Aspies For Freedom

Hi,

I have a son, 13, who has aspergers and adhd he attends a special school since year 7. which has been brilliant for him. until now, yr 9.

The start of year 9 he was bullied so they moved him into a different class,  this caused him obvious difficulties but without autism advice/understanding they changed his class again and are yet again going to move his class next week. His medication has not been effective and we are currently starting new medication for this along side existing medication (I keep them informed) they failed to inform me correctly of school issues and that his behaviour has spiraled completly out of control. I have only found out at his annual review.  They fail to see his anxiety over class changes and insist he "wants to be the bad boy, chooses to cause disruption and deliberately misinterprets situations in an attempt to cause disruptions"

When will people see the real child and understand the difficulties he faces. I know he is good and is really intelligent but because he has more ability than others in the class, they dont seem to understand he needs to access education in a safe environment without change or managed appropriately.

To read such negative and demeaning reports about my son and have not been informed about major incidents is heartbreaking.

Sorry to introduce myself with such a rant but have only just found the boards.

ditzy.

I can only assume the "special school" is a general one and has no experience of ASDs. You need to get onto your LEA and ask for intervention. Aspergers is now a recognised disability since the new disability discrimination act was introduced, therefore if they are behaving in a way that will deliberately exacerbate his Aspergers (such as moving classes without a very good reason) you can take action because they are discriminating against a disabled person. Have you had any Specialist teacher input? Are they specialists in ASDs? The school are most definitely in the wrong. Any ASD child if moved will need a minimum of 2-3 months to settle back into a proper routine. Does he have a safe place he can go to if he becomes unduely stressed. It should be written into his statement that he will have access to an appropriately staffed safe place when he needs it. If he doesn't then they are setting him up to fail. Putting him into an impossible situation of being stressed but not being able to deal with it which causes even more stress which can't be dealt with .....

If you statement is badly written (and a lot of them are) after 12 months you can ask for a reassesment and ask that the statement be re-written. If the LEA refuses you can go to SENDIST to force them to comply.

Hope this helps a little, but be prepared to fight like anything. I am a secondary school teacher with Aspergers and still cannot get the provision I know I need for my youngest son. Fight on though, they owe it to us.

thanks for your quick reply. You guessed right they have no experience of ASD's and a general special.  The statement is well written clearly defining need (i think) but they have not supported the need and are actually disputing it. I have requested another urgent review with la present and local autism support envolvement. I will fight and make sure he gets the relevent provision which he deserves.

Thanks again, much appreciated.

ditzy.

I don't know the specific details of your son or your situation and I can only give a general opinion. From my school experiences and others I've heard classes tend to go 'out of control' if any kind of persistent disruption occurs. Teachers, whilst professional, are also human. They may simply get fed up with the fact that they cannot teach due to constant disturbances. I hated disruptive children when I was at school, they used to worry me. The reality today is that any 'problem child' is expected to be treated as 'special' so the judgement as to if they 'really' need help or are just 'naughty' is very clouded. Your son is very important and special to you, but that doesn't mean he is important and special to everyone else! This is not  a criticism of you or your son, far from it, I think that judging children and labelling them at 13 is unhelpful. I just think that it is worth remembering that teachers are often under pressure and may need you to 'help' them understand a bit more. Maybe!

It's also a commentary on the state of education where teachers are often expected to cope with children with extra needs without proper training. Class sizes are too large and the teacher usually doesn't have time to give much individual attention to their students.

I read somewhere that the optimal class size is six! It would be helpful (very) to have at least one teacher aide but they are generally only catered for in primary schools and pre-schools if one is lucky.

hi Michael and tenaciouscj,

Thanks for your replies, Michael I underdstand the pressures of teaching whilst a child is disrupting the class but I NEVER want my child to behave like that. I am a co-operative parent and had I been informed I would of addressed the behaviour/issues immidiatley I would also of had specialist advice in to support and train staff and son would of had his needs assessed/met appropriately.
tenaciouscj, The school is very small but not specifically for asd which is why they have access to autism support for whenever an issue arrises. This was not needed for two years but with the changes and the bullying at the start of yr9. I do feel they should of accessed that resource which would of limited the anxiety for my son.
Thank you for your different perspective and I do always try to see how difficult it can be for teachers but I feel when support is available not to access it is wasteful.
ditzy.

I have no doubt at all that had you been informed sooner then the situation which has caused your son and yourself this distress may well have been sorted out sooner. It is really bad that children are seen as naughty and disruptive when infact they are anxious and vulnerable and have different needs.

Thanks for all replies,

My son has the autism support in school now and I am really pleased it has come in so quickly. Will still have further meetings etc but at least the school are being advised appropriately in how to support my son.

ditzy.

Hooray! I am very happy for your son and you that he now has support that he needs.

Well good luck here in New Zealand its diffucult as u get a teachers aide but wether they know aspergers or autism its a hard one to combat mind u i know back in the eighties i got little support, for now all the best!

thanks Asem and adidasdd,

He is more settled now

ditzy.