I. General Information

1. Course Title:
Characteristics of Children with Autism, Learning Disabilities, Emotional Behavioral Disorders

2. Course Prefix & Number:
CDEV 2204

3. Course Credits and Contact Hours:

Credits: 2

Lecture Hours: 2

4. Course Description:

This course provides an overview of characteristics and early interventions to support children with autism, learning disabilities, and emotional behavioral disorders and create an inclusive learning environment. The student will strengthen effective educational practice, promote inquiry, and build leadership skills for regular and special education.

5. Placement Tests Required:

Accuplacer (specify test):

No placement tests required

Score:

6. Prerequisite Courses:

9. Co-requisite Courses:

There are no corequisites for this course.

II. Transfer and Articulation

III. Course Purpose

1. Program-Applicable Courses – This course is required for the following program(s):

Early Childhood Education AAS

IV. Learning Outcomes

1. College-Wide Outcomes

College-Wide Outcomes/Competencies	Students will be able to:
Apply ethical principles in decision-making	Explain advocacy and the importance of supporting, communicating and including families in relation to children with special needs.
Discuss/compare characteristics of diverse cultures and environments	Discuss and differentiate possible developmental and behavioral indicators for autism emotional/behavioral disorders and learning disabilities.

2. Course Specific Outcomes - Students will be able to achieve the following measurable goals upon completion of the course:

• Review and examine history of Autism, emotional behavioral disorders, and learning disabilities;
• Research, examine, and discuss possible developmental and behavioral indicators for autism, emotional/ behavioral disorders and learning disabilities that could be cause for referral to appropriate professional agencies;
• Review and examine referral and diagnosis procedures and the various roles and degrees of professionals specific to autism, emotional/ behavioral disorders, and learning disabilities to be better able to support children and families through the referral and diagnosis process;
• Describe the function and importance of communicating and interacting with children, families, other teachers, and the Community to support child learning and well-being;
• Research and examine a variety of effective instructional and behavioral interventions and strategies to utilize when working with a child with autism, emotional/ behavioral disorders, and/or learning disabilities; AND
• Examine advocacy and the importance of supporting, communicating and including families in relation to children with special needs.   

V. Topical Outline

Listed below are major areas of content typically covered in this course.

1. Lecture Sessions

1. History of special education
• development of autism, emotional behavioral disorders and learning disabilities category
• professional organizations
2. Definition and eligibility criteria of autism, emotional behavioral disorders, and learning disabilities
• National criteria
• MN eligibility criteria
• Who diagnoses children? 
• Doctors and school professionals roles in the process
3. Causation factors contributing to autism, emotional behavioral disorders, and learning disabilities
• Environment
• Genetics
4. Possible characteristics and developmental/behavioral indicators of children with autism (CDC.gov)
• Does not respond to name by 12 months of age
• Avoids eye-contact
• Prefers to play alone
• Does not share interests with others
• Only interacts to achieve a desired goal
• Has flat or inappropriate facial expressions
• Does not understand personal space boundaries
• Avoids or resists physical contact
• Is not comforted by others during distress
• Has trouble understanding other people's feelings or talking about own feelings
• Delayed speech and language skills
• Repeats words or phrases over and over (echolalia)
• Reverses pronouns (e.g., says "you" instead of "I")
• Gives unrelated answers to questions
• Does not point or respond to pointing
• Uses few or no gestures (e.g., does not wave goodbye)
• Talks in a flat, robot-like, or sing-song voice
• Does not pretend in play (e.g., does not pretend to "feed" a doll)
• Does not understand jokes, sarcasm, or teasing
• Lines up toys or other objects
• Plays with toys the same way every time
• Likes parts of objects (e.g., wheels)
• Is very organized
• Gets upset by minor changes
• Has obsessive interests
• Has to follow certain routines
• Flaps hands, rocks body, or spins self in circles
• Hyperactivity (very active)
• Impulsivity (acting without thinking)
• Short attention span
• Aggression
• Causing self injury
• Temper tantrums
• Unusual eating and sleeping habits
• Unusual mood or emotional reactions
• Lack of fear or more fear than expected
• Unusual reactions to the way things sound, smell, taste, look, or feel
5. Characteristics and possible developmental/behavioral indicators of children with emotional behavioral disorders (CDC.Gov)
• Anxiety
• Being very afraid when away from parents (separation anxiety)
• Having extreme fear about a specific thing or situation, such as dogs, insects, or going to the doctor (phobias)
• Being very afraid of school and other places where there are people (social anxiety)
• Being very worried about the future and about bad things happening (general anxiety)
• Having repeated episodes of sudden, unexpected, intense fear that come with symptoms like heart pounding, having trouble breathing, or feeling dizzy, shaky, or sweaty (panic disorder)
• Depression
• Feeling sad, hopeless, or irritable a lot of the time
• Not wanting to do or enjoy doing fun things
• Changes in eating patterns – eating a lot more or a lot less than usual
• Changes in sleep patterns – sleeping a lot more or a lot less than normal
• Changes in energy – being tired and sluggish or tense and restless a lot of the time
• Having a hard time paying attention
• Feeling worthless, useless, or guilty
• Self-injury and self-destructive behavior
• Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD)
• Often being angry or losing one’s temper
• Often arguing with adults or refusing to comply with adults’ rules or requests
• Often resentful or spiteful
• Deliberately annoying others or becoming annoyed with others
• Often blaming other people for one’s own mistakes or misbehavior
• Conduct Disorder (CD)
• Breaking serious rules, such as running away, staying out at night when told not to, or skipping school
• Being aggressive in a way that causes harm, such as  bullying, fighting, or being cruel to animals
• Lying, stealing, or damaging other people’s property on purpose
• Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
• Often fails to give close attention to details or makes careless mistakes in schoolwork, at work, or with other activities
• Often has trouble holding attention on tasks or play activities
• Often does not seem to listen when spoken to directly
• Often does not follow through on instructions and fails to finish schoolwork, chores, or duties in the workplace (e.g., loses focus, side-tracked)
• Often has trouble organizing tasks and activities
• Often avoids, dislikes, or is reluctant to do tasks that require mental effort over a long period of time (such as schoolwork or homework)
• Often loses things necessary for tasks and activities (e.g. school materials, pencils, books, tools, wallets, keys, paperwork, eyeglasses, mobile telephones)
• Is often easily distracted
• Is often forgetful in daily activities
• Often fidgets with or taps hands or feet, or squirms in seat
• Often leaves seat in situations when remaining seated is expected
• Often runs about or climbs in situations where it is not appropriate (adolescents or adults may be limited to feeling restless)
• Often unable to play or take part in leisure activities quietly
• Is often “on the go” acting as if “driven by a motor”
• Often talks excessively
• Often blurts out an answer before a question has been completed
• Often has trouble waiting his/her turn
• Often interrupts or intrudes on others (e.g., butts into conversations or games)
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
• Having unwanted thoughts, impulses, or images that occur over and over and which cause anxiety or distress
• Having to think about or say something over and over (for example, counting, or repeating words over and over silently or out loud)
• Having to do something over and over (for example, handwashing, placing things in a specific order, or checking the same things over and over, like whether a door is locked)
• Having to do something over and over according to certain rules that must be followed exactly in order to make an obsession go away
• Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Reliving the event over and over in thought or in play
• Nightmares and sleep problems
• Becoming very upset when something causes memories of the event
• Lack of positive emotions
• Intense ongoing fear or sadness
• Irritability and angry outbursts
• Constantly looking for possible threats, being easily startled
• Acting helpless, hopeless or withdrawn
• Denying that the event happened or feeling numb
• Avoiding places or people associated with the event
6. Characteristics and possible developmental/behavioral indicators of children with learning disabilities (LDonline.org)
• Preshool
• Speaks later than most children
• Pronunciation problems
• Slow vocabulary growth, often unable to find the right word
• Difficulty rhyming words
• Trouble learning numbers, alphabet, days of the week, colors, shapes
• Extremely restless and easily distracted
• Trouble interacting with peers
• Difficulty following directions or routines
• Fine motor skills slow to develop
• Grades K-4
• Slow to learn the connection between letters and sounds
• Confuses basic words (run, eat, want)
• Makes consistent reading and spelling errors including letter reversals (b/d), inversions (m/w), transpositions (felt/left), and substitutions (house/home)
• Transposes number sequences and confuses arithmetic signs (+, -, x, /, =)
• Slow to remember facts
• Slow to learn new skills, relies heavily on memorization
• Impulsive, difficulty planning
• Unstable pencil grip
• Trouble learning about time
• Poor coordination, unaware of physical surroundings, prone to accident