Provisions must be made for children with Asperger's Syndrome in mainstream education
WE HAVE AN EQUAL RIGHT TO EDUCATION
by Kevin Phillips [*]
It is no easy task dealing with a person with Asperger's Syndrome at any level. Be it in primary schools, secondary schools, employment or on an everyday basis. I accept, appreciate and understand that. The patience of a saint is needed when dealing with people who have Asperger's Syndrome. We can be very difficult and testing individuals to anyone, but even more so to those who aren't aware of what Asperger's Syndrome is and what it entails. That is why it is essential that mainstream society and education authorities are educated about the condition. It is the only way in which we will be fully understood and is the only way in which progress will be made in this area.
A person with Asperger's Syndrome has a right to an education just like anyone else and under no circumstances should they be denied it.
Being a Teacher in a secondary school is a thankless job in itself these days. You have to be a counsellor, psychologist, disciplinarian, have to be extremely alert and a good communicator as well as being a Teacher.
To an extent they have my sympathy, but it is they who have chosen to do the job and if any Teachers say they can't or won't make provisions for children who have Autistic Spectrum Conditions then they are simply in the wrong job.
Some Teachers, Schools and Education Authorities may say "Asperger's Syndrome. Why should we make provisions for it?" or "Oh its only an obscure, minority illness" or "We will ignore it because they will eventually grow out of it".
It is now estimated that one in 300 have Asperger's Syndrome. Some say it is 1 in 250. That is at least one person in each secondary school. For people who have Asperger's Syndrome and are in mainstream secondary school, too often, being rejected, abused and isolated by their peers is inevitable. It is not a question of if it happens, but when it happens. Many pupils in secondary school are likely to feel anger and resentment towards children with Asperger's Syndrome. The contributing factors are their social ineptness, differences and physical awkwardness.
This abuse, and potential abuse, must be watched out for at all times and stamped out as early as possible, not turned a blind eye to.
The child with Asperger's Syndrome should be excused from sport, unless they are good at it, which is unlikely as they often have poor physical co-ordination. Most Aspies don't like Team games or sports. That must be remembered and taken into account. As those with AS usually are poor at sport, they are likely to take the blame because their class has lost at soccer, due to them not trying to stop a player from scoring a goal.
One further step of improvement is that mentors should be provided for ALL children with AS. Not just a few, or none, in one area and many in another. This should be made law now.
Children with Asperger's Syndrome should get praise not abuse or derision from their Teachers. Their confidence should be built up not destroyed by Teachers who wish to join in the taunts of other children.
Secondary schools should hone in on what Aspies are good at and ignore their weaknesses.
If children with Asperger's Syndrome are to be in mainstream education, a good solution would be to let them go to school for 20 hours a week and excuse them from break times. The amount of hours that is in the full school week may be too much for them. It was for me. Perhaps they should be, if it is too much for them, allowed to attend school on a basis of 9am to noon so that gets the best out of them, rather than a full day where they can't handle it.
If there is the problem of a pupil with Asperger's learning by these methods and falling behind with their education, perhaps distance learning should be the method by which they keep up with their studies, apart from practical subjects such as Science and Maths, where you have to learn formulas and calculations.
They should be excused from break and registration. That is where most of the banter and interaction goes off between pupils.
If at dinner and break time children with AS wish to go the library to read instead of going out in the playground. Let them do so. Indeed, if they have failed to do homework, clearly they shouldn’t be allowed to get away with it, but they should be encouraged to do it in the Library where there is peace and quiet and no distractions, where I used to go because of those reasons.
This is often the best place for them to work in, as many of them are hypersensitive to noise. Noise can cause acute stress, panic and fear.
Surprises must be avoided as change can be devastating for people with Asperger's Syndrome. If alterations are to occur, they must be forewarned of them beforehand.
Perhaps they should be excused from Assembly. There are too many people around them. This makes many with this condition feel trapped and threatened when this happens. I know it did, and to an extent, still does today with me.
Another good example in secondary schools is to avoid the swapping around of classrooms. I used to find this extremely stressful and upsetting because by the time I had adjusted and acclimatised to one room, I had to move from it. When I had to arrive in another room, it took me 10 minutes to get settled down, by which time I had missed a substantial part of the lesson. That is why I believe I fared better at Primary school than I did at Secondary school. For all students it would be better if all the lessons were taught in one room all day for Monday. Another room all day for Tuesday's, unless students are doing courses such as CDT that is. Something's got to be done to counteract this. It can't go on as it is and to be allowed to go on unchecked.
Peers of children with Asperger’s Syndrome should have their behaviour monitored. If they are caught and proved to be repeatedly and consistently violent and aggressive towards children with AS, they should be expelled or put in the School sin bins. No ifs or buts.
The person with Asperger's Syndrome is usually more likely to get caught by Teachers because they don't possess the guile or social know-how that many of their peers do. As Professor Tantam said in Dore, Sheffield, in July 2002, the person with Asperger's Syndrome is much less likely to be involved in anti-social acts in school, but if they are, it is usually to keep their peers entertained and calm. It is usually to gain acceptance and approval from them. This won't last long as usually their peers will eventually reject the person with Aspergers even if they do misbehave.
The child with Aspergers peers will soon become bored and tired of that person, no matter how badly behaved the person with AS behaves. By misbehaving, the child with AS is merely delaying the inevitable, which is rejection and isolation.
The options for people with Asperger's in secondary school are thus:
(A) Behave themselves properly and get rejected and isolated by their peers immediately.
(B) Act outrageous, do what their peers tell them to fit in, by misbehaving extremely badly to keep their peers entertained and calm, but get rejected and isolated by them in three months time or so. The situation is like someone holding a gun at your head and saying 'Do you want me to shoot you now or in three months time?'.
People with Asperger's Syndrome, who are in mainstream education, if they need it, must be given one to one support. They should not be fed too much information too soon. I aliken myself to a computer. What does a computer do if too many people use it at once? It crashes and shuts down. If I have to interact with too many people at once, I crash and mentally shut down.
When this happens I am not aware of what I am thinking, doing or saying. I can't take things in if people bombard me with too much at once. This is also when I start to get forgetful and absent minded. My mind also can wander when this happens.
When Teaching someone with Asperger's Syndrome, clear, logical and precise language should be used. They should explain where and why a change is going to happen or why they are doing something.
Words, sayings or expressions which are ambiguous or have double-meaning must be avoided by Teachers when talking to a child with Asperger's or Teaching in a classroom when they are present. Teachers must avoid using metaphors, saying and proverbs such as 'Don't pull the wool over my eyes' 'I was bored to tears' or 'Cry your eyes out' or 'People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones'.
Children with Asperger's Syndrome usually think concretely and literally. They will imagine someone trying to, as I did in October 1989, really pulling the wool over someone's eyes, or being so bored you are crying so intensely that your eyes fall out.
This will elicit laughter and further derision from the child's peers. It could also create anger from the Teacher, who will believe that the child is trying to be smart or humorous at their expense by making such remarks. They aren't likely to take kindly to a remark such as this.
I believe that improving the school days of someone with this condition could in fact be one of the most rewarding achievements in a Teachers career.
Teachers must not hover around children with Asperger's Syndrome. I detest that. I view it as threatening behaviour and it distracts me. I can be intimidating to them.
Integration of people with ASC's and other disabilities is fine in mainstream education if they are to receive the help, support and understanding they need and deserve. If not, forget it. It is obvious that if provisions aren't made for children with Autism and Asperger's Syndrome, they will be set up to fail, just like I was.
Teachers and Headmasters must not pass the complaints of children with AS who are being abused in schools by other kids as 'just them complaining'. They must take it seriously. It maybe that they could tell on one person who is doing it who then gets disciplined, but a series of other people could be doing the same thing to them.
The Headmaster and Teachers are likely to think 'Well it can't be the others all the time. It is bound to be the person with Asperger's who is causing the trouble'.
In nearly all cases, No it isn't. This thinking is both outdated and outrageous. If any Teachers still operate by these methods then it is frankly chilling.
What do we want to see? Derogatory school reports, objects being planted in children with conditions bags and years of struggle or do we want to see their confidence being built up, support and understanding being provided, and AS kids being able to look on their schooldays with a bit of happiness.
It is help, support, understanding and mentors that children with AS deserve, not suspensions for defending themselves in fights or for busting Teachers noses by accident.
Kevin Phillips was born in 1976 in Yorkshire, England, and has lived there all his life. His time is spent on various hobbies including reading, listening to music, keeping weather records, ten-pin bowling and using the internet. The last of these might be described more as a vocation than a hobby, as he maintains an extensive website resource for people like himself with Autistic or Asperger's Syndrome. The website can be viewed at http://www.angelfire.com/amiga/aut/links.html