ABLLS-R and Assessing Students with Autism
Assessment of Basic Language and Learning Skills
Jun 14, 2009
This article reviews information from James Partington's website and Reinforcement Unlimited's discussion of the test.
Using the ABLLS for Assessment
The test should be used first to assess the child, assigning a level to the child's ability on 25 different skill areas, coded A through Z.
After the results become available, it can be used to develop goals for the child's social, behavioral, and academic growth; the test become a curriculum guide.
ABLLS for Skills Tracking
The test should be readministered to the child every 6-12 months to determine how the child's skills are developing, and whether current treatment arrangments are sufficient.
IQ tests such as the WISC cannot be readministered as often, due to learning effects. However, the ABLLS allows for cumulative learning effects.
Development of the ABLLS
The ABLLS was developed by Dr. James W. Partington, and uses the procedure of task analysis, or breaking each behavior down into its smallest component parts.
It was developed using principles of behavior analysis focused on human language, guided by B.F. Skinner's Verbal Behavior.
Who Should Administer the Test?
Reinforcement Unlimited recommends that the person giving the test should have some familiarity with behavioral principles, such as those taught in Applied Behavior Analysis, as the test utilizes some elements of a discrete trial format.
The administrator should also be objective about the child's abilities as much as possible. When there is a doubt about whether a child demonstrates an ability, the level should be underestimated, rather than overestimated.
The person administering the test should also have experience with the language delays and behavioral difficulties associated with Autism, so that they can capture as much information as possible about the child's developmental level.
How to Assess Using the ABLLS
The ABLLS, when it is fully administered, takes between 10-12 hours. The examiner should, as much as possible, directly observe the child performing each behavioral component of the test.
Because this is not always possible, for some items the examiner may allow an interview with the caregiver to substitute for direct observation.
What the ABLLS is Not
The ABLLS is not a norm-referenced test, so it does not compare children's abilities to those of their peers of the same chronological age. It is a criterion-referenced test, and so it defines the child's skills compared to themselves.
The test cannot be used to diagnose a child with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. Tests such as the Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS), Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS), and the Gilliam Autism Rating Scale (GARS) can be used by professionals to help make a diagnosis of Autism.
