When I turn to YouTube, it’s mostly for entertainment – like looking up the latest antics of my favorite musician or checking out whatever videos friends find amusing enough to send the link along.

Imagine how surprising it was to note that YouTube also hosts some excellent didactic content. My supervisor had mentioned that Yale put the entire lecture portion of their autism course on YouTube. During one of the many snow days this winter, with unexpected free time on hand, I was able to listen to a few of the lectures, uploaded last year. Most of the professors/individuals teaching the class have an easy, straightforward delivery of the material, making it pretty effortless to take in.  The lectures are aimed at an undergraduate, college-level audience and the slides are clearly shown. For the most part, sources for the information discussed are given, helpful if folks want to follow-up on a topic on their own.

Dr Volkmar, who actually came up with the diagnostic criteria for autism many years ago, gives an overview of autism talk and often offers historical perspectives. A second lecture continues the overview of autism and socialization disorders in general. Diagnosis in infants and young children is covered in one class while another looks at current treatment and intervention programs for both children and adults. Alison Singer (president and co-founder of Autism Science Foundation) discusses not only autism advocacy, but also, the effect of autism on families as a whole and why some have become wary of science and research. The communication lecture describes ways of communicating that are specific to individuals with autism and shows video examples. Additional lectures focus on far-ranging topics in relation to autism: social development, neuroimaging of the social brain, genetics, behaviors and behavioral treatments, face perception using electrophysiology methods, and the role of medication in autism.

One thing that struck me is the concept of “learning to learn” skills. Intervention treatment for autism was summarized as aiming to “minimize as much as we can the negative impact that autism may have on learning and we want to maximize… normal developmental processes.”

Seeing that there is so much info out there on the Internet about autism, much of which can be false and misleading, this lecture series certainly provides a valuable, in depth, resource for those seeking reliable information. Of note, Yale also hosts the course material on their own, more elegantly organized site, athttp://autism.yale.edu/.