16 year old...autistic..aspergers..etc etc..advice please for home schooling..college..

Hi Jane - I'm new here, but thought I'd comment as I actually work in a college teaching 16-19 year olds, many of whom come to us with a wide range of needs. I totally agree with the previous poster, the system is failing our kids and college support can be patchy. What subject would your kid be studying, if you don't mind me asking? Learning support, as suggested, can be really helpful. 

Also - communicate clearly and often with your child's college tutor. I have encountered parents who won't speak with me at all about their child, and that makes it awfully hard to support them. Don't assume that school will have passed on all the info - schools (at least in our area) are really bad at passing on information, you must do this yourself. 

Arrange to meet with the tutor, and the curriculum leader too if possible - we do this where I work and it basically means myself and my boss are aware of the issues that the child has. Offer to support the child in working at home if there are days where they are not up to attending, but little and often with attendance can be important rather than big chunks of non attendance. 

See if your college has a quiet area where you're child can go if they are overwhelmed and need to calm down. This can be really useful for students on the spectrum, who are overwhelmed by lots of people. 

Colleges don't want to lose students, for the simple and unpleasant reason that they are penalised for poor retention. So if the college can see that you are committed to working with them in getting your child settled, that can only be a good thing. Also, if you are working with CAMHS to look for new strategies for non attendance, make sure the college know this. 

I hope at least some of this has been useful. Good luck and don't give up.

Kat.xx

Hi Jane - I'm new here, but thought I'd comment as I actually work in a college teaching 16-19 year olds, many of whom come to us with a wide range of needs. I totally agree with the previous poster, the system is failing our kids and college support can be patchy. What subject would your kid be studying, if you don't mind me asking? Learning support, as suggested, can be really helpful. 

Also - communicate clearly and often with your child's college tutor. I have encountered parents who won't speak with me at all about their child, and that makes it awfully hard to support them. Don't assume that school will have passed on all the info - schools (at least in our area) are really bad at passing on information, you must do this yourself. 

Arrange to meet with the tutor, and the curriculum leader too if possible - we do this where I work and it basically means myself and my boss are aware of the issues that the child has. Offer to support the child in working at home if there are days where they are not up to attending, but little and often with attendance can be important rather than big chunks of non attendance. 

See if your college has a quiet area where you're child can go if they are overwhelmed and need to calm down. This can be really useful for students on the spectrum, who are overwhelmed by lots of people. 

Colleges don't want to lose students, for the simple and unpleasant reason that they are penalised for poor retention. So if the college can see that you are committed to working with them in getting your child settled, that can only be a good thing. Also, if you are working with CAMHS to look for new strategies for non attendance, make sure the college know this. 

I hope at least some of this has been useful. Good luck and don't give up.

Kat.xx