Asperger's Syndrome: A Working Guideline for Teachers

Paper Summary:

This paper is an in-depth examination and analysis of the causes, symptoms and treatments available for children that have been diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome. The paper discusses several different concepts that have been used to diagnose Asperger's in children and discusses the differences between adults and children. Using an extensive table, the paper then lists some of the symptoms including qualitative impairment in social interaction, restricted repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interests and activities. According to this author, the disturbance causes clinically significant impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning although there is no clinically significant general delay in language. Some children with Asperger's may also have social problems, including extreme egocentricity, or limited interests and preoccupations, including repetitive routines or rituals, motor clumsiness or a compulsive interest in a specific field such as math or science or reading. The paper concludes with the presentation of some guidelines to help teachers deal effectively with children in their classroom that may suffer from with Asperger's syndrome. These include the importance of structure and consistency in the school day, the importance of allowing some flexibility in the rules, the encouragement of the child's special area of interest and the avoidance of power struggles wherever possible. The paper also details the different types of interventions that are available to professionals including the use of visual accommodations, providing a sensory diet, choice and emotion cards and visual task analysis.

From the Paper:

"In some cases there is a clear hereditary component, with one parent (most often the father) showing either the full picture of AS or at least some of the traits connected with AS; genetic factors seem to be more common in AS compared to more classic autism. Temperamental traits such as having concentrated and limited interests, compulsive or rigid style and social awkwardness or nervously also seem to be more common, alone or in combination, in relatives of AS children.Sometimes there will be a positive family history of autism in relatives, further strengthening the impression that AS and autism are occasionally related conditions. Other studies have demonstrated a fairly high rate of depression, both bipolar and unipolar, in relatives of children with AS, portentous a genetic link in at least some cases. It seems likely that for AS, as for autism, the clinical picture we see is probably influenced by many factors, including genetic ones, so that there is no single individual cause in most cases. Christopher Gillberg, a Swedish physician who has studied AS extensively, has proposed six criteria for the diagnosis, elaborating upon the principle set forth in DSM-4."

More papers on Asperger's Syndrome: A Working Guideline for Teachers:

• Essay # 53528 : "Asperger Syndrome"
• Research Paper # 52458 : "Asperger Syndrome"
• Research Paper # 96941 : "Asperger Syndrome"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: