Types Of Assessment Tools For Children With Autism

Autism Spectrum Disorder is not diagnosed using biological tests like medical conditions; instead a child is assessed using objective and subjective observations. This includes the looking at the child's developmental history, ability to process information, speech, language and behaviour. Rating scales are useful because they clearly describe the child's behavioural pattern at the time of the assessment. This provides a baseline that can help measure the child's progress over the years. Autism assessment tools are commonly used by Occupational Therapists. However there are some assessment tools available that can be tested by teachers and other health professionals. There are many different types of assessment tools because each one has a different focus.
The Merrill-Palmer Scale of Mental Tests
The Merrill-Palmer Scale of Mental Tests (MPSMT) assesses visual-spatial skills in children from one and a half years through to six years old. The test is also non-verbal. Children with autism often have problems with visual-spatial skills, and verbal expression. This test is helpful for testing children who have difficulty expressing themselves verbally.
The Test of Nonverbal Intelligence (2nd ed.)
The Test of Nonverbal Intelligence (2nd ed.) (TONI-II) is also a non-verbal test that assesses the ability for children to think and problem solve. The assessment is used from age five years and up. It takes 10-15 minutes to administer the test, and from this it is possible to assess intelligence and reasoning skills of the child. This test can also be used for people with hearing impairments because speech and hearing is not required.

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Comorbid Conditions

Many other medical conditions may occur along with autism. These comorbid conditions are also important in determining the diagnosis of autism. The comorbid conditions may be used to indicate autism; however, they do not have a direct effect in causing disabilities associated with autism. Autism is firmly diagnosed as a cognitive disability that starts in early childhood, continues through adulthood and has an effect on the development of imaginative, communication and social interaction skills.
Over 40 comorbidities have been associated with ASD. (Zafeiriou, Ververia, & Vargiamia, 2007) Some of the most common comorbid conditions are:
Anxiety Disorder
Anxiety disorders apart from those that are included in the autism disorders may occur, however it is difficult to say it is a comorbid anxiety problem.
Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder is also known as manic depressive disorder. It may have other comorbid conditions in itself.
Bowel Disease
Gastrointestinal symptoms are known to affect a large percentage of children with autism. Constipation and inflammation of the intestines are among the common bowel diseases that are comorbid with autism disorders.
Depression and other Psychopathological Disorders
Various phobias, depression and some psychopathological disorders are known to occur with autism, though this has not been examined systematically.
Fragile X Syndrome
This has an effect on two to five percent of the population with autism. In this condition one component of the X chromosome is defective, and therefore looks fragile when viewed under a microscope. If a child has Fragile X, then there are high chances that his or her sibling will have Fragile X.
ADHD
Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may co-occur in children with autism. The co-diagnosis of ASD and ADHD is prohibited by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th edition). ADHD treatments are not very successful among children with ASD. Other kinds of medication and therapies are required for its treatment.
Mental Retardation
Some individuals with mental retardation are reported to also have autism.
Neuroinflammation and Immune Disorders
Many comorbid conditions connected to autism may be triggered by some immune disorders. Recent findings have shown that neuroinflammation and immune disorders are present in the brain and cerebrospinal fluid of some patients with ASD.
Non-Verbal Learning Disorder
This is typified by a considerable difference between greater verbal scores and lower performance scores in IQ tests. Disabilities related to motor, social and visual-spatial skill are also noticed.
Motor Clumsiness
Children with autism frequently have low levels of motor handiness and they acquire motor skills in a delayed period. Coordination may be poor which may affect their posture, handwriting, etc. Conceptual learning skills are also affected by this.
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Recurring obsessive thought and actions may affect a child with autism. These are stereotyped repetitive behaviors that are not essentially enjoyable.
Tourette Syndrome
Tourette syndrome affects 6.5% people with autism. It may occur due to genetic factors or serotonin, glutamate and dopamine abnormalities.
Seizures
Seizures occur in one in four children with autism. It is caused by irregular electrical action in the brain, which can cause short-term unconsciousness, staring spells and body convulsions.
Sensory Problems
Sensory problems apart from the sensory symptoms of autism may occur as a comorbid condition. For instance damaged tactile perception is known to affect children with autism more than adults. Related motor problems such as poor motor planning may also occur.
Tuberous Sclerosis
This is an uncommon genetic disorder that causes benign tumors in the brain and other vital organs. One to four percent of people with autism are known to have tuberous sclerosis. 25 to 61% people with tuberous sclerosis may be diagnosed with autism.

References: Zafeiriou, D. I., Ververia, A., & Vargiamia, E. (2007). Childhood autism and associated comorbidities. Brain and Development, 29, 257-272.

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Learn Why Autistic Children Think in Pictures Instead of Words

Communication skills for autistic children differ from the norm, including their thinking process. Children with autism find words too busy, so it's easier to retain information through pictures. Through remembrance of pictures, autistic children are able to understand others and express themselves.
Autistic children learn verbal language by converting text to pictures. While typical thinkers do tasks sequentially, those with autism have a visual style of thinking. Therefore, shapes of pictures and color of pictures play an important role in the way they think. They help autistic children learn a vocabulary that is easier to express.
According to research, individuals with autism think visually because the part of the brain associated with visual tasks is more active. In addition, the language and spatial centers in the cortical regions of the brain are not as synchronized as those without the disorder.
Visual thinking allows children with autism to compensate for spoken and written words. Because their brains function differently, they can better comprehend things by building visuals and memorizing them. They take concepts, which are sensory rather than word based, and compartmentalize them into little details to form a whole picture.
Abstract words and ideas can be taught through visual concepts, like pictures and objects. For example, if a particular stuffed animal makes a child happy, it would become their visual symbol for the word happy. Bright colors for pictures can stimulate brain activity in the thinking process of autistic children.
Through spatial memory to pictures or objects, people with autism are able to associate the appropriate words and develop communication skills that allow them to function in society. It is easier to express themselves within a structured environment, because, they think visually, it's important that they are taught using visuals, such as pictures, objects, line drawings, or symbols.
A string of words or verbal instructions are learned through visual demonstration. For instance, the word "up" is easier to express in a picture of balloons in soft colors being lifted upward. Concrete visual methods, like flashcards and blocks in soft colors, are easier to retain among autistic children and help in teaching numbers and other concepts. Long verbal phrases need to be avoided or written down because autistic children have difficulty remembering a lot of steps or word sequences.
Research that compared the brain regions of people with autism to those without found that most people with autism excel in art and drawing. As such, autistic children do well with a color coded system that allows them to think through a remembrance of pictures. For example, an autistic child learns about what to do at an intersection by thinking of its concept. These thoughts are tiny color coded pictures of various types of intersections. When the situation arises, the mind gathers this information and presents it visually so the autistic child remembers what to do at an intersection.
Autistic children think in pictures instead of words because it is easier for them to sort and retain information. By associating a noun to the color and shape of pictures or objects, the autistic child creates a spatial way of thinking that makes it easier for them to comprehend and communicate.

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