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Enhancing provision for children on the autism spectrum Dr Glenys Jones University of Birmingham 23 January 2015

Enhancing provision for children on the autism spectrum Dr Glenys Jones University of Birmingham 23 January 2015

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Enhancing provision for children on the autism spectrumDr Glenys JonesUniversity of Birmingham23 January 2015

Flexibility of thought and behaviour

Communication and

language

Sensory issues

Attention differences

Social and emotional

understanding

Main areas affected in autism/Asperger syndrome

Identification - Think about/assess EVERY pupil in the group/class• And not just those with recognised SEN

• In particular – help others ascertain what the pupil enjoys about school; their degree of inclusion with peers in class and outside; their emotional and physical well-being; any anxieties about life at school or at home; ambitions for the future; their happiness…..

• Use the strategies developed for those with autism and ALL children at a school will benefit including those that have not yet been identified as having SEN or autism

Areas of difference in autism 1

Communication and language: difficulties in using and understanding spoken words, facial expression, gesture, body language, and intonation, irrespective of how intellectually able they are

problems in reading for meaning, taking spoken language literally, issues in understanding sarcasm, jokes, metaphors

Areas of difference in autism 2Social and emotional understanding

knowing what to say and do in different social contexts - so often criticised for being rude, inappropriate, insensitive, lacking empathy

A pupil’s limited facial expression can mean that staff think they are fine and coping when they are not

Difficulties in thinking and behaving flexibly

Issues in predicting, perspective-taking, preference for routines and familiarity, issues in shifting and dividing attention and in processing and working memory

Areas of difference in autism 3

Areas of difference in autism 4

Sensory challenges

• Sensory overload - overwhelmed• Delayed perception – need time• Over and under sensitive• Sights, sound, touch, smell, taste, body

awareness, balance

• Criticised by staff and pupils alike for not doing the right thing (autism is invisible)• Exhausted by the effort of trying to

work out what to do, how to join the group• May seem arrogant, opinionated for not

seeing others’ points of view – and genuinely mystified as to why other people are interested in talking about topics that hold no interest for them.

School is a very challenging placeif you have autism…

School is a very challenging place if you have autism…• Problems in shifting and dividing

attention means that they are often literally deaf to peers and staff • Have problems with prioritising and

working to time• Only motivated by what interests them

– not by social rewards • Can be upset when others break the

rules and will report on other pupils and staff

School is a very challenging place if you have autism…• Pupils are vulnerable to being exploited

materially and sexually as they are socially naïve or want to gain friends – so check on the nature of their relationships with other pupils and teach them to be assertive and how to judge intentions

• Can take written and spoken language literally (eg Clown worksheet next slide)

What might be the difficulties for a child with autism with this worksheet?Can you solve the clown’s problems?

Areas where pupils need help• Need help to gain a friend – hugely important

for self-esteem, learning what is OK/not OK and protection from bullying• Need help to read for meaning in tasks and

exams• Need help to prioritise work, to understand

how to revise, to help make good choices of subjects and University course• Need time away from others – to spend time

on special interest

Areas where pupils need help• To be warned in advance of any changes to

routines• To be given more details of events/ procedures

than other pupils• Need support and not sanctions when it is the

misunderstanding that comes from autism or a problem arising from poor organisational skills

• If their response is very different from other pupils of the same ability, then one has to consider which aspect of their autism/dyslexia, dyspraxia might have led to this

• When instructions given, ask the pupil to show you what they are going to do, to check their understanding

Areas where pupils need help• To cue in to what is relevant in a lesson

– as their attention might be elsewhere• Not to insist on eye contact – as many

autistic people find this painful and easier to listen if they do not have to look at the person• To check on their sensory issues –

using the checklist in the AET materials

Areas which affect well-being and can continue into adulthood

• Sleep deprivation common leading to irritability, lowered performance• Food and drink – may be limited,

intermittent, not fully digested– so may be hungry, in pain, dehydrated, constipated• Toileting may be difficult or signals not

noticed – if absorbed in an activity

• Any ONE of these can affect performance and mood

Free resources for schools, early years and post 16• AET Standards, Competency Framework

and Parents Guide – find at•www.autismeducationtrust.org.uk

Inclusion Development Programme – online study materials on autismwww.aet-idp.org.uk

Aims of the Hertfordshire review on educational provision for children with autism• To identify key issues, concerns and successes in the

education of children with autism

• To consider how to enhance provision and increase a school’s capacity to take a wider range of children

• To make best use of resources

• To clarify the Hertfordshire offer

Challenges in autism throughout the UK

• Increasing number of children identified with autism – at least 1 in 100

• Needs and profiles are very diverse across the population

• Autism is missed by schools and other professionals as it is not as visible in able, passive children, particularly in girls

• School is one of the most demanding environments if you have autism

Challenges in autism throughout the UK

• Reduction in support services and therapists

• No robust evidence on which interventions or settings are best for any individual with autism

• BUT growing consensus from experience of what makes a positive difference……….

• Adult style, physical and sensory environments, stress reduction, using special interests, listening to the pupils

Issues for Hertfordshire• Limited budget which is unlikely to increase so need to use

resources to best effect

• To provide for all pupils locally for good parent links and reduced transport costs and community support

• Data on how many pupils there are with autism is hard to ascertain where this is not listed as the primary need

Issues for Hertfordshire

Placement of Statemented children in each DSPL varies in terms of:

1. Proportion who attend school WITHIN their DSPL

2. Proportion of children at schools out of Herts3. Proportion of children in mainstream schools

• WHY?

Sources of information for the review• Staff in mainstream and special schools and

bases• Advisory service and Educational Psychologists• Parents and carers• Data on placements made for children in each

DSPL• Literature on autism and interventions• Survey data from 162 schools and 4 Colleges

A lot of work done by schools on these aspects of practice

Communication with staff Adjusting teaching Fostering friendships Safe haven created Staff knowledge Prevention of bullying0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

138

126

116

105 105 102

The six principles for which a lot of work has been done according to the respondents

No work has been done on these aspects by some schools

Parents'

room

Parent g

roup fo

r SEN

D

Structu

red co

nversa

tions

Making a

djustmen

ts to te

aching

Activiti

es lunch

/brea

k-time

Asking p

upils'vie

ws0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140127

91

2419 18

12

The six principles for which no work has yet been done accord-ing to participants

Support from CD Autism Team

Primary & Nursery

Secondary All age Primary & Nursery

Secondary All age Primary & Nursery

Secondary All age Primary & Nursery

Secondary All age

Excellent Good Not very useful Not received this support

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

53

7

0

53

15

2

15

30

8

2 1

Respondents' opinion on AAT according to age group

Rating of support from Educational Psychologists

Educational Psychologist0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

10086

36

26

104

Good

Excellent

Not very useful

Not received this support

Not answered/Don't know

Support from ESCs

ESCs0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

9084

29

20

15 14

Not received this support

Good

Excellent

Not very useful

Not answered/Don't know

Support from CAMHS

CAMHS0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

64 64

22

10

2

Not received this support

Not very useful

Good

Not answered/Don't know

Excellent

Staff concerns/issues

• What to do prior to diagnosis which can take a long time• Good schools can become a magnet• How can we measure non academic progress?• Many mainstream staff have little or no

knowledge of autism• Caseloads of support staff do not allow sufficient

time to support schools and families

Staff issues and concerns

• Insufficient time to liaise with parents• ENF funding often turned down for reasons

which are not clear• Staff find pupils’ problems hard to understand

and confused by uneven profiles – so assume they should be able to do X.• Insufficient work done on peer-peer inclusion• Hanging on to difficult children hides the extent

of the problems some schools face

Staff issues and concerns

• Parents who appear not to accept the diagnosis• Parents who do not want their child or other

children to know their child has autism

Parents’ issues and concerns

• Parents want more information at diagnosis and shorter waiting times• Schools don’t ‘get it’• Staff do not take parents’ concerns seriously –

particularly when child is academically able• Hard to get to see key staff• Would like more frequent meetings with staff

Parents’ issues and concerns

• CAMHS services not as helpful as hoped• Would like separate/alternative provision – bases

or a school for able, anxious children• Would like staff to work on social and emotional

well-being and life skills• Inconsistent support – good support can

disappear when the child moves class or school

Parents’ issues and concerns

• Children are given repeated sanctions which do not work• Parents feel they are talked into managed moves

by the threat of exclusion• Child’s part-time attendance limits parents’

employment and quality of life

Summary

• All schools need to be good at meeting the needs of children with autism, so how do we best share good ideas?• Parents and staff need to work more closely

together• Non-academic areas – particularly social

understanding and peer inclusion and life skills need to be developed• Explore reasons for differences in DSPL area

placements

Summary

• Needs of very anxious, able children need to be identified and addressed more effectively• Consideration needs to be given as to how all

schools can better meet the needs of all children• A need to explore alternative provision for some,

not yet made in Hertfordshire• Advice on how to support children and schools

where behaviour challenges staff

Summary: Training and dissemination• A need to continue to raise awareness of how to

recognise autism and where the child is struggling to know where to refer• A need to share issues in teaching children with

autism and to disseminate strategies which help• A need to develop skills to engage effectively with

parents about their child• QUESTION: How are the skills and expertise of

staff best developed?• QUESTION: How is this currently done and to what

effect?

Four TASKS for DSPL Areas,4, 7 and 9

1. Whole school audit using AET Standards (4P; 2S; 1 special; 1 base) and include pupils and parents in this, using AET Standards

2. Parent/carer engagement with schools, staff to complete a questionnaire

3. How do we understand, prevent and manage behaviour which challenges staff and families and how do we identify passive children who are highly anxious or not happy?

4. Explore DSPL placement patterns and ENF funding

The individual pupil Building relationships

Curriculum and Learning

Enabling environments

Four main areas in both the Standards and the Competency Framework

Rating scale for the Standards

• For each Standard the staff will consider the extent to which it is met, as follows:

• Schools will then consider whether work on each Standard is low, medium or high priority to create an action plan

57 competencies• 33 core competencies• 27 advanced competencies

Resources and links illustrating the competency

Links to the National Standards

Extract from Parent guide: for parents to complete………

Full article can be found on AET Schools Standards

•Thank you

•Any questions/comments