Many children (especially girls) do not receive a formal
diagnosis of Autism until they move to secondary (or High school) around the
age of twelve. This often follows few
(or fewer) difficulties at primary (or Elementary) school.
The reasons for this are outlined in this article and may
help explain why some children require additional support to make this
important transition.
When a child is at primary school they generally tend to be
taught by one or two teachers each year who are responsible for delivering the
whole curriculum. Teaching usually takes
place in one classroom (with occasional lessons in the school hall or IT
suite). Books are kept in a desk or
locker close to the classroom.
The move to secondary school usually involves the child
going to a far bigger school, sometimes across multiple sites. Whereas in primary school, the teacher
teaches the whole class for the day and generally gets to know the individual
children quite well, in secondary school, teachers teach a subject. As a consequence, they may not get to know
the individual children as well as the primary school class teacher. In addition, the child often has to make
their way from one classroom to the next at the end of each lesson, often
having to make sure they have the homework from the previous lesson written
down and their books ready for their next class before they leave.
This can be a particular challenge for the child with
Autism. Many, (probably most), will have
significant challenges with their executive function. Executive function is the ability to plan,
sequence and organise. Difficulties in
this area will often result in lost books or kit for sports activities. It may also mean that the child struggles to
find their way quickly and efficiently to the next classroom.
Many children with Autism also have difficulties with their
working memory and processing speed.
This means that when the teacher informs them of their
homework or what they need to bring for the next lesson, they probably won’t
remember what was said. Add to this the
challenges many have with processing speed and handwriting and it is very
likely that the child will not have time to accurately write down what is
needed in time before they have to leave the classroom for their next lesson.
The curriculum also changes when the child moves to
secondary school. Most typically
developing children will have a huge development in their reasoning ability at
around twelve. Piaget referred to this
as the ‘formal operational stage’. This
is the time when the child becomes able to think in abstract terms and to move
beyond the ‘here and now’. In children
with Autism, this ability can be slower to develop. This often means that the child suddenly
begins to struggle with school work (even if this has not been an issue in the
past). Questions like ‘How would it have
felt to be a World War One soldier?’ are often challenging and cause
frustration. Suddenly questions in
coursework and examinations rely upon the ability to make inferences and deduce
information from various sources. This
can be incredibly challenging for the Autistic child who remains at the stage
of ‘concrete’ thought. Mathematics
questions are often not straightforward and ‘hidden’ in text which, again, makes
interpretation of exactly what is required more difficult.
There is also the issue of friendships. In the primary school years, playdates are
often facilitated by parents. Parents often take the children to and from
school. By the time they reach secondary
school, there is often an expectation that they will travel to school on their
own or with peers. Children decide for
themselves who they wish to be friends with (and who they do not wish to be
friends with) and can be very cruel to anyone who does not ‘fit in’. Both girls and boys with Autism can struggle
to read between the lines and cope with young people they thought were friends
talking behind their backs. Girls in
particular find the whole ‘Mean Girls’ culture very difficult to handle. In today’s social media-driven world, it is
impossible to escape from the pressures of this type of interaction, even at
home.
All of the above can lead to the child beginning to
experience higher levels of anxiety and even begin to school refuse. Of course, once this pattern starts, the
child will quickly get further behind in their school work and may lose contact
with their peers.
Many of these problems could be easily supported. Giving young people their homework on a sheet
of paper, giving clear and unambiguous explanations for what is required,
helping them to organise their school bags and find their way around school
(some schools use colour coding for different books and parts of the school),
all help to reduce the underlying anxiety.
Having a place the young person can go to at lunch time if
they are overwhelmed by the sensory environment, or simply struggling with
friendship issues can make all the difference to their ability to manage the
day.
A final note, and one that has been mentioned in previous
articles, is the issue of ‘masking’.
Just because a school teacher or SENDCO does not recognise either the
Autism or the anxiety in a child, does not mean ‘there is nothing wrong with
them’. Some children are incredibly good
at covering up both their difficulties and their anxiety until they get home in
the evening. If a parent reports that
they are experiencing difficulties at home – even if the child has not had
difficulties in the past – it is still worth considering making the small
changes outlined above, they might just make all the difference between a child
coping with the transition to secondary school or not.
Footnote:
Launched on 21st August 2019, this new book addresses
the gender gap in the understanding of autism, and explores the
educational needs of girls on the autism spectrum from early years to secondary
school, in both mainstream and special settings. For further details, visit
Amazon by following this link - https://amzn.to/2KDJR1X
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteIf you want to get Children’s Psychologist Service in Newcastle then Beam Service the best to get the psychologist service in Newcastle. If you want to know more, visit BeamServices.
ReplyDelete