Peer Mediation

During my many years of teaching I have always been intrigued at how well children with varying abilities were positively impacted by their peer groups.  And I often used the expertise of some of these peers to help and model appropriate skills and behaviors of the children who I knew could benefit. One of my favorite “peer models, “ was a girl named Zoe. Zoe was enrolled in my class for a three-year period. Zoe was hearing impaired. She read lips like a pro from the time she was two. She wore hearing aides though often would want to leave them in her book-bag, cause as she said, “ I don’t need them.” Zoe was as smart as she was stubborn. During her third year of preschool, she just missed the cutoff for kindergarten entrance, I often teased that if I was ever sick, my classroom aide really did not need a substitute for the day, and the district could just hire Zoe. Zoe was a great peer model. She was an incredible child, though disabled herself, she worked hard to help other children who had varying abilities.

   So, when we were asked to find a research article in which a family and children benefitted, I wanted to find one that focused on the effectiveness of peer modeling for children with varying abilities. I spent time helping “teach, “ Zoe how to be an appropriate peer model.”  Zoe had a gift of wanting to teach and show others, she was such a strong visual learner and a natural teacher. Initially I asked her Mom if it was ok, and her Mom was thrilled. So this research article is dedicated to Zoe, (who at the time was five years old), and all of the children she positively impacted. By the way I think Zoe taught me a few lessons as well.

     

The study was conducted by the Studies to Advance Autism Research and Treatment (STAART) Network. The funding was funded by the National Institute of Health. Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), who attend regular education classes may be more likely to improve their social skills if their typically developing peers are taught how to interact with them than if only the children with ASD are taught such skills. According to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health, a shift away from more commonly used interventions that focus on training children with ASD directly may provide greater social benefits for children with ASD.”

Many families, whose children have ASD, often worry greatly about their child’s ability to interact with their peers. Some parents that I have worked with have sent their children to special programs, which teach specifically, social skills training. This is a great research study for parents, families and teachers and speech therapist alike. It reminds us the importance of the peer model, and that the social skills training in isolation for children with ASD are not as beneficial. Instead it raises the importance of when teaching children with varying abilities social skills it is just as important to teach the typically developing children ways to help their peers with ASD.

References:

Kasari C, Rotheram-Fuller E, Locke J, Gulsrud A. Making the connection: randomized controlled trial of social skills at school for children with autism spectrum disorders. J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 2012 Apr;53(4):431-9. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-7610.2011.02493.x. Epub 2011 Nov 26. Retrieved from: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/