A Comprehensive Measure That Affects An Individual 's Behavior Scale

The PEAK Assessment tool and Relational Training System was published by Dr. Mark R. Dixon in February of 2014 after six years of empirical research. Dr. Dixon developed PEAK out of the realization that many Board Certified Behavioral Analysts (BCBA) and others working with autistic children were making clinical decisions without having a clear concept of what to instruct and how to execute it. Dr. Dixon worked with over two hundred children over a six year period of time to produce a meaningful and concise assessment of skills. Modules 1-3, Imitation, Consistency and Attention, have been researched for validity and reliability, the fourth module, Cooperation, is in the process of being tested.

The Brigance Diagnostic Inventory of Early Development-II was written by Albert H. Brigance & Frances Page Gloscoe. The IED-II was published by Curriculum Associates, Inc. in 1978-2004. The test is administered individually with the age range of birth-7 years old. This test was created to monitor a child’s development. Because it was not a high stakes test, there was more room for error. The IED-II was translated into Spanish. Spanish tests were given to 8.6% of participants but since scores were never compared to the English version of the test, there is no confirmation of reliability or validity (Davis pg 9). Also, the Spanish version of the test is not publicly available. “The purpose of the Brigance Diagnostic IED-II is to determine readiness for school, track developmental progress, provide a range of scores needed for documenting eligibility for special education services, and enable a comparison of children 's skills within and across developmental domains in order to view strengths and weaknesses and to determine entry points for instruction” (Davis 1). It also helps in assisting with program evaluation.

The Battelle Developmental Inventory – 2nd Edition (BDI-2) is psychoeducational testing instrument used in special education to assess developmental disorders in infants and young children. This paper looks into how the validity, reliability and norms for the BDI-2 were originally developed.

Another program would be the applied behavior analysis department (ABA) this program provides behavior diagnostic services to the children with developmental needs. This program is also connected to the board certified behavior analysts (BCBA). The BCBA are intense therapy treatment that is based on scientifically tested behavioral principles and procedures. The ABA involves steady evaluation of treatment progress and clinical decision-making based on each child. ABA is the only treatment approach with rigorous scientific evidence to support its effectiveness as both comprehensive and focused treatment. The psychology services pay attention to attention deficit hyperactivity disorders, autism spectrum disorders, developmental delays, behavioral; disorders, learning disabilities, intellectual disabilities, and difficulties associated with genetic disorders. They start evaluating the students by reviewing their historical background and looking at their past academic history. The Child Development Clinic (CDC) is another program that is provided. It is a multidisciplinary clinic that includes a psychologist and social worker. The psychologist may administer rating scales, cognitive, language, and/or developmental screeners as well as the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-2 (ADOS-2). Afterwards, the psychologist provides the family with a diagnosis (there may be more than one),

This is why it is important that parents become trained in ABA. However, it is important that parents do not think that one approach will solve any child 's autism difficulties. The idea of using a “cookbook recipe” to fix their child is something that must be thrown out the window and techniques that encourage parents to become educated about the broadness of autism should be used. This includes learning how their child functions and ways to help design a ABA for their child rather than basing it off of statistics (Dillenburger et al.,2004).

As a graduate of the Child, Youth and Family degree program from the University of Guelph, I have my certification as an Early Childhood Educator. As a result, I have been thoroughly taught a deep understanding of child development and program planning. Additionally, I have also received a post-secondary diploma from George Brown College in Behavioural Science Technology which, provided me with knowledge regarding the scientifically proven techniques best suited to employ with children who have special needs and/or behavioural concerns. Specifically, ABA principles, use of behavioural assessment tools, the implementation of specified ABA programs, and frequently utilized data collection procedures utilized as an instructor therapist.

The Applied Behavioral Analysis model, or (ABA) as it is commonly referred to, has been in practice for many years, touching the lives of many people of all ages, backgrounds, and degrees of the Autism spectrum. As with anything, there is a considerable amount of misinformation projecting a negative view of ABA. These views have questioned the protocol, application, and necessity of the ABA. The following is some information and facts to hopefully make clear what ABA not only does, but what it stands for as a therapy that will continue to help those in need.

Data taken from the 1997-2008 National Health Interview Surveys of US showed that 1 out of every 6 children had developmental disabilities (Boyle et al, 2011). These disabilities were tabulated as including autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and other forms of developmental delay. According to the survey, these disabilities increased and now require more health and education interventions. Children aged 3-17 years old participated in the survey. Parent-respondents reported their children's diagnoses as including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, intellectual disability, cerebral palsy, autism, seizures, stuttering or stammering, hearing loss, blindness, learning disorders and other forms of developmental delay. These disabilities were much more prevalent in boys than in girls. They were lowest among Hispanic children as compared with non-Hispanic white and black children. Low income and public health insurance were associated with the prevalence. The rate of these disabilities increased from 12.84% to 15.94% in the last 13 years. Autism, ADHD and other developmental delays increased in all socio-demographic sub-groups, except for autism among non-Hispanic black children. The survey called for additional research on the influence of changing risk factors and changes in the acceptance and the benefits of early services (Boyle et al).

Special group studies assessed criterion validity and clinical utility resulting in information that leads to diagnosis or ability classify disability and found that the NEPSY-II has discriminative validity across a variety of disabilities in areas such as ADHD, Asperger's disorder, math and reading disorders, intellectual disability, autism, emotional problems, and traumatic brain injury (TBI) (Brooks, Sherman, & Strauss, 2010; Davis & Matthews,

Some children with autism have a sharp mind while others have marked deficits in intellectual, social, and cognitive functioning. Restated, it is a spectrum disorder, which means that every child formally diagnosed has abnormalities which can be charted within a broad spectrum of measures and labels. Many times it can be argued that labels are designed and assigned to help us gain knowledge with respect to a specific person or group of people to whom the label has been applied. Within this context, labels can sometimes be viewed as a positive, if not helpful device when classifying. However, when it comes to autism, this does not appear to be the case. There is a wide range of presenting characteristics, some people with autism are severely affected, while others are less affected. Within this general review of the data and literature, the authors have found that those who are diagnosed with severe autism, and who are also described as being mentally retarded on measurable scales, make the least amount of improvement in IQ, adaptive/social functioning, and overall language ability. Therefore, the primary contention made by the authors is that, the main predictors of outcome when it comes to Intensive Behavioural Intervention for people with autism, are the severity of the disorder and overall IQ prior to the commencement of

Readers are taught how to use ABA to teach speech and language, social, motor, and adaptive skills through a system of repetition, reward, and goal adjustment. The author also discusses what families should consider before choosing any treatment method for their child with autism, and specifically what key elements an IBI program should have. The curriculum, professional roles, parent involvement, inclusion, and pros and cons of a home based versus center based program are all covered. Staff training….. Characteristics of characteristics of children with autism.

According to the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is defined as "a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by deficits in social communication and social interaction and the presence of restricted, repetitive behaviors. Social communication deficits include impairments in aspects of joint attention and social reciprocity, as well as challenges in the use of verbal and nonverbal communicative behaviors for social interaction" (2016). The Early Start Denver Model (ESDM) in a language intervention program recommended for children, usually 12 to 48 months of age, who present with ASD (Vivanti, 2016). According to Autism Speaks Inc., ESDM intervention requires training and certification and can be delivered by a psychologist, behaviorist, occupational therapist, speech and language pathologist, early intervention specialist or developmental pediatrician, and is intended as a naturalistic approach to therapy because it does not require a fixed setting for delivery. Generalization of the intervention requires intense parent involvement and "can be delivered by therapy teams and/or parents in group programs or individual sessions in either a clinic setting or the child 's home" (2016). According to Schreibman et al., ESDM combines naturalistic intervention behavioral intervention (NDBI) with Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) principles, which have shown through evidence based practice to induce behavioral changes,

Once the purpose of the measure has been established, one can define the content of the measure, which will be established by the content domain. A test developer fist operationally defines the content domain (Moerdyk, 2009). Secondly the purpose is considered and various methods are used according to the settings (rational approach and empirical criterion keying approach), these can be combined as well (Foxcroft & Roodt, 2009). The next step in the planning phase would be to develop the test plan. In order to develop the test plan the design would need to be considered. The design is considered according to two aspect which are; the stimulus to the test taker- response and the method for the response. Item formats which a test- taker could respond to are as follows; Open ended items such as narrative or essays in which there is no limitation, Forced choice items such as dichotomous, likert scale questions and ipsative format; sentence completion items and performance based items. In all items one would consider the time limits to be imposed which would affect the response. If I am interested in assessing personality, a performance based item would be used. Depending on the method for response, who is involved in the administration of calculating the test results, different approaches would be taken. For example in the case of which one answer is correct, an

Individuals should have an easy time completing this assessment. The format should prevent any inaccuracy in responses. The questions are written at a sixth-grade level. This could cause a problem for some individuals who can’t