Imagine being forced into an environment every day which causes so much stress and anxiety that it induces meltdowns, shutdowns or panic. Imagine being surrounded by hundreds of other children who speak in a language you don’t quite understand. Imagine being expected to act a certain way, but never knowing entirely what that means, and landing yourself in trouble for getting it wrong.
This is what autistic children and teens face every day at school.
The exact difficulties they experience and the way they present differs, of course, from individual to individual. But, for an overwhelming majority, the stress caused by the school environment can be damaging.
An autistic child is not on a level playing field with their peers. They spend the day fighting to survive – to focus when the sensory environment is painful, to follow instructions which aren’t quite clear, to socialise without being made fun of. Without adjustments, they wouldn’t have the chance to thrive, and every child deserves the chance to thrive at school.
There are many reasonable adjustments that can be made to help at school:
- Time out card: to be able to leave lessons when things get overwhelming.
- Uniform adjustments: to not have to wear parts of it which are unbearable, like tights or ties.
- Having a mentor: to help with anything the child is struggling with and to help communicate with teachers.
- Classroom adjustments: such as notice of any changes, being able to choose who to sit next to, extensions on deadlines, not having to do certain group-work, being able to use fidget toys or headphones.
- To not have to join in with things which are too stressful: such as assemblies, certain lessons, celebration days, etc.
- To have a quiet, safe space at school: such as a classroom to go into at lunchtime, or the library to go to during lessons.
- Exam adjustments: such as extra time, rest breaks and sitting exams in a small room.
Let’s delve a little deeper into a few of these. There are many parts of a school day that are challenging, even before a child gets to school. Just putting on their uniform in the morning may be difficult, because of the sensory feeling. They may not be able to wear tights or a tie. They may need to wear a shirt made from a different material which doesn’t have the school logo on it. This is completely reasonable.
When a child arrives at school, they are faced with a day of managing their stress levels and processing demands. Sometimes this begins with assemblies, which may be a source of anxiety. The large amount of people clustered together, the noise bouncing around the hall before and after, and the feeling of not being able to escape. This was a problem for me at school, so I spent assemblies sat in the library. It gave me a few quiet minutes to recharge before facing lessons.
There are some lessons that autistic children may find too anxiety-provoking, such as P.E. or Design and Technology. The noise in woodwork hurt my ears, and the smell was too overbearing. In P.E., the changing rooms felt too claustrophobic and loud. It may be that the child can get changed somewhere private, and sometimes just having a time out card to leave if it gets too much is enough to help them. Or it may be that case that they need to not have to face the pressure of that lesson at all. Removing this from their timetable may give them a better chance at engaging with the rest of their day.
These free periods can be helpful. Autistic children may need time to catch up with work they haven’t been able to focus on in class. It may be an opportunity for them to meet with a mentor or the SENCo (Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator). I had a fortnightly mentor at school, and I was able to choose who this was so that I felt comfortable talking to them. They also acted as a ‘safe person’, who I could go to when I was particularly overwhelmed or panicked.
My mentor helped me to plan my time, talk about things I was struggling with, and communicate with teachers when I needed extra adjustments in class. Sometimes this meant extensions on deadlines, being able to choose who I sat next to in class, not having to participate in group-work, or being able to complete my lesson work in the library instead of the classroom. It also meant being given notice when a change was going to happen, such as a different teacher covering a lesson, or lesson structure being changed to prepare for exams.
Exam adjustments are very important for autistic students. Because of my ASD diagnosis, I was entitled to 25% extra time, to allow for processing differences, and rest breaks, to give me a chance to breathe if I felt overwhelmed. I didn’t have to sit my exams in the main hall with everyone else, instead I could do so in separate, smaller rooms to avoid certain sensory difficulties and reduce anxiety. If it wasn’t for these adjustments, I wouldn’t have been able to sit my exams to the best of my abilities.
The adjustments available to your child will vary depending on their age, their needs, and the way the school is set up. But your child is very much entitled to adjustments to take away any unnecessary stress and enable them to engage as much as they can in school life.
Too many autistic children find school impossible to navigate, and many end up refusing to go. Putting in place reasonable adjustments as early as possible gives them a better chance to thrive.
