's syndrome, and two server and rare forms of autism known as rett syndrome and childhood disintegrative disorder. The last type of autism is a pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified, which is diagnosed then a child has autistic characteristics but does not meet all the criteria for autism (Parks 8). Autism is a bio-neurological developmental disability that generally

Services are to include instruction tailored to their specific disability/IEP. Services include but are not limited to assistance in communication skills, self help skills, motor skills and social skills. Communication skills can include speech/language therapy, using things such as PECS (picture exchange communication system) and/or sign language. Self help skills would address issues such as properly dressing oneself, maintaining proper hygiene and assistance with feeding. Motor skills would address both fine and gross motor. This would include things such as balance, walking, running, jumping, etc as well as attaining things close within their reach. Social skills would include things such as group therapy and inclusion so that they can learn how to behave more appropriately and problem solve from other kids their age.

Inclusion has become the primary service delivery model for students with disabilities. Politicians, law makers and education lobbyists continue to put academic pressures on schools and teachers while the topic of inclusion continues to be one of the most debated topics in education (Cooper &Tompkins, 1993). The Education for All handicapped Children Act (EAHCA) in 1975 (P.L. 94-142), No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 (2002), the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA) of 2004 (P.L. 108-446) have thoroughly laid out the rules and regulations for education (Mackey, 2012). The main objective of the EAHCA was to guarantee educational equity and remove the segregated classrooms many children with disabilities had

These setbacks also need to be addressed because those children are mixed with the general population of students. Some parents have special education plans with schools to allocate their child the educational support they need for success, while other parents are still in denial or do not recognize the symptoms their children demonstrate. As shown in the figure, there are arrows in both directions symbolizing the affect that disabilities have on the family’s support system while also outlining that disabilities can be conquered with a solid support system at home. Many students with disabilities, like Autism or Down syndrome, are extremely intelligent they just require more supervision to keep them on

According to the European Agency (2013), living and learning in society are the fundaments of human co-existence. Inclusion is not just a humane act, but also an integral component of an open and equal society and a human right for all children, including those with disabilities and learning difficulties (UNECSO, 2010; D’Alessio, 2011). The United Nations affirms this right: first in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), then in the UN Convention on the Rights of the child, and most recently, in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2008), which names inclusive education as the best model for educating children with disabilities. Education, particularly inclusive education, is able to reduce discrimination through enabling children with and without disabilities to grow up together, giving children with disabilities skills to allow them to become positive role models and join the employment market, thereby helping to prevent poverty (Mattingly et al., 2010; Kyriazopoulou & Weber, 2009). There is currently, an on-going international debate, however, about whether educational inclusion is achievable and how it could be achieved (NSCE, 2010). This controversial field surrounding inclusive education is mainly due to the many different definitions of the practice, according to D’Alessio (2011) there are almost as many definitions as there are people who study it and who rely on differing theoretical frameworks.

Isolated in their own worlds, people with autism appear indifferent and remote. They are normally unable to form emotional bonds with others. Although people with this brain disorder can display a wide range of symptoms and disabilities, many are incapable of understanding other people's thoughts, feelings, and needs. Often, their language and intelligence do not fully develop. This makes communication and social relationships difficult. Many people with autism engage in repetitive activities, like rocking or banging their heads, or rigidly following familiar routines. Some of those with autism are painfully sensitive to sound, touch, sight, or smell.

A statement of the special education and related services and related services and supplementary aids and services

Currently, students with disabilities are not receiving an adequate academic and social education. In January of 2017, the Supreme Court considered whether “federal law requires public schools to provide more than the bare minimum in special services for children with disabilities” (Supreme Court). Though the topic falls somewhat outside the margin of regular conversation, the countless examples of data which state that children with disabilities are not receiving the same educational experience as other children are must