Goals

Today I need to find a supporting article for a new part of my topic that I just found. ARGH! Ok. I also need to write. Write a lot. Write a strong body for my paper. End of story.

Exploratory Draft

Does an autism epidemic exist in the United States? What does this mean for society, and how should we respond?

Recently, there has been plenty of coverage in the media regarding the existence of an autism “epidemic” in the United States of America today. Time magazine has proclaimed the existence of this epidemic on its front page, and National Public Radio has hosted talk shows discussing the ever-increasing numbers of autistic children in public schools. However, although this autism epidemic has become a battleground of fiery debates, the debaters can almost always agree on one thing: there has, in fact, been a noticeable upsurge in the numbers of autism diagnoses in the United States within the last ten years. But the problem is really so much more complex than just numbers and statistics. First, even though researchers everywhere agree upon the fact that autism diagnoses have risen in number, they constantly disagree as to whether or not this signals a full-blown epidemic. Second, even if an autism epidemic truly does exist, no one knows for certain what its causes may be. And third, complicating matters even further, if an epidemic does, in fact, exist, there will be severe implications that may very well change everything about the way society responds to autism.

The primary question then must be this: do the increases in autism diagnoses require the designation of “epidemic”? This seems like such a bold claim. In order to investigate this problem, it is necessary to first portray an accurate picture of the current state of autism and move then to examine the upsurges in autism diagnoses and their implications…

Annotated Bibliography Peer Review Results

The feedback I received from the peer review workshop were pretty consistent. In order to improve my annotated bibliography, I need to:

1. Break my sources down into categories- this should be easy enough, as most of my sources pertain to one of my two research questions specifically.

2. Reformat my annotated bibliography to include headings, correct citation format, and fix layout issues.

3. Also find at least one more source that directly backs up my primary claims.

Annotated Bibliography Entry #3

Steuernagel, Trudy. “Increases in Identified Cases of Autism Spectrum Disorders.” Journal of Disability Policy Studies 16 (2005): 138-146. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Elmhurst College Lib. 31 Oct. 2007 .

Kent State University’s Trudy Steuernagel, PhD, enters into a discussion regarding the so-called autism “epidemic” and its implications for the United States’ disability policy. The article offers insight into why autism has evolved into a policy issue, as well as how federal and local governments craft disability policy and the United States’ governments’ actual ability to engineer disability policy to keep up with the rising identified cases of autism spectrum disorders.

This article will be most helpful in my discussion of the autism epidemic. As this rise in autism diagnoses is in direct correlation with the placement of more autistic children in public school special education programs, this information is quite relevant to my research question.

Annotated Bibliography Entry #2

Tincani, Matt. “Beyond Consumer Advocacy: Autism Spectrum Disorders, Effective Instruction, and Public Schools.” Intervention in School and Clinic 43 (2007):47-51. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Elmhurst College Lib. 31 Oct. 2007 .

In this article, Matt Tincani, PhD of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas notes the conflicts that public schools face when implementing autism interventions, including legal issues, parental and professional values and ideologies, and resources. However, while these issues cannot always be avoided, they can be directly addressed. Tincani stresses the importance of team-designed interventions that take into consideration the aforementioned conflicts. This way, students with autism spectrum disorders can benefit from the most appropriate interventions for them.

I will use this article in my research project to show that while there are many ways of effectively instructing autistic students in a public school setting, it is perhaps most important that special education teachers work together to assess their school’s resources as well as necessary interventions to ensure proper instruction for the children.

Annotated Bibliography Entry #1

Lerman, Dorothea C. et al. “Preparing Teachers in Evidence-Based Practices for Young Children with Autism.” School Psychology Review 33 (2004): 510-526. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Elmhurst College Lib. 29 Oct. 2007

This study from Dorothea Lerman and a team of researchers from Louisiana State University proposed that many special education teachers in public schools are unprepared to satisfactorily instruct autistic students. Many public schools do not have the resources or information required to update their teaching strategies to accommodate recent autism research findings. Thus, Lerman and her researchers designed a comprehensive summer program for public school special education teachers. This program would teach them several recently-developed teaching skills and also allow them to work directly with one or two autistic children in a classroom setting. The team evaluated the participating teachers’ sessions with the children and collected data in order to judge the success of the program. When the program was finished, the team’s data showed improved responses and better communication from the children in the classroom.

I plan to use the results of this study to show how autistic children would benefit from having better-prepared teachers that are more in-tune with their specific needs.

Revised Research Question

What do experts have to say regarding:

1. The rise in autism diagnoses?

2. The current state of special education programs in public schools?

3. Whether or not educators are prepared enough to teach specifically autistic students? This includes if special education teachers are currently implementing the proper techniques to teach autistic children, as well as if they are continually modifying their methodology to fit with recent research findings regarding autism.

Then, I will draw a conclusion of my own from expert opinion and fact regarding the best plan of action to ensure autistic students and their educators the best possible learning environment/experience.