Aspergers and School-your thoughts and experiences needed!

[nssa]

I am currently working on an training package for use by schools to enable them to understand and better include children with Aspergers. I need feedback from parents and students on their experiences, particularly

1) What were/ are the main difficulties you or your child experienced?

2) What do you think would be helpful in each of the above difficulties?

3) Do you feel that the teachers have a good enough understanding of Aspergers?

4)what is the most important change you would like to see at school?

I am researching the literature but I find that the experiences of people who have been/ are going through the system are most important of all. I am passionate about trying to make things better in mainstream education and would very much like to hear your views. Thank you for your time.

Nikki

[Wendy321]

1) if he doesn't know/like his teacher he won't work. He needs a lot of one to as he won't work by himself. He doesn't like writing things down, the teachers only know he is capable through computer tests they do. Some days he will be top of the class others he is bottom. There is no trigger we have found for this, he just seems to work when it suits. He doesn't easily make friends, he he likes one to one and can't cope in crowds. The lights bother him and he gets headaches from this.

2) I meet teachers regularly to discuss different methods, this term we are trying a star chart where he gets a treat at school when he completes it and a treat of his choosing at home. If I knew a solution it would be great. The teachers are wonderful and try anything

3) I am not sure they do understand completely, but the main thing for me is they try and he gets a lot of help

4) I would like to see teachers being able to say to parents that there may be a problem with learning difficulties and to help get kids referred quicker. My eldest didn't get diagnosed until just recently, had 3 educational psychologists, one we paid £70 an hour for to be told there was nothing wrong. At the primary school he was at they had a special needs dept. and I feel they could have helped more instead he was badly bullied for a long time and even though I was at the school all the time they never told me. He was even bullied by a teacher. We moved schools for his last year at primary, where he was a lot happier but it wasn't until he went to private school last year that the head teacher told us our son had aspergers. It took a lot of persuading the dr to refer him and the school had to get involved, he actually has high functioning autism and is now getting the help he needs.

[nssa]

Thank you so much for sharing your experiences with me, I am glad that your son is getting the help he deserves. Your feedback will help me to know which areas to focus on and it is greatly appreciated.

Best wishes,

Nikki

[kizzykat86]

I had a very bad experience with school and I am I female I was bullied for the first 5 years of my life and I had no idea I was being bullied , and I am 26 yrs old and I still don't really understand it message me any questions and I will answer x

[nssa in reply to kizzykat86]

Hi, many thanks for your reply, almost everyone who has given me information either here or elsewhere has mentioned bullying, so you are not alone and it is definitely an area that will be a priority. I think a lot of people feel threatened by anyone who is different and history of full of this, homophobia, racism etc.. I think what happens to people with Aspergers is another example of this and things need to change so that people like us do not suffer this any more. Your input is very appreciated and I hope your life is good now.

[Springsong]

I have Aspergers & to a large extent I loved primary school. I was popular though I would often wait to be asked to play rather than actually asking my friends myself.

My problems came at secondary school:

I didn't understand/appreciate the need for homework when it was the same as what I had been doing in the classroom, it was often undone & submitted late.

I didn't perform well for my teachers unless they had my respect.

I was emotionally bullied because I couldn't always decypher the difference between joke & serious, fact & faction.

I was bullied also for the fact that I couldn't grasp conversations often interupting others, chatting away whilst they lost interest or I spiralled off with a topic we had been discussing several minutes earlier & had moved on from.

I would often sit by myself both in class & at lunchtime waiting for someone to join me.

Classmates thought me strange for not being so interested in the same things they were (fashion, teenage magazines, the latest pop charts, dating, parties, soap operas) but having my own interests such as collecting comic books & postcards.

I took comments literally so when one of my teachers joked 'Why are you coming here if you're not doing your coursework, you're going to fail' I couldn't explain that I didn't know how to put my knowledge onto paper whilst I could tell her all about it verbally so I stopped attending her class & hid in the library instead.

Teachers are slowly becoming more aware of ASD & the effects it can have on children but as every child is different they can again get confused & out of depth handling one child from the next. My 3yr old daughter has just been diagnosed with Autism & whilst SENCO at her nursery are great with her they are all too aware of the difference in behaviour & learning needs between her & another boy in her class with Autism, they are different.

[nssa]

Thank you very much for your reply, there are indeed a range of difficulties and strengths associated with Aspergers and you are right, one child's needs can be very different to another's. Equally every person, spectrum or not, is different and unique. The main thing here is that I gather as much as I can from the people who know the best-you! I am very aware of how difficult it can be for teachers and I believe that greater knowledge and understanding is the key. I am very grateful for your input here and I will do my best to produce materials reflecting your insights.