Introduction
Communication problems are characteristic of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Jack, for example, demonstrates these variances in language and speech acquisition through his lack of latency in spoken vocabulary and issues with engagement and mimicking. The following two strategies and interventions would help support Jack’s communication access. Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) initiatives encompass various nonverbal communication approaches that assist children with ASD who are poorly verbal in acquiring and developing linguistic abilities. Firstly, if youngsters cannot communicate via speech, AAC offers them an alternate form of expression (Elsahar et al., 2019). For instance, Jack’s other interests include kicking the soccer ball, and he likes to be active and runs around in the back garden with his younger sister. As such, AAC treatments may establish an interactive reinforcement system that promotes the efficacy of Jack’s speech output.
Second, children with abnormalities in motor skills or cognitive ability may be able to overcome issues with vocal output if they have mastered other skills for developing fundamental interaction. For example, from the case study, Jack can create other capabilities for enhancing his essential communication through interaction with his toy airplane. Thirdly, it has been suggested that AAC therapies may lower the stress for children to interact vocally, reducing pressures on auditory-vocal pathways and indirectly increasing the likelihood of unplanned vocal production (Elsahar et al., 2019). ACC would help reduce the stress on Jack’s speech development as his sentences are short, consisting of approximately four words per sentence, and he has not yet developed the ability to use conjunctions.
Moreover, interventions centered on verbal communication employ speech tactics to increase the utilization of sounds, syllables, and statements for expression. Adaptive Instruction Prelinguistic Milieu Education (RPMT) is a method that employs modeling of communicative conduct and rectification of infant responses, as well as latency and unintentional instruction in natural surroundings (Edmunds et al., 2019). This strategy exploits the child’s inherent interests. This remedy may be effective since it will utilize Jack’s hobbies, such as kicking the soccer ball, being active, and running around the backyard with his younger sister, to strengthen his speech. The principle underlying numerous orally based approaches is that the absence of spoken language stems from other intrinsic problematic areas in ASD (Edmunds et al., 2019). Such areas encompass low levels of social encouragement, diminished consideration of child-directed utterance, and generally poor mimicking abilities, as seen in Jack.
Communication Access Barriers and Suggestions
Jack
At school, Jack’s repetitive and rigid language minimizes his access to communication. Youngsters with ASD who can communicate will express meaningless or irrelevant things during interactions with others. For example, a toddler may continually count from one to five during a discourse unrelated to numbers. In Jack’s instance, his instructor has observed that when he converses with his classmates, he focuses primarily on his model airplane and repeats a great deal of information. Alternatively, a kid may repeatedly pronounce phrases they heard, a condition known as Echolalia (Pruccoli et al., 2021). According to the case study, Jack rarely starts a conversation, but when he does, it is primarily about his toy airplane, and he cannot sustain a discussion for more than two turns.
A suggestion to help resolve the challenge mentioned above would be Jack’s application of visual tools. Visual supports facilitate communication and language development. This can include using photographs, written material, and items to assist autistic individuals in learning language, processing information, and communicating. From the case illustration, Jack’s airplane may be used as a visual instrument to develop his speech. Visuals may include conversation books or posters that employ visuals and phrases on cards to help a person comprehend the significance of words. For instance, if Jack gets hungry, he may point to the airplane and respond to queries.
Jack’s Mother
Poor non-verbal communication skills and limited hobbies are some engagement barriers to efficient communication between Jack and his mother. Some children may be capable of delivering an in-depth discourse on a topic that piques their enthusiasm but may not be able to maintain a two-way discussion on the same subject. 10% of children diagnosed with autism spectrum exhibit savant talents or extraordinarily high ability in specialized areas such as memorizing, calendar computation, music, or mathematics (Crowell et al., 2019). It is difficult for Jack’s mother to engage him in conversation about topics other than his interests or to engage him in conversation with the rest of the family. According to his mother and his teacher, Jack becomes disengaged after a few turns of discussion.
A recommendation for the challenge above experienced by Jack’s mother would be to take time to take time and instruct. Jack’s mother will require a great deal of patience and should not rush to give him what she believes he needs. Children develop their linguistic skills by requesting wanted items rather than automatically obtaining them or gesturing for them. Jack’s other interests include kicking the soccer ball, and he likes to be active and runs around in the back garden with his younger sister. She should converse with Jack about his daily routine instead of racing from one duty to the next. For instance, Jack’s mother should encourage Jack to get involved in any outside school activities to improve Jack’s ability to develop friendships and social inclusion. Additionally, speaking slowly, allowing Jack ample time to ponder on her words and respond, and including appropriate gestures with her words will strengthen their communication.
Communication Intervention for Jack’s Mother
The following strategies appear acceptable for assisting Jack’s mother in enhancing her interactions with Jack. Firstly, integrated communication treatments and AAC Combined programs, also known as whole communication interventions, include components from both vocally predicted interaction strategies and augmentative and alternative communication interventions (Ku et al., 2019). The Hanen More than Words scheme, for instance, is a positive parenting program that instructs caregivers on strategies such as commenting on their child’s interests, using augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), and using cues to encourage turn-taking in their daily activities to assist their child converse (Ku et al., 2019). The Means, Opportunities, Reasons, and Expectations (MORE) method is an additional strategy that employs both linguistically based engagement and AAC therapies.
Secondly, Floor Time, a transitional, individual-difference, interaction-based concept, strives to foster symbolic, interactive conversation through collaborative play and feel. The strategy involves communication rings in which the adult follows the kid’s lead in attending to objects of interest to the youngster. The guardian then encourages the youngster to engage in increasingly complicated and challenging interactions with the chosen object. Parents are instructed to provide continuous floor time sessions during which the caregiver pursues the child’s direction, compliments the child’s behaviors, and offers numerous possibilities for reciprocating action and hurdles to push the child’s abilities. For instance, Jack’s mother will be able to encourage him to participate in school sports and extracurricular activities, which will improve his capacity to form friendships and increase his social inclusion and involvement.
Relationship development intervention (RDI) also offers a program that trains parents to demonstrate initiative. In RDI, parents are given many tactics for presenting their child with guided practice opportunities to respond more flexibly to complicated and progressively uncertain everyday routines (Hodges et al., 2022). According to the case scenario, Jack initiates conversation seldom but delivers the information, primarily regarding his toy airplane. He cannot sustain a conversation for longer than two turns. This strategy will assist Jack’s mother in comprehending and responding to his son’s issue of not being able to sustain a relationship for extended periods. RDI would enable Jack’s mother to recognize that Jack’s sentences are brief and he cannot employ conjunctions.
Conclusion
One of the symptoms associated with ASD is communication difficulties. Children with ASD may be sluggish to learn to speak, or they may not learn to speak at all; others may be able to formulate phrases and sentences but have trouble employing them to achieve social interaction goals. Due to the importance of expressive deficiencies in the manifestation of ASD, improving speech difficulties in children with this disorder is one of the most crucial domains of educational intervention. The therapies described in this article have been linked to a boost in the capacity to begin a conversation in infants who lacked this competence.
References
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Edmunds, S. R., Kover, S. T., & Stone, W. L. (2019). The relation between parent verbal responsiveness and child communication in young children with or at risk for autism spectrum disorder: A systematic review and meta‐analysis. Autism Research, 12(5), 715-731.
Elsahar, Y., Hu, S., Bouazza-Marouf, K., Kerr, D., & Mansor, A. (2019). Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) advances: A review of configurations for individuals with a speech disability. Sensors, 19(8), 1-24.
Hodges, A., Cordier, R., Joosten, A., & Bourke-Taylor, H. (2022). Closing the gap between theory and practice: Conceptualization of a school-based intervention to improve the school participation of primary school students on the autism spectrum and their typically developing peers. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 52(7), 3230-3245.
Ku, B., Stinson, J. D., & MacDonald, M. (2019). Parental behavior comparisons between parents of children with autism spectrum disorder and parents of children without autism spectrum disorder: A meta-analysis. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 28(6), 1445-1460.
Pruccoli, J., Spadoni, C., Orsenigo, A., & Parmeggiani, A. (2021). Should Echolalia be considered a phonic stereotypy? A narrative review. Brain Sciences, 11(7), 1-9.