Compose a 1250 words essay on Autisms affect on skill acquisition (learning). Needs to be plagiarism free!Download file to see previous pages... These include, but are not limited to, therapies involv

Compose a 1250 words essay on Autisms affect on skill acquisition (learning). Needs to be plagiarism free!

These include, but are not limited to, therapies involving animals and music, massage therapy. relationship based models, communication interventions and applied behavior analysis (Autism Society, 2013). These all have varying rates of success, dependent on a number of factors. However, there is controversy about these therapies and their efficacy, particularly based on failures in the methodology of these studies (Autism Society, 2013). Despite this controversy, there are many therapies for autism that are available through government funding. This approach to autism treatment also includes educational approaches which may be provided by government-funded schools (Autism Society, 2013). The Autism Society suggests that autism therapy needs to address ‘educational needs, behavior issues, communication problems and/or motor and physical disabilities and medical needs’, and suggests that the therapies include ‘early intensive behavioral interventions (including those classed as developmental behavioral interventions), physical or occupational therapy and social and self-help skills development (Autism Society, 2013). The first of these is early intensive behavioral intervention, which is considered a form of Applied Behavior Analysis (Cooper, Heron &amp. Heard, 2007). It is considered to be one of the only effective treatments for autism (Cooper et al, 2007). The way that this works is by observing which skills the autistic individual struggles with at an early age. By identifying these, it is possible to break them down into small components which may be more manageable and understandable to the child. The child can then be ‘taught’ how to use this skill by a variety of psychological techniques, such as positive reinforcement (Loaves et al, 1976). Whilst the original paper published by the inventor of this technique claimed that 47% of children undergoing ABA became similar to their non-autistic peers (Lovaas et al, 1976), this may have been overstated. However, Reichow &amp. Wolery (2009) found that overall there is some benefit in this therapy. Another type of developmental behavioral intervention is known as the Early Start Denver Model (ESDM), which is applicable to toddlers with autism particularly. Comparative to the early intensive behavioral intervention outlined above, the ESDM has a more heavily parent-oriented approach, and focuses on interpersonal exchange (Autism Speaks, 2013). It is considered to be a comprehensive approach to tackling autistic skill acquisition issues, because of the wide range of issues it aims to target (Autism Speaks, 2013). The benefit of ESDM is not completely proven in the literature, but some studies suggest that, when compared with community intervention, children who receive ESDM therapies at an early age can show “significant improvements in IQ, adaptive behavior and autism diagnosis (Dawson et al, p17). Despite the partial successes of the therapies above, there are evidently cases where autistic children do not respond to this type of treatment. Additionally, even using the high estimate from Lovaas (1976), only 47% of children responded to the treatment. Other options for government-funding treatment can include occupational therapy (Turkington &amp. Anan, 2007). This includes a variety of approaches, such as sensory integration, positive reinforcement and non-standardized tools (Watling et al, 1999).