A friend diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome once told me that living with Asperger's is like being 'On a Different Wavelength'.
In 2001 Joshua K. Harrower and Glen Dunlap conducted a review of effective strategies and stated that one of the contributing factors in the controversy over inclusion of students with autism has been the limited number of studies that have focused directly on procedures for facilitating inclusion. The small amount of research done that considers inclusion as an independent variable has documented generally, though not exclusively, positive results. They state that full inclusion of students with autism
More information on inclusion for students with autism can be found at http://bmo.sagepub.com/content/25/5/762
In 2001 Joshua K. Harrower and Glen Dunlap conducted a review of effective strategies and stated that one of the contributing factors in the controversy over inclusion of students with autism has been the limited number of studies that have focused directly on procedures for facilitating inclusion. The small amount of research done that considers inclusion as an independent variable has documented generally, though not exclusively, positive results. They state that full inclusion of students with autism
- display higher levels of engagement and social interaction.
- give and receive higher levels of social support.
- have larger friendship networks, and
- have developmentally more advanced individualized education plan goals than their counterpart in segregated placements.
More information on inclusion for students with autism can be found at http://bmo.sagepub.com/content/25/5/762
CASE STUDY OF STUDENT A
- Student A is a 10 year old boy completing year 5 in a public state primary school, situated in a low socioeconomic area and his class consists of about 30 students with mixed learning abilities. In the class there are two relatively new students who don't speak any English, who Student A was quite fixated on for a period of time. He displays obsessive compulsive traits and anxiety. He also is constantly moving and finds it difficult to concentrate. While he is very eager to please every one and takes pride in being helpful, his social skills are poor and he finds it difficult to develop and maintain relationships.
- Student A has a supportive family but has previously suffered a large amount of emotional trauma and will use this to try and shock new people who enter the classroom.
- His academic performance is low across the board, however since starting his medication his concentration has improved.
- After he has had a meltdown he will generally run away and hide. As he is in the process of being diagnosed, he receives no extra support so his classroom teacher is working with him to be able to keep a problem small rather than turning it into something huge.