Asperger's Syndrome In High School

Asperger’s syndrome is becoming more and more common as time goes by. Each year, more children are being diagnosed. This paper focuses on Asperger’s Syndrome and developing social skills in various social settings. By looking at the etiology, diagnostic procedures, how the condition effects development, daily challenges, current social/cultural views, and relevant social interventions, a better understanding on how to develop social skills for children with Asperger’s Syndrome can ensue. The world revolves around social situations. This is how people are hired for jobs, ask for things, make new friends, meet their future spouse, etc. At the moment, social skills training and social support is minimal compared to where it potentially

Approximately 947,570 Americans have Asperger’s Syndrome (AS), however, it is not an easy disorder to explain (Bashe 19). With multiple conditions and characteristics in each case, AS is not an easy disorder to diagnose. Asperger’s Syndrome was named after Hans Asperger, an Austrian physician, who first described the disorder in 1944 after studying a group of children with similar, unusual characteristics. However, AS was not made an official disease until 1994. Consequently, Asperger disease is just now becoming published and popular so there is still research and questions being answered. Asperger’s Syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder, is noted by above-average

Problems with social skills include difficulty interacting with others, are often awkward in social situations, and have difficulty starting and maintaining a conversation. Individuals with Asperger’s syndrome may develop odd, repetitive movements, such as hand twitching or finger twisting. They might also develop unusual rituals, such as getting dressed in a specific order, and are resistant to change the ritual. Some communication difficulties people with Asperger's syndrome may exhibit are, not being able to make eye contact when speaking with someone, trouble using facial expressions and gestures, and understanding body language. They also have a tendency to misunderstand language in context and are very literal in their use of language. Individuals could express limited range of interests; they could develop an almost obsessive interest in a few areas, such as weather, topics in school, or sports. Many individuals with Asperger's syndrome are exceedingly gifted or skilled in a particular area, such as history or science. The coordination of individuals with Asperger's syndrome may seem clumsy or awkward.

In the article, “How to Speak Asperger’s,” by Fran Goldfarb and Guthrie Devine, the authors contend that learning to communicate with people with Asperger’s Syndrome is an important skill. The authors introduce the article by providing a narrative about Goldfarb’s son. The point of her narrative is that communication is misunderstood with people with Asperger’s Syndrome (AS). The author, Fran Goldfarb, explains how her son misunderstands communication with his teachers, and how punishment is ineffective, because of his Asperger’s. The authors start by explaining why communication is very complex. To begin with, people with AS struggle with communication, because of their lack of social cues. They tend to miss irony, humor, and they take everything literally. That’s why people with AS don’t understand communication and everything is a struggle for them.

Asperger’s syndrome is a developmental syndrome. It is said that every 2 out of 10,000 children are affected by this disorder. Asperger’s is mostly diagnosed in young children. Parents usually recognize symptoms of this disorder in their kids around the time they turn 3 years old. Asperger’s is sometimes considered a form of autism. I find this syndrome to be very intriguing. I’m going to enlighten you with more information about Asperger’s and a few real life cases of it.

Many children today unknowingly face the disorder known as Aspergers. Their traits can affect their social, mental, and behavioral aspects of life. Because of this, peers might classify them as weird simply because they do not act the same way, causing a decline in self confidence. Diagnosis can tremendously help to jumpstart treatment in this area. Despite lack of knowledge about Aspergers, a disorder closely related to autism, it is very much its own; not only in the way it is diagnosed, but also in its characteristics.

This work is built around a topic that is sum interest to me due to the incidence of cases within the different social fields. It 's a syndrome whose classification is relatively new and as such requires a comprehensive approach for a better management of the condition. Asperger 's disorder owes its name to Hans Asperger who was the first to discover a group of children with traits very particular, mainly characterized by the absence of empathy, reduced ability to social relations, solitary conversations, a deep attachment to a special interest, and clumsy movements. However the person who presents it has no alterations in the appearance, in its capacity of intelligence and often displays skills in restricted areas. This disorder

The comprehensive examination should also assess the level of language, intellect, medical, genetic mental and behavioral conditions. The genetic counselor can help with a three generation family history since ASD has a strong genetic component. The objective of the comprehensive evaluation is to make a definitive diagnosis of ASD, rule out other diagnoses in the differential and identify co-occurring conditions that can be treated and to determine the level of functioning of the child in order to establish a treatment plan.

The common traits of ASD, which include anti-social and often disruptive patterns of behavior, can make children with autism challenging for typical learning children to approach. Though the issue of including children with disabilities in mainstream classrooms is a complex one, peer-mediated interventions can promote the growth of social skills at every level of education. By educating the general population of typical peers and empowering them to be a part of the process a dent can be made in the social exclusion often experienced by the ASD children in mainstream settings. Implementing these interventions enriches the lives of all of the children involved, “possibly developing sustainable social relationships” expanding the effects of the program beyond the academic setting (Hughes et al., 2013). Also, these methods provide teachers an unobtrusive method of teaching that has benefits for the entire class. These methods could be helpful to other student populations that have intellectual

Communication is one of the hardest challenges with Asperger's. People with Asperger's have a limited area of interest, resulting in the excessive discussion about this area of interest. They often do not realize that someone has lost interest in the topic of discussion ("PubMedHealth"). "Most treatment efforts focus on enhancing communication skills and reducing problem behaviors. For children with Asperger's syndrome, most therapy should consist of school education combined with special psychological supports for communication and socialization problems "("Magill's Medical Guide"). Fortunately, people, like Jacob, have tutors or teachers to help them converse and behave in a calm and collected manner. Jess, Jacob's tutor, teaches him how to order food politely, how to greet people, and overall, how to carry on a conversation without delving too deep into a certain subject. Being in a school environment gives one with Asperger's a sense of belonging or recognition. Jacob goes to a public school that allows him to use a "get out of class" pass if it gets too overwhelming for him.

Colleges are seeing a larger population of students annually who are on the Autism Spectrum. There is a great need for faculty, college advisors, and student affairs staff to develop better strategies to work with these students. Faculty can play a significant role in helping these students succeed both inside and outside the classroom. A clear understanding of what Asperger’s syndrome is and ways to connect with students with Asperger’s syndrome is extremely important to the ultimate success of these students. These students will be less likely to have a successful transition from high school to college without the proper support system in place to address their specific needs.

While children with Asperger’s Syndrome have an average to above average intelligence and normal cognitive abilities, they unfortunately suffer with impaired social skills. An effective treatment program will have to be tailored to fit the specific child’s Asperger’s in order for the child to be successful in managing his or her own behaviors. This form of treatment is run by a psychologist, counselor, speech pathologist, or social worker, these therapies are invaluable ways to build social skills and the ability to read verbal and non-verbal cues that is often lacking in those with Asperger's. (WebMD, 2013) Without the implementation of the appropriate treatment needed for the lack of social skills as a child, these deficits will continue into adulthood and affect societal and professional performance. According to Szatmari, Bartolucci & Bremner (1989), “Adults with ASD are much more likely than the general population to be unemployed or underemployed and much less likely to have satisfying social relationships” (Szatmari, Bartolucci & Bremner, 1989, Para. 3). The results of this study may have had something to do with the lack of treatment in children with Asperger’s. Even though there is not a cure for this syndrome, understanding the multiple treatment options can reduce the stigma and inaccurate labeling of children with ASD.

Asperger’s syndrome is on the higher-functioning spectrum of ASD. Individuals with ASP have similar social awkwardness as in other ASDs; however they are not as incapacitated. There are 3 main deficits that must be present in an individual for Autism to be diagnosed. As referenced in Woodbury-Smith and Volkmar 2009 article Asperger Syndrome: absence of cognitive, developmental or language delay in childhood. However, Asperger’s, is characterized by severe social impairments, such as restrictive and repetitive patterns of behavior, interests and activities [2]

Amazingly, one percent of new births will have some type of autism (Autism Society of America, 2010). Asperger’s disorder is one type of Autism, and is at the high end of these disorders. This “disorder, which is also called Asperger's syndrome (AS) or autistic psychopathy, belongs to a group of childhood disorders known as pervasive developmental disorders (PDDs) or autistic spectrum disorders”(Exkorn, 2006). A characteristic of this disorder is harsh and strict disruption of a certain type of brain development. The most affected areas of Asperger's disorder is difficulty in social understanding and in behavior or activities that are limited or recurring (Frey, 2003). Students with Asperser’s have different levels of seriousness,

Cognitive behavioral therapy is psychotherapeutic in design and is centered on the acceptance of the fact that some behavior can not be controlled using rational thought alone. The therapy combines both cognitive and behavioral based therapeutic approaches. Its main advantage is that it is designed to target the clients specific problem by having the therapist assist the client choose the most appropriate strategies to tackle the particular problem. Asperger’s syndrome or Autism Spectrum Disorder is categorized as one form of the Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) conditions characterized by delays in the development of many basic skills. Individuals with Asperger’s syndrome have problems with developing skills necessary for imagination, communication and interacting with others. Adolescence is a turbulent time for most people but it is especially difficult for most individuals with Asperger’s syndrome. Such individuals already find it hard to make friends due to poor social skills. They also like things to remain the same which means that they do not deal well with change. Middle school and high school come with more changes where they now have more classes and more teachers to deal with unlike in grammar school (Russell et al. 2013). Adolescence comes with a confusing array of new demands and complexities for them which may make life even harder for them. This period may require guidance and therapy to help them cope with the numerous challenges they face and