Heather MacKenzie, Ph.D., is a speech-language pathologist and educator. She has spent a large part of her career developing and implementing new approaches for improving learning in children with special needs.
She has a special interest in understanding autism spectrum conditions (ASC) and in translating current research into sound clinical practices. A major focus of her work with children has been on understanding them and how they approach learning. She uses this knowledge to develop models for optimizing their development.
Heather developed the Learning Preferences and Strengths model which is designed to determine each child is preferred ways of learning to improve the child’s learning and development. It’s also focused on de-pathologizes children. Instead of looking at children as having ‘problems’ in learning, Heather re-frames it so we look at how they learn best.
Heather has provided workshops and presentations all over North America, in the U.K., Middle East, and in Asia.
Heather’s areas of expertise include autism spectrum conditions, self-regulation and self-regulated learning, Learning Preferences and Strengths, and use of positive interactional approaches to learning in children with special needs.
Heather’s views about autism and related conditions
Every child with autism* wants to learn and wants to be in this world. It’s up to us to figure out how to reach them and make the world a more comfortable place.
I’ve spent many years working to understand and appreciate autistic ways of thinking and perceiving the world. I learned that, if you honor their natural learning preferences and strengths, they could do things beyond anyone’s expectations. The children also feel pride in their accomplishments and a new sense of competence.
I developed the Learning Preferences and Strengths (LPS) model to enhance learning and development in children with autism. The LPS model honors and nurtures each child’s learning preferences and strengths and uses them to advance development in other areas.
People with autism* can have difficulty learning some things. They may have difficulty with communication, social skills, and behavioral and cognitive flexibility. But … we shouldn’t look at these solely as difficulties. They can be more productively viewed as Learning Preferences that can be coupled with their Learning Strengths and used to enhance learning and comfort.
The Learning Preferences and Strengths (LPS) model provides a framework that constructively accounts for:
- the person, her/his interests and affinities – a starting point for understanding the person with autism, not just the autism
- learning preferences – that is, how s/he likes to gain energy, gather information, make decisions and relate to the world
- learning strengths – what modalities are more efficiently processed and meaningful to her/him
- his/her developmental needs
It also helps us Predicting Problem Behavior
In terms of Learning Preferences, people with autism prefer to:
- have some alone time; being around other people too much can drain their energy and be stressful.
- take time to warm up to people and experiences, stand back and see what is happening before taking part.
- pay attention to details other people may miss; sometimes, this attention to detail can capture too much attention and cause people with autism to miss other important features.
- understand the logic and reasoning for things before deciding if they want to try them out.
- have things decided and to stick with a plan; changes are not easy to handle.
In addition, people with autism have significant Learning Strengths that typically include:
- visual/spatial abilities: seeing is truly believing; being able to see something improves understanding and the ability to remember.
- musical/rhythmic abilities: using melody and tempo can help the person take in and remember the information and understand it.
The LPS model is discussed at greater length in my book, Reaching and Teaching the Child with Autism Spectrum Disorder.
Our Mission
Our mission at spark* is to help children develop critical foundation skills needed for learning more effectively and enjoying a better quality of life. In order for children to become more competent and to develop their behavioral, cognitive and social skills, they need a solid foundation of self-regulation. Importantly, people living with and helping children with executive function difficulties need to learn to let the children exercise greater independence.