Introduction
Autism is a
life-long developmental Disability that prevents people from understanding what
they see, hair and otherwise sense. This results in severe problems with social
relationships, communication, and behavior
The
Diagnostic and Statically Manual of Mental Disorders, define autism as a
pervasive developmental disorder characterized by:
§ impairment in communication and
social interaction, and
§ restricted, repetitive and stereotype patterns of behavior, interest and activities
At least 70
students are study at school of Autism. When a student has come, we observe
he/she for 2 weeks. mainly we observe his/ her response in different area such
as social, communication, cognitive, activities of daily living, motor, emotional
skill, his/her need, area of interest/reinforcement, likes/dislikes etc
After
observation we send them junior or middle section, according to their level and age.
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What is autism?
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a
range of complex neurodevelopment disorders, characterized by social
impairments, communication
difficulties, and restricted,
repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behavior. Autistic disorder,
sometimes called autism
or classical ASD, is the most severe
form of ASD, while other conditions along the spectrum include a milder
form known as
Asperger syndrome, and childhood
disintegrative disorder and pervasive developmental disorder not
otherwise specified (usually
referred to as PDD-NOS). Although
ASD varies significantly in character and severity, it occurs in all
ethnic and socioeconomic
groups and affects every age group.
Experts estimate that 1 out of 88 children age 8 will have an ASD
(Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention: Morbidity
and Mortality Weekly Report, March 30, 2012). Males are four times more
likely to have
an ASD than females.
What are some common signs of autism?
The hallmark feature of ASD is
impaired social interaction. As early as infancy, a baby with ASD may
be unresponsive to people
or focus intently on one item to the
exclusion of others for long periods of time. A child with ASD may
appear to develop
normally and then withdraw and
become indifferent to social engagement.
Children with an ASD may fail to
respond to their names and often avoid eye contact with other people.
They have difficulty
interpreting what others are
thinking or feeling because they can’t understand social cues, such as
tone of voice or facial
expressions, and don’t watch other
people’s faces for clues about appropriate behavior. They may lack
empathy.
Many children with an ASD engage in
repetitive movements such as rocking and twirling, or in self-abusive
behavior such as
biting or head-banging. They also
tend to start speaking later than other children and may refer to
themselves by name instead
of “I” or “me.” Children with an
ASD don’t know how to play interactively with other children. Some
speak in a sing-song
voice about a narrow range of
favorite topics, with little regard for the interests of the person to
whom they are speaking.
Children with characteristics of an
ASD may have co-occurring conditions, including Fragile X syndrome
(which causes intellectual
disability), tuberous sclerosis,
epileptic seizures, Tourette syndrome, learning disabilities, and
attention deficit disorder.
About 20 to 30 percent of children
with an ASD develop epilepsy by the time they reach adulthood. .
How is autism diagnosed?
ASD varies widely in severity and
symptoms and may go unrecognized, especially in mildly affected children
or when it is masked
by more debilitating handicaps.
Very early indicators that require evaluation by an expert include:
- no babbling or pointing by age 1
- no single words by 16 months or two-word phrases by age 2
- no response to name
- loss of language or social skills
- poor eye contact
- excessive lining up of toys or objects
- no smiling or social responsiveness.
Later indicators include:
- impaired ability to make friends with peers
- impaired ability to initiate or sustain a conversation with others
- absence or impairment of imaginative and social play
- stereotyped, repetitive, or unusual use of language
- restricted patterns of interest that are abnormal in intensity or focus
- preoccupation with certain objects or subjects
- inflexible adherence to specific routines or rituals.
Health care providers will often use
a questionnaire or other screening instrument to gather information
about a child’s development
and behavior. Some screening
instruments rely solely on parent observations, while others rely on a
combination of parent
and doctor observations. If
screening instruments indicate the possibility of an ASD, a more
comprehensive evaluation is
usually indicated.
A comprehensive evaluation requires a
multidisciplinary team, including a psychologist, neurologist,
psychiatrist, speech
therapist, and other professionals
who diagnose children with ASDs. The team members will conduct a
thorough neurological
assessment and in-depth cognitive
and language testing. Because hearing problems can cause behaviors that
could be mistaken
for an ASD, children with delayed
speech development should also have their hearing tested.
Children with some symptoms of an
ASD but not enough to be diagnosed with classical autism are often
diagnosed with PDD-NOS.
Children with autistic behaviors but
well-developed language skills are often diagnosed with Asperger
syndrome. Much rarer
are children who may be diagnosed
with childhood disintegrative disorder, in which they develop normally
and then suddenly
deteriorate between the ages of 3 to
10 years and show marked autistic behaviors.
What causes autism?
Scientists aren’t certain about what
causes ASD, but it’s likely that both genetics and environment play a
role. Researchers
have identified a number of genes
associated with the disorder. Studies of people with ASD have found
irregularities in several
regions of the brain. Other studies
suggest that people with ASD have abnormal levels of serotonin or other
neurotransmitters
in the brain. These abnormalities
suggest that ASD could result from the disruption of normal brain
development early in
fetal development caused by defects
in genes that control brain growth and that regulate how brain cells
communicate with
each other, possibly due to the
influence of environmental factors on gene function. While these
findings are intriguing,
they are preliminary and require
further study. The theory that parental practices are responsible for
ASD has long been
disproved.
What role does inheritance play?
Twin and family studies strongly
suggest that some people have a genetic predisposition to autism.
Identical twin studies
show that if one twin is affected,
there is up to a 90 percent chance the other twin will be affected.
There are a number
of studies in progress to determine
the specific genetic factors associated with the development of ASD. In
families with
one child with ASD, the risk of
having a second child with the disorder is approximately 5 percent, or
one in 20. This is
greater than the risk for the
general population. Researchers are looking for clues about which genes
contribute to this
increased susceptibility. In some
cases, parents and other relatives of a child with ASD show mild
impairments in social
and communicative skills or engage
in repetitive behaviors. Evidence also suggests that some emotional
disorders, such as
bipolar disorder, occur more
frequently than average in the families of people with ASD.
Do symptoms of autism change over time?
For many children, symptoms improve
with treatment and with age. Children whose language skills regress
early in life—before
the age of 3—appear to have a higher
than normal risk of developing epilepsy or seizure-like brain
activity. During adolescence,
some children with an ASD may become
depressed or experience behavioral problems, and their treatment may
need some modification
as they transition to adulthood.
People with an ASD usually continue to need services and supports as
they get older, but
many are able to work successfully
and live independently or within a supportive environment.
How is autism treated?
There is no cure for ASDs.
Therapies and behavioral interventions are designed to remedy specific
symptoms and can bring
about substantial improvement. The
ideal treatment plan coordinates therapies and interventions that meet
the specific needs
of individual children. Most health
care professionals agree that the earlier the intervention, the better.
Educational/behavioral interventions:
Therapists use highly structured and intensive skill-oriented training
sessions to help children develop social and language
skills, such as Applied
Behavioral Analysis. Family counseling for the parents and siblings of
children with an ASD often
helps families cope with the
particular challenges of living with a child with an ASD.
Medications: Doctors may
prescribe medications for treatment of specific autism-related symptoms,
such as anxiety, depression, or obsessive-compulsive
disorder. Antipsychotic
medications are used to treat severe behavioral problems. Seizures can
be treated with one or more
anticonvulsant drugs. Medication
used to treat people with attention deficit disorder can be used
effectively to help decrease
impulsivity and hyperactivity.
Other therapies: There
are a number of controversial therapies or interventions available, but
few, if any, are supported by scientific
studies. Parents should use
caution before adopting any unproven treatments. Although dietary
interventions have been helpful
in some children, parents should
be careful that their child’s nutritional status is carefully followed.
Our main
vision and objectives are given below
Vision
To emerge as
a center of excellence with multi-dimensional activities with the objective to
explore and develop the full potential of each
autistic child with a view to integrating them
into the society.
Objectives:
·
To
generate awareness about autism in the society
·
To
engage research work about autism and provide training for parents, fresh
teachers and volunteers
·
To
provide parents counseling service
·
To
provide speech therapy, occupational therapy, physiotherapy and Behavior
therapy
·
To
promote equal opportunities protection of rights, full participation of person
of autism
Age Range
Autism
school is provided need based support for each autistic child. In this school,
student age range is near about 6-14 years.
Curriculum
In this
school mainly curriculum depend on
i.
student
age
ii.
level
of the students
iii.
needs
of the students
Main topics
of the junior and middle section communication are
i.
early
communication and socialization part
iii.
self
help skill( such as dressing, grooming) and daily living activities part
Each classroom activities depends on this curriculum
We are also follow the NCTB curriculum which is flexible and we teach them basic concept of functional
activities such as block, swing etc.
Therapy program (SLT, OT, PT, Behaviour Modification)
included in their curriculum. Each therapy depends on student level and their
need.
Class room Activities
From 8.30 to 1.30 pm students are engaged different types of
activities such as-
Assembly, Circle time, storytelling, pretend play, individual
activities, group activities, sensory activities, cooking, I pad and computer training,
outdoor and indoor play, music, dance, swimming, art and crafts, outing etc.
a.
Assembly
b.
Circle
time
c.
3Individual
session
d.
Group
session
e.
Social Story
f.
Sensory
Activities
g.
I
Pad and Computer Training
h.
Pretend play
i.
Functional
Activities
j.
Outdoor
and Indoor play
Extra curriculum
Outing :
Field Trip and recreational activities Co-curricular activties : Music, dance, art, sports, physical
activities and swimming.
Meeting with parents :
Frequent meeting with parents ensure a team approach
Home Visit Programme :
Regular home visits are coordinated to ensure a holistic approach to education.
Exam system
I.
Our
exam system is divided into three parts-
II.
First
term – January to April
III.
Second
term- May to August
Third term- September to December
Each term to
evaluate the students in five development area, the areas are – socialization
area, communication area, motor activities area, cognitive area and health
& hygiene (ADL).
On the basis of individual education plan (IEP) we evaluate
the students. If the student
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