Lal, Rubina and Shahane, Anagha (2011) In Williams, T.(Ed.)Autism Spectrum Disorders: from Genes to Environment

ABSTRACT

Introduction: This paper presents the findings of a research study on TEACH based intervention for learners with autism. TEACH (Treatment and Education of Autistic and other Communication handicapped Children) follows a structured teaching approach. This approach addresses the characteristics and learning needs of individuals with autism. Structured teaching involves modifications of four components: physical organization, visual schedules, work systems and task organization. Physical organization refers to the structuring of a student’s environment. Physical boundaries are defined to help a student understand where activities are to take place. Visual schedules can be used to make a student understand the sequence of activities. They can take many forms depending on the individual need and level of functioning of the user. Schedules may be written for those learners who have the ability to read. For non readers, pictures or icons may be used. For those who require concrete representation, miniature objects may be included in the schedule. Work systems help a student understand what and how much work is to be completed, and what is expected of the student once the work is done. Work systems enable a student to work independently. Finally, task organization involves structuring independent work tasks to clarify what is required to be done and how it should be done.

Aim: The study sought to determine the effectiveness of a TEACH based intervention on the development of independence in work behaviour in children with autism.

Method: Twelve children with autism, randomly selected from four schools of Mumbai, participated in the study. The children were tested on Scale for Independent Work Skills (SIWS), developed for the purpose of the study. The SIWS assessed independence in work behavior’s through performance of tasks related to conceptual skills, daily living skills, pre-vocational skills and self engagement. The selection of items for each sub area was based on a review curricular goals, discussion with teachers, and general observation of classroom behavior’s of children with autism. The items were reviewed by domain experts to ensure the validity of content. The instrument consisted of a total of 34 items. The SIWS used a 5 point scale for rating a child‘s work behavior’s. Besides independent responses, the behavior’s were rated mainly on the level of prompt needed. Hence, whereas independent response was scored 5, symbol, picture, gesture and physical prompts were respectively scored 4, 3, 2 and 1. The test – retest scores yielded a reliability coefficient of 0.82 for the instrument. The SIWS was used as both pre and post test. An intervention program to develop independent work skills was designed using the TEACH method as a base. Of the four components of structured teaching, the program focused on use of visual structure and work systems. Modifying the physical environment was difficult since the children belonged to four different schools and the research protocol required that intervention be given in children‘s natural learning environment. Similarly, visual schedules were not introduced as the children were available for intervention for a limited period during the day. The intervention consisted of teaching the children to perform a set of tasks. The tasks ranged from ones that were suitable for 8 year olds to those that were doable by 13 year old children in the group. The final selection of tasks for a child was made on the basis of ability and the pre test assessment on SIWS. All children received intervention for 20 structured sessions of 40 minutes each.

Results: A statistical comparison of pre and post test scores indicated that TEACH based intervention had a positive effect on the ability to work independently in children with autism. The children’s performance on the selected sub areas of independent work significantly improved post intervention.

Key words: Autism, independent work behaviour, TEACH based intervention