Reading for those with Autism Spectrum Conditions

As an autism consultant and teacher with many years of experience in designing reading programmes and teaching young people to read, I am intrigued by the "one size fits all” approach teachers use to teach children.

My experience is that:

Some students progress slowly, battling to maintain interest and motivation, others seem to be born knowing how to read and become extremely proficient very fast, preferring this method of communication to verbal/aural communication

– why is this and should we approach reading skills in the same way for all of these students?

In the wake of the publication by Department for Education Reading Framework – Teaching the Foundations of Literacy (Jan 22) I feel the need to address a very important question:

How do we adapt reading programmes to suit learners with Autism Spectrum Conditions (ASCs)s?

Autism Spectrum Conditions are characterised by differences in social communication, social interaction and imagination along with differences in processing sensory information (including sound). Many of those diagnosed with ASCs have delayed language acquisition.

These differences can impact on the way the person learns – especially concepts or language-based skills.

The Reading Framework asserts that all students acquire reading skills in the same way and that all students should be taught primarily through a structured phonics programme.

The Department for Education offers an approved list of Systematic Synthetic Phonics (SSP) programmes.

Schools can choose their own programme but the Department for Education requires all schools to adopt a rigorous and systematic approach to teaching reading and for schools to adopt a “whole school” approach to teaching phonics for all pupils, with resources matched to the teaching programme.

The Reading Framework points out that teaching must be adapted to meet the needs of pupils with SEN but insists that Phonics teaching is the best way to teach all pupils to read.

Research studies are cited to back up this assertion. There are problems with the research cited:

· The research studies rely on investigations of very small cohorts of children with ASDs and different learning difficulties

· None of them investigate how to teach to pupils who are pre verbal or minimally verbal

· Evidence provided in the studies does not look at whole school approaches to teaching via SSP but at small group interventions by specially trained teachers

The guidance advises adaptations but does not suggest how and when these should be applied nor what best practice might look like in making these adaptations.

The Reading Framework states:

Teaching should:

• be at a suitable pace for the child because progression through a programme will be much slower than for their typically developing peers

• be daily, with well-paced, well-planned lessons that are engaging and motivating

• take full account of the child’s individual strengths, weaknesses, knowledge and understanding, and profile of needs

Teachers are saying that these programmes must be adapted in a variety of ways:

· Pace of the programme – slower, faster, smaller chunks of information, shorter sessions

· Wide variation in progress and barriers to learning make it difficult to implement whole group teaching in special schools – many small group sessions are required

· Ensuring comprehension of teaching instructions – many programmes assume knowledge eg “can you put this in a sentence?” assumes knowledge of what a sentence is, a word is and that meaning is conveyed by words

· Multi-sensory techniques to improve motivation and understanding – these involve planning and work in producing suitable resources

· Focus on concrete and meaningful skills – can you read labels in the supermarket or follow instructions in a recipe or find the fire exit

· Pace of the lessons must allow for auditory processing differences and attention difficulties

· Language deficits must be addressed – many students with ASCs have delayed language acquisition

· Assessment of progress must be adapted to enable pupils to show what they know – eg. reading aloud or answering orally will not suit those who are pre verbal

· Opportunities to practice skills need to be expanded in order for skills to be generalised

· Reading skills may need to be taught to older students as it takes them longer to acquire the language and comprehension skills to learn phonics – age-appropriate resources are difficult to find

· Students who have poor phonological awareness will not have the skills to develop phonemic awareness – the SSP programmes do not address Phase 1 phonics where these skills are taught

· Students who have difficulties with fine motor control may progress more slowly in writing skills than reading skills

We teach lessons that are adapted for our students’ needs.

They can look very different to the mainstream phonics lessons proscribed by the approved phonics programmes. Time needed for emotional regulation has always impacted on teaching time and this is even more of an issue following the COVID 19 pandemic.

Can teachers be confident in their adaptations?

Are we rigorous enough?

SEND Code of Practice 2015 requires schools to

“ensure that the approaches used are based on the best possible evidence and are having the required impact on progress”

Teachers are finding best practice through their own action research and through opportunities to discuss best practice with colleagues.

Teachers need rigorous and meaningful research into how to overcome barriers to learning phonics and reading skills for students with ASCs.

Citations:

Department for Education Reading Framework – Teaching the Foundations of Literacy (Jan 22)

Sermier D and others (2021). ‘Effects of a phonics-based intervention on the reading skills of students with intellectual disability’ Research in Developmental Disabilities: volume 111

Arcuili J and Bailey B (2021). ‘The promise of comprehensive early reading instruction for children with autism and recommendations for future directions’ Language, Speech and Hearing Services in Schools: volume 52, issue 1, pages 225-238 78

Dehaene S (2009). ‘Reading in the Brain’ London: Penguin Random House 79

Trembath D and others (2015). ‘Accurate or Assumed: Visual Learning in Children with ASD’ Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders: volume 45, pages 3276-3287

SEND Code of Practice 2015

https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2021/05/17/the-removal-of-letters-and-sounds-2007-from-the-departments-list-of-validated-phonics-programmes-teachers-questions-answered/