Abstract:

Introduction:
Causes of barriers in learning could be different, it could be age, gender, migration, etc. A problem in communication skills in children can also make a huge barrier in learning. Children in preschool or younger school age can usually have speech or language disorders. Communication is the ability of a person to consciously use a language as a system of characters and symbols like a complex. Use the language in all its forms targeting to a communication intent and that comprise all the language levels. Currently the focus is not only on phonetic and phonology, morphology and syntax, lexical and semantics, but primarily also on pragmatics level of language. Pragmatics of language means a social language, and use of a language for different purposes (salutations, keep the conversation, inform somebody about something, etc.), adaptation of language (according to the needs of the listener, situation, etc.) and keep on to the rules of narration and conversation.

Objectives:
The paper is going to present a partial outcomes of ongoing research on pragmatic communication in preschool children in relation to Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The objective of this study is to qualitatively describe and analyse the pragmatic level of language in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and their typically developing peers using the originally created test.

Methodology:
In this research five preschool and younger school age kids with a diagnosis of ASD and the same number of participants from typical population of preschool and younger school age children without this diagnosis were assessed. Focusing on the particular differences between these two groups, the children were assessed using the same previously originally developed test evaluating the pragmatic level of communication, mostly with emphasize on observation method and evaluation of the communication activity judgment. The results were compared and further qualitatively analysed.

Results:
Comparing them with children with typical development, the children with ASD had their pragmatic communication on the lower level, however, this group also showed some pragmatic deficits.

Keywords:

barriers to learning, communication, pragmatics of communication, preschool children, younger school age children, Autism Spectrum Disorder, typical development