Specialist Support Approaches to Autism Spectrum Disorder Students in Mainstream Settings

Sally Hewitt

• Publisher: Jessica Kingsley Publishers
• Year: 2004
• ISBN:
  9781846421259
• Topic: Psychology
• Subtopic: Autism Spectrum Disorders
• Index: Psychology

This comprehensive guide is bursting with achievable teaching strategies for those involved with ASD students in the school environment. Due to understaffed classes or poor staff training, many students with ASDs are taught in mainstream lessons where they do not receive the help they require and are entitled to. Hewitt shows that providing specialist support in schools enables students with ASDs and associated behavioural difficulties to become more included in pre-school, primary and secondary mainstream classes.

Hewitt promotes tried and tested initiatives to evaluate staff expectations, convey meaning in the classroom through alternative methods of communication,
re-think the physical environment of pupils and celebrate achievement with rewards. With an abundance of cost- and time-effective management guidelines for teachers and support staff of affected pupils, this book facilitates a more inclusive school setting and stresses the importance of a consistent working approach both at school and home. School/home liaison prepares students for a gradual reduction of staff intervention by encouraging greater student independence. Teachers and parents alike will find this an invaluable resource for integrating ASD students among their peers while providing them with the necessary support.

CHAPTER 1

Familiarization

There is no doubt an early diagnosis of ASD to enable early intervention is a positive thing. Early interventions ensure even very young children with ASD have a better chance of having their individual educational needs met. Nowadays this often includes supported placements in mainstream pre-school settings. In a bid to ensure all pupils, regardless of age, are fully prepared for their first full session at a new school or in a different year class, one of the most important strategies used is familiarization.

Because of their general resistance to change, all pupils with ASD derive benefit from certain aspects of this technique. Before we examine strategies for specific ages and settings, let us first examine more general ones, those useful for all pupils with ASD.

New intake

In the case of all pupils starting a new school the degree of distress or anxiety can be reduced by arranging an initial visit out of school hours. Provide parents with a photograph of the outside of the building, as this helps to prepare their child for the visit. Supplying one or two photographs of key members of staff further builds on this approach.

Even for purposes of this first visit it is advisable to use the exact entrance route into the classroom the child is expected to use when term begins. For some, this may include a visit to the cloakroom or locker room first.

During the initial visit, which should always include parent or carer, attending staff should be prepared for a child not to show great or appropriate interest. This issue should not be forced at this stage. Pupils commonly respond well if they have been allowed time and space to assess any newcomer from a safe distance. Depending on the individual, extended communication may or may not be appropriate during this first meeting.

Allow a younger child to wander and explore; this provides an opportunity to observe which toys or activities he or she is particularly interested in. These may later be used as incentives or rewards.

Depending on the individual’s reaction to this first visit, further ‘taster’ sessions in and out of the classroom may be required. These may extend to include, at pre- and primary school stage, play and snack times, and at secondary stage, lunch-times. Introducing all pupils to midday supervisory staff should not be overlooked, as this is an important part of the familiarization process.

During the second visit, once the pupil has safely processed and ‘memory banked’ important staff, it may be reasonable to expect and encourage more in the way of social recognition and communication. For younger children, begin by encouraging them towards a toy or activity they previously showed an interest in. For older pupils, try easy conversation, an introduction to friendly peers, or inclusion in an enjoyable lesson.

Second visits are useful for familiarizing new intakes with other important physical facilities within the school, such as the dining hall, office, computer suites and so on.

Schools working inclusively with pupils with ASD recognize the need for sympathetic and individual introduction, and begin the familiarization process weeks in advance of when full-time attendance is due to begin. The availability of staff to support this, even for only thirty minutes a week, goes a long way to fully preparing an incoming pupil.

Change of schools

For some pupils, a change of schools can be extremely daunting. Both involved schools need to be prepared to work closely together to ensure a smooth transition. The same familiarization techniques should be used as for new intakes. For some pupils, this may initially mean missing the last lesson at the current school in order to visit the new school. As the familiarization process builds, other lessons, or indeed whole sessions, may need to be missed.

After the initial visit with parents, it is beneficial to arrange for the pupil’s current support worker to help with subsequent visits. This is most useful for those times when pupils will be expected to join in with taster lessons. It also provides an ideal opportunity to begin a discreet handover of the pupil to the new support worker.

When pupils are coming from another school, an observational visit to their current school is a more effective way of establishing their individual needs than forging through written files. It also offers an excellent opportunity to observe successful teaching and support strategies. Using the same or adapted strategies later affords greater management consistency. Familiarization can again be aided by providing the current school with photographs of the new school to discuss with pupils.

During an observational visit to the current school setting it may be tempting to introduce oneself to the designated pupil, but it is important to remember the ‘safe distance’ process rule. However, some pupils (particularly those with Asperger syndrome) may independently approach a visitor. In this case, always be prepared for an odd social approach. Unless an individual has been specifically taught to say ‘Hello’, he or she may begin a conversation with something else entirely. One secondary pupil first approached me by asking my weight, another primary pupil by asking if I really loved Thomas the Tank Engine. The most appropriate way to deal with this is to say ‘Oh! You mean “hello”. Hello!’ and then wait for a response. Depending on the response and classroom circumstance, further conversation may or may not follow.

In-school familiarization

More inclusively schools also acknowledge the need to familiarize those pupils within their school moving from one year class to another. A series of taster sessions will considerably reduce any anxiety about their new classroom and teacher. Depending on the individual, these taster sessions may be peer buddy or staff supported. In order to further encourage pupils, it is wise to initially choose those lessons or sessions a pupil may enjoy or are good at.

This type of familiarization should always include any new entrance and exit routes, different toilet and cloakroom facilities, dining hall seating arrangements and so on. From the outset, it is sensible to seat the incoming pupil where he or she will be seated the following term and, for some pupils, labelling a chair or desk with their name may help with their understanding of this. Visual timetables showing sessions in the new classroom also help to prepare pupils for this change in their usual routine.

Unless a teacher is already familiar with an incoming pupil, it is wise not to expect too much by way of social communication from him and her during the first visit. The new classroom surroundings and learning differences may be as much as an individual can easily cope with. For those with Asperger syndrome, who may be keen to socialize at any given opportunity, a good, fun way of setting behavioural boundaries from the start is to encourage them to produce a staff sheet of ‘Classroom Rules’ on the computer during their first visit.

‘Behind the scenes’ familiarization

This aspect of familiarization is particularly useful for those incoming pupils who staff have never met before. Gather information from parents by telephone if necessary about an individual’s particular likes and dislikes and favourite lesson subjects, to provide an appropriate ‘non-threatening’ starting point for conversation during the first visit. It is also useful to find out a little about a pupil’s special interests, so that relevant games, stickers, puzzles, worksheets, computer programmes and so on can then be available during initial meetings.

This information gathered from parents is just as important as that obtained from professionals involved with the child. Parent/school liaison is detailed in Chapter 12.

Peer/buddy familiarization

Having familiarized incoming pupils with their physical surroundings, the next stage is to introduce them to some of their peers and/or buddies. For younger pupils, it is useful to enlist the help of one or two understanding parents who are willing to allow their child to become involved by staying behind for 15 minutes or so after school. Alternatively, seek permission for supporting children to play quietly indoors during what would usually be outdoor playtime. For older primary pupils this type of familiarization may not be necessary, but for secondary pupils it is most advisable to introduce a buddy support system (further detailed in a later section of this chapter).

Before moving on to explore those familiarization techniques specifically for pupils in either pre- and primary school or secondary school settings, it is useful to examine Real Life Memory Banking (RLMB); this enables us to better understand why such sympathetic and individual pupil familiarization is so important.

Real Life Memory Banking (RLMB)

Because of their impairments, particularly in imagination, pupils lack the skills to predict the outcome of any new situation. When applied to a new school, teacher or classroom scenario this impairment typically prevents a pupil from foreseeing positive outcomes, no matter how much discussion there has been; only when the situation has been experienced can the pupil gain a true understanding of it.

Unfortunately, RLMB is not only confined to positive or enjoyable experiences. Some pupils build up entire banks of unpleasant memories. In extreme cases these can overwhelm a pupil (particularly one with Asperger syndrome) to the point of severe depression, withdrawal and, at worst, suicide.

It is of the utmost importance, therefore, that pupils are given as many opportunities as possible to experience favourable outcomes at school, in order to build up positive RLMB experience. In this way, they are able to see that outcomes can be successful, and are more likely consequently to engage willingly in new activities.

It is therefore important to ensure that any familiarization session ends on a highly positive note. Never extend the session beyond what you would consider to be a wholly positive experience for the child, remembering that RLMB may have begun the moment he or she walked through the door. Ensure that the environment and experience are as peaceful and non-threatening as possible; in this way, not only will the pupil gain confidence and be more cooperative, but he or she will have a successful ‘tried and tested’ real life memory bank experience to refer to in readiness for future sessions.

Familiarization techniques specific to pre- and primary school settings

•From the outset, encourage parents to let their child be physically independent of them. This may be something to discuss with parents before the first meeting. A well-intentioned parent ‘clinging on’ to a child (particularly during a first visit) may unwittingly set an obstructive pattern that is subsequently hard to break. The long-term aim of even this first visit is for a child to feel comfortable and confident at school without his or her parents by his or her side. Parental physical proximity is therefore something to be completely withdrawn if possible before a child attends regularly.

•Depending on school policy the ultimate aim is for the parent and child to say goodbye at the school gate, or door, in the playground. Subsequent taster sessions, therefore, should make provision for ensuring this is practised and fully supported by parents. In the event of pupil tears and tantrums during farewell time, the school can contact anxious parents by telephone later that morning. Experience proves that pupils settle far more quickly when Mum or Dad has disappeared from view.

•Depending on school policy, some parents may be welcome to stay with their child for all or part of the session, particularly at pre-school. This may make it more difficult for parents of children with ASD to accept that they shouldn’t. More able pupils tell of a definite and comfortable divide between school and home. Feeling safer within known boundaries, pupils much prefer school to deal with school issues and parents to deal with those at home. To attempt to bridge this divide by encouraging parents to stay at school may therefore cause greater harm than good.

•Because of the obvious differences between morning and afternoon sessions, pupils should taste both before starting full time. This not only raises the child’s awareness of what to expect, but also alerts teaching and support staff to the child’s needs. A comparatively unstructured afternoon session may require more intensive staff support than a morning one. When support hours are at a minimum it is essential to arrange these to best suit an individual’s real needs.

•First taster sessions should always avoid lesson change-over times. These are naturally noisy and chaotic, and another area through which pupils will need to be sympathetically, sometimes physically, guided.

•Lunch, snack and break-times are important, and should be included as part of the familiarization process. Indoor and outdoor playtimes should also be included, as the routines and expectations for these are very different.

•Some pupils may have several different support workers throughout a week. Before full-time attendance, it is beneficial to ensure pupils have been introduced to, and had the opportunity to work with, each one. The sudden and unexpected introduction of a new support worker (one who has been away sick, or on holiday, for example) may easily offset an unprepared pupil for the rest of the day.

•Familiarize pupils with a safe or quiet area within the classroom that they can retreat to if necessary.

•Because some pupils may be expected to change uniform, or to wear school uniform for the first time, the partial wearing of this may be introduced during familiarization. For some pupils this may be incredibly difficult – some may have a preference for a particular colour or style of clothes;...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Of Related Interest
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Acknowledgements
• Contents
• Introduction
• Chapter 1. Familiarization
• Chapter 2. Transitions in and around schools
• Chapter 3. Physical positioning
• Chapter 4. Verbal instructions
• Chapter 5. Workstation areas
• Chapter 6. Visual timetables
• Chapter 7. Other visual prompts
• Chapter 8. Work materials and methods
• Chapter 9. Specific subject areas
• Chapter 10. Friendship skills
• Chapter 11. Breaks and lunch-times
• Chapter 12. Reviewing progress
• Afterword
• References
• Index