Auditory Integration Training~ we have enlisted the help
of a teacher and a doctor to explain this exciting development to you,and
they suggest how you can use AIT to further enhance the life of your ADHD
or ADD child.
Auditory Integration
Training: the books that showed the world it worked
This is the email
we received:
"Hi! My name is Patti and I have
a son with ADHD. I also work with children with autism and have ran
across a treatment that I am very interested in.Auditory Integration Training
which was introduced to the U.S. by Guy Berard.
Sound
of a Miracle :
A Childs Triumph over Autism
by Annabel Stehli
|
I first heard about it when reading
the book, "Sound
of a Miracle", by
Annabelle Stelhi.
Since then another book has come
out, "Dancing
in the Rain", which contains short stories about children with a variety
of disorders treated by AIT.My question is, have you ever heard of
this, and do you have any information regarding this treatment. I
am very interested and would like any input.
Thanks Patti " |
Dancing
in the Rain :
Stories of Exceptional Progress
by Parents of Children With Special Needs
|
Therefore we have searched, emailled,
researched, and found the best experts available to explain it to you.
The following is what we found and recommend:
 |
AIT was developed in France
in the 1960's by Dr Guy Berard, an ear, nose and throat specialist,
in order to stop his own hearing loss and tinnitus suffered after
a bomb explosion.
Dr Berard suggests that problem behaviours
can be directly related to hearing; that when hearing changes, behaviours
can alter as well. The book he wrote about his therapy is entitled
'Hearing Equals Behaviour' He would also suggest that it is very difficult
to produce sounds or language that one cannot hear, or that are heard in
a distorted fashion. |
The Effects
of AIT-Modulated Classical Music on ADHD
Dr. Wayne J. Kirby, D.A.
University of North Carolina
at Asheville
This article is based on a research
paper that was presented on January 27, 2000 to
The Congress of the International
Association of Bérard Practitionersin Antwerp, Belgium
Purpose of Study:
The purpose of this pilot study was to examine the effects
of the Bérard Method of Auditory Integration Training on children
diagnosed with ADHD.This double blind study included ten children between
the ages of six and eleven. The children were randomly assigned to either
the experimental group or the control
group. The five children in the experimental group listened to classical
music that was electronically processed to facilitate modulation by the
Audiokinetron, an electronic device developed by French physician, Guy
Bérard, M.D. The five other children, constituting the control group,
listened to the same music without any special processing or modulation.
Testing of Participants:
Prior to commencement of the listening sessions, I instructed
a licensed audiologist to complete an audiogram on all the children using
examination parameters recommended by Guy Bérard, M.D. I then administered
the Auditory Continuous Performance Test. The ACPT, created by Robert W.
Keith, Ph.D., is an auditory vigilance test used to diagnose ADHD in children
between the ages of six and eleven by detecting the presence of auditory
attention deficits. This test yields performance scores based on several
parameters, including impulsivity and inattention--the two main parameters
that were the focus of this study.
AIT Listening Sessions:
Following the audiometric examinations, notch-filtering recommendations
were made for the AIT subjects, consistent with the Bérard protocol.
An assistant administered the appropriate auditory stimuli to both groups.
All parties, with the exception of the assistant, were unaware of what
music—AIT or non-modulated classical music—was being administered.Audiometric
examinations were administered to all subjects at the end of ten sessions
for the purpose of re-setting filters for the experimental subjects, as
necessary. Final audiometric examinations were administered to all subjects
after all twenty half-hour sessions had been completed. I then administered
the ACPT examination to each subject. Follow-up audiometric and auditory
vigilance examinations were also administered three months after completion
of the listening sessions.
Hypothesis:
I had hypothesized that, at the end of three months, the
experimental group would show a significant improvement in auditory attention
and that the control group would not.
Results after 3 Months:
The two group’s scores, which were obtained before the listening
sessions, were compared to those obtained three months after the listening
sessions
.
Control Group: Showed
no improvements when their three months post experiment performances were
compared to their pre-experiment scores relative to impulsivity, inattention
and total errors.
Experimental (AIT) Group:
Showed statistically significant improvement in all areas when their pre-
and three-month-post-experiment scores were compared with regard to impulsivity,
inattention and total errors. The experimental group also showed improved
performance when compared to the control group.
Conclusions and Recommendations:
I believe that AIT, using appropriately modified classical
music, can significantly enhance the educational potential of children
with ADHD. I would recommend that future studies include larger groups
of experimental and control subjects. I would also recommend studying a
larger population of children beginning when they are in the six to seven
year old age range, and following them until they are ten or eleven years
old. This approach would enable an evaluation of long-term effects of AIT.
While there is a good deal of anecdotal evidence that suggests AIT is helpful
to adults with ADHD, future double-blind studies are also needed for this
population. I believe that the results of this pilot study will provide
the groundwork for future research.
 |
The graph on the
left shows the improved scores of the experimental group. Note how the
median number of total errors decreases from 37 errors before AIT to 5
errors three months following AIT.
About the Author:
Dr.
Wayne J. Kirby is Professor of Music at the University of North Carolina
at Asheville. His research efforts have focused on the effects of sound
and music on the human brain. Dr. Kirby holds a bachelor’s degree from
The Juilliard School, a master’s degree from Yale University, and a doctorate
from New York University.
He
has presented and published numerous papers on subjects relating to music
technology and music perception, including a recently published paper on
AIT entitled “Brain Disorder, Auditory Hyperacusis and the Promise of Music
Technology.” Dr. Kirby was personally trained and authorized by Dr. Guy
Bérard to teach and certify professionals in the Bérard Method
of AIT.
|
Dr. Kirby also teaches the Kirby Method of AIT on the KAM
System, a PC-based AIT delivery system. He maintains a private AIT practice
in Asheville with his wife, Pamela Kirby, M.A.Ed., a specialist in early
childhood education.
He has
also generously sponsored this month's ADHD ezine and we thank him for
his support.
Availability of AIT-ADHD CDs:
The AIT CDs used in this study are now available from
Serious Composer, Inc. For additional information on the study or CDs,
please visit the SERIOUS COMPOSER website at http://www.seriouscomposer.comOr
contact Serious Composer, Inc. at: info@seriouscomposer.com
P.O. Box 18041
Asheville, NC 28814
USA
Telephone: 828-254-7160
FAX: 828-253-4573
AUDITORY
INTEGRATION TRAINING by Sharda Ramlackhan, M.A
Auditory Integration Training or
AIT - is a Behavior Modification Training. It is a method of
correcting the root cause of many learning disabilities. Hypersensitivity,
distortions, and delays in the auditory signals contribute to inefficient
learning. AIT is a method of retraining the ear to listen and to
process sounds in a more normal manner, without distortions and delays.
How we listen and process sounds affects our alertness, attention span,
concentration, information processing, and the way we express ourselves,
both verbally and in writing. When the listening process is not working
properly, it can interfere with our entire system and its ability to function.
 |
Hearing and
listening are two quite different from each other. You may have excellent
hearing acuity (i.e., hearing within normal range), but have an inaccurate
perception of what is being said, faulty teaming of the ears occurs when
both ears are not working together, this can interfere with the ability
to work and play efficiently and comfortably, and may even cause physical
discomfort and pain. This imbalance in hearing between the ears may
lead to a host of behavior and learning problems
An intense program of sound stimulation
varying in pitch and intensity (using music and headphones), activates
the middle and inner ear which then transmits sound to the brain via the
auditory nerve. The sound stimulation improves aural flexibility
and enhances the transmission of sound to the brain.. |
In the auditory
system, going from the eardrum to the brain cells, concise zones exit corresponding
to low-pitched and to high-pitched tones. These parts are not anatomically
similar on the eardrum, on the cochlea, and perhaps in the brain itself.
If one or the other of these areas of the auditory system is stimulated
by certain programmed alternating sounds, the same identical result as
that obtained by mobilization of the elbow is achieved.
When an individual is hypersensitive
to an intensity or frequency, the auditory system can shut down.
The individual avoids certain sounds, places and situations. This
person may cover his/her ears, "tune out," or display unusual or socially
inappropriate behavior. Similarly, individuals who hear poorly at
certain frequencies or hear constant ringing in their ears, can begin to
display withdrawn, aggressive or different behavior in order to deal with
their hearing disorder.
|
These are
areas and cells of the brain stimulated by different frequencies and/or
intensities. If these sounds are not entering the system appropriately,
the brain cells will not be stimulated properly. This will affect
the processing of sensory input. The same words spoken by someone with
a high pitched voice will sound different when spoken in a low pitched
voice. Children, in particular, can become confused, and performance
may vary depending on the pitch of the voice. |
All of these auditory problems contribute
to cognitive fatigue and variable performance that is so common among children
with learning disabilities. These children use much energy trying
to decode or translate the scrambled and distorted messages they receive.
The performance will depend upon the amount of energy, interest, and motivation
they have at a given time. Other variables such as voice quality,
pitch, and rate of speech delivery of the speaker, background noises, and
visual cues also impact the performances of these children.
Because of
the strong contribution of hearing to receptive and expressive abilities,
those individuals who exhibit language/learning disabilities, attention
deficit disorder (ADD), dyslexia, pervasive developmental delays (PDD),
autism and tinnitus (ringing in the ears) may be excellent candidates for
AIT.
AIT is a technique to enhance the
efficiency and normalize the auditory reception system (ear and brain)
by reducing hypersensitivity and reducing hearing peaks and troughs as
measured on an audiogram. This will improve the sensory input/output
and feedback system. Indirectly this will also improve listening,
attending, cognitive abilities, behavior and social skills.
Each
month the top books on auditory training are listed here. They are
the books that others are reading and finding helpful, and we therefore
recommend them to you.This month's top books are below and they can be
reviewed, ordered and purchased safely and securely in association
with our trusted partners amazon.com, just by clicking on the book title.If
you wish to see the whole collection click here
