Incorporating the many advances made in recent years, this book is an essential reference for professionals who need the most current and reliable information on assessing and treating the complex group of neurodevelopmental disorders known as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Comprehensive and timely, the book off ers practical, research-based fi ndings that can assist educators and school psychologists in screening and assessing children-and in implementing appropriate intervention strategies. Clearly organized and easy to follow, this new guide is essential reading for anyone working with children who have, or might have, ASD.

This study investigated the academic effects of classwide peer tutoring (CWPT) for students with mild mental retardation (MMR) and their typical peers in inclusive classroom settings. Four students with MMR were integrated in two, general education elementary classrooms during spelling instruction. Dependent measures included performance on weekly tests and direct observations of academic engagement. The results demonstrated increased spelling accuracy and increased levels of engagement for students with MMR and their typical peers during CWPT when compared to traditional teacher-led instruction, suggesting that CWPT is an effective instructional strategy for improving their spelling performance.

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Habit disorders consist of frequent, repetitive behaviors that cannot be explained by physiological causes and appear to serve no identifiable physiological function. These disorders include tics and nervous habits. Tics are recurrent, stereotypic motor movements or vocalizations and may be transient or chronic. Tourette's syndrome is a more complex disorder involving multiple motor tics and one or more vocal tics. In Tourette's syndrome, the tics increase and decrease in frequency and change in typology. For example, eye blinking may increase, then decrease in frequency, then disappear altogether, followed by the emergence of mouth grimacing. During the same time period, one or more vocal tics, such as throat clearing, sniffing, or growling, must also be present, but not necessarily at the exact same time. The diagnostic criteria for tic disorders and Tourette's syndrome as described by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed., DSM-IV; American Psychiatric Association, 1994) are found in Exhibit 3.1. These criteria emphasize the marked distress tics must cause the person. Thus, a motor tic such as occasional eye twitch would most likely be considered within the normal range of behavior. Exhibit 3.2 lists the DSM-IV criteria for stereotypic movement disorders, also known as habit disorders, and for trichotillomania (hair pulling). Stereotypic movement disorders include common habits such as nail biting, 79

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