The specifics of socialization of children with autism spectrum disorders in early and preschool education

Poremećaji iz spektra autizma (PSA) su pervazivni razvojni poremećaji koji se javljaju u ranom djetinjstvu i traju cijeli život, a očituju se u teškoćama u socijalnoj interakciji i komunikaciji te ograničenim i repetitivnim obrascima ponašanja, interesa ili aktivnosti. Sposobnost uspostavljanja odnosa s drugima i njihovo održavanje, sudjelovanje u zajednici i izgradnja prijateljstava karakteristični su za socijalnu kompetenciju, dok se pojmom socijalizacija misli na proces u kojemu se djeca i mladi uvode u neku kulturu, stječu stavove, uče i razvijaju prihvatljivo društveno ponašanje. Socijalizacija djece PSA razlikuje se od djeteta do djeteta i ovisi o dječjem razvoju, a važnu ulogu u razvoju socijalne kompetencije imaju vršnjaci i odgojitelji. Uloga odgojitelja je razumijevanje utjecaja teškoće u razvoju na odgoj i obrazovanje djece, uočavanje jakih strana, interesa i mogućnosti te djece te osiguravanje razumne prilagodbe i učinkovitih mjera podrške toj djeci. Djeca s PSA manifestiraju teškoće u tri područja – socijalna interakcija, komunikacija i ponašanje, što je objašnjeno u teorijskom dijelu ovog rada. U radu su prikazani i rezultati dobiveni u sklopu znanstvenog projekta Hrvatske zaklade za znanost „Modeli odgovora na odgojno-obrazovne potrebe djece izložene riziku socijalne isključenosti u ustanovama ranog i predškolskog odgoja i obrazovanja“ (MORENEC). Izdvojeni su podaci o procjenama ponašanja djece koja su prema Listi djetetovih ponašanja i Obrascu za odgojitelja (Achenbach, 2000) na kriteriju za PSA ostvarili iznadprosječne rezultate. Prema procjenama roditelja, radi se o 17 (0,5%), a prema procjenama odgojitelja 33 (0,9%) od 3.500 djece u dobi od 5 do 7 godina iz 66 hrvatskih dječjih vrtića. Cilj istraživanja je ustanoviti udio djece s PSA koja su uključena u redovne programe ranog i predškolskog odgoja i obrazovanja te usporediti načine na koje njihova ponašanja procjenjuju roditelji i odgojitelji. Ponašanja djece procjenjivali su odgojitelji i roditelji temeljem Upitnika za procjenu etioloških i fenomenoloških aspekata rizika socijalne isključenosti djece rane i predškolske dobi (verzija za odgojitelje) te Upitnika za procjenu etioloških i fenomenoloških aspekata razvoja djece rane i predškolske dobi (verzija za roditelje). Oba su mjerna instrumenta razvijena za potrebe projekta MORENEC. Rezultati istraživanja pokazali su da su procjene ponašanja djece s PSA odgojitelja i roditelja uglavnom ujednačene posebno kada je riječ o internaliziranim problemima u ponašanju koja su karakteristična za djecu s PSA (nezainteresiranost za vršnjake i/ili grupne aktivnosti, nelagoda kod prilaženja drugoj djeci ili odraslim osobama, strah zbog govora u većoj grupi djece ili odraslih osoba, potreba za osamljivanjem, strah od sudjelovanja u grupnim aktivnostima ili nekih događaja te teškoće s održavanjem pažnje). S druge strane, odgojitelji i roditelji različito procjenjuju ponašanja djece koja su uvjetovana okruženjem, pa odgojitelji češće primjećuju ponašanja vezana uz interakciju i odnos s vršnjacima, a roditelji ponašanja koja nisu uvijek vezana uz funkcioniranje i rad u većoj grupi djece, već se njihova pojavnost može uočiti i kod kuće (npr. impulzivnost). Iz podataka proizlazi zaključak da su simptome PSA odgojitelji prepoznali kod znatno većeg broja djece, nego što je to slučaj s roditeljima. Osim toga, zaključno je moguće istaknuti da većina djece s PSA ne manifestira probleme u ponašanju, osobito kada je riječ o eksternaliziranim problemima. Prema tome, ukoliko odgojitelji i roditelji primjereno odgovaraju na socijalizacijske potrebe djece s PSA te na odgojno-obrazovne potrebe, oni će uspješno razviti socijalne kompetencije i vještine.Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are pervasive developmental disorders that occur in early childhood and last a lifetime and they are menifested in difficulties in social interaction and communication and limited and repetitive pattern of behavior, interests or activities. The ability to establish relationships with others and maintain them, participation in community and building friendships are characteristic of social competence, while the term socialization refers to the process in which children and young people are introduced to a culture, acquire attitudes, learn and develop acceptable social behavior. The socialization of children with disabilities varies from child to child and depends on the child's development, and peers and preschool teachers play an important role in the development of social competence. The role of preschool teachers is to understand the impact of developmental disabilities on the upbringing and education of children, to identify the strengths, interests and opportunities of these children and to ensure reasonable accommodation and effective measures to support these children. Children with ASD manifest difficulties in three areas – social interaction, communication and behavior which is explained in the theoretical part of this paper. The paper also presents the results obtained within the scientific project of the Croatian Science Foundation „Models of Response to Educational Needs of Children at Risk of Social Exclusion in ECEC Institutions“ (MORENEC). Data on assessments of children's behavior that achieved above-average results according to the List of Children's behavior and the Form for preschool teachers according to the ASD criteria were singled out. According to parents 'estimates there are 17, and according to preschool teachers 'estimates 33 out of 3.500 children aged 5 to 7 from 66 Croatian kindergartens. Thea im of the research is to determine the share of children with ASD who are included in regular programs of early and preschool education and to compare the ways in which their behaviors are assessed by parents and preschool teachers.Children's behavior was assessed bj preschool teachers and parents based on the Questionnaire for assessing the etiological and phenomenological aspects of the risk of social exclusion of children of early and preschool age (version for preschool teachers) and Questionnaire for assessing the etiological and phenomenological aspects of the development of children of early and preschool age (version for parents). Both measuring instruments were developed fot the needs of the MORENEC project. The results of the research showed that the assessments of preschool teachers and parents are mostly uniform, especially when it comes to internalized behavioral problems that are characteristic of children with PSA (disinterest in peers and/or group activities, discomfort when approaching other children or adults, fear of speaking in a larger group of children or adults, need for solitude, fear of participating in group activities or some events and difficulty maintaining attention). On the other hand, preschool teachers and parents differently assess children's behaviors that are conditioned by the environment, so preschool teachers more often notice behaviors related to interaction and relationships with peers, and parents notice behaviors that are not always related to functioning and working in a larger group of children, because their appearance can be seen at home (e.g. impulsivity). The data conclude that ASD symptoms were recognized by preschool teachers in a significantly larger number of children than in the case of parents. In addition, it can be concluded that most children with ASD do not manifest behavioral problems, especially when it comes to externalized problems. Therefore, if preschool teachers and parents respond appropriately to the social needs of children with ASD and to the educational needs, they will successfully develop their social competencies and skills