Our names are, Courtney Carroll, Samantha Palczynski, and Eryn Kenney. We are enrolled in the Social Studies block section one at Salem State University. For those of you who may not know, "block" is known as our pre-practicum semester at the University in preparation of becoming Elementary school teachers.
We have been assigned a group project that asks us to research a topic in the media today, something we feel strongly about, and research it, blog about it, and create lessons for our students about it.
As a group, we will be digging a little bit deeper into the causes of Autism. As you may know, Autism is a developmental disorder that effects the brains ability to communicate and socialize. Autism is diagnosed based on a Spectrum, this spectrum determines whether a patient with autism is high functioning or low functioning. Along the Autism spectrum there are also two other disorders, one is called Asperger syndrome, and the other is Persuasive Developmental Disorder- not otherwise specified.
The reason for our research is to gain a better understanding of why a diagnosis of Autism can mean so many things. There are reports and accusations that Autism can be caused by childhood vaccinations, as well as the neglect of a fetus during pregnancy. None of these suspicions have been confirmed, and there is no explanation as to the causes of the disorder. Most people believe that Autism can not be diagnosed until the age of three. However, this article by Sally J. Rogers would disagree, "The Retrospective studies of infant videotapes of children later diagnosed with autism have demonstrated significant differences in infants with autism by the age of 10–12 months, differences that distinguish them both from normally developing children and from children who have other kinds of developmental delays"(Rogers). These many different suspicions of Autism make the disorder very mysterious and unknown.
There is no known cure of the disorder, other than therapeutic techniques, as well as constant therapy. We are hoping to find many sources that can help us begin to link the Autism puzzle together.
Rogers, Sally. Diagnosis of Autism Before the Age of Three. International Research in Mental Retardation. Vol 23. The University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. 2000. (Print).
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