Thesis (M.S.)--University of North Texas, August, 2008. / Title from title page display. Includes bibliographical references.

This study investigated the question, if children diagnosed with ASD who learned safety skills through traditional teaching methods transferred them to real world situations more effectively and efficiently than children who learned safety skills through VR strategies. Eight children diagnosed with ASD were selected for this study. Participants were randomly assigned to form two groups of four children each. Two training phases were used for each condition ("Teaching As Usual" and VR). Training sessions were conducted twice a week for a maximum time limit of 30 minutes per session. Training phases lasted for five weeks and included instruction on fire safety (Phase I) and tornado safety (Phase II). A generalization and maintenance phase followed the training phases to assess learned skills. Results indicated that training via VR was a more efficient means; however, when effectiveness was measured both groups appeared to yield similar results. / Thesis (M.A.)--Wichita State University, College of Health Professions, Dept. of Communication Sciences and Disorders. / "July 2006." / Includes bibliographic references (leaves 83-88)

The purpose of this research is to explore the perceptions of educators who teach learners with autism, on their own emotional well-being. The eight educators who participated were from special schools in KwaZulu-Natal. These schools cater for learners with autism and the participants work hands-on with learners with autism. The research design and methodology employed is qualitative in nature, and adopts the phenomenological approach, which incorporates focus group interviews, individual interviews, and lesson observations of some educators after the interviews. The following questions were asked at the interviews: 'Tell me about teaching learners with autism' and 'How does it influence your well-being?' The research methodology selected elicited rich responses that led to the emergence of three main themes namely: first, these themes are everyday challenges working with learners with autism, second, educators' perceptions of the support of other role players and third, the impact that teaching learners with autism has on the workplace wellness of the educator. Conclusion and recommendations are presented, as well as recommendations for future research. Drawing from the themes, a conclusion is made that teaching learners with autism is stressful, that educators need training and support to cope with the demands of autism, and to help manage workplace wellness. / Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2008.

The purpose of this study was to determine if a summer camp utilizing academic and behavioral remediation programming could increase the academic achievement of children with autism spectrum disorders. Academic achievement was measured using the Wide Range Achievement Test-Fourth Edition (WRAT4; Wilkinson & Robertson, 2006) and an Informal Reading Inventory (IRI; Burns & Roe, 2002) in a sample of 21 children ranging from 6 years, 0 months to 13 years, 1 month prior to and after attending a summer camp for children with autism around a Midwestern city. Repeated measures MANOVAs were used to analyze WRAT4 and IRI assessment results. MANOVA results indicated there were no significant changes on any of the tests of the WRAT4 over time after a Bonferroni correction. MANOVA results further indicated there was no interaction between gender and time. A nonparametric sign test also was conducted to examine changes in the WRAT4 tests. Results of the nonparametric sign test did not reveal significant changes in the WRAT4 tests; however, the Sentence Comprehension test did approach significance. Although participants did not make statistical gains on the WRAT4, they also did not demonstrate a decline in academic skills as measured by the WRAT4. Participants demonstrated less consistent results on the word lists of the IRI as well as the passage comprehension component of the IRI. The number of children who declined or improved on the IRI overtime appeared to be random. A qualitative analysis of four participants selected based on age and gender did not reveal any hypotheses for the differences in performance on the IRI over time. Suggestions for future research include replicating the study with a larger sample, children with multicultural backgrounds, and controlling for the cognitive abilities of the participants. / Department of Educational Psychology

According to Pienaar and Raymond (2013, p.10) learners with disabilities have historically experienced the most serious exclusion from learning. The worldwide call for inclusive education prompted South Africa to develop the White Paper 6 (WP6) (2001, p.18) which clearly states that for Inclusive Education to be successfully implemented in South Africa, there has to be an acknowledgement that all children and youth can learn. The implementation of WP6 therefore not only benefits learners with special educational needs, but all South African learners by implementing "a more flexible system of education that focuses on removing barriers to learning and creating learning-friendly environments" (Pienaar and Raymond, 2013, pp. 10-11). However, a great disparity exists in what is proposed in official documents such as WP6 and what parents of children with barriers to learning actually experience within schools. This phenomenological study employed memory work, drawings and focus group discussions with four purposively selected parents to explore parents’ experiences of the education of their children who are on the Autistic Spectrum. Bronfenbrenner’s Eco-systemic perspective was used to make meaning of the data. The findings show that parents find the education of their autistic children as a stressful and isolating experience because of an unprepared education system. Despite the challenges, the participants also find their experiences to be a journey of personal growth and fulfilment. The study therefore recommends that schools should engage parents of autistic children more actively in order to make inclusion of such children effective. Teachers who are expected to practice inclusivity in schools should be adequately prepared to work with children presenting with ASD through a collaborative effort of the Department of Health and the Department of Education.

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Science in Information Technology in Education

This study investigated the effects of a precision teaching package on response rates of children with autism. Prior to both experiments a preference assessment was conducted to identify high preference activities for each participant. Experiment 1 investigated whether response rates would shift as a function of rate-contingent consequences during an academic task. Different activities were associated with different rates of responding. The experimental package of 1 minute timings, rate contingent consequences, and charting was successful in increasing the rates of responding when the most highly preferred activity was associated with high rates of responding. When the contingencies were switched and the most highly preferred activity was contingent on lower rates of responding, the participant's responding did not decrease. Experiment 2 was an attempt to replicate the results of Experiment 1 using a multiple baseline across tasks. The experimental package was not successful in increasing the rate of responding.

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

Ph.D. (Educational Psychology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of particular Asperger’s learners in inclusive education settings. Five learners who had all been diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome (AS) and who were between the ages of eight and 13 years were interviewed for this research. Each of the participants was interviewed once using a semi-structured interview schedule and was also asked to participate in three projective drawing tasks. Results indicated that the AS learners’ experiences of inclusion were dependant on four main factors: the pervasiveness of their special interests; their social experiences; the support that they received; and their academic self-concept. These findings were discussed in terms of the existing literature and policies on inclusive education. The implications of this research for the inclusion of AS learners and other special needs learners in inclusive education settings was also discussed.