Looking for SEN Jobs? Click here to search our current roles

All You Need to Know About Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a condition that affects around 700,000 people in the United Kingdom, which means about 1 in 100 people have been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Many researchers believe that autism is almost 3 times more prevalent in boys than girls, but more girls and gender-diverse people are being diagnosed in their later years.

Autism also affects people in many different ways, often making it harder to diagnose if the autistic traits aren't as apparent as people expect. In my case, my main issues lie within the region of sensory issues and some restrictive behaviours rather than social interactions. That being said, I still find it difficult to communicate with people I don't really know and who don't understand my autism and I struggle with maintaining friendships.

What is Autism Spectrum Disorder?

To put it simply, it is a neurodevelopmental disorder that is characterised by: persistent difficulties in social communication, social interaction and restricted, repetitive behaviours, interests or activities. Due to autism being such a broad spectrum, each symptom can present itself in different ways and with different severities. Some autistic people may be non-verbal and struggle with everyday communications whilst others can be deemed as being ‘hyper-verbal', enjoying social interactions to an intense degree. This variation in autistic behaviours can also be explained by the other diagnosable conditions that fall under the autism umbrella.

What are the symptoms of ASD?

There are multiple symptoms that can indicate someone has Autism Spectrum Disorder, many lying within the social communications and repetitive behaviours brackets. Many autistic people find that they have difficulties in interpreting verbal and non-verbal language, this could be problems understanding sarcasm or general body language. These issues can present in different ways such as, taking things too literally or needing a few extra seconds to process spoken information. In my case, I struggle to understand peoples tone of voice which can often lead to miscommunication and find idioms difficult to comprehend. It is also hard to follow tasks if I am not given clear and concise instructions, something I know affects many autistic people.

Some autistic people also struggle with recognising people's emotions which can often lead to someone saying something inappropriate without meaning to. Being unaware or incapable of understanding other people's emotions (alexithymia) can explain why some autistic people find it difficult to form and maintain friendships.

There are also multiple ways in which repetitive and restrictive behaviours affect autistic people. Many autistic people find that the neurotypical world is a very unpredictable place, so we prefer to follow a routine that helps us navigate a confusing world. Because of this, autistic people tend to find routine changes difficult to accept, these changes could be anything from a change in breakfast cereal to taking a different route to school. Whilst these changes may seem little, they can affect an autistic person in a huge way.

Repetitive behaviours present in different ways, hand flapping, rocking, and clapping are very common self-regulatory behaviours (stimming) that can help an autistic person calm down when they feel stressed or overwhelmed. Stimming can also indicate intense happiness, helping to express feeling when words just can't explain it.

Another symptom that many autistic present is having intense and highly focused interests. People on the autistic spectrum may get huge amounts of pleasure from researching topics that they find interesting. This could be anything from knowing everything about a certain animal to becoming obsessed with a certain craft. With some autistic people, these special interests may last years and for others, only a few months. Personally, I have intense special interests that are often short-lived but consume my life for a short period of time. Throughout school, I was obsessed with encyclopaedias and learning weird facts about the natural world. I would spend hours pouring over books in the school library and recount my findings to my parents (something I think they found incredibly annoying). Recently, my special interests have been focused on crochet and bats, I can easily get lost in crochet and often forget that I have other commitments. This is a huge issue within the autistic community as I can get so lost in a special interest that I forget to do my university work, eat, and even go to the toilet.

Autistic people may also experience over- or under-sensitivity to sensory input such as, sounds, touch, tastes, colour, and light. When someone has sensory sensitivities, they can find it increasingly difficult to be in busy or loud places as the sensory input can be very hard to deal with. Too much sensory input can often make communicating hard as there is too much going on and can lead to a meltdown.

Is ASD a disability?

Whilst Autism Spectrum Disorder is not a learning disability, it is still classed as a disability. This is due to the fact that autism can have a substantial effect on a persons ability to carry out their normal day-to-day activities. Some autistic people struggle to cook for themselves or go shopping without additional support because of their autism which does mean that they find daily activities debilitating. In some cases of autism, an autistic person could need a carer and around the clock care to help them function on a daily basis.

How does inclusion education help students with special needs?

Inclusive education means different and diverse students learn side by side in the same classroom. This sense of inclusivity is vital in changing discriminatory attitudes in education, helping students of different abilities and backgrounds understand how to play and learn together. In an inclusive classroom, differences become less focused on and can lead to children who have problems maintaining friendships finding that they have a lot of things in common with other children, helping them socialise.

This type of education helps children who have special needs develop much-needed skills that could lead to employment in their later lives.

Looking for SEN Jobs? Click here to search our current roles