A ecolalia no desenvolvimento da linguagem de autistas verbais na APAE de Alegrete/RS.

Abstract

The present research aims to analyze how the specialized professionals of the Association of Parents and Teachers, in the city of Alegrete/RS, intervene in the echolalia produced by verbal autistics, to spread them to Portuguese teachers of basic education. For this, relevant information about Autism Spectrum Disorder, Vygotsky's socio-interactionist theory (2002) and some studies concerning immediate and delayed echolalia are presented (CHARLOP, 1986; TARPLEE; BARROW, 1999; BERNARD-OPTZ et al., 2000) In addition, the application of a questionnaire is exposed, containing 15 essay questions, answered by a speech therapist and a psychopedagogue from the aforementioned institution. The data collected, analyzed from the perspective of Vygotsky's (2002) socio-interactionist theory, Schirmer, Fontoura and Nunes' (2009) language development and Bardin's (2002) content analysis, revealed that echolalia is the fundamental stage for the development of language in people with ASD, because its decrease serves as a parameter to identify the success or failure of therapeutic intervention programs. The importance of working together with therapists, families and schools is also highlighted, in order to form a support network and provide social interactions for the autistic.