Building Reading Skills in Junior Schoolchildren with Autism Spectrum Disorders in the Context of Inclusive Education

Abstract

The aim of the research is to identify the peculiarities of building reading skills in junior schoolchildren with ASD. The study involved the use of parent questionnaire survey to confirm the diagnosis of ASD (the Social Communication Questionnaire, SCQ), diagnosis of reading skills (the Standardized Assessment of the Reading Skills (SARS), Test of Operational Units of Reading), analysis of statistics from official sources. The study showed that the reading skills of children with ASD range mostly within the normative limits, but there are some children with low values. It was established that there are significant differences between the components of the reading skills of children with ASD and children with normative development for the parameters of reading comprehension (M = 4.2, SD = 1.4, t≤0.01), reading speed (M = 3.7 , SD = 1.6, t≤0.05), the method of reading (M = 6.4, SD = 1.9, t≤0.05) and the index of operational units of reading (M = 5.5, SD = 1 .8, t≤0.01). It was found that there is a correlation between the degree of manifestation of ASD in junior schoolchildren and their reading skills. The higher the manifestations of violations, the lower the indicators of reading skills. The study found that children with ASD have normatively developed reading skills at the level of their peers, but reading speed and reading comprehension are more difficult for them. Severe concomitant manifestations of ASD negatively affect the development of reading skills, which requires special conditions for the development of reading skills in children with ASD. The obtained results can contribute to the development of a programme of support for children with ASD at the level of school inclusive education with the involvement of relevant specialists in order to more fully include them in the educational space and ensure the development of a high level of the reading skills.