• Replies 4 replies
  • Subscribers 65 subscribers
  • Views 788 views
  • Users 0 members are here
Options
Related
Hints and tips
  • To quote someone's message, first select/highlight the relevant text, and then use the Quote button that appears
  • To "mention" someone, type @ followed by the start of the forum name, and choose from the list; that person will get a notification of being mentioned

autism toolboxes used in schools

longman

I have been reading about one of the toolboxes/toolkits used to inform teachers about autism needs in schools and am very puzzled about what I've seen.

My background is adult education, so I don't have the opportunity to scrutinise what might be happening in schools. I wondered therefore if parents of children on the spectrum had seen in practice some of the things I've just seen explained in one of these toolboxes (the one used in Scottish schools http://www.autismtoolbox.co.uk/ ).

It is very closely based around Triad of Impairments. It is very limited on sensory issues and things like eye contact. For example sensory issues seem to be being confused with motor control - they list the sensory types, but there is no grasp of people being affected by noise etc. Take this paragraph linking sensory processing to coordination(2.3.8 in the toolbox background text http://educationscotland.gov.uk/resources/a/genericresource_tcm545007.asp ):

"Children who have difficulty with sensory process can often have issues with coordination, so may have problems with writing tasks, or self care skills such as tying shoe laces, doing zips and buttons, or cleaning themselves effectively after being to the toilet"

Or this from a section on solutions, if a child uses visuals as a stimulus "keep classroom environments as clutter-free as possible. If your preferred teaching style is to have busy walls then ensure the child has a screened off workstation with high sides, blank wall and a visible timetable only".

Or the proposition that school books have colourful pictures, so for autistic spectrum children cover over the pictures so they only see the text.

The toolbox goes to great lengths to provide every opportunity for group work and exposure to social interactions as if this is curable. Section 2.1 explains the difficulty with social interaction:

"Limited awareness and difficulty forming and sustaining social relationships due to lower awareness and appreciation of the perspectives of others. This may be interpreted by others as a lack of empathy".

Thus the entire basis of social difficulties is lack of empathy - and that it seems can be cured by maximising exposure to it.

What I've read is terrifying. Its an Orwellian nightmare where a set of teaching packages have been created based on a garbled vision of autism which sees coercion and shock tereatment as the way to cure autism.

How does this sort of thing come about?

Have any parents encountered evidence of these tool boxes in practice?  And has NAS any grasp of what is going on?

Parents

  • The section on Impact of Autism on Assessment was one of the better parts of the learning grid. The impacts were better written and made more sense. But the Teacher responses were irritatingly over wordy.

    One of the most crucial issues for pupils on the autistic spectrum is not doing an assessment because they don't see the point of it. This is a frequent reason for failure, especially in critical school examinations. So it was reassuring to see that they had attempted to include this:

    Impact: "inconsistent motivation and engagement may result in misleading outcomes. Pupil may not understand and value the importance of assessment".

    Teacher response: "Use pupil's interest to increase engagement in assessment process. Identify what is intrinsically motivating for the pupil as they are unlikely to respond to extrinsic or social motivators. Acknowledge that reasonable adjustment has been made in order to maintain a realistic perspective of the pupil and their skills and consequences".

    Gosh what was all that about? And is there anything there that would help solve the problem? This is a really crucial issue and I'm not at all convinced they have any notion how to go about solving it. Waffle with some big words basically.

    Motivation is really important, so again it was nice to see this raised, or I think it is raised.

    Impact: "pupil may lack self awareness resulting in difficulties with meaningful involvement in their own learning".

    Teacher response: " Support pupil to notice and comment on their own performance and behaviour in relation to specific or agreed targets. Develop and use visual materials to support pupil in recognising and recording their own development".

    Reflection is something teachers are supposed to do - a bit grim imposing that process on a child with autism, and hardly increases motivation. But they go on to suggest doing the Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme.......

    "The course was adapted so that difficulties associated with the autistic spectrum(eg poor spatial awareness, proprioception and motor planning) could be anticipated, planned-for and overcome allowing pupils to gain recognition for their achievement. With the support of senior management the program was embedded into the curriculum offered as an option to dedicated pupils".

    I may have misunderstood the above but they seem to be describing someone with severe mobility issues. Some people on the autistic spectrum may have that level of poor coordination, but I wonder how many parents will recognise the image of helplessness implied.

    The thing is this "toolbox" cost money to produce. Money that could have been spent on something more directly relevant to autism needs.

    NAS has produced a toolkit for schools. I've not seen it. I just hope it is a great deal better and more informative and applicable than this rubbish.

Reply

  • The section on Impact of Autism on Assessment was one of the better parts of the learning grid. The impacts were better written and made more sense. But the Teacher responses were irritatingly over wordy.

    One of the most crucial issues for pupils on the autistic spectrum is not doing an assessment because they don't see the point of it. This is a frequent reason for failure, especially in critical school examinations. So it was reassuring to see that they had attempted to include this:

    Impact: "inconsistent motivation and engagement may result in misleading outcomes. Pupil may not understand and value the importance of assessment".

    Teacher response: "Use pupil's interest to increase engagement in assessment process. Identify what is intrinsically motivating for the pupil as they are unlikely to respond to extrinsic or social motivators. Acknowledge that reasonable adjustment has been made in order to maintain a realistic perspective of the pupil and their skills and consequences".

    Gosh what was all that about? And is there anything there that would help solve the problem? This is a really crucial issue and I'm not at all convinced they have any notion how to go about solving it. Waffle with some big words basically.

    Motivation is really important, so again it was nice to see this raised, or I think it is raised.

    Impact: "pupil may lack self awareness resulting in difficulties with meaningful involvement in their own learning".

    Teacher response: " Support pupil to notice and comment on their own performance and behaviour in relation to specific or agreed targets. Develop and use visual materials to support pupil in recognising and recording their own development".

    Reflection is something teachers are supposed to do - a bit grim imposing that process on a child with autism, and hardly increases motivation. But they go on to suggest doing the Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme.......

    "The course was adapted so that difficulties associated with the autistic spectrum(eg poor spatial awareness, proprioception and motor planning) could be anticipated, planned-for and overcome allowing pupils to gain recognition for their achievement. With the support of senior management the program was embedded into the curriculum offered as an option to dedicated pupils".

    I may have misunderstood the above but they seem to be describing someone with severe mobility issues. Some people on the autistic spectrum may have that level of poor coordination, but I wonder how many parents will recognise the image of helplessness implied.

    The thing is this "toolbox" cost money to produce. Money that could have been spent on something more directly relevant to autism needs.

    NAS has produced a toolkit for schools. I've not seen it. I just hope it is a great deal better and more informative and applicable than this rubbish.

Children
No Data