Inclusion from a Student’s Perspective

My son is on the Autism Spectrum.  The diagnosis was not a surprise, since I was already aware of the signs and symptoms of Autism through my work as a classroom teacher.  Although the diagnosis was not a surprise and I had researched and implemented some strategies before, I dove head-first into ensuring that my son would reach his full potential no matter what it was.  Fast-forward to 10 years later, past a lot of tears, frustration, and lots of other stuff and I wanted to write a book chapter about the Special Education Inclusion model from the perspectives of a teacher, parent, and student.  At the writing of this post, the book is in the final stages of publication and will be available for purchase soon! I will let you all know when! The book can be purchased here: https://www.igi-global.com/book/rethinking-perception-centering-voices-unique/293781

Below you will find the portion of the chapter that I wrote from the student's perspective.  This portion is based on research, interviews with my son, and my work with students in the past.  

 Inclusion from a Student’s Perspective

            Notbohm, (2019) tells a story of a child living with Autism being asked what they wanted to be when they grew up.  In the story, she recounts that the students that went before the little boy gave answers such as doctor, fireman, and various other professions (Nothbon, 2019).  However, when it was the little boy’s turn, he responded, “I think that I’d just like to be a grown-up.” (Notbohm, 2019).  This response is an example of how students with Autism think and respond to the world around them. It was probably thought about by the child extensively and conveyed exactly what he wanted it to convey.

It can be very difficult for people living with Autism to communicate their needs, wants, and feelings to the people around them. This is due to a variety of factors. Whether it is the inability to process the verbal and physical activity around them because of a sensory processing challenge, the lack of social thinking and interaction skills in order to know what they are being asked, or a deficiency in communication, if a person living with Autism’s voice is not heard it can cause stress and trauma for them and their loved ones.  In an Inclusion setting the stress of unmet needs could do irreparable damage to a child.

In her book, Ten Things Every Child with Autism Wishes You Knew Notbohm (2019) discusses ten statements that she came about through a combination of first-hand experience with her son who is living with Autism and researching the various aspects of Autism.  The statements very clearly illustrate the perspective of a student living with Autism and offer strategies that provide these students with an optimal living and learning environment.  The statements provide a child living with Autism’s perspective on ways that they communicate, process information from their environment, and interact with others.  The statements are “I am a child and Autism in part of who I am”, “My senses are out of sync”, “Distinguish between won’t, I’m not able to and can’t I don’t want to”, “I’m a concrete thinker”, “Listen to the ways I’m trying to communicate”, “I’m visually orientated”, “Focus and build on what I can do rather than what I can’t do”, “Help me with social interactions”, “Identify what triggers my meltdowns”, and “Love me unconditionally” (Notbohm, 2019).  These statements force the reader to shift their perspective from their own point-of-view to the perspective of the student.  These statements also force the reader to analyze their perceptions for any misconceptions that they may harbor. 

Changing perspectives and centering attention on student perspective is important in order to understand the student living with Autism fully.  It helps to break stereotypes and wipe the student’s slate clean so that it becomes a “blank slate of possibility” (Notbohm, 2019).  By wiping the slate clean of perception, there will be no untouched opportunities and unanswered legacies, because “when people use their own experiences to form opinions on how far [students living with Autism] can go, they close doors” (Notbohm, 2019). 

All of the statements in this list are pertinent for teachers in an inclusion setting to know.  For example, when a student living with Autism is in an Inclusive setting it may be difficult to see that his meltdowns or withdrawn body language are forms of communication that an Inclusion teacher can use to realize that the child may be overstimulated or have a need that is not being met. This is an illustration of “Identify what triggers my meltdowns” or “Listen to the ways I’m trying to communicate” (Notbohm, 2019).  Also, knowing that a student with Autism is a concrete thinker and visually-oriented will provide the inclusion teacher with an idea of how the student best learns and will influence how the content material is presented.  The teacher can also realize that he or she should not use figurative language or that they need to show the child a visual of how to work through the steps of what needs to be done (Notbohm, 2019). 

These statements can also guide the inclusion teacher in the types of classroom management strategies that should be used.  “Help me with social interactions” and “Focus and build on what I can do rather than what I can’t do” indicate that the inclusion teacher should constantly model rules and procedures and may need to be explicitly taught, most times more than once, on how to act in certain situations (Notbohm, 2019).  Focusing on the student’s strengths lets the teacher know that they should use praise and encouragement with teaching new content or providing any type of guidance. 

The perspective of a student living with Autism is different from any other perspective.  For many students living with Autism, their brains are moving quickly and the rest of their body is trying to keep up.  This is how my son has explained how he feels on a daily basis.  In his inclusion classroom, this means that he is constantly on the move, has trouble focusing on one specific task, and leaves many tasks incomplete.  Nothbohm (2019) states that many students living with Autism may find the environment around them hostile because it is filled with an overwhelming amount of sights, sounds, and smells.  One way that they cope with this is to hyper-focus on one specific thing (Nothbom, 2019).  My son does this often; he may spend two or three times the normal amount of time on a particular assignment or may become upset about one particular aspect of his day.  In an inclusion setting with an IEP accommodation that allows for additional time on assignments, hyper-focusing on a task or minute detail is not as detrimental as it would be in a non-inclusive educational setting. 

It is important to revisit the fact that, students living with Autism do so on a continuum.  There are no two students that are alike, nor is there one strategy that will provide success for each student. Furthermore, students who live with Autism do so dynamically; their place on the spectrum can shift (Notbohm, 2019).  When the inclusion teacher is teaching the student, he or she should be mindful that there is no correct time for students to grasp the concept or execute the skill, and there is “no single recipe for success” (Notbohm, 2019); the student should also be aware of this.  The important thing that the teacher should realize is that the student is a child and there is no predetermined limit.  No matter where the student falls on the Autism spectrum, the student should be supported and provided the opportunity to learn the skills needed to be successful.  The statements “Love me unconditionally” and “Focus and build on what I can do rather than what I can’t do” indicate these strategies (Notbohm, 2019).  

Reference

Notbohm, E. (2019). Ten things every child with autism wishes you knew (V. Zysk, Ed.; 3rd ed.). [Audiobook]. Future Horizons.