1994, the Definition of Autism

¶ … 1994, the definition of autism was expanded, and the number of children with this disability grew ten-fold. The reason for this increase is placed on a range of possibilities, including diet, medications and more-sophisticated ways of testing the disorder. As the number of children with autism increases nationally, school districts are being reshaped to meet the needs of these students. In the mean time, both classroom teachers and special education staff have significant more responsibility being placed on them. Any suggestions that could improve their educational resources at this time would be helpful. The article "Video modeling for individuals with autism: A review of model types and effects" (McCoy & Hermansen, 2007) appears to be a promising approach for supplying supplemental education to autistic children.

Autistic children as a whole have been found to be strong in processing visual stimuli. Traditionally, when modeling has been used as an instructional strategy, the student learns by observing a model (an adult or peer) performing a specific skill and then matching the model's behaviors under similar circumstances. Numerous studies have found potential advantages of modeling as an instructional strategy for teaching students with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD). Modeling is more cost-effective than one-on one teaching, because it can teach several children simultaneously (Ihrig & Wolchik, 1988), be applicable to many different settings (Tryon & Keane, 1986) and help children benefit from inclusive environments (Jones & Schwartz, 2004). Ihrig and Wolchik also proposed that modeling may decrease the discriminability of the teaching setting from other settings. Other studies are not as conclusive, noting that the benefits gained depend on the situation and the child. Nevertheless, in a number of cases modeling is being used successfully.

Because of the tendency for autistic children to respond visually and to modeling behavior, according to McCoy & Hermansen's review, video modeling has been increasingly being used as a resource. In the behavioral technique of video modeling, the child views videotapes in place of live scenarios. It places the focus of attention on the stimulus tape to expand the learner's capability to memorize, imitate, and generalize or adapt targeted behaviors. The approach has a number of advantages to teachers who need to find effective approaches to meet the instructional characteristics of autistic children. Video modeling is especially of interest to instructors who find live modeling to be very time consuming. It has been found to have quicker rates of acquisition and ability for generalization as compared to live modeling. It also requires less time for training and implementation than live modeling; once the tape is created, the video can be used repeatedly, and teachers can assign the instruction to paraprofessionals knowing the lesson will be delivered in a standardized manner Additional benefits to video modeling include an increased ability to gain and hold the student's attention and to have complete control over the observed stimuli.

McCoy & Hermansen's article is a comprehensive review of the different ways that video modeling has been applied and integrated into other forms of education. In addition, it acts as a primer to those who are not familiar with overall learning approaches for autistic children and, specifically, visual modeling. Studies in this review were categorized into one of five types of models viewed: adults, peers, self, point-of-view, and mixed (more than one type of model). Descriptive summaries and analyses of outcomes were provided for each study. The article provided a synthesis of the research literature on applications of these five types of models used in video modeling studies and compared their effectiveness with a variety of academic and social skills for acquisition and generalization of behaviors targeted.

Thirty-one articles in total were part of the literature review. The paper was very organized. It clearly followed the noted direction of the authors, reviewing each of the five different video modeling approaches. The review was easy to read without a lot of professional jargon. Notations were made when the authors observed that needed information was omitted. It is suggested, however, that the authors not assume that acronyms are known. In several places, initials are used and not spelled out.