Peter is sixteen years boy in eleventh grade suffering from Autism Spectrum Disorder
ASD. Peter is an active child who needs support to fight ASD. Peter has a communication
problem, but he is very responsive to photographs and drawings. Peter has some behavioral
abnormalities and does not enjoy the company of other children. He is silent most of the time and
shows minimal responsivity to communication in his class and at home. He is also in a depressed
mood most of the time. Peter is a teenage boy living with ASD, and he has communication
dysfunction and depression challenges.
Peter will be subjected to Relationship Development Intervention RDI and Cognitive
Behavioral Therapy CBT to manage his ASD. The RDI will help Peter engage with his peers and
enhance his communication frequency (Wang et al., 2019). CBT is aimed at altering Peter's
cognition to eliminate depression (Kerns et al., 2018). Communication and interaction problems
are impairments associated with ASD and have significant effects on the social life of the
victims. I chose the RDI and CBT because they rectify social challenges such as communication
dysfunction and depression relative to Peter's case.
RDI entails improving the social-communicative abilities as an intervention to improve
communication. RDI is more effective when applied at all social settings the children interact
with, such as at home and school. Family assistance from parents and guardians will inspire
more proximal outcomes in improving Peter's social and communication skills. Parents-child
interactions in parent training have the eminent potential for improving social communication
abilities in young teens. Since parents are the primary therapist in RDI implementation, I will
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train them to apply behavioral treatment to build social and emotional skills. Parental support is
elementary in RDI to reinforce the personal relationship skills in children with ASD.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy CBT is a treatment therapy program applied in Peter's
case. CBT is aimed at cognitive restructuring through training to improve educational capacity in
children (Kerns et al., 2018). CBT calls for parent training, behavior analysis, and school
consultation. According to Zager et al. (2012), most children with Autism often face emotional
problems such as anger, depression, and anxiety. CBT is an empirically proven method of
managing mood disorders in ASD patients (Kerns et al., 2018). Peter can train to overcome
obstacles by participating in activities he enjoys, such as drawing. Peter can use drawing to lay
down the negative thoughts through drawing hence helping me identify the thoughts causing him
depression. Engaging Peter will help him manage ASD by improving his cognitive state to
improve his concentration and attention retention.
One-on-one intervention to manage ASD requires paraprofessional support.
Paraprofessional support aims at improving the student's autonomy and independence through
adopted teaching skills. The first step of implementing fading support is identifying the intended
purpose of the learning process. Considerations of the learning behaviors are essential when
implementing paraprofessional support. Peter's learning style is seeing and participating in
drawing and art activities. Paraprofessional aid is applicable in learning settings that are less
restrictive such as schools. Teachers participate in paraprofessional support, and they learn using
creative ways of teaching, such as the use of visual cues in Peter's case.
The second step after function identification is developing objectives and goals to
improve the skill deficits, such as the ability to engage in an educational environment in Peter's
case. The final step is preparing the fade-out plan which accounts for performance indicators and
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assessments on the students' level of assistance. The aim of fading paraprofessional support for
Peter is to limit the support he needs to adapt to a learning environment.
Self-advocacy is a form of self-determination that is important in managing ASD. Self-
determination helps ASD patients to take over control of their lives and make informed decisions
concerning their lives (Zager et al., 2012). Self-advocacy will help Peter to be outspoken on
matters relating to himself and cause. Self-determination has long-run and short-term effects on
the decision-making and self-advocacy of children with ASD. Considering Peter's poor
interaction skills, self-advocacy will help him know when and how to address others to attain
mutual agreement and fulfillment. Applying self-advocacy skills to Peter will allow him to assess
challenges and speak up, enhancing his negotiations skills.
Part of my plan to enhance Peter's self-determination is disclosing his diagnosis and
speaking to him about ASD. At age sixteen, helping Peter understand his condition is the first
step of fulfilling self-advocacy. Revealing patients' strengths and weaknesses help them in
expressing personal power (Zager et al., 2012). Peter can use his passion for drawing and art as
his strengths to counter self-disapproval. Focusing on strengths and creating assurance for
support to manage the condition will enhance self-determination. The other step of molding self-
advocacy is involving Peter more in decision making. By engaging Peter in a decision like what
he would like to eat and asking for what he needs. Involving children with ASD in making
choices improves their decision-making confidence and enables them to speak up. Disclosure of
diagnosis and engaging Peter more in decision-making will improve Peter's self-determination
skills.
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In eleventh grade, Peter had not established any friendship patterns and spent most of his
playtime. The lack of established friendship is an issue for improving Peter's interaction skills in
class. Changing the social pattern at the age of eleven is difficult for Peters, considering his
responsivity to other children. In a classroom setting, it will be challenging for the teacher to
accommodate Peter's unique needs, such as visual cues and drawings to trigger Peter's learning
abilities.
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References
Kerns, C. M., Collier, A., Lewin, A. B., & Storch, E. A. (2018). Therapeutic alliance in youth
with autism spectrum disorder receiving cognitive-behavioral treatment for
anxiety. Autism, 22(5), 636-640.
Wang, N., Wang, Y., & Han, H. (2019). Efficiency of Relational Development Intervention
Program for Children with Autism. Advances in Social Science, Education and
Humanities Research (ASSEHR), 300.
Zager, D. B., Wehmeyer, M. L., & Simpson, R. L. (Eds.). (2012). Educating students with
autism spectrum disorders: Research-based principles and practices. Routledge.