For many children with autism, speech therapy provides
crucial training to help them develop language skills. A recently published
research article describes a new form of speech therapy that offers promising
results to children with autism whose speech skills are limited. The article,
“Behavioral predictors of improved speech output in minimally verbal children
with autism,” published in the October 2018 issue of Autism Research and
available online through the Wiley Online Library, describes the AMMT method
and suggests which children are most likely to benefit from this form of speech
therapy. [To read this article, please click here.]
The researchers, affiliated with Boston University, Harvard Medical School, and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, all located in Boston, Massachusetts, looked for factors that would predict improvement in spoken language for minimally verbal children with autism. Their study included 38 minimally verbal children with autism ranging from ages three years and five months to ten years and eight months.
The children received one of two forms of speech therapy and participated in a minimum of twenty-five sessions that met five days a week for forty-five minutes each time. Most of the children engaged in auditory-motor mapping training (AMMT), “a novel therapy that uses intonation (singing) and rhythmic hand tapping.” The researchers further describe AMMT as “one of a small number of music-based treatments that have recently begun to be used effectively for teaching language and social skills to children with ASD” [autism spectrum disorders]. The other children in the study—the control group— engaged in speech repetition therapy (SRT), which involves no singing or tapping, only saying words aloud.
During these sessions of speech therapy, the children were given thirty familiar two syllable words to say aloud, such as “mommy,” “cookie,” and “bye-bye.” The children in the SRT group simply repeated these words with the speech therapist. However, the children in the AMMT group would sing the words while using two hands to tap on drums at the same time. This method not only combines using auditory and motor skills but also holds the attention of the children during the therapy sessions. The researchers discovered that the children who participated in the AMMT therapy improved their speech production more than those who received SRT therapy.
In addition, the researchers studied which factors were most closely linked to speech improvement, such as age, gender, severity of autism, nonverbal IQ, expressive language skills, and phonetic inventory (the number of speech sounds children can repeat correctly). In some children, the severity of autism influenced the amount of progress made in therapy. However, phonetic inventory was the strongest predictor of how much the children would improve. Researchers were surprised to discover that nonverbal IQ, expressive language, and age did not predict the level of improvement.
In fact, they noted that the older children may have better attention spans during therapy sessions that enabled them to make progress. While the value of speech therapy for older minimally verbal children with autism is sometimes questioned, the researchers note that their observations suggest some older children with autism can benefit from speech therapy.
Although the researchers admit that working with minimally verbal children can be difficult, they also stress the value of effective treatment. Approximately 25% of children with autism are considered minimally verbal. Developing language skills tends to reduce behavioral issues and improve long-term outcomes for these children. As the researchers stress, there is a “great need for these children to acquire even a few words.”
While the researchers affirm the need for further study in the area of speech therapy for minimally verbal children with autism, their study offers hope. First, the AMMT method appears to develop speech skills successfully by combining speech with singing and tapping. Moreover, their results indicate that even older children can develop their speech skills through proper therapy. Certainly, helping children with autism learn to speak is a noble cause, allowing them to communicate their wants and needs, to express their thoughts and feelings, and to interact with others so that they can lead fulfilling lives.
The researchers, affiliated with Boston University, Harvard Medical School, and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, all located in Boston, Massachusetts, looked for factors that would predict improvement in spoken language for minimally verbal children with autism. Their study included 38 minimally verbal children with autism ranging from ages three years and five months to ten years and eight months.
The children received one of two forms of speech therapy and participated in a minimum of twenty-five sessions that met five days a week for forty-five minutes each time. Most of the children engaged in auditory-motor mapping training (AMMT), “a novel therapy that uses intonation (singing) and rhythmic hand tapping.” The researchers further describe AMMT as “one of a small number of music-based treatments that have recently begun to be used effectively for teaching language and social skills to children with ASD” [autism spectrum disorders]. The other children in the study—the control group— engaged in speech repetition therapy (SRT), which involves no singing or tapping, only saying words aloud.
During these sessions of speech therapy, the children were given thirty familiar two syllable words to say aloud, such as “mommy,” “cookie,” and “bye-bye.” The children in the SRT group simply repeated these words with the speech therapist. However, the children in the AMMT group would sing the words while using two hands to tap on drums at the same time. This method not only combines using auditory and motor skills but also holds the attention of the children during the therapy sessions. The researchers discovered that the children who participated in the AMMT therapy improved their speech production more than those who received SRT therapy.
In addition, the researchers studied which factors were most closely linked to speech improvement, such as age, gender, severity of autism, nonverbal IQ, expressive language skills, and phonetic inventory (the number of speech sounds children can repeat correctly). In some children, the severity of autism influenced the amount of progress made in therapy. However, phonetic inventory was the strongest predictor of how much the children would improve. Researchers were surprised to discover that nonverbal IQ, expressive language, and age did not predict the level of improvement.
In fact, they noted that the older children may have better attention spans during therapy sessions that enabled them to make progress. While the value of speech therapy for older minimally verbal children with autism is sometimes questioned, the researchers note that their observations suggest some older children with autism can benefit from speech therapy.
Although the researchers admit that working with minimally verbal children can be difficult, they also stress the value of effective treatment. Approximately 25% of children with autism are considered minimally verbal. Developing language skills tends to reduce behavioral issues and improve long-term outcomes for these children. As the researchers stress, there is a “great need for these children to acquire even a few words.”
While the researchers affirm the need for further study in the area of speech therapy for minimally verbal children with autism, their study offers hope. First, the AMMT method appears to develop speech skills successfully by combining speech with singing and tapping. Moreover, their results indicate that even older children can develop their speech skills through proper therapy. Certainly, helping children with autism learn to speak is a noble cause, allowing them to communicate their wants and needs, to express their thoughts and feelings, and to interact with others so that they can lead fulfilling lives.
“He has given me a new song to sing, a hymn of praise to our
God. Many will see what He has done and be amazed. They will put their trust in
the Lord.” Psalm 40:3
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