Learner characteristics and cognitive profile of students with autism (ASD) A framework of thinking, memory and learning ACHEA: 19 August 2017 Nola Norris: nolan@morling.edu.au I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. Psalm 139:14 Neurodiversity Research design Qualitative Neurodiversity: diversity in cognitive profile and learner characteristics Phenomenology (lived experience) Case studies Interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA) Typically developing or neurotypical Thematic findings Theory development
Research design Research question 5 in-depth case studies Semi-structured interviews Participants were 5 gifted adults identified as having Asperger syndrome (diagnosed prior to 2013 DSM-5) Key informant interviews How do gifted adults with Asperger syndrome (AS) think and learn? Artefacts: photos, publications, artworks, etc. Prolonged engagement via email Data collection & analysis Case study thematic findings Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed Transcriptions were coded using NVivo qualitative analysis software Categories were formed Thematic development Theory development (the Learning Ladder) Compensatory learning, learning despite school Self-referential thinking vs. externally oriented thinking The quest for epistemic certainty What is true? Questions of identity Am I smart or am I dumb? What is wrong with me? I m a freak. I m an alien.
Learning model development Interpretive framework Interview questions were designed to elicit memories of school experiences and the factors that helped or hindered learning However, the unusual characteristics of the reported memories resulted in a change of focus to the phenomenon of memory itself, e.g. lack of childhood amnesia Iterative literature search: memory in autism Novel step: imported the memory-in-autism literature into NVivo and analysed it as though it were data Compiled a framework of 100+ quotations regarding the characteristics of memory in the autism research literature Cross-referenced with 5 major explanatory theories of autism & Tulving s Major Systems of Human Learning & Memory (1994) Theories of autism Human Memory Systems Long-term memory Theory of mind Declarative memory (explicit) Nondeclarative (implicit) Weak central coherence Executive function Working memory Episodic Memory (autobiographical, personal experience) Semantic memory (facts, general knowledge) Perceptual Representation System Procedural memory Amygdala theory Enhanced perceptual functioning 5 Major Systems of Human Memory and Learning Schacter & Tulving (1994)
Human Memory Systems Episodic memory weaker Semantic memory relied upon for explicit thinking Perceptual memory enhanced Long-term memory Theory of mind One thing at a time Enhanced perception Executive function Single-item memory Being in the moment Declarative memory (explicit) Nondeclarative (implicit) Central coherence the big picture Focus on detail at expense of bigger picture Raw sensory input Working memory Episodic Memory (autobiographical, personal experience) Semantic memory (facts, general knowledge) Perceptual Representation System Weak Strong Strong Procedural memory Abstract reasoning Cognitive flexibility Relationships between thoughts, concepts, ideas Concrete, literal, black-&-white thinking Train-tracks thinking: rigid, fixed thinking Rote memory, recall of discrete data and facts Sensory sensitivities Memory differences in AS compared to NT Subjective time judgements Subjective sense of self Time measurement: clocks, calendars Formulaic thinking, i.e., a + b = c *NT=neurotypical Schacter & Tulving (1994) The Learning Ladder Implications for teaching and learning The Learning Ladder An evidence-based model that supports the existence of a hierarchy of thinking activities and facilitates explanation of the cognitive characteristics of neurodiverse learners
Literal Semantic Memory Episodic Memory Rote Learning Weak central coherence Central coherence Active Learning Abstract Strong Impaired Types of thinking activities Types of thinking activities Learners on the spectrum... Mapping knowledge to new situations in a meaningful way Defining characteristics - mental representation Meaning making Concept formation Prototype formation (summary representations) Full range of possible characteristics, personal experience, emotion, sophisticated understanding Meaning making Concept formation Prototype formation (summary representations) Categorising, grouping, classifying, sorting This is a cat. This is a dog. Categorising, grouping, classifying, sorting Dog Naming, labelling Naming, labelling Memorising facts Dogs have 4 legs Memorising facts Comparing learning tasks Bibliography Year 9 Science Memorising the periodic table Year 9 English Writing an essay that requires students to draw upon their personal experience in response to a novel APA. (2013). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: DSM-5 (5th ed.). Arlington, VA.: American Psychiatric Association. Boucher, J. (2007). Memory and generativity in very high functioning autism. Autism, 11(3), 255-264. Boucher, J. (2012). Putting theory of mind in its place: Psychological explanations of the socioemotional-communicative impairments in autistic spectrum disorder. Autism, 16(3), 226-246. Boucher, J. & Bowler, D. M. (Eds.). (2008). Memory in Autism: Theory and Evidence (ebook ed.). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Boucher, J. & Mayes, A. (2012). Memory in ASD: Have we been barking up the wrong tree? Autism, 16(6), 603-611. Lind, S. E. (2010). Memory and the self in autism. Autism, 14(5), 430-456. Mottron, L., Dawson, M., Souliéres, I., Hubert, B. & Burack, J. (2006). Enhanced perceptual functioning in autism: An update, and eight principles of autistic perception. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 36(1), 27-43. Schacter, D. L. & Tulving, E. (1994). What are the memory systems of 1994? In D. L. Schacter &
Diagrams and explanations in Appendix C http://ro.uow.edu.au/theses/4242/ www.nelt.com.au nola@nelt.com.au