INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Jeff and Deanna Blossom are finding they may have more company than they thought as parents of an autistic child.
The Sebastian couple’s 15-year-old Mark has such severe autism that he cannot communicate verbally or even put on his own shoes.
But they watched him toss out the first pitch of the Sebastian River High School Sharks varsity baseball game last week as part of Autism Awareness Month activities at the school.
A study released last week now finds that one in 50 children have a diagnosis of some form of autism, up from the one-in-86 rate from the previous study that shocked the nation in 2007.
The figures – which are receiving a healthy dose of skepticism – come from a phone-survey analysis by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Health Resources and Services Administration.
If the survey results are anywhere near accurate, it’s a new reality to challenge not only parents, but also educators and healthcare providers.
“That’s scary,” Jeff Blossom said when he learned of the new rate.
The dark cloud has a silver lining – perhaps several. One is that autism awareness is up, which may account for at least a portion of the increase in diagnoses.
The study was perhaps not unintentionally released on the eve of April’s National Autism Awareness Month.
This added awareness means parents know in greater numbers that there may be solutions to their children’s baffling issues, and that children with autism may have access to strategies to bridge the gap in their social skills, mental focus and other diverse abilities.
One thing is sure, according to Blossom, referring to another plus side. “When I was a kid, people, especially other kids, were a lot less accepting and understanding than they are today,” Blossom said as he clapped for Mark after he tossed the baseball.
Fellow SRHS students with traditional abilities cheered him on and patted him on the back as they would any other team member. Mark glowed in return.
Mark’s classmate, Shangaree Craig, born with Down syndrome, sang the Star-Spangled Banner, eliciting more cheers of support from the bleachers and the dugout alike.
Times have changed.
“Kids like Mark, including those far less severe on the autism spectrum, would be the object of rejection, ridicule and bullying, which would definitely add to the problem by stacking emotional devastation on top of the challenges they are already trying to deal with,” Blossom added.
New advancements have also improved the outlook for students diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, especially in severe cases.
Mark learned sign language as a toddler to help meet his basic needs, but later abandoned any consistent form of communication.
“He basically moved to whining and pointing and hoping people could read his mind,” Blossom said. An iPad-based app has helped level the playing field.
Proloquo, developed by Assistive- Ware, and Proloquo2Go, or P2G, uses icons rather than printed words to communicate.
Mark presses the “I want” icon and then a picture of a cheeseburger to tell his mom or dad that he is hungry for a snack. With an iPad, iPod or iPhone he can take his device anywhere, without the bulkiness of previous PC-based systems.
The app is as important to Mark in the classroom as in the home, said Karen Nystrom, Exceptional Student Education (ESE) teacher at Sebastian River High School.
“I have a wide variety of students with skills at all levels. I consider the iPad to be a huge breakthrough as a communication tool for students who have language delays. Apps like Proloquo2Go and Voice Dream Reader are a game changer for my students,” Nystrom said.
She predicted these mobile communication devices will change the future for children with autism.
“I wish there was one on every desk,” said Nystrom, whose own son went through ESE education for autism and now lives in a group home. She may not get her wish any time soon. District education budget cuts over the past several years allow for only the basics.
In addition, only the most severe forms of autism qualify for any educational services at all. A student’s condition must affect academics beyond an average performance standard.
A majority of students on the autism spectrum, especially those with asperger’s syndrome, are highly intelligent, possess genius-level IQ, are in a gifted program or may be highly talented in certain subjects.
These same students may fail in life skills areas that include working with others, getting organized, turning in homework, following instructions or turning attention away from a subject of interest to a required task. Life skills do not generate a letter grade and are therefore nonacademic.
Parents typically must work tirelessly to get ESE services for their children, and when told they do not qualify, many pursue a medical classification called a 504 exemption that will not provide services, but will allow students extra time for certain exams and a set of classroom books to be kept home all school year.
In the classroom, Nystrom relies on other computer programs to deliver education. Students use a structured computer-based curriculum called Unique Learning System. This program provides material that is differentiated for each student.
It has texts and quizzes that are designed for each student’s strengths and weaknesses. The curriculum is based on monthly units and covers topics like community and government, technology, history and even life choices.
The content integrates math, science, language arts and life skills into a complete teaching package. It provides pre-tests and post-tests for the students every month.
“This provides me with curriculum structure, unified content and data to determine how my students are progressing,” Nystrom said. “It is an excellent resource.”
Another factor that continues to bog down ESE intervention is the controversy over whether students should be segregated and taught in separate ESE classrooms or integrated into mainstream classes and programs. The controversy does not go away upon leaving public schools, typically the sole source of socialization for students.
The question: are adults better off in group-home settings or independent living communities – there are none in Indian River County – where they can continue to socialize with their peers, or are they better off living in their family home of origin or otherwise in a traditional community setting?
While Mark cannot participate in team sports and many other typically school activities, all of these experiences are critically important to his being able to connect in a world that will one day not include his parents, Nystrom said.
“I hate all the separation, special this, special that,” Nystrom said. “We educate them in separate tracts, but in adulthood there is only one world.”
She sang Sebastian River Sharks Coach Tony Prudenti’s praises for making it possible for Mark to throw out the first pitch in last Wednesday’s varsity baseball game against the Martin County Tigers, but lamented the exclusion of her students from team play.
In Mark’s case, sports may be even more of a necessity than a simple extracurricular activity.
“In many ways he is just like any other teenager,” said Jeff Blossom, who enjoys a rare bond with his son over sports.
“He loves to watch sports, NASCAR, you name it. Sports is a common denominator,” Blossom said. “It’s something all men and most women talk about, and it will be an important way for Mark to connect. It’s an entry into a normal life.”
