Academic abilities in children and adolescents with a history of autism spectrum disorders who have achieved optimal outcomes

Abstract

This study examines the academic abilities of children and adolescents who were once diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, but who no longer meet diagnostic criteria for this disorder. These individuals have achieved social and language skills within the average range for their ages, receive little or no school support, and are referred to as having achieved “optimal outcomes.” Performance of 32 individuals who achieved optimal outcomes, 41 high-functioning individuals with a current autism spectrum disorder diagnosis (high-functioning autism), and 34 typically developing peers was compared on measures of decoding, reading comprehension, mathematical problem solving, and written expression. Groups were matched on age, sex, and nonverbal IQ; however, the high-functioning autism group scored significantly lower than the optimal outcome and typically developing groups on verbal IQ. All three groups performed in the average range on all subtests measured, and no significant differences were found in performance of the optimal outcome and typically developing groups. The high-functioning autism group scored significantly lower on subtests of reading comprehension and mathematical problem solving than the optimal outcome group. These findings suggest that the academic abilities of individuals who achieved optimal outcomes are similar to those of their typically developing peers, even in areas where individuals who have retained their autism spectrum disorder diagnoses exhibit some ongoing difficulty.