Drawing a Blank: Improving Reading Comprehension in Good Decoders with Autism Spectrum Disorders...

Drawing a Blank: Improving Reading Comprehensionin Good Decoders with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Presented byEmily D. Iland, M.A.

Educational Consultant

[email protected]

www.readingautism.com

http://www.asdatoz.com/

http://www.readingautism.com/

A personal & professional perspective

Tom Iland, age 3 “In cannis corpore transmuto”

Our Agenda1. Examine the reading process and

comprehension2. Understand how features of ASD affect

comprehension3. Discuss issues in evaluation4. Identify skills that must be explicitly taught5. Share intervention ideas and techniques

tailored to the needs of readers ASD (new and used!)

Anticipated Outcomes

• Integrate theory and practice (what to know, what to do)

• Inform practice based on research findings• Gain skills and to help students or clients• Choose from tools you already have to focus

on this population

Be discerning & selective when reading comprehension

research, data, reports, techniques,recommendations, and strategies to determine

The Fit with ASD

View thru the

ASD lens

Based on the brand-new book

Drawing A Blank: Improving Comprehension for Readers on the Autism Spectrum

Autism Asperger Publishing Company

Examining the Reading Process: What is Reading?

R

Get on the same page to define, understand and measure reading!

Defining Reading

• Our definitions of reading guide our understanding and views

• Different reading assessments are based on different definitions of things like “comprehension”

The Simple View of Reading R = D x C

Reading is the product of the processes(x not +). It involves language and cognition.It is not as simple as it sounds, because the

processes of decoding and understanding are complex and inter-related

If you can Decode and have Linguistic Comprehension, you are reading!

Gough & Tunmer, 1986

The Simple View of Reading R = D x C

Problems can arise with D, C or both →

Problems with “D only” can be called dyslexia

Problems with “C only” can be called hyperlexia

(different than precocious hyperlexia)

HYPERLEXIA

“Strong mechanical word recognition with comparatively poor comprehension”

GOOD DECODING with POOR COMPREHENSIONIN PEOPLE WITH ASD

Grigorenko, E. L., Klin, A, Pauls, D. L., Senft, R., Hooper, C., & Volkmar, F. (2002). A descriptive study of hyperlexia in a clinically referred sample of children with developmental delays. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 32(1), 3-12.

Hyperlexia is a learning disability

Grigorenko, E. L., Klin, A., & Volkmar, F. (2003). Annotation: Hyperlexia: Disability or Superability? Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 44(8), 1079-1091.

GOOD DECODING with POOR

COMPREHENSIONIN PEOPLE WITH ASD

A more complex definition of reading National Reading Panel (2005), p.28 “A form of dynamic thinking [that] includes • interpreting information through the filter of one’s

own knowledge and beliefs, • using the author’s organizational plan to think about

information (or imposing one’s own organization on ideas),

• inferring what the author does not tell explicitly, as well as many other cognitive actions.”

What is comprehension?

The purpose and the essence of reading

C

R

Understand the Reading Process and Comprehension…

• To recognize the skills good readers possess• To recognize where the comprehension breakdown

can occur • To inform approaches to “repair”

Comprehension=Constructing Meaning

1. Understand the text at the word and sentence level, “word knowledge”

2. Identify relevant information


3. Relate, compare and integrate to what is already known a.k.a. “world knowledge” or prior knowledge

4. Internalize to own experience


5. Create a new construct or idea, the gist or meaning

6. Store the new idea7. Retrieve upon demand

Factors contributing to reading comprehension

• Fluent word recognition skills• Vocabulary knowledge• World knowledge• Comprehension monitoring• Active use of comprehension strategies

Pressley, M. (2001). Comprehension Instruction: What Makes Sense Now, What Might Make Sense Soon

http://www.readingonline.org/articles/handbook/pressley/

What good comprehenders do

• Know why they are reading• Understand the point• Relate to prior knowledge• Relate to other text• See cause and effect• Interpret characters’ actions and emotions• Understand the author’s intentions

What good comprehenders do• Monitor understanding• Use strategies flexibly and in combination

– Re-read– Look back

• Predict• Revise/repair• Infer• Summarize• Mark, highlight

5 types of reading comprehensionAll five types of reading comprehension may be challenges for readers with ASD who can decode but don’t understand

1.Literal2.Inferential3.Critical4.Affective5.Lexical

(Adapted from Salvia & Ysseldyke, 2004. Assessment in inclusive and special education, ninth edition. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.)

1. Literal comprehension

Understanding explicit material in text

2. Inferential comprehension

Understanding ideas beyond the literal text by interpreting, synthesizing and extending meaning

3. Critical comprehension

Meaning derived by evaluating, analyzing, and making judgments about material that was read.

4. Affective comprehension

Relating to the material at a personal and emotional level.

5. Lexical comprehension

Making sense of text by knowing the meaning of key vocabulary words.

What is ASD?How does ASD affect reading comprehension?

ASD

R C

The use of this slide pattern is a comprehension strategy This visual cue helps you follow the author’s organization of ideas.

The Autism Spectrum

Understanding why people with ASD have difficulty with reading comprehension is helpful in determining how to help them.

Interventions tailored to the needs of learners with ASD are more effective!

Efforts to remediate the core deficits and support other features can also improve the literacy skills that are affected by them.

B

S

C

The Context of Sensory

Sensitivities

Three Essential Characteristics

Neurobiological Causes©2011 Emily Iland, M.A.

Autism Spectrum Disorders Affect

S= social interaction and reciprocityB= Behavior, limited focus, interests or

motor mannerisms C= Communication, verbal and non-verbalGlobal= Sensory response to the world around

them

ASD affects the ability to spontaneously learn these things, but they can be taught

The Autism Spectrum

People are affected severely or less severely in the core areas & have different areas of strength.

The features of ASD can have pervasive effects on reading, learning, and applying what is learned though reading.

Autistic Disorder (299.00): Diagnostic Criteria:

A total of 6 of 12 featuresSocial

BehaviorCommunication

Qualitative impairments in communication at least one of these four:

(a) Delay in, or total lack of, the development of spoken language (not accompanied by an attempt to compensate through alternative mode of communication such as gesture or mime)

(b) In individuals with adequate speech, marked impairment in the ability to initiate or sustain a conversation with others

Qualitative impairments in communication at least one of four:

(c) Stereotyped and repetitive use of language or idiosyncratic language

(d) Lack of varied, spontaneous make-believe play or social imitative play appropriate to developmental level

CommunicationThe language-literacy link

• Understanding oral language• Language processing• Auditory processing

Difficulties with speaking, listening and understanding affect literacy:

reading and writing

The language-literacy link

• A different timeline/uneven development• Receptive and Expressive Vocabulary

(number of words) • Vocabulary Gap• Literal and concrete vs. figurative, abstract

and inferred• Difficulty with images, imagination & imagery

Communication & Language affect C

• Receptive and expressive vocabulary

• Language development

• Unfamiliar or unknown words interfere with understanding at the sentence and text level

• The development of lower level and higher level language skills affect comprehension at the word, sentence and text level.

© 2011 Emily Iland, M.A.Do not reproduce, duplicate or publish


• Understanding word meanings

• Children with autism may follow different stages in developing word meanings.

• Affects using word meaning to organize, categorize and recall information

• Difficulties may arise in the stages of over-generalization, generalization and multiple meanings.



• Interpretative language abilities

• Conceptualization, reasoning, and logical analysis skills – generating inferences– resolving ambiguity– understanding cause & effect– monitoring comprehension



• Recognizing and responding to nonverbal language

• Recognizing and interpreting nonverbal cues described in literature.

© 2011 Emily Iland, M.A.Do not reproduce or duplicate


• Difficulties with pronouns

• Problems understanding pronouns in print and understanding to whom the pronouns refer (anaphoric cuing).



• Difficulties in conversation skills, including asking questions

• Good readers ask questions before, during and after reading.

• Generating questions before reading helps establish purpose and focus.

• Questioning text while reading helps integrate the material with background knowledge.

• Questioning while reading is a way to monitor comprehension.

• After reading, good readers ask questions about the meaning of what they read and how to apply the information to their own lives. © 2011 Emily Iland, M.A.

Do not reproduce, duplicate or publish

Play as Communication affects C

• Lack of imitative play

• Lack of pretend play

• Lack of imagination

• Do not practice words and actions for a variety of real-life roles. The person may not recognize or understand those words and roles in stories.

• Can affect understanding of narratives, including plot, action, and cause-and-effect.

• Affects ability to understand and create visual images of unfamiliar or fantasy material.


Shades of Meaning ActivityNot all synonyms are created equal!

• Teaches synonyms, expands vocabulary• Reveals the hidden meaning behind words• Teaches connotation: the emotion and

intention attached to specific words• Clarifies the perspective and intention of

characters or the author (social thinking)

Shades of Meaning Activity - + =• Words can be positive, negative or neutral.• The added, hidden meaning can be light or

heavy.• The “heavy” meaning can be heavily positive

or heavily negative

Rating & Ranking Synonyms: Example

• Thrifty, frugal, stingy, economical• Rate +, –, or = (judgment or inferred meaning)• Rank from lightest to heaviest “emotional load”• Have the student write the words on a paint chip,

– neutral words first, – then light meaning – then heavy meaning (either heavily positive or heavily

negative)

Shades of Meaning Comprehension Activity

Form a group for this activity, 3-4 people.1. In a moment you will be given four words. Copy

them down.2. The Group will RATE EACH WORD as, positive,

negative or neutral by giving it a rating +, –, or =

3. Decide together how to RANK YOUR WORDS on the paint chip in order from the “lightest” to the “deepest” shade or intensity of meaning

Shades of Meaning RATE (+ – or =) & RANK (light to heavy)

• RED GROUP– SLENDER– ANOREXIC– THIN– SKINNY

• YELLOW GROUP– PLUMP– CURVY– OBESE– PLUS-SIZED

• GREEN GROUP– UGLY– UNATTRACTIVE– UNSIGHTLY– PLAIN

• BLUE GROUP– INTELLECTUAL– SHREWD– CLEVER– ASTUTE

Autism and Asperger SyndromeDiagnostic Criteria: Qualitative impairment in

social interaction (two of four features):

a) marked impairment in the use of multiple nonverbal behaviors such as eye-to-eye gaze, facial expression, body postures, and gestures to regulate social interaction

Autism and Asperger SyndromeDiagnostic Criteria

b) failure to develop peer relationships appropriate to developmental level


(c) a lack of spontaneous seeking to share enjoyment, interests, or achievements with other people (e.g., by a lack of showing, bringing or pointing out objects of interest)


(d) lack of social or emotional reciprocity

Shared emotion, social pacing Reciprocity: give and take

Social Features Affect C

• Limited play skills

• Limited shared enjoyment

• Limited joint attention

• Can affect cognitive development, learning and literacy

• Less shared social activity, including shared book reading with adults.

• May not pay attention to a shared object such as a book at the bidding of another.

• May not point to pictures or words to direct the reading partner’s interest.

© 2011 Emily Iland, M.A. Do not reproduce or duplicate

Social Features Affect C

• Limited social experiences

• Limited world knowledge and word knowledge affects literal comprehension.

• Can affect understanding of narratives, including – plot – action– cause-and-effect – prediction


Social Understanding Affects C

• Lack of social understanding

• Limited social skills

• People with ASD miss cues from the real-life environment or context and are likely to miss this in text.

• May have difficulty relating to characters and situations, integrating the story with personal experience.


Social understanding affects C

• Difficulty with social understanding

• Problems with perspective-takingTheory of Mind

(ToM)

• Can cause problems understanding appropriateness of character actions and reactions.

• Can affect social understanding of a character’s thoughts, feelings, behaviors and motivation, as well as interactions between characters.


Social Understanding Affects C

• Perspective-Taking(Theory of Mind)

• Recognizing deceit, lies, etc.

• Understanding the author’s view and intentions


Lack of Imagination affects C

• Extreme difficulty understanding text that is imaginative, beyond the scope of the person’s actual concrete experience WITH EXCEPTIONS

• One young man with ASD said, “If it hasn’t happened to me, my mind is a blank page.”

• Affects the ability to write creatively and inventively as well as understand invented realities in text.

• A common compensatory strategy is the reliance on safe, practiced, or borrowed responses that may appear novel or original (Doyle & Iland, 2004).


Comprehension IdeaDon’t ask “IF,” ask “WHEN”

• Relate to the KNOWN• Avoid the Unknown

Comprehension Activity: Two TrueSocial Thinking and Theory of Mind

1. In random order, write down two things about yourself that are true, AND one “believable lie” on an index card.

2. Find a partner. Exchange Cards. 3. Try to guess which statement is not true. Talk about

it! 4. Come back to order when the signal is given.

These instructions are written in a way that supports your comprehension.

3) restricted repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interests, and activities, at least one of four

(a) Encompassing preoccupation with one or more stereotyped and restricted patterns of interest that is abnormal either in intensity or focus

(b) Apparently inflexible adherence to specific, nonfunctional routines or rituals

3) restricted repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interests, and activities,

at least one of four

(c) Stereotyped and repetitive motor mannerisms (e.g., hand or finger flapping or twisting, or complex whole-body movements)

(d) Persistent preoccupation with parts of objects

R & R Behavior/intense interests:

• Range from typical but young, to eccentric

• Move thru different ones, simple to complex

• Focus on objects over people

R &R affects CPoverty of Experience

is not experienced only by the poor

• Perseveration: The knowledge and experience base in ASD are narrow and deep instead of shallow and wide

• Limited background knowledge and exposure to a wide range of topics…and the language that goes with it.

• Affects vocabulary, word knowledge, world knowledge and conversation

• Disinterest in stories about non-preferred topics, less motivation, less reading: – The MATTHEW EFFECT

R & R Affects C

• Exposure to a narrow range of topics

• Repeated exposure to the same topics

• Grade level or general interest material is less familiar (more difficult).

• Material may be less interesting or motivating


Specialists in a generalist world• May get stuck on a preferred topic.• Know less about other topics or subjects to relate to• Limits activities and interests to share with others (world

knowledge, word knowledge, social understanding).• Unexpected depth of knowledge in a specific area of interest

may limit conversation and cause social isolation

R & R Affects C

• Reading as the restricted and repetitive interest

• Reading can become a solitary, self-directed and isolating experience– (Reading together should expand joint

attention, shared enjoyment, vocabulary, and meaning).

© 2011 Emily Iland, M.A. Do not reproduce or duplicate

R & R Affects C• Limited general

fund of knowledge • Narrow focus of interest/

knowledge

• May understand less; may not understand knowledge, facts and vocabulary expected to be familiar (poverty of experience).

• “Connection” breaks down when the person has difficulty relating the new to the known (integration) then storing an idea to be retrieved later (memory).

• Can affect the ability to transfer or apply known material to new situations (generalization)


R & R Affects C

• Literal, specific and concrete understanding.

• Understanding can become narrowly “contextualized,” bound to direct experience

• Can affect generalization of knowledge from one setting to another.

• Difficulty understanding imaginative text that is beyond the scope of the person’s actual experience.


R & R Affects C• Restricted focus

• Self-stimulatory behaviors: motor mannerisms, insistence on sameness, rigid adherence to routine, etc.

• Difficulty with multiple meanings of words. Likely to have a single meaning related to their area of interest. (e.g. FORCE)

• Can limit productive, engaging behaviors that would widen a person’s scope of interaction, activities and knowledge.

• Can limit interest, attention, motivation, and focus.

• Can affect the benefit of reading, being read to, and discussion of literature.


Positives of “R&R” Comprehension IDEA

• Favorite and preferred topics and activities can be useful

• Preferred subjects can be chosen to illustrate points and practice skills.

• Focusing first on the preferred may be highly motivating.

• Benefit of rules, routines, and lists.

Comprehension IDEA: Roots, Suffixes and Affixes=

apply a formula to words

Teach how to break words into parts and memorize roots, affixes and suffixes

Of all the strategies we used, Tom reported that this was the breakthrough for him.

As always, it is wise to start by breaking down the parts of words from the person’s area of intense interest, whether it is Star Wars or weather or trains

Combine R&Rs with M&Msmemory & manipulatives

re sourceful

Roots, suffixes and affixes

The DISSECT mnemonic, (Lenz & Hughes, 1990)

• To understand multi-syllabic words and learn new vocabulary • Useful in content-specific texts such as science or social studies for longer

and more complex words• Seven steps include:

D discover the word's context. I isolate the prefix. S separate the suffix. S say the stem or root word. E examine the stem or root word. C check with someone. T try the dictionary.

See Bremer, Clapper and Deshler in “Improving Word Identification Skills Using Strategic Instruction Model (SIM) Strategies,” found at http://www.ncset.org/publications/printresource.asp?id=720

http://www.ncset.org/publications/printresource.asp?id=720

http://www.ncset.org/publications/printresource.asp?id=720

Cognitive/learning profile

• Understand how people with autism think to intervene effectively

• Be aware of common difficulties in the cognitive/learning profile to guide the search for answers

The obvious & hidden sides of ASD

Outward, observable behaviors described in the diagnostic criteria = developmental differences

Neurological evidence = explains causes & brain- based reasons for the developmental differences

Autism as a Disorder of Information ProcessingMinshew & Williams, 2008

Difficulty Processing Information

Autism as a Disorder of Complex Processing

• Processing multiple modalities• Multi-tasking• Social engagement, communication and

thinking are complex processes• Highest demands= greatest difficulty• Difficulty integrating a variety of information

at once (central coherence, comprehension)

Associated Features Affect C

• Central Coherence Getting the Big Picture

• Integrating the parts and the whole: Synthesis

• The GIST: getting the point• Separating relevant from

irrelevant• Understanding cause and

effect• Predicting, Inferring


• Executive Function

• Organize a goal-directed activity• Focus• Pay attention (to the right things)• Shift attention• Sense the order in the material• Sequence • Re-tell

Other Cognitive Processes Affect C

• Higher Level thinking Skills

• Metacognition (thinking about thinking

and learning about learning)

• Problem solving• Cognitive flexibility • Self monitoring• Self-regulation• Active use of strategies


• Visual Over-Stimulation

• Loses place easily when reading

• Can’t follow along when others read

• Has trouble finding answers to questions in text or with “Look Backs”

Text organizationTeach to preview text before diving into the

book. Find the visual clues- boldfaced words,

definitions. chapter headings, pictures, the type of text

Show the organization of text within chapters (show the author’s order)

Review: 5 types of reading comprehensionAll five types of reading comprehension may be challenges for readers with ASD who can decode but don’t understand

1. Literal comprehension – understanding explicit material in text.2. Inferential comprehension – understanding ideas beyond the

literal text by interpreting, synthesizing and extending meaning.3. Critical comprehension – meaning derived by evaluating, analyzing,

and making judgments about material that was read.4. Affective comprehension – relating to the material at a personal

and emotional level. 5. Lexical comprehension – making sense of text by knowing the

meaning of key vocabulary words.

(Adapted from Salvia & Ysseldyke, 2004. Assessment in inclusive and special education, ninth edition. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.)

What can we learn about the issues in Comprehension from research about ASD?

DATA

R C

The problemsSmith-Myles, 2002

– Independent and silent reading comprehension 1-6 grade levels behind

– frustration with independent reading & grade-level texts

– loss of motivation to read Nation & Norbury, 2005

65% of students with ASD had a comprehension deficit of at least 1 standard deviation and one-third had severe impairments.

O’Conner & Klein, 2004Below age-level comprehension

Holman, 2004

Holman’s subjects with hyperlexia and those with autism scored near the mean on standardized tests; the controls scored approximately 1.5 SDs higher.

While the standardized tests showed “average” comprehension near the mean, informal curriculum-based measures showed that the students with autism and hyperlexia were functioning at the frustration level in reading. (understanding of 70% or less of the material).

How do we assess and reveal comprehensionissues in readers with hyperlexia?

R CASD

?

We must find out where they struggle!

Comprehension problems are masked by:

1. Good decoding and fluency2. Understanding of concrete facts3. Good memory4. Superficial understanding5. Use of safe and borrowed responses6. How comprehension is measured7. Being re-taught at home

The Matthew Effect

In addition to their regular school reading, by grade four, students read one-half million words annually, including a good representation of grade-level-appropriate narrative and expository text (e.g., classic and contemporary literature, magazines, newspapers, online information). CDE

• The rich get richer and the poor get poorer• So TRUE for readers with ASD, especially at risk

around grade 3 to 4

Be discerning & selective choosing evaluation materials and methods to identify the comprehension gap

View thru the

ASD lens

Read the Test Manual!

• How is reading defined?• How is comprehension defined?• Does the test measure what you want to

measure?• What else can you do?

• Review records to see how comprehension was measured in the past to understand why the problem was not revealed

WJ-III Test 9 Reading Comprehension Manual pp.80-81.

“An independent measure requires reasonable expectation that subjects have prior familiarity with the words used in the passages and have knowledge of any concepts that are prerequisite for processing the passage contents.

If these conditions are not met the so-called passage comprehension is confounded with word recognition skills and knowledge.

Some tests of reading comprehension are actually tests of information processing that happen to use reading as the medium of communication.

Asking a subject to study a passage and then answer questions about the content, such as to state the author’s purpose or to predict what may happen next, does not tap into skills specific to reading. It taps language processing and cognitive skills…”

WJ-III Test 9 Reading Comprehension Test Manual pp.80-81.

“However scores from such tests do not measure the essence of reading comprehension, but instead reflect performance on a confounded language processing task with indeterminate diagnostic results.

A program of remedial instruction planned for a subject may be ineffective if it is assumed that the problem is the subject’s reading skill when the problem is actually a symptom of a broader language processing skill.”

EMILY NOTES: (Reading this, and knowing that students with ASD may perform in the average range in this test makes me wonder if maybe we should be measuring broader language skills to get to the bottom of the comprehension issue in ASD!).

Cloze procedure

Does a cloze procedure really reveal how well a person reads and understands authentic text?

– Full pages?– Chapters?– Whole books?

Comprehension problems, revealed

1. Problems understanding what was heard2. Difficulty with abstract concepts and

inference (beyond concrete and personal)3. Not being able to summarize, identify the

main idea, retell events, or sequence text4. Difficulty answering questions, expanding on

answers, finding the answers in text5. Not being able to write about what was read

or said (including doing homework)Drawing a Blank

Comprehension problems, revealed6. Difficulty following directions7. Informal measures or the right standardized

assessments8. Language testing vs. academic testing9. When we don’t average results!

WJIII Passage Comprehension PR 1Reading Vocabulary PR 81“Tom’s performance is average in reading comprehension.”

10. Look at Standards and Expectations for several grades

REVIEW STATE STANDARDSSource: CA Dept of Education

Standard 2.0 Reading Comprehension Students read and understand grade-level-appropriate material. They draw upon a variety of comprehension strategies as needed (e.g., generating and responding to essential questions, making predictions, comparing information from several sources). The selections in Recommended Literature, Kindergarten Through Grade Twelve illustrate the quality and complexity of the materials to be read by students.

REVIEW STATE STANDARDS

Structural Features of Informational Materials 2.1 Use titles, tables of contents, and chapter headings to locate information

in expository text. Comprehension and Analysis of Grade-Level-Appropriate Text 2.2 State the purpose in reading (i.e., tell what information is sought).2.3 Use knowledge of the author’s purpose(s) to comprehend informational

text. 2.4 Ask clarifying questions about essential textual elements of exposition

(e.g., why, what if, how). 2.5 Restate facts and details in the text to clarify and organize ideas.2.6 Recognize cause-and-effect relationships in a text. 2.7 Interpret information from diagrams, charts, and graphs. 2.8 Follow two-step written instructions.

California Department of Education Standards for Language Arts, Grade 3Found at http://www.cde.ca.gov/be/st/ss/

Dibels Data System- Vocabulary Instruction for K https://dibels.uoregon.edu/c_maps.php#2_comp

https://dibels.uoregon.edu/c_maps.php

Dibels Data System- Vocabulary Instruction Map for grade 3https://dibels.uoregon.edu/c_maps.php#2_comp


Dibels Data System https://dibels.uoregon.edu/c_maps.php

Download a PDF version of the curriculum maps for Kindergarten - Third Grade

Adapted Curriculum maps in Drawing A Blank


https://dibels.uoregon.edu/docs/curriculum_maps.pdf

Comprehension problems revealed in the use of context

• Homographs. The dove circled the pool and dove into the water.

• Poor ability to effectively identify the correct pronunciation of homographs while reading sentences (Frith & Snowling, 1983; Happe, 1997).

• Difficulty resolving ambiguity, including with pronouns: Sarah said hello to her mother when she came in and put her purse on her sofa. (anaphoric cueing).

Focused Intervention

• Define specific reading problems• Find effective ways to address them.• Tailor intervention to the learning style and needs• Use known strengths: concrete, visual, spatial,

routine

Two types of comprehension instruction

Comprehension instruction necessary for understanding the immediate story

Comprehension instruction that teaches strategies learners can apply on their own

Both are critical for learners with special needs, including ASD!

Be very aware of pre-requisite skills!!!

Emily’s List: 30 Skills to teach explicitlyculled from the research- See Drawing A Blank

1. Build vocabulary2. Categorize objects in terms of concepts3. Know and use multiple meanings of words4. Recognize the connotation of synonyms5. Understand double meanings (jokes, irony)6. Use context to read homographs7. Understand non-literal meaning (idioms, metaphors)8. Separate relevant from irrelevant ideas9. Identify the main idea 10. Summarize main ideas or plot (retell, sequence)

© 2011 Emily Iland, M.A. Do not reproduce, distribute or publish


11. “Recode,” or “activate the word meaning in memory” 12. Integrate background/personal knowledge13. Clarify/resolve ambiguity 14. Understand metaphors15. Use organization of text16. Preview/prepare to read17. Analyze characters and their intentions18. Understand the author’s intention 19. Self-monitor understanding20. Use comprehension strategies



21. Find factual information22. Answer questions23. Infer24. Use context clues25. Understand cause and effect26. Predict27. Draw conclusions28. Visualize 29. Code information through the verbal system (logogens) 30. Code information in the nonverbal system (imogens)


What Does Research Tell Us About Comprehension Intervention

for Readers with ASD?

DATA

R CASD

National Reading Panel Report

• The recommendations are general, not specific to students with ASD.

• The NRP specifically eliminated all studies that focused on special needs populations from their analysis.

• The specific focus of the panel review, which can be considered a limitation of the Panel findings or application of recommendations.

http://www.csun.edu/~hda75098/Comprehensionstrategiestable.html- a chart of the data on comprehension strategies studied by the NRP

http://www.csun.edu/~hda75098/Comprehensionstrategiestable.html-

Limited Research• There has been VERY LIMITED research into

comprehension issues in autism, or in effective methods for improving comprehension.

• VERY FEW reading studies include subjects with autism or Asperger Syndrome.

• Studies including subjects with ASD have been SMALL

• In a review of the literature about reading comprehension instruction, Chiang and Lin (2007) identified 754 articles potentially relevant to the topic. – Of these, only 11 had at least 1 participant with ASD. – No studies had participants with Asperger Syndrome.

Tailoring intervention to ASD

Strategies used with students with ASD must take into account both the general cognitive profile as well as individual variations (O’Connor and Klein, 2004).

Methods helpful to students with other learning differences may be appropriate for some students with ASD

Some methods that work for those with other learning differences will not be effective for those with ASD

Avoid strategies that are NOT a good fit to ASD

Not recommended:• Dictionary definitions • Having students read text and answer questions (not

an instructional method)

May not work (O’Connor and Klein, 2004) • Activation of prior knowledge • Cloze task

Research says YES to…

• Informative title and primer passage (pre-teaching facts)- Wahlberg, Wahlberg &

Magliano• Related narratives- Colasent & Griffith• Anaphoric Cuing- O’Conner & Klein

Research says YES to…

A visual of the same ideas

Primer passages

• Primer passages- just the facts• Tip: ELL materials often contain primer

passages

PRIMER PASSAGE Example: Basic facts about oceans (extracted from the passage, “Looking at the Seas”)

1. Our Earth is a water plane. 71% of its surface is water. This is why earth is called the “water planet.”

2. There are four main oceans, the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian and Arctic.

3. Some people think there is a fifth ocean around Antarctica.

4. All oceans and seas are connected and the same water travels through them all.

5. A long time ago, all the land on our planet might have been grouped closely together.

Looking at the Seas If you look down at our planet from outer space, most of

what you see is water; 71% of the planet’s surface is covered by ocean and it is because of this that the Earth is sometimes called “the water planet.” Only about three-tenths of our globe is covered with land.

The ocean wraps the globe and is divided into four major regions: the Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean and the Arctic Ocean. Some scientists consider the waters around Antarctica to be a separate, fifth ocean as well. These oceans, although distinct in some ways, are all interconnected; the same water is circulated throughout them all.

Primer passage & informative title- Pre-reading Strategy

1. Provide a clear title for a passage that does not have a title or is unclear.

EXAMPLE: rename a passage about the Olympics with an ambiguous title such as “A Personal Best” to “Racing for the Gold.”

2. Prepare a primer passage that contains all of the main ideas of the passage to be read.

Wahlberg and Magliano (2004).

Primer passage & informative title- Pre-reading Strategy

3. After reading a primer passage, ask readers to notice the title again, and make a link between the title of the selection to be read and the primer passage. This connection serves as an anchor to help readers focus on information relevant to the passage to be read.

4. After reading, discuss with the reader how the primer passage, the title and the passage itself all relate to one another.

Wahlberg and Magliano (2004).

ActivitiesRelated to Primer Passages• Prepare questions to guide reading• Search for evidence to questions

Related narrative passages (Colasent and Griffith, 1998).

• Adolescent students with autism were more successful with recall and oral retelling when thematic stories were used as content.

• Drawing and writing about the stories improved retelling even more.

• The students were able to relate information from one rabbit story to another (text to text).

• Thematic stories, multiple exposures, and reading aloud may also benefit individuals with poor verbal skills or weak auditory comprehension.

Comprehension IDEA Who? Whom? Whose? Teaching Anaphoric Cueing

Addresses these comprehension skills…

• Difficulty with pronouns• Self-monitoring of understanding• Asking questions • Clarification of ambiguity

Examples

My mother and I are baking a birthday cake. We want to surprise grandma.

Geraldo and Scott have been friends for a long time. They are on the same baseball team.

The teacher saw that Emily did not bring a lunch and asked, “Do you have money to buy lunch?”

Who? Whom? Whose? Teaching Anaphoric Cueing

Teach the skill• Highlight possessive pronouns in a short text.• Decide what noun or person is referred to in each example. • Read the passage together AFTER clarification

Practice the skill• Stop while reading to clarify

Independent practice• Monitor use of the strategy while reading

Next steps

Practice the skill• Stop while reading to clarify (think aloud)

Independent practice• Monitor use of the strategy while reading

Comprehension IDEA Who? Whom? Whose?

Teaching Anaphoric Cueing- Word® Version

• Cut and paste the same text into a Word ® document 3 times

• Use “find and replace” to substitute names and possessives for subject pronouns and possessive pronouns

What are some other promising intervention ideasbased on research and evidence about ASD?

?

R CASD

Promising Practices:How is Vocabulary Best Taught

to students with ASD?

Direct, explicit instruction of unfamiliar or key words BEFORE reading (during or after are second choices).

Choose KEY words important to understanding that will be encountered often.

Focus on words with multiple meanings.

Homographs: Words that look alike but don’t sound alike. She had a tear in her eye when she got a tear in her dress.

Comprehension IDEA The Synonym Strategy

• Grows vocabulary, self-monitoring, pre-reading skills, multiple meanings, parts of speech

• A tool to instantly clarify word meanings- without a “dictionary”

• User-friendly and fast • Takes the dic-straction out of the equation

The Synonym Strategy

1. Type a selected text (paragraph or passage) into a word processing document. (The student may also be the typist).

The boys were uncertain about what to do next. They had never seen a cadaver, much less had one blocking their egress.


2. Ask the student to pre-read the text and use the computer to highlight any words he or she does not know.


The Synonym Strategy3. For each highlighted word, have the student

right click the computer mouse. The computer will offer a synonym. Have the student click on a word that he or she recognizes and knows the meaning of; it will automatically be substituted into the text.

The boys were unsure about what to do next. They had never seen a dead body, much less had one blocking their way out.


4. Have the student read the text with the substituted, familiar words in place of the unfamiliar words. See if the selected substitute words make sense. Check for understanding of the passage with the synonyms in place.

The boys were unsure about what to do next. They had never seen a dead body, much less had one blocking their way out.

The Synonym Strategy an original idea by EI

5. Finally, ask the reader to read the original text and check for understanding.


Benefits of the Synonym Strategy

• Defines words in context• Links the unknown with the known • Quick and easy• Maintains the train of thought• A useful tool for life

Comprehension IDEA: Use objects

• Jackdaw Sets © • Great for hand-on, concrete understanding of

obscure or essential objects• Students can create their own sets• Pre-reading strategy• Builds vocabulary

Comprehension IDEA Technology Visuals

• Voice threads: Still photos with narrationwww.voicethread.com

• Google Images- A picture is worth 1,000 words -examples pillory, hod, albatross

Visual Strategies

• Highlighting – Removable highlight tape– Buy used books already highlighted

While reading:Teach Self-monitoring of Understanding

• Highlight • Draw• Fill in graphic organizers• Look for answers to questions

• Hand graphic organizer free at http://freeology.com/graphicorgs/page4.php

Comprehension IDEA: Media Strategies

• Show movies before reading books• Read plays before reading books

www.imsdb.com www.simplyscripts.com

• Summarize and sequence the events• Analyze the plot, characters, themes &

vocabulary before looking at the same elements in text.

• Turn on the closed captions on the TV “mapping of speech onto print”

http://www.imsdb.com/

http://www.simplyscripts.com/



Our Accomplishments Today

• Examined the reading process• Understand how features of ASD affect

comprehension• Identified skills to teach explicitly • Practiced strategies & techniques• Have more tools!• Achieved a greater comprehension of the

issue and What To Do

Integrate what you now know about comprehension, hyperlexia, & the person with ASD to select promising comprehension

techniques and strategies!

Your View thru the

ASD lens

Drawing a Blank: Improving Reading Comprehension in Good Decoders with Autism Spectrum Disorders...

Documents

Transcript of Drawing a Blank: Improving Reading Comprehension in Good Decoders with Autism Spectrum Disorders...