Vocabulary and Main Idea Reading Intervention Using Text Choice to Improve Content Knowledge and Reading Comprehension of Adolescents With Autism Spectrum Disorder.

This simultaneous replication single-case design study investigated a vocabulary and main idea intervention with an aspect of text choice provided to students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Five middle school students with ASD participated in two instructional groups taught by school-based personnel. Results were initially mixed. These results were followed by upward and stable trends, indicating a functional relationship between the independent and dependent variables. Social validity measures indicated that students appreciated the opportunity to make choices on text selection

Teaching Language to Students with Autism

This meta-synthesis of the literature on methods of instruction to students with ASD examines the various methods of teaching language to students with ASD. While each student learns language at his or her own pace, the author has found that certain methods yield results quicker, and these methods need to be examined critically for any literature on their reliability, efficacy, and scientific research. If a student with autism can be taught language quickly, therefore mitigating any further delays in academic development relative to peers, then this methodology should be made accessible to all teachers of such students

Disentangling syntactic, semantic and pragmatic impairments in ASD : elicited production of passives

Children with ASD and an IQ-matched control group of typically developing (TD) children completed an elicited-production task which encouraged the production of reversible passive sentences (e.g., “Bob was hit by Wendy”). Although the two groups showed similar levels of correct production, the ASD group produced a significantly greater number of “reversal” errors (e.g., “Wendy was hit by Bob”, when, in fact Wendy hit Bob) than the TD group (who, when they did not produce correct passives, instead generally produced semantically appropriate actives; e.g., “Wendy hit Bob”). These findings suggest that the more formal elements of syntax are spared relative to more semantic/pragmatic/narrative aspects (e.g., manipulating thematic roles) in at least high-functioning children with ASD

Exploring The Neural Correlates of Reading Comprehension and Social Cognition Deficits in College Students with ADHD

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by inattention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. Symptoms of this disorder have been shown to adversely impact academic and social functioning of those with ADHD. College students with ADHD, compared to their non-ADHD peers, are at increased risk for academic and social difficulties. Given the reading-intensive and socially-driven environment of the college campus, empirical literature examining the reading comprehension and social cognition of college students are wanting. The current investigation utilized the Nelson-Denny Reading Test (NDRT) and Faux Pas Recognition test (FPRT) to assess reading comprehension and social cognition, respectively, in college students with (n = 3) and without ADHD (n = 9). The Short Story Task (SST) was administered during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine neural correlates of narrative comprehension and theory of mind (ToM) while reading short fictional stories of varying prose complexity. The ADHD and control groups did not differ in IQ, GPA, or scores of NDRT, FPRT, or SST, suggesting that they had comparable academic performance, narrative comprehension, and social cognition. The fMRI analysis of SST showed that the ADHD group demonstrated increased activation in the left anterior cingulate (ACC) and parahippocampal gyrus (PHG) while reading the complex story compared to the simple story. This differential activation was not observed in the CTRL group, suggesting that the ADHD group required more neural resources to process the emotional components of the complex story to achieve the comparable performance on the SST. The ADHD group additionally exhibited lower activation in the narrative comprehension and ToM networks (medial prefrontal cortex, Broca’s area, angular gyri). Collectively, these results indicate that while ADHD and CTRL groups did not differ behaviorally, they exhibit differential neural activation patterns in tasks related to narrative comprehension and social cognition. Further investigations may inform the development of educational and psychosocial interventions to improve academic and social functioning in young adults with ADHD

The narrative coherence of witness transcripts in children on the autism spectrum

Background and Aims. Autistic children often recall fewer details about witnessed events than typically developing children (of comparable age and ability), although the information they recall is generally no less accurate. Previous research has not examined the narrative coherence of such accounts, despite higher quality narratives potentially being perceived more favourably by criminal justice professionals and juries. This study compared the narrative coherence of witness transcripts produced by autistic and typically developing (TD) children (ages 6-11 years, IQs 70+). Methods and Procedures. Secondary analysis was carried out on interview transcripts from a subset of 104 participants (autism=52, TD=52) who had taken part in a larger study of eyewitness skills in autistic and TD children. Groups were matched on chronological age, IQ and receptive language ability. Coding frameworks were adopted from existing narrative research, featuring elements of ‘story grammar’. Outcomes and Results. Whilst fewer event details were reported by autistic children, there were no group differences in narrative coherence (number and diversity of ‘story grammar’ elements used), narrative length or semantic diversity. Conclusions and Implications. These findings suggest that the narrative coherence of autistic children’s witness accounts is equivalent to TD peers of comparable age and ability

How do we comprehend linguistic and visual narratives? A study in children with typical development

The present study investigated the comprehension of narrative with reference to global coherence, i.e., the global representation of story meaning and connectedness, across two different expressive modalities: stories conveyed through written language and stories conveyed through sequences of images. Two cognitive abilities possibly underpinning such comprehension were assessed: Central Coherence (CC) and Theory of Mind (ToM). Two groups of children with typical development aged between 8.00 and 10.11 years were included in the study: 40 participants received the narrative comprehension task in the linguistic modality; 40 participants were administered the narrative comprehension task in the visual condition. Analyses revealed that a change in the expressive code used to convey narratives did not entail a change in the overall comprehension performance: children of the two groups performed similarly on the narrative task. As for the cognitive abilities, CC and ToM scores were positively correlated with narrative comprehension score only in the visual narrative comprehension task, and not in the linguistic one. Moreover, a regression analysis showed that, along with age, CC significantly predicted the visual narrative comprehension score. The implications of these results are discussed.(c) 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

Defining the Characteristics of Story Production of Autistic Children: A Multilevel Analysis

Several studies suggest that a valuable tool to examine linguistic skills in communication disorders is offered by procedures of narrative discourse assessment. Following this line of research, we present an exploratory study aimed to investigate storytelling abilities of autistic children to better define the characteristics of their story production. Participants included 41 autistic children and 41 children with typical development aged between 7.02 and 11.03 years matched on age, gender, level of formal education, intelligence quotient, working memory, attention skills, theory of mind, and phonological short-term memory. Narrative production was assessed by analysing the language samples obtained through the “Nest Story” description task. A multilevel analysis including micro- and macro-linguistic variables was adopted for narrative assessment. Group differences emerged on both micro- and macro-linguistic dimensions: autistic children produced narratives with more phonological errors and semantic paraphasias (microlinguistic variables) as well as more errors of global coherence and a fewer number of visible events and inferred events (macrolinguistic variables) than the control group.This study shows that even autistic children with adequate cognitive skills display several limitations in their narrative competence and that such weaknesses affect both micro- and macrolinguistic aspects of story production

Comprehending stories in pantomime. A pilot study with typically developing children and its implications for the narrative origin of language

This paper presents a pilot study aimed at investigating the comprehension of pantomimic stories and its possible cognitive underpinnings in typically developing children. A group of twenty-two Italian-speaking children aged between 8.02 and 10.11 years were included in the study. Participants watched short videos in which professional actors performed pantomime narratives; then answered a comprehension question and retold the stories. Analyses revealed positive correlations between the comprehension of pantomimes and age, theory of mind, and working memory. The implications of these results for a narrative model of language origin are discussed against the background of an eco-evo-devo perspective

Digital storytelling as a literacy-based intervention for a sixth grade student with Autism Spectrum Disorder: an exploratory case study

This study investigates the use of Digital Storytelling as an intervention to improve the academic performance and social interactions of a sixth grade student with High-Functioning Autism. Qualitative methodology, using an inductive approach informed by grounded theory, was employed throughout this exploratory case study. Three separate data sources, consisting of document analysis, interviews, and participant observation, contributed to the findings of this study. Triangulation of inquiry methods enhanced the validity and rigor of this investigation. The findings from this inquiry indicate that Digital Storytelling was beneficial to the participant in this exploratory case study. Engaged student processes and critical analysis of writing was observed throughout this intervention. The flexibility of Digital Storytelling was responsive to the learning style of preference of the participant in this study. Implications from this investigation are discussed at length. Recommendations are given for future efforts to replicate and expand the findings of this study

Defining the Characteristics of Story Production of Autistic Children: A Multilevel Analysis

Several studies suggest that a valuable tool to examine linguistic skills in communication disorders is offered by procedures of narrative discourse assessment. Following this line of research, we present an exploratory study aimed to investigate storytelling abilities of autistic children to better define the characteristics of their story production. Participants included 41 autistic children and 41 children with typical development aged between 7.02 and 11.03 years matched on age, gender, level of formal education, intelligence quotient, working memory, attention skills, theory of mind, and phonological short-term memory. Narrative production was assessed by analysing the language samples obtained through the “Nest Story” description task. A multilevel analysis including micro- and macro-linguistic variables was adopted for narrative assessment. Group differences emerged on both micro- and macro-linguistic dimensions: autistic children produced narratives with more phonological errors and semantic paraphasias (microlinguistic variables) as well as more errors of global coherence and a fewer number of visible events and inferred events (macrolinguistic variables) than the control group.This study shows that even autistic children with adequate cognitive skills display several limitations in their narrative competence and that such weaknesses affect both micro- and macrolinguistic aspects of story production