Is the autism “epidemic” truly a national and even global crisis, as news media have reported, or has autism become the most popular medical diagnosis, as was the case with Attention-Deficit Disorder (ADD) in the ‘90s? A recent study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated that 1 in 88 children in the U.S. have an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). This indicates doubling, tripling, and in some areas of the country, even quadrupling rates of autism in children since the last statistics were made available.

Some neuropsychologists and education experts question the reliability of the results of the CDC study. The estimates have generated a heated debate as to whether or not the dramatic increases are real or are instead attributed to misdiagnoses, greater awareness among educators and pediatricians, an expanded definition of autism spectrum disorders or a combination of these factors.

A substantial body of recent research reaffirms the growing prevalence of ASD. A landmark study released May 1, 2012 by Princeton University and the Brookings Institution found that over the past several decades, the rates of developmental, behavioral and mental-health disorders in children in special education programs are increasing much faster than and are more prevalent than physical disabilities. One in five parents report their child has Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). ASD affects about 6 percent of all special education students, up from 2 percent over the last decade.

Much of the debate has centered on the rate at which the numbers of children with ASD is increasing. The CDC study’s author has stated that the results were intended as a snapshot, not as a rule. The discussion has focused on defining the problem instead of finding good solutions. We must take a new stance, beginning with a discussion about how to alter the long term impact of increased autism rates.

The national crisis is not about numbers. Much more pressing is the inability to provide access to vital services like early intervention, developmentally appropriate resources, special education teachers and specialists like speech pathologists. The Autism Society estimates costs associated with autism over a lifetime at 3.2 million dollars per person. Sixty percent of those costs are for adult services. The cost of lifelong care can be reduced by 2/3 with early diagnosis and intervention beginning as early as age two.

The Digest of Education Statistics reports that the majority of children with disabilities attend regular public schools, schools that already struggle to fund existing programs. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires that all children must receive equal access to an education that will prepare them for college and a career, placing the burden on public schools when parents cannot afford private care.

Special education programs cost tens of thousands of dollars annually per child. School district budgets are already stretched thin to meet the needs of children who do not receive such services. Schools and teachers are rarely equipped with the necessary staff and resources to handle spiking numbers of students with behavioral, developmental and mental-health disabilities like autism.

Typically developing students in the U.S. already lag behind their peers in other countries. High school graduates struggle to place high enough on college entrance exams to qualify for admission. If our system is floundering to adequately educate typically developing students, how will we fare in 10 – 15 years when the growing population of children with special abilities face eligibility tests required for high school graduation, college admission boards and job interviews?

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) reports that in 2009, 44% of students with autism attended postsecondary school, compared to 59% of all students with disabilities. Additionally, less than one third of people with ASD were competitively employed in 2009.

What kind of drastic changes to our education system are going to be required; and how do we implement them fast enough to head off the negative impacts that holes in our current system will have for the growing population of children with ASD? Can an emphasis on appropriate early intervention support students with special abilities?

If you are interested in this topic and have questions about autism in the preschool classroom, please  sign up to attend the webinar that will take place today, May 17, 2012 at 2:00 p.m. EST with Dr. Mike Assel, “Autism in the Preschool Classroom.” Dr. Assel is a leading expert in the field of pediatric autism at the University of Texas-Health Sciences Center’s Children’s Learning Institute. If you cannot attend, please still register and you will be provided with a link to the archive.

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Kami Periman

The Great American Animal Adventure

Blog #1 Spring is For the Birds!

By Larry Lawrence, Hatch® Animal Adventures Reporter

In the spring, love is in the air…and so are a lot of busy birds! Inside birds’ nests on tree branches high up in the air, baby birds are hatching, growing up and then flying away.

I was lucky enough this year to witness such an event firsthand. A pair of Robins built a nest in a tree within ten feet of my front door. I decided that this was a special opportunity to document the growth of baby birds from the day they hatched until they were big enough to leave the nest.

I placed my camcorder on a ladder/tripod combination so I could zoom in from a safe distance without bothering the Robin family. I took a video clip almost every day after they hatched. You can watch them eat, grow, chirp, spread their wings and later, leave the nest.
I have edited and pieced the clips together into one ten-minute time lapse video that teachers can access online to show students how mother and father birds nurture their babies as they grow up in the nest.

For more information about Robins, visit these useful links:
http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Robin/id
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/505655/robin

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Larry Lawrence

New Jersey is one of 25 states that now require high school seniors to pass standardized tests to determine if they are ready for college and careers. The exams test their understanding of concepts based on fundamental reading and math skills. In New Jersey, students who are now in fifth grade will be the first class required to pass the graduation eligibility tests.

It makes sense that New Jersey would be an initial adopter of this type of accountability program, since the state’s Abbott preschool program sets the national standard as a model for quality pre-K. The majority of students who will be tested in New Jersey were introduced to basic skills at an early age, in developmentally appropriate early childhood programs.

But what about the other 24 states? And the states yet to follow this trend? Although designed with the best intentions in mind, requiring high school seniors to pass multiple tests at the end of their public school career can be too little—way too late—if they aren’t prepared with the tools to succeed.

Research published in Science and Science Express journals on the long-term benefits of pre-K strongly and repeatedly show that preparation for success in college, career and life begins with high quality, developmentally appropriate practices in early education. How can we expect high school seniors to pass these tests when they were not introduced to fundamental cognitive concepts in pre-K?

States are anticipating that expensive intervention programs will be required, including new summer school programs, so that the majority of students will be eligible to graduate. These late-intervention programs are far more expensive than the cost of providing quality pre-K programs. Like the man who built his house on sand, America cannot expect our children to pass a wave of last-minute testing when they were never given a strong foundation on which to stand in the first place.

What are your thoughts? Should states require students to pass standardized tests to graduate high school?

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Kami Periman

It’s easy for traditional teaching strategies that utilize play-based classroom centers to get lost in the shuffle as teachers face constantly changing curriculum and assessment directives.

The Dramatic Play learning center is a classroom favorite that provides natural opportunities to develop social and emotional skills in real-life situations. Role-play activities such as puppet shows, dress up and pretend cooking engage children in interactions where they learn and practice appropriate behavior and successful social skills.

Like a healthy boost to your classroom environment, Dramatic Play activities are the Vitamin C of behavioral development and benefit any early learning curriculum.

Benefits of Dramatic Play

• Play is Positive. Play is enjoyable, but often underestimated for the unique positive influence it provides for social and emotional development, cognitive growth, language and vocabulary experiences and physical development.
• The Big Picture. Dramatic Play offers children immeasurable opportunities to learn about themselves, others, the environment in which they live and the environments that peers, characters (from books, movies, poems and so on) and teachers inhabit.
• Express Yourself. Dramatic Play promotes expressive language. Children are motivated to express their wants and needs to peers and speak from the perspective of pretend roles. Withdrawn or shy children may begin to express themselves through this learning center.
• Coping Mechanism. Dramatic Play provides children with relief from tension or stressful situations. Although adults usually cope with stress by retelling information, children replay events. For example, if a child experiences the loss of a pet he might reenact the event in a variety of ways in order to make sense of it.
• Self-Empowerment. Reenacting emotional experiences empowers children. It is common for children to take on the role of the most “powerful” people in their own life such as their parents, grandparents and teachers.
• Put Yourself in My Place. Dramatic Play encourages empathy as children learn to “see” themselves in someone else’s shoes.

See my previous blog “Bring Reality into Play” for examples of fun, cross-curricular Dramatic Play activities that reinforce these benefits.

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Jenne Parks

Dramatic Play activities enable children to fit the reality of the world into their own interests and knowledge. Creating opportunities for interaction can be simplified with appropriate product selection. Integrating products from other centers in Dramatic Play activities will reinforce basic concepts.

Below is a list of fun dramatic play ideas linked to recommended research-based product solutions:

Veterinarian’s Office

✔  Veterinarian kit

✔  Animal puppets

✔  Pet manipulatives

✔  Delightful Dog Tales Book Collection

✔  Peculiar Pets Book Collection

Hospital, Doctor, Dentist (new babies, illnesses, etc.)

✔  Nurse costume

✔  Surgeon hand puppet

✔  Visiting the Doctor Theme Books

✔  Doctor costume

✔  Doctor kit

✔  Learning About Our Bodies Book Collection

✔  A Visit to Book Collection with Read Aloud Labels

X-Ray Room

✔  Human body x-rays

✔  Photo/X-ray Cards

✔  Light Box

✔  Human body poster

Airplanes

✔  Pilot costume

✔  Airplane

✔  Airport

Car wash

✔  Gas station with car wash

✔  Wooden Vehicles

✔  Mechanic Costume

Kitchen

✔  Kitchen Center

✔  Cooking Set

✔  Slicing Fruits & Vegetables

✔  Toddler Play Food

✔  Food Groups Play Food

✔  Sorting Pie

“My Plate” Restaurant

✔  Menus

✔  Waiter and Waitress Costumes

✔  Healthy Breakfast Foods

✔  Healthy Lunch Foods

✔  Healthy Dinner Foods

✔  Healthy Helpings Game

✔  Tableware

✔  Ethnic Tableware

✔  Eat Your Colors Book Collection

My School

✔  School Set

✔  Teacher Puppet

✔  Going to School Book Collection

Garden

✔  Gardening Tools

✔  Gardening Gloves

✔  Classroom Greenhouse

✔  Vegetable Garden Kit

✔  Farmer’s Market Color Sorting Set

✔  Counting Fruits & Vegetables

Homemade Forts

✔  Play Tent

✔  Fishing Set

✔  Camping Set

Theater

✔  Dramatic Play Center

✔  Puppet Theatre

✔  Big Mouth Career Puppets

✔  Community Helper Hand Puppets

✔  Diverse Family Puppets

Construction and Road Work Zone

✔  Construction Worker Costume

✔  Safety Worker Puppet

✔  Block Play Traffic Signs

✔  Transportation Lacing Cards

✔  Transportation Book Collection

Habitat for Humanity Store

✔  Shopping Cart

✔  Cash Register

✔  Big Tape Measure

✔  Wooden Project Workshop

✔  Tool Case

Join children as they play and allow your role to shift as you follow the lead of your students. Savor every moment as you observe, learn and play.

See “Boost Social-Emotional Skills with Classic Dramatic Play Activities” to see how Dramatic Play activities are the Vitamin C of behavioral development and benefit any early learning curriculum.

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Jenne Parks

There is growing recognition of the importance of incorporating technology in meaningful and authentic ways into classroom curriculum and day-to-day practices, and of the teacher’s crucial role in the full development and use of technology in the early childhood classroom. The May issue of the Young Children journal from the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) focuses on the topic “Technology and Young Children” and includes an article I wrote with my colleague Susan B. Gunnewig, “Finding the Education in Educational Technology with Early Learners”. In the article we discuss how to identify appropriate educational technology and how to integrate that technology in early learning classrooms to generate significant impacts on learning outcomes.

 Key elements and factors involved in using technology in a classroom setting are addressed, including access to technology and to what extent the hardware and software are developmentally appropriate and interactive. We highlight cognitive, technical and active scaffolding, the aspects of learning most directly affected by technology, and how to support and build a balanced, technology-inclusive learning environment.

The article outlines the importance of active planning for effective technology integration and increased child engagement. We also demonstrate the importance of first setting specific learning goals for any technology-based activity. We discuss why quantitative results from a progress monitoring system are critical, how they can indicate learning outcomes, and what constitutes appropriate progress monitoring.

Read the article online to also download the eBook which accompanies and includes the Toolkit that can assist in the technology evaluation process.

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Dr. Dale McManis

An Interview with Dr. Mike Assel

I’m excited for our upcoming Super-Power Webinar with Dr. Mike Assel of the Children’s Learning Institute, particularly as we are former colleagues. Mike Assel is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and a clinical psychologist. In addition to his research and publishing activities, Dr. Assel routinely evaluates children with a range of developmental differences, such as autism spectrum. I am pleased to have had the chance to ask him a few questions about the subject of the webinar, which will be “Autism in the Pre-School Classroom.” 

 Me (Dr. McManis): While we know it is a complex area, would you be able to give us a basic definition of autism?

Dr. Assel: Here is my short definition.  Autism is generally considered to be a disorder of neural development characterized by difficulties in 3 areas.

1. Social (e.g., lack of eye gaze, difficulty using gestures, failure to develop peer relationships, lack of social or emotional reciprocity).
2. Impairments in communication (e.g., language delay, difficulty initiating or sustaining conversation, stereotyped language).
3. Restrictive, repetitive, and  stereotyped patterns of behavior (e.g., obsessive and compulsive behaviors, stereotyped motor mannerisms, preoccupation with parts of objects).

Also, the following is from NIMH (The National Institute of Mental Health) and is helpful in defining this area:

What is autism spectrum disorder (ASD)?

Autism is a group of developmental brain disorders, collectively called autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The term “spectrum” refers to the wide range of symptoms, skills, and levels of impairment, or disability, that children with ASD can have. Some children are mildly impaired by their symptoms, but others are severely disabled.

ASD is diagnosed according to guidelines listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition – Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR). The manual currently defines five disorders, sometimes called pervasive developmental disorders (PDDs), as ASD:

• Autistic disorder (classic autism)
• Asperger’s disorder (Asperger syndrome)
• Pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS)
• Rett’s disorder (Rett syndrome)
• Childhood disintegrative disorder (CDD).

Me: Why is it important for those who work in early childhood to be aware of autism?

Dr. Assel: It is incredibly important for EC professionals to understand ASDs.  This is due to the fact that in some places (e.g., Texas) the age of diagnosis for ASDs is very late (e.g., age 5).  If EC teachers know the symptoms they can help families/children receive appropriate intervention services.

Me: What are some of the elements that best support children with autism in early childhood classrooms?

Dr. Assel: Due to the fact that children with ASDs are so varied in terms of their presentations, this is an extremely difficult question.  For instance, some children with mild forms of the disorder might be quite successful in mainstream pre-K classrooms without any significant teacher supports.  In contrast, children with more severe forms of the disorder will likely need significant teacher supports.  EC teachers should be provided training and support from their school districts and programs in terms of intervening appropriately for children on the spectrum.  In general, one would hope that the child’s Individualized Education Plan (IEP) would provide the classroom teacher with guidance surrounding which classroom activities should be encouraged.  For instance, the IEP should specify the types of activities that need to be encouraged within the classroom (e.g., pulling for eye contact or imitating sounds).  Teachers should be provided with the types of training/interventions that will be used to elicit these behaviors and ways to track progress.  One of the most important things for EC teachers to do is to ask (or maybe scream) for help when they need assistance in terms of developing appropriate educational activities for children with ASDs.

Me: What will be some of the key areas you will address that participants can look forward to in your Webinar ‘Autism in the Pre-School Classroom’ on May 17?

Dr. Assel:

- What is the Autistic Spectrum and why is this important?

- What is a teacher to do when they suspect that a child in their classroom MIGHT have an ASD?

- What happens during assessments for children with suspected ASDs?

- The role of the classroom teacher as an advocate for children with ASDs.

We thank Dr. Mike Assel for his time and comments, and look forward to his upcoming webinar. Register for the webinar soon!

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Dr. Dale McManis

In previous posts, I discussed what progress monitoring is and how we know it works. I’d like to dive a little deeper to give you 5 easy steps for monitoring child progress in your education program.

1. Identify Goals for Learning
In order to know if you’ve achieved success, you must identify the goals that will take place over time. These goals should be specific, discrete, measurable, attainable and amenable to change for intervention.

2. Determine Current Levels of Performance
There are several ways to assess current learning that can be collected by both the teacher and computer software designed to capture child progress. Collect pieces up front as a baseline (like work samples, photos, video, and observation notes) to illustrate current skills and behaviors.

3. Measure Performance on a Regular Basis
Once at the beginning and once at the end of a program is not enough to inform instruction, but too much measurement is burdensome on the teacher and it’s less likely to happen consistently. Usually collecting progress data bi-weekly or monthly is appropriate, but it will depend on each goal you are trying to measure. The more fine grained the goal, the more often it needs to be measured.

4. Compare Expected and Actual Rates of Learning
In order to determine if progress towards meeting specific goals is happening, you must compare the expected and actual rates of learning. Connecting the baseline performance to the learning goal offers a visual reminder of how rapidly individual children are expected to increase performance. This allows teachers the ability to continually compare each child’s projected and actual rates of progress so that instruction can be adjusted.

5. Adjust Instruction Accordingly
This is where teachers apply the data accordingly. As knowledge gaps are determined, teachers can differentiate instruction to meet the individual needs of children individually and in small groups. When progress is not being met according to the expected rate, a change in the program by the instructor may need to be made.

Key to Success: making sure your teachers are adequately trained and supported to monitor progress. Teachers need support in the form of materials and training, and may also need assistance in finding and designing measures, setting goals, developing interventions, and finding time to both measure and implement.

I hope these steps help you improve the efforts you may already be making towards monitoring progress in your early childhood programs or to get started on the right foot. Just follow the steps above, be conservative in how much data you collect and keep data in a comfortable format. Remember, practice makes perfect!

To learn more about the scientifically-based practice of progress monitoring, visit:

• Center for Early Education & Development
• Center for Response to Intervention in Early Childhood
• National Center for Student Progress Monitoring

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Dr. Dale McManis

Research has demonstrated that when teachers engage in the progress monitoring of their students, the children learn more, the decision making of the teacher improves, and children become more aware and reflective of their own performance. A large body of research carried out over the past three decades shows progress monitoring predicts, in a valid and reliable way, subsequent performance on a number of outcome measures (Shapiro 2008). This makes it very relevant and important for instructional decisions.

Studies have observed:

• A significant improvement in contextual conventions and contextual language (McMaster, Wayman, Deno, Espin & Yeo 2010)
• A significant improvement for quantity discrimination and mixed numeracy (Olson & Foegen, 2009)
• An average gain of 5.75 normal curve equivalent unites on math assessment—six times the rate of growth over the prior school year (Spicuzza & Ysseldyke 1999)
• Children were significantly better at decoding, fluency, and comprehension (Fuchs, Deno, Mirkin 1984)

The University of Oklahoma, Sooner T.A.L.K. (Teachers Advocating Literacy to Kids), 2002 Early Reading First Cohort demonstrated that before progress monitoring, children were showing no significant improvements in learning pre-literacy skills, but with progress monitoring, the gains were tremendous.

Results such as these demonstrate that conducting progress monitoring is an important and worthwhile activity. For more on what progress monitoring is and 5 simple steps to monitor child progress, please see my other blog posts.

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Dr. Dale McManis

NAEYC (The National Association for the Education of Young Children) hosts their annual “Week of the Young Child” event to raise awareness about early childhood education. This year’s theme is “Healthy Minds! Healthy Children.” Rasmussen College put together the following infographic about child growth and development. Take a look at the included fundamentals of early learning, and celebrate NAEYC’s Week of the Young Child!

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Ginny Norton

Progress monitoring is vital to effective early learning instruction and the key to improving child outcomes.

Monitoring a child’s progress is a scientifically-based practice for assessing their performance and evaluating the effectiveness of instruction. It’s cyclical, targeted, standardized and individualized to each child.

When progress monitoring is well implemented, the benefits can include:

• Appropriate child expectations
• Accelerated child learning
• Documentation of child progress
• More efficient communication with others

The children learn more, the teacher’s instruction and decision making improves, and the children become more aware and reflective of their own performance.

However, without a way to accurately and consistently know how children are performing and moving toward the school readiness goals, the teaching and learning cycle is incomplete. For more on this, please see my other blog post on how we know progress monitoring works.

What Progress Monitoring Entails
To implement progress monitoring, current levels of performance are determined and goals are identified for learning that will take place over time. Performance is measured on a regular basis and progress toward meeting the goals for the child is measured by comparing expected and actual rates of learning. Instruction is then adjusted based on this information and to best meet the individual child’s learning needs (Fuchs & Fuchs 2002). For more details on this topic, please see my other blog post on 5 Simple Steps for Monitoring Child Progress.

Tools Used for Progress Monitoring
At a basic level, the goal in effectively monitoring progress is to capture a child’s authentic work over time and ability to understand essential skills, and to demonstrate improvement over time. Teachers can use digital cameras, computers, tablets, interactive whiteboards, multi-touch tables, video recorders, scanners, Word, Excel, and much more to do this. Collecting pieces like work samples, photographs, video, audio, and observational notes at the beginning, middle and end of the process makes the “data” collected authentic, personal and realistic. Additionally, capturing progress in this way also aids in the communication of progress with parents, other teachers and administrators. Thinking about conducting progress monitoring in such ways will help keep everyone interested and therefore more likely to stick with it, which will benefit the children!

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Dr. Dale McManis

Why Participating in Survey Research is a Valuable Professional Activity

Many times individuals in larger communities with many research organizations and universities get ample opportunity to participate in research, while those in smaller communities often don’t have these same opportunities. Participating in research relevant to your field is an important professional activity to help advance knowledge of and practices in a way that is representative of everyone working in that field. One way all professionals can participate in research is through survey research. Surveys are not time-intensive and do not disrupt regular instructional activities, both of which are often components of other kinds of research. Surveys also have the advantage of being able to help the field learn about a wider range of topics and issues.

In early childhood education, one of the areas about which little is known across many educators as a group is in the use of educational technology with early learners. Over the past several years, collectively and independently, Karen Nemeth, Ed.M. from Language Castle, Lilla Dale McManis, Ph.D. from Hatch Early Learning, and Fran Simon, M.Ed. from Engagement Strategies have found this to be particularly true with regard to understanding what is actually happening in early childhood classrooms. To address this gap, we formed an informal collaborative in order to develop a series of surveys, analyze them, and publish and present the results.

We’d like to invite educators to participate to gather information about how technology is used in classrooms with children in preschool through third grade. The first survey in the series is an overview survey and has the additional purpose of asking respondents what they would like to know about using technology with young children, which will be used to inform future surveys.

We intend to submit articles to scholarly journals and proposals to conferences. Certainly, we hope that the results will inform product developers and vendors as well as researchers and practitioners. Each of us is a published author who primarily write for early childhood education journals and as well as books on educational technology and other related topics. We are also experienced presenters and practitioners with more than 30 years of experience in the field.

This first survey closes April 30 so we encourage you to participate and/or let others know about this research opportunity.

The second survey in the series will open May 1 with a focus on instructional practices used by teachers for supporting children’s learning with interactive technologies.

How the Surveys Work
We know teachers and administrators are busy, so we designed the online questionnaire to only take about 15 minute to complete. You can get started now or please send a link to this post to your colleagues.

Learn more about us

Press release

If you would like more information, please contact Dr. Dale McManis at dmcmanis@hatchearlychildhood.com.

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Dr. Dale McManis