Connecting to College: Assisting Students with Autism

Transcription

1 Connecting to College: Assisting Students with Autism

2 Presenters Jason Boothe, Career Counselor , Jonathan Schmalz-Benson, Counseling Services Assistant Director , Gavin Steiger, Disability Services Director , Christie Stiehl, Transition Specialist ,

3 Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Prevalence In 2011, White, Ollendick, and Bray estimated that % of college students had a diagnosis of ASD. This would equate to 490-1,368 UH-System students. A national survey (Raue & Lewis, 2011) found that 4.3% of college students seeking disability services had ASD diagnosis Since then, even more students with ASD are pursuing college. This number will continue to increase.

4 ASD Criteria Persistent social communication and social interaction deficits Poor social initiations and engagement Deficient understanding and use of nonverbal communication Difficulty developing, maintaining, and understanding relationships

5 ASD Criteria (continued) Restricted and repetitive behaviors and interests Odd language use and speech patterns Insistence on sameness, rituals, or routines Highly restricted, fixated interests Unusual sensitivity or interest in sensory input

6 What ASD Looks Like

7 Some Strengths of Students with ASD Intense interests may allow for more success in particular study focus Different interpretations of our social and sensory world offer unique perspectives and novel contributions Arts, Writing, Design Professional Social Problem solving Sincere Students with higher autism symptoms report better academic performance

8 Common Challenges while also reporting greater dissatisfaction with college and life in general (White, Ollendick, & Bray, 2011) Social interactions and intimacy Perspective taking Learning skills Time management Attention Executive Functions Understanding abstract information Anxiety, depression, aggression and other co-occurring conditions May not be aware of own weaknesses or how to advocate for what they need

9 Level 3 Requiring Very Substantial Support Social Communication Severe deficits in verbal and nonverbal social communication skills cause severe impairments in functioning, very limited initiation of social interactions, and minimal response to social overtures from others. For example, a person with few words of intelligible speech who rarely initiates interaction and, when he or she does, makes unusual approaches to meet needs only and responds to only very direct social approaches. Restricted, Repetitive Behaviors Inflexibility of behavior, extreme difficulty coping with change, or other restricted/repetitive behaviors markedly interfere with functioning in all spheres. Great distress/difficulty changing focus or action.

10 Level 2 Requiring Substantial Support Social Communication Marked deficits in verbal and nonverbal social communication skills; social impairments apparent even with supports in place; limited initiation of social interactions; and reduced or abnormal responses to social overtures from others. For example, a person who speaks simple sentences, whose interaction is limited to narrow special interests, and how has markedly odd nonverbal communication. Restricted, Repetitive Behaviors Inflexibility of behavior, difficulty coping with change, or other restricted/repetitive behaviors appear frequently enough to be obvious to the casual observer and interfere with functioning in a variety of contexts. Distress and/or difficulty changing focus or action.

11 Level 1 Requiring Support Social Communication Without supports in place, deficits in social communication cause noticeable impairments. Difficulty initiating social interactions, and clear examples of atypical or unsuccessful response to social overtures of others. May appear to have decreased interest in social interactions. For example, a person who is able to speak in full sentences and engages in communication but whose to- and-fro conversation with others fails, and whose attempts to make friends are odd and typically unsuccessful. Restricted, Repetitive Behaviors Inflexibility of behavior causes significant interference with functioning in one or more contexts. Difficulty switching between activities. Problems of organization and planning hamper independence.

12 Career Services Students with ASD often have trouble connecting their strengths to occupations Identifying disability friendly companies Struggle with the idea of networking to make job connections Have difficulty with the interview process Interview questions To disclose or not to disclose ASD to employer

13 Disability Services 34 students with ASD were registered with DS in % of students registered with DS DS has seen approximately a 600% increase in ASD students in 4 years More professors are contacting DS due to students exhibiting unique/odd behaviors

14 Disability Services (continued) Accommodations used by some students with ASD: Extra time for tests and quizzes Reduced distraction environment for tests and quizzes Notetaking assistance Use of a computer Professor notification of communication barriers

15 Connecting to College (CtC) Collaboration between: Center for Autism and Developmental Disabilities (CADD) Disability Services Student Success Center Funding: Texas Legislature 2015 Transition specialist: Christie Stiehl, BCaBA Graduate student in behavior analysis program Supervisor: Dorothea Lerman, Ph.D., BCBA-D CADD Director, Professor of Psychology, Behavior Analysis Program Coordinator

16 CtC: Preparation (September 2015-August 2016) Research Review the literature Learn from established programs Talk with students and caregivers Connect with existing UHCL student support services Action Select a name Secure a location Develop an approach for supporting students

17 CtC: Intervention Approach Individualized intervention 1 to 3 goals per student Direct intervention 1 to 3 hours/week Maximum of three students Applied behavior analysis (ABA) Target observable and measurable behavior Focus on reason behavior occurs Change the learner s environment to support behavior change Monitor effectiveness through data collection

18 CtC: Community Support Faculty and staff support Faculty and staff consultations Classroom observations Facilitated discussions Autism Ally Trainings University open trainings Individualized department trainings Collaboration with UHCL support services

19 CtC: Program Examples Herman: Accessing Academic Supports Reggie: Improving Conversation Skills

20 Assessment: Behavior and Goal Herman: Accessing Academic Supports Identify a relevant academic resource when faced with a problem or difficulty across 4 of 5 novel situations Reggie: Responding to compliments Respond thank you within 3 seconds of being given a compliment across three people

21 Intervention: Behavior Skills Training (BST) Explain Show Role-play Practice

22 Intervention: BST for Herman Explain

23 Intervention: BST for Reggie Explain

24 Intervention: BST for Herman Show Show

25 Intervention: BST for Reggie Cool shirt! Show Thank you!

26 Intervention: BST for Herman Role-play Practice

27 Intervention: BST for Reggie Thanks! Role-play I love those glasses. Practice

28 % o f In d e p e n d e n t R e s p o n se s Identifying Resources: Herman Id en tify in g A cad em ic R eso u rces B L B ST P o s t-tra in in g * B L : B a s e lin e (5 tria ls ) B S T : B e h a v io r S k ills T ra in in g 7 5 * * In -s itu tra in in g * S essio n (4 5 -m in)

29 Compliments: Reggie B L B ST P o s t-tra in in g BL: Baseline BST: Behavioral Skills Training % C o rre c t R e s p o n s e Conversation Trial (3 opportunities)

30 CtC Annual Evaluation Students served: 5 Fall/Spring: 3 Summer: 2 Program Evaluations 100% student satisfaction with program and services

31 CtC Annual Evaluation (con t 1) Faculty/Staff Consultations: 11 Trainings: 10 Attendees: 102 Faculty: 13 Staff: 20 Students: 69

32 CtC Annual Evaluation (con t 2) Strengths Empirically-support approach (applied behavior analysis) No cost Easy access for students Informal collaboration among support services Limitations Limited amount of students served Limited support available (1-2 hrs/wk)

33 CtC Training Feedback 75% 50% 25% 0% % Attendees Agree100%

34 CtC Year 2

35 CtC Year 2: General Support Student requirements to access support services Accommodations registration & tutorial (Disability Services) Academic coaching (Student Success Center) Career coaching (Career Services) CtC support group (Counseling Services) Open communication among support services Meet with CtC transition specialist twice per semester

36 References Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. (2014) (1st ed.). Washington. Gadke, D., McKinney, C., & Oliveros, A. (2015). Autism Spectrum Disorder Symptoms and Comorbidity in Emerging Adults. Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 47(2), Raue, K., and Lewis, L. (2011). Students With Disabilities at Degree-Granting Postsecondary Institutions (NCES ). U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. White, S., Ollendick, T., & Bray, B. (2011). College students on the autism spectrum. Autism, 15(6),

37 Questions?