The Practice of Adaptive Behavior Skills for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder: The Case At Nehemiah Autism Center
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Date
2018-11
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
This study was aimed at assessing the practices of adaptive behavior skills training for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) at Nehemiah Autism Center (NAC). NAC rendering its training services for 40 children with ASD engaged for their fulltime in the self help skills receptive skills expressive and academics consecutive levels of the center’s adaptive behavior skills training program with the help of 20 practitioners. The study followed qualitative, particularly case study design. Data were collected from 12 (six practitioners, one coordinator and five parents with ASD respondents were directly related to the children with ASD selected through, purposive sampling technique. The data were collected through semi-structured interview, observation and document analysis, and analyzed by employing qualitative specifically case study design. The results of the study revealed that the center designed the plan for children based on the result of the assessment. The focus areas of the planning differ from level to level. That means, activities capacitating self- help skills, receptive order and communication skills, and academic and expressive skills are the major areas of concern in the planning process for level one, level two and level three respectively. In addition to these, discrete trial training (DDT), applied behavior analysis (ABA) and developmental individual relationship (DIR) are ingredients of the training. Adaptive behavior skills training (ABST) has positive perceived on both children and parents with ASD in improving basic skills of life, though it is not found at the expected level. Except leveling the problem of children, the implementation of the adaptive behavior skills training (ABST) at NAC is similar with the previous evidences. It is concluded that the content of training differs against the level of children, provided variety types of evidence based ABST targeted to perceived life skills of children with ASD and parents with ASD in the center. Lastly, individual child based planning approach, employment of well trained professionals, and ABST program evaluation, were forwarded as the major recommendations of the study.
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Practice of Adaptive Behavior Skills for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder