2004: Children with blindness may have limited concrete experiences and resulting difficulties in cognitive and language development, and their lack of vision can have a profound impact on their social interactions.
Research
Hobson and Bishop, 2003: Study of children with congenital blindness; students with blindness who scored low socially also had autistic-like abnormalities in both social and non-social domains Genes & Genes, 2005 state: “When neurologically based visual impairments are experienced by a child who displays a persistent and extreme cluster of behaviors that are typical of ASD, it is important for the coexistence of these complex conditions to be explored and addressed.”
Etiologies of Visual Impairment with Neurological implications
Retinopathy of prematurity Cortical Visual Impairment Anopthalmia Optic Nerve Hypoplasia Research on dual diagnosis of ASD and visual impairment is limited but implications for development and learning can be profound. (Genes & Genes, 2005)
Important Learning
styles of students with visual impairments or blindness and ASD, are not a result of the visual impairment alone. If this were true then interventions that are typically successful with the majority of students with visual impairments would be successful
Assessment Issues The
Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) is a semi-structured assessment of communication, social interaction, and play (or imaginative use of materials) for individuals suspected of having autism or other pervasive developmental disorders.
Has not been validated with children with visual impairments to the best of my knowledge
Assessment Value Some
of the information collected may be useful in helping to determine how an individual learns and the presence and/or absence of autism in a child with visual impairment Earliest possible intervention is best practice…. If ASD suspected and interventions are initiated responsibly and work the results are more important for the child’s future growth than the diagnosis.
Example of Comparison between VI and ASDVI
Example of ASDVI Student
References Gense,
M & Gense, D. (2005) Autism spectrum Disorders and visual impairment: Meeting students’ learning needs. AFB Press. New York, NY. http://what-is-stimming.org/links/
