Semago N.Ya. , candidate psychological sciences, Leading Researcher, Laboratory of Psychological Problems in Children with handicapped adaptation of the Moscow Psychological and Pedagogical University, Moscow, Russia, [email protected]
Solomakhina E.A. , teacher-defectologist the highest category, GBOU Gymnasium No. 1540, Moscow, Russia, [email protected]
Even five or seven years ago, it was hard to imagine that the majority of children with autism spectrum disorders would actually be considered as participants in the process of inclusive education, and teachers in ordinary schools would ask for information about the features of ASD during advanced training courses. The reality today is that in many schools, children with autism are taught alongside peers with other problems, or just normal peers. But, despite the successes achieved in this area, there are many problems associated with the actual social and educational adaptation of children with ASD, which determines the need for long-term and specific psychological and pedagogical support.
The current practical experience in teaching children with ASD shows that for this category of children, not only various learning models should be developed and implemented to maximize the realization of the right to receive a quality education adequate to the opportunities and abilities of education and “release” the potential of these children, but and an integral system of psychological and pedagogical support.
Currently, exemplary adapted basic educational programs for children with ASD have been developed (options 8.1; 8.2; 8.3; 8.4), within which the correctional component is “sewn up”.
The most promising form of school education for a child with ASD is the gradual, individually dosed and specially supported inclusion in a group or class of children with no or less pronounced communication problems, whose abilities at this stage are assessed as comparable to his own learning opportunities. The developed methods of special assistance to children with autistic disorders should be used to the maximum in the process of individual psychological and pedagogical support for their inclusion in groups of children.
That is why the issues of adequate targeted psychological and pedagogical support for a child with ASD are extremely relevant today.
Main features children with ASD preventing them social adaptation and peer learning are:
pronounced difficulties in social and emotional interaction;
Difficulties in organizing one's own activities and behavior, behavioral disorders expressed to varying degrees;
Pronounced unevenness and specificity of the development of mental functions, specificity of development cognitive activity generally;
Difficulties in establishing productive interaction with others;
· the need for a specially organized educational space, the use of special techniques and methods in the training and psychological and pedagogical support of children with ASD.
Variants of Autistic Disorders
Childhood autism is currently considered as a special type of mental development disorder. All children with autism have impaired development of means and skills of communication and social and emotional development. Common to them are affective problems and difficulties in establishing active relationships with a dynamically changing environment, which determine their attitudes towards maintaining constancy in the environment and the stereotype of their own behavior. However, the population of such children, including those in school age, is extremely heterogeneous. In this regard, they are not talking about autism as such, but about a “line” of autism spectrum disorders.
A child with autistic disorder can be both autonomous and have persistent fears and stereotypes; do not use speech at all, or use simple speech stamps, or have a rich vocabulary and a detailed, complex beyond their age phrasal speech. Most of these children are diagnosed with a pronounced unevenness (or uneven insufficiency) in the development of mental functions, there are also autistic children, whose intellectual development is difficult to assess in a short time. It is not uncommon for children with severe autism to show selective giftedness - this may be special musicality, absolute literacy, mathematical abilities, etc. In addition, the picture of the difficulties and opportunities of a child with autism by school age differs significantly depending on whether he received adequate specialist help, including medical help. Timely started and properly organized psychological and pedagogical assistance allows you to form communication skills already in preschool age, but they seem to “break down” in a new and unpredictable school situation for the child, they need to be rebuilt.
Due to the heterogeneity of the composition of this category of children, the range of differences in the required level and content of primary (and even more general) education of children with ASD should be as wide as possible, corresponding to the capabilities and needs of all children. These requirements are reflected in the sections of the Federal State Educational Standard for children with disabilities.
Thus, speaking about children with ASD, we will have in mind violations of the affective-emotional sphere, leading to a distortion of all proportions of mental development. In special psychology, this category of violations refers to various options. distorted development.
To date, there are two main groups of distorted development:
Distortion of the predominantly affective-emotional sphere (4 groups of early childhood autism, according to the classification of O.S. Nikolskaya). This classification is based on the author's model of the affective organization of behavior and consciousness;
Distortion of the predominantly cognitive sphere (atypical or process autism).
It is quite obvious that in each of the options the child will show specific features of behavior and development of both affective and cognitive and regulatory spheres. But at the same time, in general, it is possible to single out the main areas of activity of escort specialists and outline the specific tasks facing them.
The activities of specialists
accompanying children with ASD
The activity of a psychologist
The psychologist is the main carrier of ideas about the special educational and social needs of the child, he advises and accompanies the activities of other specialists - teachers, tutors, speech therapists.
A child with ASD in a regular school has great difficulties precisely with social and emotional adaptation, and therefore he needs a specific psychological help. The tasks of a psychologist here are diverse, we list the main ones:
formation of the boundaries of interaction;
assistance in organizing training (in the absence of tutor support) - within the framework of frontal learning;
Formation of communication skills in stereotypical situations and their flexible change;
individual work with the child, aimed at the formation of ideas about oneself and others (the formation of a mental model);
formation of programming and control functions;
work with the family and coordination of its interaction with specialists;
Work with the child's peers (with a class or mini-group).
The last task requires the development of methods for group work on the formation interpersonal interaction, classes with a psychologist on the formation of communication skills, interaction skills of children in the classroom, including the child with ASD himself.
It is the psychologist who helps the child in forming the boundaries of communication, building simple relationships with children and adults, taking into account certain rules of behavior that do not violate the interests of another person. Various, including simple game ways and techniques of interaction, help children with ASD feel the boundaries of interaction and maintain a certain distance in communications. As a rule, these relationships are built easier with adults.
Only after such simple relationships with children and the teacher become possible for a child with ASD (within sufficiently repetitive situations), it is possible to start work on the formation of interaction and communication skills in the children's environment as a whole. Such work involves the use of group work methods in the class.
Often in children with ASD, even simple relationships with peers are much more difficult to establish than with adults. Communication cannot automatically improve over time, and in best case remains at the level of running around, which not only overexcites the child, but also causes him discomfort and anxiety. Therefore, the volume of such contacts with other children should be sufficiently dosed, and communication should be clearly organized within the stereotype of a lesson and a break. At the initial stages of adaptation, it is very important to prevent the occurrence of conflict situations and reinforcing negative emotional reactions in a child with ASD. In the same period, work should begin on the development of the child's ideas about himself and others, in particular, on the formation of a model of the mental, which implies that the child with ASD understands that another person has thoughts, feelings and desires other than his own.
Only after such relationships with other children and the teacher become possible for the child (with repetitive situations of a lesson or a structured change, going to the canteen or for a walk), you can gradually expand the communication skills of a child with ASD and move on to organizing the interaction of children at various unstructured events. – holidays, excursions, etc.
The work of a psychologist with the parents of a child with ASD is based on an understanding of the difficulties faced by the family, and on an understanding of the specifics of a particular variant of autistic disorder. On the other hand, the psychologist discusses with parents the possibilities of both basic (at school) and additional (outside its walls) assistance, including medical. In his work, the psychologist uses various psycho-corrective technologies. In some cases, it is expedient to transfer this type of work to the specialists of the PPMS Center within the framework of network interaction.
The activities of a teacher-defectologist
The main tasks of a defectologist teacher when working with children with ASD are:
1. Creation of an adequately organized environment, which becomes the main way of corrective influence when working with a child. The stereotypical form of existence remains the most accessible for him and provides a reduction in anxiety, fears, helps to organize and structure activities correctly and effectively. All space must be zoned in accordance with the types of activities performed: training area, play area, recreation area, etc.
2. Organization and visualization of time. For children with ASD, time marking is very important. The regularity of the alternation of the events of the day, their predictability and planning for the future help to better understand the beginning and end of any activity. From here it is easier for them to experience what was in the past and wait for what will be in the future. Various types of schedules, instructions, calendars, and clocks are widely used here.
3. Structuring of all types of activities. The main direction of work here is the formation of productive activities and interaction skills in children at preschool age and the formation of a stereotype of learning behavior at school age. With specially organized training, the child needs to master many social competencies that his ordinary peers master almost independently.
The tasks described above will also be solved by other specialists of the school, primarily by the teacher of the class, but it is the defectologist who organizes this work as a correctional one and transfers the methods of work into the child's learning activities.
4. Overcoming unevenness in development. This problem is solved through the use of special methods and programs, as well as the use of special and specific methods, methods and techniques of learning (for example, alternative and facilitated communication, global reading). When working, consider the following:
The predominance of visual means of presenting the material;
Rational dosing of information;
Adequate to the possibilities of perception the rate of presentation of the material;
Use of adapted texts;
Variation in the level of difficulty of tasks.
5. Organization of the regime of communicative communication. Particular attention should be paid to work on expanding vocabulary and developing the conceptual side of speech. Children need to be explained in detail the meaning of the tasks, as well as what is expected of them. You should talk with a child with ASD about all the events of the day, important points life. Communication needs to be made as concrete and integral to life as possible. If the child has great difficulties in completing the task, it is recommended to use visual support (photos, pictograms).
6. Escort educational process. This type of activity has several directions:
A. Drawing up an individual study plan. Together with other specialists of the escort service and the legal representatives of the student, an individual work plan is developed at the beginning of the school year. The terms of its implementation can vary from one month to six months, but no more.
b. Monitor student progress. This makes it possible to regularly monitor the dynamics of the child's achievements in the educational and social fields and make timely adjustments to the planned activities. The teacher-defectologist needs to ensure that the recommendations developed by the school council are followed by all participants in the educational process.
V. Help the child to master the program material and fill in the gaps.
This type of activity is carried out mainly in individual correctional classes.
d. Mastering the program material by students individually or as part of work small group(with significant difficulties in mastering in class-lesson form).
e. Organization of the process of including students in the classroom form.
7. Social adaptation.
All acquired skills and abilities must be consolidated and transferred to various life situations. Work to improve social adaptation should go in close cooperation with the teacher and the child's parents.
Help for a child with ASD by a defectologist teacher is provided as long as the child needs it. A positive result of the work can be considered the moment at which the child needs less detailed assistance. With the growth of his independence, the support of the defectologist is reduced to a minimum of help and support. The result is always individual and in each specific case depends on the child's potential, which develop in the process of upbringing and education.
Activities of a speech therapist
The tasks of a speech therapist as an accompaniment specialist are also extremely diverse. On the one hand, a child with ASD may have signs of phonetic and phonemic underdevelopment, and features of sound pronunciation, which requires a special, well-developed in speech therapy corrective work.
On the other hand, the speech of such a child is extremely specific. This applies to all its aspects - from the tempo-melodic to the difficulties of understanding written speech.
1. Work on the prosodic side of speech, its melodic and rhythmic components is inextricably linked with the understanding of speech.
2. Another activity of a speech therapist is a specially organized work on the understanding of complex oral speech and on the understanding of the material read. . We are well aware that even if a child with ASD reads quite fluently, he usually reads extremely monotonously, without respecting punctuation marks and sentence boundaries, which is one of the reasons for reading comprehension difficulties. The work of a speech therapist on the formation of intoned meaningful reading skills will greatly contribute to the educational adaptation of a child with autistic disorder.
3. In addition, an important part of the work of a speech therapist is the formation of a child's communicative side of speech, the ability to work in a dialogue mode, to answer questions on the merits, the development of a child's ability to maintain a dialogue and even initiate it. It is clear that not only a speech therapist is working on the communicative side of speech. But at first, it is he who, in his classes, will contribute to the creation of certain communicative stereotypes, which subsequently the child, with the help of a psychologist and teacher, will be able to transfer to broader communicative situations.
4. Like any other child, a child with autistic disorders may have dysgraphic difficulties. Most often, such a child writes quite competently, but in no way can apply the rule to even a correctly written word or text. Many practitioners believe that such children often have so-called innate literacy, and it is precisely the analysis of the rule according to which this or that word or expression is written that turns out to be extremely difficult for them. It is important here that the speech therapist explains the situation to the teacher, and he, in turn, does not “go too far” with the requirement to apply the rules.
5. If necessary, work can be carried out with the child on the formation of phonetic and phonemic perception, which will also be reflected in the development of written speech.
6. Correction of the sound-producing side of speech is not a task of prime necessity, often it is this work of a speech therapist that causes negative reactions in the child, especially if it requires tactile interaction with him.
Tutor activity
Features of the development of voluntary forms of activity of a child with autistic disorders, in particular, voluntary or divided attention (concentration of attention on joint activities), voluntary concentration, the difficulties of such a process as imitation create the need to develop special tactics in the organization of the learning process. In a learning situation, such a child experiences many difficulties. In this case, at first, the child must be accompanied by a tutor, and if he has significant difficulties in organizing his behavior, then the tutor accompanies the child throughout the school year (subject to the recommendations of the PMPK).
The activity of a tutor is the organization of learning behavior. It is the tutor, not “sticking” to the child and not replacing the teacher, who helps him orient himself both in the space of the notebook and in the sequence of necessary actions, he repeats the teacher’s instructions, thereby removing the difficulties of perceiving frontal tasks.
At the first stages, the tutor becomes a kind of guide and translator for the child, helping to organize learning behavior and learning space. At the same time, the teacher himself must master certain techniques that allow structuring activities and thereby forming educational stereotypes. These tricks common organization activities should be clearly understood by them, and they should be given special attention. In order for an autistic child to gradually adjust or adapt to a learning situation, it must be as structured as possible. This structure (as the basis for the organization of certain stereotypes) is necessary not only in the classroom, but also at recess, in the canteen, on a walk.
It is also difficult to do without the help of a tutor, who, on the one hand, organizes the change for the child and other children, and, on the other hand, helps in the formation of stereotypes of social behavior in children. It is often in these situations that one gets acquainted with the norms of social interaction, communication with peers and adults, from the simplest ones: how to ask for this or that subject that interested the child, how to answer a question, ask something yourself, etc. This work can be done in collaboration with a psychologist.
Separate task in the organization learning activities child is work on the creation of external markers and rules of life in the classroom and in the lesson in particular. The most important external marker of changes in the sequence of actions and lessons is the schedule. It should be visible to the child: it’s good if the full schedule of lessons and classes in the afternoon for all days of the week hangs on the wall near the blackboard. This is easy to organize in any class. Such a hint makes the life of an autistic child more predictable and is an organizing factor in the learning life.
With the help of the schedule, the sequence of preparation for the school day, for the lesson can be specially worked out, and if necessary, a visual diagram of the organization of the workspace, a set of necessary teaching materials, and a sequence of preparatory actions can be drawn up. This is extremely important because it is difficult for a child with ASD to absorb all the information by ear, and what is written has a “degree of law”. It is easier for him to look at the schedule himself and prepare the necessary subjects for the next lesson (sometimes with the help of a tutor) than to listen to the teacher's long instructions about what the next lesson will be and what should be left on the desk. Do not forget that our child perceives frontal verbal instructions poorly.
The tutor can also help the child in the lesson - by marking the desk, page, visual indication of the direction of movement, including moments in the task when he himself educational material organizes the action of the child. Subsequence learning activities can also be presented to the child visually in the form of a diagram or pictogram.
Great difficulties in organizing learning behavior arise in a child with ASD when even small failures or obstacles appear, and in this case, the child’s possible behavioral manifestations will characterize his excitement, anxiety and unwillingness to continue working. It is logical if the teacher helps the child in completing the new task, giving him the impression of success and confidence that he is coping with the task. And after that, a new skill is taught, with which the child is already familiar and thinks that he can already do it.
The organization of educational behavior is also helped by certain rules. Like the schedule, many simple and seemingly obvious rules of conduct can also be presented in the form of small posters on the wall near the blackboard. It is important to consider that it is easier for a child to understand when they are told: “We have rule number 4,” and rule number 4 says that during the lesson you cannot get up and walk around the classroom without permission. It is easier for a child to learn than to listen to the teacher's exhortation that during the lesson one should not walk around the classroom and touch other people's things. This rule should not only apply to our special child. It won't hurt other kids either. Similar rules may apply to other aspects of life in the classroom or even during recess. It is important that there are not too many of them.
The development of the ability of a child with ASD to adequately assess the meaning of what is happening, and the organization of behavior in accordance with this meaning, requires special special work of the tutor and teacher. The environment in which an autistic child lives and studies should have the most developed semantic structure, that is, the child must be made to understand why certain things are being done. A child with autism, however, like a normal child, needs to be explained what is happening and the goals of actions.
If the educational organization cannot provide the child with a tutor (that is, there is no such recommendation in the conclusion of the PMPK), then most of these tasks related to structuring and understanding school life are solved by a psychologist, a class teacher, sometimes a teacher-defectologist or social teacher.
Activity social educator
Social teacher – the main specialist who monitors the observance of the rights of any child studying at school. Based on the data of socio-pedagogical diagnostics, the social teacher identifies the needs of the child and his family in the field of social support, determines the direction of assistance in the adaptation of the child at school. The social pedagogue collects all possible information about “external” resources for the school team of specialists, together with the coordinator for inclusion, establishes interaction with partner institutions in the field of psychological and pedagogical support (PPMS-center), as well as with the social protection service of the population, with public organizations , institutions additional education. An important field of activity of a social educator is to help parents of a child with ASD in adapting to the school community, among other parents. Such a specialist can help the teacher and other school specialists in creating a “Parents Club”, in developing a page on inclusion on the school website, in finding the necessary information.
Activities of the Inclusion Coordinator
Inclusion coordinator (methodist) – is a specialist who plays an important role in organizing the process of including children with disabilities in educational environment schools, in creating special conditions for the adaptation, education and socialization of students, regulating the activities of the entire teaching staff in this direction. The inclusion coordinator is the main "carrier" of information and teacher's assistant in organizing the educational process in an inclusive class.
At the same time, it is important to remember that the coordinator, as well as specialists in psychological and pedagogical support, is guided in his activities by the request of the teacher, his initiative and information about the state, successes and problems of a special child and the entire class.
The last thing that should be specially noted concerns not the substantive component of the activities of specialists, but its organizational component. The activities of all specialists of the council of an educational organization, focused on the maximum social and educational adaptation of a child with autistic disorder, should be as coordinated as possible. And the areas of activity of specialists themselves should be presented in an individual curriculum and AOOP of the child and without fail agreed with his parents.
Obviously, for each specific child with one or another variant of autistic disorders, the directions of correctional work (in accordance with the AOOP option) and other special educational conditions are recommended by the PMPK specialists and are formulated in its PMPK conclusion. But all the above-described tasks of the activities of specialists are aimed at the social-emotional and educational adaptation of children with ASD, they are essentially universal and necessary for each child for quite a long time.
Semago N.Ya., Solomakhina E.A. Psychological and pedagogical support of a child with ASD // Autism and developmental disorders. 2017. Volume 15. No. 1. P. 4-14. doi:10.17759/autdd.2017150101 Copy
Literature
- Baenskaya E.R. Help in raising a child with emotional development // Almanac of the Institute of Correctional Pedagogy of the Russian Academy of Education. 2000. Issue. 2.
- Bashina V.M., Simashkova N.V. Peculiarities of speech disorders in patients with early childhood autism of endogenous origin. Journal of neuropathology and psychiatry im. S.S. Korsakova, 1990. No. 8.S. 60-65.
- Dmitrieva T.P. Organization of activities of the coordinator for inclusion in an educational institution. M.: Center "School book", 2010. Series "Inclusive education". Issue. 3.
- Lebedinskaya K.S., Nikolskaya O.S., Baenskaya E.R. A common effort is needed // Children with communication disorders: early childhood autism. Moscow: Education, 1989.
- Lebedinsky V.V. Classification of mental dysontogenesis // Disorders of mental development in children. M.: MGU, 1985.
- Nikolskaya O.S., Baenskaya E.R., Liebling M.M. Children and adolescents with autism. Psychological support. Series "Special Child". M.: Terevinf, 2005. 220 p.
- Nikolskaya O., Fomina T., Tsypotan S. A child with autism in a regular school. Moscow: Chistye Prudy, 2006.
- Nikolskaya O.S. Difficulties in school adaptation of children with autism // Special child: research and experience of assistance. Moscow: Center for Curative Pedagogics; Terevinf, 1998. Issue. 1.
- Semago N.Ya. Technology for determining the educational route for a child with disabilities. M.: Center "School book", 2010. Series "Inclusive education". Issue. 2.
- Semago N.Ya., Semago M.M. Typology of deviant development. Model of analysis and its use in practice. M.: Genesis, 2011.
- Schopler E., Lanzind M., Waters L. Support for autistic and developmentally delayed children. Sat. exercises for professionals and parents. Minsk: BelAPDI "Open doors", 1997.
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A child with an autism spectrum disorder goes to school. What should parents, school, teacher be ready for?
Autism is called the syndrome of the century for a reason: at the moment, this diagnosis is becoming more common. Despite the efforts of public and medical organizations, there is still much we do not know about autism.
Our freelance correspondent Alexandra Chkanikova had a conversation with the director of the NPC PZDP them. G. E. Sukhareva, a psychotherapist of the highest qualification category Marina Alexandrovna Bebchuk, with the director of the Federal Resource Center for the Organization of Comprehensive Support for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder Artur Valeryevich Khaustov, as well as with some teachers of Moscow schools.
The result is an express guide for a teacher on how the education of a child with autism in a public school can be organized, what parents and teachers should prepare for.
What is autism?
Today, childhood autism is viewed as a general developmental disorder, that is, it is not a disease, but a severe disorder of mental development. There are several variants of autistic disorders. According to the international classification of diseases ICD-10, there are four types:
F84.0 - childhood autism (autistic disorder, infantile autism, infantile psychosis, Kanner's syndrome);
F84.1 - atypical autism;
F84.2 - Rett's syndrome;
F84.5 - Asperger's syndrome, autistic psychopathy.
IN Lately All autistic disorders began to be united under the general abbreviation ASD - Autism Spectrum Disorder.
The manifestations of autism are very diverse, but the most common characteristics are the inability to establish full contact with people, extreme isolation from outside world, weak reaction to external stimuli, stereotyped and rather narrow range of interests. Often in the literature one can come across a metaphor that a person with autistic disorder lives, as it were, under a dome, detached from the outside world and very few people are ready to “let in” to him under the dome.
So, a child with ASD goes to school…
Who decides where and how to study for a child with ASD?
In fact, the decision is always made by the parents, and two scenarios are possible here. The first is if the parents managed to notice, recognize and accept the fact that their child has autism. They went to the doctor in time, the child was diagnosed, the medical commission clarified that the child's intellect was preserved (intelligence disorders are the only actual obstacle). The future student was regularly observed by specialists and received the necessary psychological and pedagogical correction. Thus, by the age of seven, many of the child's autistic symptoms are already smoothed out and, most likely, he is ready for school as far as his disorder allows.
The second scenario is when parents do not know, do not see, deliberately keep silent about the illness of their child. Naturally, in this case there were no commissions, consultations, no psychological and pedagogical work, and a child with a neglected disorder ends up in a school where no one is warned either. It's over complicated story for all involved: painful for the child, difficult for educators, and ultimately unpleasant for parents, since ASD is not one of those diagnoses that will go away on its own. Sooner or later all participants educational process it becomes clear that the child has health problems.
In the first case, parents will listen to the advice of specialists, choosing an educational path for the child, in the second, it will be a “one-sided game”, until the parents realize, and then they will have to start all over again: diagnosis, correction etc.
If we are responsible parents, then...
It is best if, at the time of enrollment in the school according to the main list (that is, by March-April), the parents had all the documents related to the developmental features of the child ready. To do this, in November-December, it is worth showing the child to the PMPK - the psychological, medical and pedagogical commission.
This is a permanent body, the task of which is a comprehensive examination of the child for the presence of a particular diagnosis, assessment general level its development and recommendations on the organization of its education. The commission consists of diversified specialists - defectologists, speech therapists, doctors (neurologists, psychiatrists). They will give advice to the child's parents on what form of education is suitable for him and what program the child will be able to study.
A kindergarten can send a child to the PMPK by submitting his characteristics to the commission, or parents can enroll him on their own initiative.
Before undergoing PMPK, a child with ASD undergoes a medical commission at a medical institution. The purpose of the medical commission is to determine the diagnosis, in order to then choose the type educational program corresponding to the characteristics and intellectual level of development of the child.
It is important that the PMPK works in continuity with the medical commission. For example, at the medical commission, the child demonstrates a sufficient level of intelligence to study under the 8.1 or 8.2 program, but at the PMPK he does not cope with the tasks - then the PMPK is obliged to recommend him to study under the inclusive program anyway.
Should parents tell the school that their child has ASD?
By law, no, no one obliges parents to inform the school that their child has autism. They do not have to provide any certificates - but in order for the child to get into suitable conditions for him, it is important to inform the school administration that the child is special. If the parents did not inform the school in a timely manner about the child's difficulties, the school will not be ready to teach a child with ASD, and this will eventually lead to serious difficulties in organizing the educational process - both for the child himself and for the whole class.
Usually, the first meeting of the school administration representatives with the future student and his parents takes place during the formation of the first classes, in April-May. At this moment, and without any information, it will become clear to specialists (school psychologist, speech therapist, defectologist) that not everything is fine with the child. Further clarifications will come in the academic year (autumn), and it is not known how many unpleasant moments will have time to happen to the child during the educational process.
How do children with ASD learn?
Studying programs
In accordance with the Federal State Educational Standard, there are four different options for the education program for children with ASD, subdivided according to the degree of intellectual development of the child.
Program 8.1: it teaches children with intact intelligence. The level of their final achievements should be the same as that of their peers. Children study according to ordinary textbooks, according to the usual program and the standard curriculum. The difference lies in the fact that they must additionally deal with a psychologist, a speech therapist. For the period of adaptation to school, the child may need a tutor.
Program 8.2: children with ASD with mental retardation are trained. Their level of final achievements should also correspond to the level of their peers, but they study for a longer period of time. If the child has previously attended a preschool organization and received psychological and pedagogical correction, the period of his education in primary school will be five years. If he did not attend a preschool organization, he will study for six years.
Program 8.3- This program caters for children with mild to moderate intellectual disabilities. This is a borderline situation: on the one hand, such children could study in specialized schools, on the other hand, at the request of their parents, they can also be enrolled in a mass school. The expected level of their final achievements does not correspond to the level of their peers, they study according to adapted textbooks. The term of education in elementary school for such children is 6 years.
Program 8.4- for children with severe intellectual retardation and multiple developmental disorders. As a rule, such children have serious speech problems (do not speak at all or have serious speech delays). speech development). The duration of the program is 8.4 - 6 years, the expected level of achievement differs significantly from the level of peers, while the main emphasis is placed more on the socialization of the child than on academic success. Approximately 70% of the educational program will be aimed at mastering household skills and life competencies by the child.
How can training be organized?
As for the options for organizing education for children with ASD, they can be as follows:
Full inclusion. The child is taught in a regular class with peers.
Inclusive education using resource zone technology. The child is enrolled in a regular class, but when he has difficulties, he can receive individual support in a separate room - a resource zone. This form is possible if a tutor is assigned to the child and if the school is equipped with a resource zone - a large room where each child with special needs works individually with his tutor.
Correctional classes in a general education or special correctional school, or the child is studying in a special school. And here options are possible - for example, a child with autism can get into a class where very different children with very different developmental disorders are gathered (an integrated class). Or, if he has an intellectual retardation, he may be in a class with children with intellectual disabilities. Or the class is fully staffed with children with ASD - in different forms and manifestations.
Individual training at home. Some children, due to their behavioral disorders, are recommended to study individually at home, but even in this situation it is worth thinking about socialization - for example, connecting to a peer class at least once a week for certain subjects, for outdoor events.
Individual plan
Please note that there is no direct connection between the level of the program and the form of organization of training. It is important that the form of organization of training is selected individually, in accordance with the needs and level of socialization of the child.
And further! Each child has the opportunity to create an individual curriculum. This is a special schedule for the child - where, what and at what moment he will study. For example, for a child with ASD, mathematics is extremely difficult, so he spends almost all the time in an inclusive class, and during mathematics lessons he goes to individual sessions with a defectologist.
An individual plan for the child is made by the school, by joint decision of specialists within the organization - class teacher, psychologist, speech therapist, subject teachers. As a rule, a decision on an individual plan is made after the diagnostic period, which lasts about a month. Thus, by the end of the first quarter, the child can already receive his individual plan.
Do children with ASD need special textbooks?
This is a sore point, since there is no universal textbook for children with ASD, and it will probably be almost impossible to create one: the manifestations of this disorder are too diverse. Every child with ASD needs an individual approach.
At the moment, when teaching children with ASD under programs 8.1 or 8.2, teachers can take as a basis the ruler for a general education school, but even in this situation, textbooks need to be adapted. If the child is studying according to program 8.3 or 8.4, then textbooks for children with intellectual disabilities are taken as the basis, which also need to be adapted. For example, reduce the number of exercises on one sheet, make the font larger, reduce the number of small, insignificant details in the drawings, add visual support (drawings that make it easier to understand).
Usually, teachers of inclusive schools themselves, as best they can, adapt certain chapters of textbooks to the needs of students. But, of course, if a textbook for children with ASD ever appeared, at least an average one, it would be very valuable.
How to choose the most convenient way for the child?
There is an opinion that studying in a regular class is always better than in a correctional one. In this regard, many parents of children with ASD set themselves the goal of fighting for the opportunity to study in the mode of full inclusion.
All experts are unanimous in their opinion: before fighting, parents should calmly, slowly consider all the pros and cons of each form of educational organization - in relation specifically to their child, to their case. In particular, be sure to ask yourself the following questions:
What is more important to you - social or educational inclusion? Quite often, the same form of training will not give you both. For example, in a correctional class, a child will feel like a fish in water, where everyone understands him, indulgent to his features. But, of course, in terms of education, everything is simpler and weaker here. And in an ordinary class, he will receive more knowledge, but he will feel like a stranger among his peers, which, of course, is detrimental to his socialization.
Is the game worth the candle? More precisely, is studying in a regular class worth the effort and stress. For children with ASD, excessive stress is simply contraindicated.
What exactly can your child get from a regular class? For example, it is possible to form an individual plan, according to which the basic subjects (Russian, reading, mathematics) the child takes under a light program in a correctional class or even at home, and comes to school in a regular class for those subjects that develop him physically, are associated with manual labor And common development(music, technology, physical education).
And please accept as an axiom: the choice of the level of inclusion and form of education is not the factor by which it is fair to evaluate your child or you as a parent. You just find the most suitable way, and do not try to prove something to someone, outwit, "achieve" the best, etc. Please, assess the situation sensibly: sometimes a correctional class can give a child much more than an inclusive one.
Parents and school: rules of interaction
Can the school administration refuse to teach a child with ASD?
Difficult question. On the one hand, according to the Law on Education, any child with any degree of ASD with intact intelligence can study in a public school. On the other hand, not every school is able to provide such a child with all the necessary conditions. Inclusion is a very expensive pleasure for the school, which, moreover, is not so easy to organize.
If a school cannot provide a child with ASD with all the conditions for learning, parents have two options: either find another school, or insist on creating special educational conditions for their child in this school.
That is, a student with ASD is an inevitable problem for the school?
If we are dealing with a negative scenario (when parents do not recognize the characteristics of the child) - yes, this is certainly a problem for everyone. If the parents got all necessary documents, perhaps, they issued a disability to the child - then for the school this is a kind of opportunity. Together with the documents on the child's disability, parents bring additional budgetary funds to the school. In a sense, it is even beneficial for the school to compete for the status of inclusive.
Can all schools guarantee an adequate education for a child with ASD?
Of course, not all. As a rule, at the admission stage, representatives of the school administration honestly explain to parents that the school is not ready to provide the child with adequate opportunities. Then the child may be recommended a special school or given the address of the nearest inclusive school. There are such schools: they invest a lot of effort and money in order to maintain the status of inclusive, resourceful. Parents of children with ASD should look for such a school: it will be much more useful for the child to study in it.
But there are few such schools: for example, in Moscow there are no more than ten of them, but those that exist really know how to work with special children. Here they are really taught, adapted, included in society.
In fact, it is quite normal that a regular school is in no hurry to accept a child with ASD. If the director, teachers, administrators have never dealt with this phenomenon, it is unlikely that the experience of studying in such a school will be useful for the child. It will be more honest to objectively see your resource and understand what you can really give to a child with autism, and what you cannot yet.
It is known that many children with ASD are shown to study with a tutor - a personal assistant and mentor. Where to find a tutor for a child, should the school do this?
If, according to the conclusion of the PMPK, the child is entitled to the assistance of a tutor in learning, then the school must provide him with tutor support. To do this, the school introduces an additional staff unit.
In total there are three forms of tutor support:
The position of a tutor is in the staff list, and then the school provides you with a tutor.
You have an ordinary school, then the parents themselves find and invite a tutor and, most likely, they themselves find a way to pay for his services, but at the same time, the tutor must sign an agreement with the school.
Parents resort to the help of students passing industrial practice or volunteers. A volunteer can be found by both the school and the child's family by contacting one of the public organizations for the support of children with autism. It is important here that the found person has a sufficient level of understanding of the child.
The most unfavorable option is when one of the child's parents is present as a tutor at the lessons at school. We do not support such a situation, but, unfortunately, if a tutor could not be found, one has to resort to such a measure.
What should the teacher prepare for?
So, a child with an autism spectrum disorder will come to your class ...
The appearance of a child with ASD in the classroom is a serious challenge for the teacher. Most likely, you will be shocked: in front of you will be a student who, for example, has not formed an educational stereotype - that is, he is not ready to sit at a desk, be quiet, listen silently, answer questions. Or he will be constantly distracted, unable to concentrate, his emotions are unpredictable, and often they simply cannot be easily pacified.
We will warn you right away: without special training it will be very difficult for you. If it turned out that you did not have time to complete the training courses, get ready that it will not work out all at once. However, experts can give you some tips to help you deal with the situation more easily.
1. Collect all information- First of all, about the disorder itself. The more you know about the challenges people with ASD face, the easier it will be for you to manage your own anxiety. Ultimately, an autistic child is not so much a threat to you as a person who really needs your help. Try to take a strong position of a patient helper, and not a victim of circumstances, and then it will be easier to get involved in new circumstances.
2. Watch your child. Although you are not a parent or a tutor for him, for successful work you need to know how he behaves in a given situation, what frightens him, annoys him, and calms him down. If the parents of the child are ready for contact, ask them, find out as much as possible about how to help yourself and the child in a difficult situation.
3. Show interest. Yes, a child with ASD is not the easiest student. In a way, his appearance challenges you: do you love children enough to continue doing your job with brilliance? Your interest, attention, dedication to life and the interests of the child is the most appropriate way of interaction.
4. Transform your learning space. You will need to structure the environment in which the child is located in a special way. While a diary schedule is enough for ordinary children, a child with ASD simply needs to see all the important information in front of his eyes. Hang the schedule on the board, stick a piece of paper with hints to the desk, indicate the direction of movement with arrows. You will be able to teach a child with ASD only if the educational environment is predictable and safe for him.
Can a teacher without special training start teaching a child with ASD?
It's extremely difficult. An experienced teacher with a developed professional intuition is really able to quickly "feel" the situation. However, you should not force a good teacher to act by trial and error: it will be much more useful to give him all the necessary knowledge about the development and behavior of children with ASD, to help him master effective methods of correction and education. For example, the teacher should always be able to understand what is happening with the child: is he excited? Scared? Talk to the child about a particular problem, or just show him the right picture? Is it worth it now to explain something to him in detail, or just take him away from other children and let him rest calmly in a quiet place? All these things are easier to digest if you know what to do.
The minimum possible level of training is the passage of short-term refresher courses. On average, the training period is about 2 months, but significant results are achieved already in 1-2 weeks of intensive work. A huge role is played here by the personality of the teacher, and his life attitudes. The key qualities for an inclusive class teacher are patience, determination and readiness for the fact that in such a matter as teaching a child with ASD, there are no quick results. But, when you wait for the results, albeit slow ones, you will feel that you have conquered a real pedagogical Everest.
Alexandra Chkanikova
Kopchikova Elena
Psychological and pedagogical support for children with ASD at the base educational organization
« Psychological and pedagogical support for children with ASD on the basis of an educational organization»
I Introduction
Adoption federal law "About education in Russia» and Federal State educational primary general education students with disabilities (hereinafter referred to as Standard) guarantees the possibility of education every child with an autism spectrum disorder (hereinafter referred to as RAS).
According to article 79 of the law Russian Federation dated December 29, 2012 No. 273-FZ "About education in Russia» : "General education students with disabilities is carried out in organizations implementing educational activities on adapted core general education programs(hereinafter - AOOP).
Such organizations special conditions are created for education specified students.
To overcome difficulties in mastering the AOEP, social adaptation and socialization of students with ASD, their psychological and pedagogical escort.
Main directions (support) students with RAS:
Assistance in mastering the content of AOOP, including the creation of special educational conditions.
Correction of specific disorders and the formation of life competencies.
(support) students with ASD is regulated by the program of corrective work educational organization.
Psychological and pedagogical support students with ASD and correctional work is not an isolated block of work, but an integral part of the whole educational process. Correctional work is intertwined and permeates the entire educational process and is carried out within the framework of the lesson and extracurricular activities.
Corrective work in the process of extracurricular activities is carried out in the course of implementation:
correctional courses in individual, subgroup, small group and group forms (correctional-developing area);
additional education(studios, circles, sections);
extracurricular intra-school activities (holidays, concerts, creative and sports events);
extracurricular activities (excursions, walks, hikes).
II. Functions of the teacher and specialists psychological and pedagogical support in providing support to students with ASD
In accordance with the requirements of the Federal State Educational Standard of the IEO of students with disabilities, managers, teachers and other employees with the necessary level education and qualifications for each position held, which must meet the requirements specified in the qualification handbooks and (or) professional standards, taking into account the profile of students with disabilities, specified in appendices Nos. 1–8 to this Standard. If necessary, in the process of implementing the AOOP IEO for students with disabilities, temporary or permanent participation of a tutor and (or) assistant (assistant).
to an interdisciplinary team that psychological and pedagogical support of a child with ASD, in addition to the teacher may include the following specialists: teacher- psychologist, teacher-speech therapist, teacher-defectologist, social pedagogue, tutor, teachers of additional education.
All corrective measures and measures to adapt the child to school are developed and agreed upon by the entire team of specialists at the PMPK and should be aimed at achieving common goals that are most important in a particular period.
1. The activity of the teacher.
The main specialist who carries out constant and continuous monitoring, education and upbringing of a child with ASD is a teacher. Therefore, it is the teacher who makes the final decision when staging collegial correctional and educational goals, strategies escorts and providing comprehensive assistance to children with ASD and their parents (legal representatives).
2. The activity of the teacher- psychologist.
Teacher- psychologist forms the skills of interaction with children and adults in a child with ASD, develops communication skills, takes measures to prevent and correct maladaptive behavior, works to correct violations in the development of the cognitive sphere, etc.
To the main directions of corrective work psychologist can
attributed:
assistance in adapting to the conditions of schooling;
correction of maladaptive behavior;
formation of social interaction skills;
formation of communication skills;
the formation of ideas about oneself and one's social environment;
formation "models mental» ;
emotional and personal development and other areas.
3. The activity of a defectologist teacher.
A teacher-defectologist is a specialist who has special knowledge in organizations work with children with ASD, and his assistance is aimed at the development of AOOP IEO and AOP. This specialist provides competent professional support not only to the student, but also methodological support to the class teacher. It provides assistance in the adaptation of educational, didactic materials and educational environment. Defectological assistance is provided until a student with ASD is able to master the learning skills necessary to master the AOOP IEO and AOP.
The main areas of work of a teacher-defectologist can be attributed:
formation of a stereotype of educational behavior;
the formation of the basic prerequisites for educational activities (imitation skills, understanding of instructions, skills of working on sample and t. d.);
formation of deficient learning skills;
development of cognitive activity;
correction of skills that impede the successful mastery of program material, the development of fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, etc.
4. Activities of a speech therapist teacher.
The tasks of the activity of a school teacher-speech therapist relate to the development of speech (overcoming phonetic and phonemic underdevelopment, correction of sound pronunciation, development of the lexical and grammatical structure of speech, the syllabic structure of a word, the development of coherent speech, etc.).
However, when organization of complex support child with ASD, it becomes necessary to set tasks aimed at the general result: overcoming the difficulties of mastering the program material and developing communication skills.
To the areas of work of a speech therapist relate:
formation of the communicative function of speech;
the formation of the student's means of communication (speech and alternative);
understanding addressed speech(understanding instructions, short texts, dialogues, etc.);
correction of dyslexia and dysgraphia.
It is important that corrective speech therapy classes contribute to the child's assimilation of AOOP NOO and AOP and correlate with the topics of educational items:
Russian language and literary reading (when learning according to options 8.1 and 8.2 AOOP);
Russian language, reading and oral speech (when training according to option 8.3 AOOP);
Speech and alternative communication (when training according to option 8.4 AOOP).
The task of the speech therapist is also to provide methodological support teacher for speech mode organization, adaptation of texts and other educational and didactic materials.
5. Activities of a social educator.
The functions of a social educator are interaction with the child's family, counseling on organizational issues in his education, monitoring the observance of the rights of the child in the family and school. Based on the results of socio-pedagogical diagnostics, the social teacher determines the needs of the child and his family in the field of social support, as well as areas of assistance in the adaptation of the child at school.
The functional duties of this specialist may enter:
establishing interaction with social protection institutions, guardianship authorities, public organizations protecting the rights of disabled people, etc.;
escort child during school and extracurricular activities, in studios of additional education;
development of social and everyday skills, the formation of life competencies, including outside the school (in a shop, public transport, etc.);
help with parents organization of activities"Parents Club" etc. ;
search for the necessary information, popularization of knowledge about inclusive education, etc. d.
6. Tutor activity.
Necessity tutor support, especially in adaptation period, is determined by the specific characteristics of a particular child. In the function of a tutor included:
help in organizations child's behavior in lesson:
Directing the attention of the student to the teacher, to the blackboard, to the workbook;
Providing the child with prompts when performing frontal instructions and learning tasks;
Assistance in the implementation of the sequence of necessary actions;
participation in the work on the correction of undesirable behavior;
assistance in interacting with peers;
organization behavior during regime moments.
Typically, the need accompanying the child with a tutor, as well as the period of this escorts indicated in the recommendations of the PMPK. After the end of the diagnostic period, the decision on the need escorts the child's tutor can be accepted at the school council.
The main indications for the appointment of tutor support are:
difficulties in regulating one's own behavior in the classroom, preventing organization of the educational process;
pronounced manifestations of maladaptive behavior (aggressive and auto-aggressive manifestations);
difficulties organizations own productive activity both during lessons and during breaks;
difficulties organizations household activities and self-care (dressing, toilet, behavior in the dining room, etc.).
difficulty understanding speech (instructions) teachers.
Some children, especially in the early stages of education, need a tutor throughout the entire period of being in school to escorts all training and regime moments. As the child adapts, the help of the tutor is reduced and may be needed fragmentarily, for example, on a specific subject, or when carrying out a certain type of activity ( test, or when new social situations arise (holidays, excursions).
7. Activities of the coordinator for inclusion.
Inclusion Coordinator (Methodist) is a specialist who plays an important role in organization of the process of inclusion of children with disabilities in educational environment of the school, in creating special conditions for the adaptation, training and socialization of students, regulating the activities of the entire teaching staff in this direction. Inclusion coordinator - main "carrier" information and teacher's assistant in organization of educational process in an inclusive class.
At the same time, it is important to remember that the coordinator, like specialists psychological and pedagogical support, focuses in its activities on the request of the teacher, his initiative and information about the state, successes and problems of a special child and the whole class.
III. Conclusion
Activities of all specialists of the council educational organization focused on maximum social and educational adaptation of a child with autistic disorder should be as coordinated as possible. And the areas of activity of specialists themselves should be presented in the individual curriculum and the AOOP of the child and must be agreed with his parents.
Obviously, for each specific child with one or another variant of autistic disorders, the directions of correctional work (according to the AOOP option) and other special educational conditions are recommended by PMPK specialists and are formulated in its PMPK conclusion. But all the tasks of the activity of specialists described above are aimed at the socio-emotional and educational adaptation of children with ASD, they are inherently universal and necessary for every child for quite a long time.
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