ASD Learning Styles

Implicit learning refers to acquiring knowledge and skills without conscious awareness. Students with ASD and related disabilities may struggle with implicit learning, particularly in generalizing skills across different contexts. This means that they may have difficulty applying what they've learned in one setting to another.

These students may also struggle to recognize how their past experiences relate to present circumstances and find it challenging to apply what they have learned in new situations.

To address these challenges, teachers can employ specific strategies, such as: 

• Provide clear and explicit instructions to help students understand "what to do." Use precise and non-robotic language to ensure clarity in communication.
• Employ visual strategies to support the generalization of skills effectively. Incorporate visual aids to help students better understand and apply learned concepts across different contexts.
• Create narratives to explain the "hidden" rules of expectations and make abstract concepts more tangible for students. Use story format to present information. 

Students with ASD and related disabilities intake information differently and may experience distinctive challenges while processing information.

They may have a hard time processing information presented in a purely auditory form, but they can retain and understand information from visual media more easily and effectively. Students may need additional time to comprehend verbal instructions or information presented orally. 

Challenges in auditory processing can lead to difficulties in understanding and processing spoken language when no concrete examples or visual aids are used.

To address these challenges, educators can implement the following strategies:

• Use gestures and provide meaningful, concrete examples to enhance the understanding of students. 
• Visual instructions and supports can complement verbal information and help reinforce key concepts.
• Allow time to process information and formulate a response.

Attention plays a crucial role in how students process information and engage with their environment. Students with ASD and related disabilities often exhibit unique attention patterns that impact their learning experiences.

One characteristic is ‘sticky attention,’ where students intensely focus on specific interests and struggle to shift their attention away from them. Additionally, they may also have a narrow focus, which means they excel in concentrating on specific details within a task but find it challenging to grasp the broader context or relevance of these details.

Despite their strength in focusing on specifics, students may have difficulty distinguishing between relevant and non-relevant information.

Teaching strategies to support students with attention difficulties include: 

• Organizing the learning environment into structured and organized spaces to help students stay focused
• Breaking tasks into manageable segments and minimizing distractions to enhance their ability to maintain attention
• Using visual structure to direct student’s attention to relevant information and enhance their understanding of abstract concepts
• Using a variety of visual cues, such as timers, transition signals, or visual schedules, to help students with sticky attention transition from one task to another smoothly
• Incorporating students' special interests or passions into learning activities to increase motivation and engagement

Executive functioning includes cognitive processes that enable students to plan, organize, and manage their thoughts and actions effectively.

Students with ASD and related disabilities may encounter challenges in executive functioning, which can impact their ability to navigate tasks and routines efficiently. These include difficulty with organization, sequencing, initiation, and understanding time concepts.

Interventions to support students with executive functioning difficulties include:

• Providing visual sequences of activities through clearly defined visual systems and structures, visual schedules, checklists, or step-by-step guides to help students understand the sequence of tasks and activities
• Teaching organizational techniques, such as using planners or color-coding systems, to help students manage their tasks effectively
• Teaching students strategies for self-monitoring and enhancing their ability to regulate their behavior and progress independently

Social cognition refers to the ability to understand and navigate social interactions, including interpreting social cues, understanding others' perspectives, and managing emotions in social situations. Students with ASD and related disabilities may require support in these areas due to challenges in social understanding.

To address the social cognition needs of students, educators can implement various strategies and interventions. These include: 

• Using visual cues to help students better understand social situations and navigate social interactions
• Using social narratives to help students understand social norms, expectations, and socially expected behaviors in different contexts
• Incorporating students' interests and passions into social activities to increase their engagement and motivation
• Providing explicit instruction on emotions helps students identify and express their own emotions, as well as recognize emotions in others