Changes in cognitive and Language functioning of Preschool children with autism

Preschool children with autism and their normally developing peers were compared on the Stanford-Binet IV and Preschool Language Scale before and after 1 school year. Both measures showed that although the children with autism functioned at a lower level than their normally developing peers, the children with autism had narrowed this gap after treatment, making a nearly 19-point increase in IQ and an 8-point gain in language quotient. The IQ measure remained stable for the normally developing peers while their language showed a 7.73-point increase. The data support the notion that young children with autism can make very significant developmental gains.Special thanks to the parents and the children who participated in this study. Thanks also to Michael Alessandri, Jean Burton, David Celiberti, Nancy Gera-Moglia, Anne Nathan, and Lisa Kamean who assisted in the data collection process. We appreciate the cooperation of Alicia MacWright and Leisa Tomchek who taught two of the classes from which participants were drawn.