Inclusion: an autistic child’s right. Part one of my research discussion.

Hello again. Sorry that I have not updated the blog in several days. As any teacher will tell you, the start of the Summer term is always a busy time. I was also debating how to approach the next post. So far, I’ve shared the sections of my Masters dissertation. I considered sharing my methodology section, but have decided against that, as this blog is intended to (eventually) be a sharing of useful approaches in everyday SEND practice.

I want to connect with people who are looking for useful ideas to try in their own practice, and the sharing of my dissertation is to give a grounding in who I am and my position. Of course, anyone who has done a Masters degree will know that the methodology section of a dissertation explains one’s methodological approach, which gives away one’s position, but it can be quite dry! So I’ve decided to skip this and instead share my results and discussion section.

I will do this in sections, each one being the themes I uncovered through my methodological approach: ‘Inclusion: an autistic child’s right’; ‘Challenges to inclusive practice for autistic children’; and ‘Inclusion in practice for autistic children in mainstream primary settings’. So the first section is presented below, and I’ve left in my table that presents the codes for this section and the remaining two. They’ll form my next two posts.

I won’t include a list of references this time. This can be found in my last post, where I presented my literature review.

Here’s who I was lucky enough to interview during my research. All names are pseudonyms:

Results and Discussion

I think with the right levels of funding and attitude there are no circumstances where inclusion is not possible.

Faye

Introduction

I intended to define inclusive practice for autistic children in mainstream primary settings. Here, findings are revealed and collected from children, parents, teachers, and support service professionals. Coding and constant comparison were used to analyse the data, leading to the emergence of three themes, forming theory (revealed in the conclusion). Each theme is discussed and synthesised with literature.

Themes and Corresponding Codes

Inclusion: an autistic child’s right	Challenges to inclusive practice for autistic children	Inclusion in practice for autistic children in mainstream primary settings
Equality, moral and ethical duty Legal requirements and policy	Barriers to inclusion Challenging behaviour Autism Awareness Training	Schools implementing inclusive practice Mutual benefits for all children Stakeholder involvement and cooperation Community Beyond the school environment

Inclusion: an autistic child’s right

Equality, moral and ethical duty

Ensuring autistic children received their educational rights as fundamental to inclusion was recurring. High expectations of autistic children, in line with neurotypical children, were mentioned. Ben commented on “serious work’’, suggesting its importance: “Makes me feel a bit…Serious because it’s serious work.” (Ben). Ben talked about “doing work on our own”, which he recognised as an important part of his journey to independence. Barbara stated of her child, “he’s got to come back to doing what he’s doing” once her child has had a sensory break; the expectation being her child accesses learning provided. Emma expressed autistic children are “exposed to the same education as their peers” and:

…even if learning is challenged they are still able to access and enjoy…the same experiences as others (Emma).

Educational entitlement was a recurring concept. Ben joyfully listed subjects he takes part in, suggesting accessing these is important to him. Most adult participants declared their support for inclusion as a right: “each child is entitled to an education” (Brigitte); “…gets their entitlement to an education.” (Beth); “Every child has the right to be educated alongside their peers…they cannot be denied it on principle” (Chloe). Cathy stated:

All children have a right to an inclusive education. This includes autistic children…(Cathy).

Challenge and expectation were deemed important in inclusive practice. Participants, while referring to and acknowledging long-standing cultural stereotypes the label ‘autism’ has attached to it (Macartney & Morton, 2013; Runswick-Cole & Hodge, 2009), demonstrated an inclusive ethos through a commitment to consistently high expectations (Gedge, 2016). Suggested is an underlying ideology of educational entitlement. Donna explains:

Every teacher is a teacher of SEN and must set high standards and ensure…a broad and balanced curriculum is delivered and tailored to all children. (Donna)

This references the Code of Practice 2015, suggesting outside influences, additional to one’s morals and ethics, are at play. More heartfelt is this opinion: “we want them to have the same chance as everybody else” (Fiona).

Most participants believed inclusive practice and equality for autistic children were intertwined. Equality was defined legally, morally, and ethically. One participant stated:

They cannot be refused…to be educated on the basis of having ASD. They also cannot be discriminated against by not having reasonable adjustments being made…(Dan).

While another suggested:

Segregation…reinforces prejudices and lack of understanding – if we do not come across people…at a young age, then we have little chance of living in an integrated and inclusive society (Chloe).

There exists a dichotomy of adapting to the needs of autistic learners while understanding diagnoses (Fisher, 2012; Hellawell, 2017). Participants demonstrated positive mindsets (Dweck, 2008; Crowne & McDonald, 2018) to promote inclusion of all learners, in contrast to statistics that indicate an inability or unwillingness to do so (Gillan, 2017). They expressed commitment to ensuring autistic children are enabled in developing independence and accessing educational rights, thus knowingly or not striving to meet the requirements of the UNCRC (1989) and the UNCRPD (2008). Equality as promoting autistic children positively to neurotypical peers is repeated by Alan: “makes them see these children as being not other”; and Barbara:

…they’re people aren’t they? Don’t matter whether they’re autistic, physically disabled mentally whatever…(Barbara).

Valuing autistic children as fellow human beings emerged as a concept via insights of several participants: “their contributions are valued” (Chloe); “a responsibility to adapt our teaching styles/ schools to support [autistic children]” (Cathy); “We are a society. It is our responsibility.” (Gabrielle). The educational rights of autistic children are more than a legal requirement; they are an ethos manifesting not only in policy but in people’s thoughts and actions.

Legal requirements and policy

Participants described the legalities of inclusive practice for autistic children. Knowledge varied regarding specific acts. Some referred to the Code of Practice and Equality Act in particular, and many generally acknowledged the existence of equality laws and child rights:

I know little of…legal requirements other than…reasonable adjustments must be made (Gabrielle).

One participant explained: “I don’t have a great understanding of…legal requirements.” (Brigitte), while another stated they had: “a very limited understanding/knowledge of legal requirements” (Esther). Whatever participants’ knowledge and understanding of statutory guidance at national and international level, most expressed knowledge of requirements at school level, referring to SEND and/or inclusion policies, and children with EHCPs “which is a legal document” and “gives [children] certain entitlements and rights” (Esther).

Participants were mindful to promote equality at fundamental levels, via autistic and neurotypical children co-existing within school (Kemp, Kishida, Carter & Sweller, 2013). This moral and ethical approach was balanced with the necessity to ensure educational entitlement for autistic children under the law (Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice: 0 to 25 years, 2015).