Re: Diagnostic test

• From: loonieladyslipper
• Date: Thu, 20 Dec 2001 02:10:05 -0800
• Message-ID: <000U23E7T.0004ARMEN.12170551-quizbowl_at_...>

Sorry for the diversion from real quizbowl
subjects here. I'm not quite sure what exactly this test
is supposed to be testing, but if it really does try
to identify autism, it seems to be going for one
specific type of autism.

I have several students
who have been diagnosed with slight to severe autism
this year alone. Autism is the fastest growing special
education group in the United States. One factor my
students do seem to share is their need for routine. This
is not like someone enjoying having a set schedule
everyday. This is not like someone who has a good luck
routine to go through before a quizbowl match, or someone
who likes to get dressed the same way everyday. Some
of my little guys really need to sharpen their
pencils the exact same way everyday, and if we can't,
they get very upset and will sometimes have trouble
for the rest of the day. Another factor a few of my
students share is their pattern of fidgeting. Somebody is
usually rocking their chair or tapping their pencil, and
not just casually. There are many other
characteristics, but those two stick out in my mind.

The
problem with the test is that someone taking it, say for
example a quizbowl player, will frequently answer that
s/he likes numbers and dates, or that s/he has trouble
identifying other people's reactions in a social situation.
That does not mean that s/he has these qualities to
the same degree that someone who is autistic probably
would. 

Some of my friends would score very high
on the test, but they are in no way autistic, while
some of my students wouldn't score as high, and they
are autistic. It all depends on how you answer. Maybe
someone with an autistic sibling could answer this, but
would a true autistic even be able to answer many of
these questions? I think the test would have to be done
by an observer. For example, someone with truly poor
social interaction very likely would not know it! I
guess I would agree with Samer, this might be useful
for screening in *some* cases, but it would in no way
at all be diagnostic.

Alexis