Aspergers and The Education System

Filed under:Aspergers Education — posted by admin on March 16, 2010 @ 5:34 pm

Hi and welcome to this week’s blog post which is a great article about The Education System by Matthew Readman (a talented young writer who has Aspergers).

Before you read it just a reminder that from now until the end of March I am running a “Mad March Hare” Special offer for people to join The Parenting Aspergers Community (you can access the site and all it’s benefits for just $1 for a 10 day Trial) …

To learn more go to http://www.parentingaspergerscommunity.com/public/432.cfm

Now here’s the article by Matthew Readman –

This article is on our education system. I do not understand how our school system works. I have been told that every child has the right to an education. I believe in this fully. What I do not understand is why some children are treated differently than others. This year I started in a new school for enrichment studies. Almost everyone in my class has an Individual Evaluation Plan (IEP). This is a piece of paper you sit down with your parents and teachers to explain the problems you have and how your needs and difficulties are suppose to handled in the classroom. i.e. I need a safe place to go so I can calm down when I am angry. What gets me real mad is we have a student in our class who yells and disrespects the teacher. This student is thrown out of class almost every day. Does this upset me YES!!!! I guess you can say one of my “needs” is to follow orders, and it gets me mad when this child disrupts the class all the time.

As you would have guessed this kid and I are arch enemies. We believe in total opposite things. I believe you listen to the teacher, do your work and be quiet, as for him, the complete opposite. This kid also has a violence problem. When he gets mad he hits people. He has hit me quite a few times, and after the 5th time I finally hit him back. But who gets in trouble me!!!! Why, because I should have known better not to hit, because the kid who hit me has a “violent problem”.

This is what I don’t understand when does one child’s disability more important than someone else’s?

Why do teachers and principals allow so such misconduct in the school over one child? What about the rights of all the other children with IEP’s. Basically it comes down to in my mind is a school will attend to the needs of children who are violent (bullies), before a child who actually needs coaching. My mom always says “a squeaky wheel always gets heard” Does this mean you have to be a total jerk in class so you can get the teachers full attention?

I know for a fact that my IEP and other students in our class are not being met. We are put in the back burner to this child. So what options do we have? If we complain I think our teacher will have nervous breakdown. She is getting close because she cannot control this child. Write a letter to the principal? We did this and explained that this child is ruining our learning environment. Again, the principal states very clearly every child has a right to an education. What I am hoping is if my readers can maybe give us some other suggestions how kids can fight the school system on their own without getting parents involved. We want to fight this on our own. Please add any comments or ideas on the blog.

Another great article by Matthew …

If you want to read more by him then I would strongly suggest that you take advantage of the “Mad March hare Special Offer” to join The Parenting Aspergers Community as Matthew regularly writes for the site.

To Join Now for just $1 (which gives you 10 days Trial Access) go to http://www.parentingaspergerscommunity.com/public/432.cfm

Thanks for reading,

Dave Angel

comments (13)

13 comments »

Hi all! Right now my 6th grade Asperger’s son (Alex) and I are trying to decide whether he will continue in the public middle school or be home schooled next year. He becomes upset/scared about occurrences at his school, sometimes with teachers/coaches and sometimes with other students. However, he likes spending time with his friends and there are classes he enjoys, as well as teachers he likes. I know there are serious issues upsetting you however are there also good things at school? You should make a “pros” and “cons” list as we will be doing soon and then make your decisions about your school. Schools all have bad with the good (as life does)and we certainly don’t get along with everyone in our lives, whether they are students, teachers, or principals. You have to decide what you are willing to tolerate for yourself with the guidance of people who care about you. Best wishes!!
Comment by Sandy — March 16, 2010 @ 6:30 pm
Matthew,
I have read all your articles and am so highly impressed with your abilities and courage. The principal is correct, every child deserves an education. However, he is wrong in thinking that it has to be in the regular classroom. Find out if the school system has an “alternative school” program or some type of in-school suspension program. That sounds more like what the violent student needs. No matter what his “special needs” are, they do not give him the right to injure other students. The school has to educate him, but they do not have to give him free access to hit and do other violent things. Find out what the alternatives are and then be your own advocate and let the school know that they need to keep the majority of the kids safe by seeking alternatives for the violent student. Maybe if that student sees he will not be given free reign to create such havoc, he will be able to come back to the regular classroom with the students that have already learned that lesson.
Comment by Asperger's Mom — March 16, 2010 @ 7:12 pm
Hi, My son has similar views on this issue, and has commented at times on possibly having a student ‘strike’ to protest against the inequality within the education system when it comes to disruptive students, as well as ‘ignorant’ teachers.
Comment by Barbara Hill — March 16, 2010 @ 8:32 pm
I have a child I put in private school because I think he would be very disruptive for the other children in a public school setting. It is very stressful trying to get partial tuition reimbursement. Most people can’t afford to do this. We basically sold our house to be able to afford our son’s school . There are not many alternatives. I’m sure this “violent” child and his family are suffering. You are not the only one.
Comment by Alicia — March 16, 2010 @ 9:14 pm
When I was a kid, I was in a special ed class with a problem similar to the one you describe. The kid who was disrupting the class, however, didn’t have a violence problem, he mainly did bizaare things that had the potential to hurt himself and/or school property. Because of this kid disrupting the class, other kids who really needed extra help and attention from the teacher weren’t getting it. I’m sure some peoples’ IEP goals weren’t getting met. (It’s a good thing I wasn’t struggling academically at the time!) Perhaps unlike with your teacher, my teacher made no secret of her feelings about this kid, and went to the school administration to try to get him sent to another class! The rest of us got to know the school psychologist really well because the teacher asked her to sit in class for about a week just to observe this guy in action (surprisingly, he didn’t get sent to a mental institution, either!) The school administration did nothing about him…or for the other kids whose education was getting shortchanged! The problem with the set-up of special education was that there was nowhere lower for this kid to go. While there are some classes/school systems in which special ed is “good” in the sense that a serious effort is made to fulfill kids’ IEP goals and/or actual potential, more often than not, special ed is about anything BUT education. As far as I could tell while I was in it, special ed was used as a means to segregate kids with a “label” from kids who are “normal” and to artificially create an “underclass” within the school and the larger society. There is a social and economic incentive on the part of school administrations and society to do this. After all, have you ever seen a rich kid in special education? The only solution for you and your classmates is to get out of special ed (if this is academically and legally possible for you; I escaped in middle school) and/or out of the school system. But be warned, though you may actually learn more, the general ed classes _do_ contain kids with violence problems. Nothing is done about _them_, either, because they are supposedly “normal”!
Comment by Laura — March 17, 2010 @ 12:05 am
Dear Matthew,
My son could have written your comment! You have pointed out a very serious problem within, not just your school but, I believe in ALL state schools. There are a number of children who are too disruptive to participate in a normal classroom setting and they are ruining the education of the other children…Whatever problem these kids have, does not give them the right to disrupt your and your classmates education. You have a ‘right’ to an education too… You seem quite perceptive and what you state is the truth. That kid’s rights are more important to the school than yours. That’s wrong… You should do something about it. There is strength in numbers. Talk to your other classmates, get a petition (signatures) of the other kids, the more the better. Your education is suffereing because of this kid and YOU WANT TO LEARN! YOU also have a right to an education and if you’re not getting it. that kid should be removed and taught separately… It’s common sense, but unfortunately common sense is not what runs schools. It’s guidelines and laws which do not really take into account the reality of the situation. Schools are terrified of legal action or breaking guidelines, be prepared for a fight, but your education is worth it. Go to the press if you have to, the more publicity on the problem, the more likely it may change. They might move you, saying you are the problem… (this is the kind of thing schools do when you point out there mistakes, but son’t be afraid. Be strong and courageous. How you feel is right. Well-behaved children’s education should not suffer because of a minority with behavioural problems… Unfortunately, they do, everyday all up and down the country and no-one seems to be doing anything about it. That “Every kid has a right to an education” argument is the law, probably… but it’s being used against YOUR interests.. YOU have a right to an education! Talk to your parents about this and I will help if I can. My son went through the sdame thing and it was frustrating beyond belief…. Good luck, Matthew
Cheyne
Comment by Cheyne — March 17, 2010 @ 3:59 am
Please note that just because a child has IEP does not mean he is struggling. My son is in the gifted/talented class, but has an IEP.
Matthew it might be time to get the superintendent involved in the problem. If you let them know that the school is not meeting your IEP and is do nothing to improve it, they are setting themselves up for a lawsuit. No superintendent wants that. Sometimes the threat of legal action is what it takes.
Comment by Kimberly — March 17, 2010 @ 7:41 am
I agree with Kimberly, comment 3. If your principal won’t address the problem, which is where you are, someone higher up needs to make him. The threat, and then follow through if necessary, of legal action looks like your only option. Try amongst yourselves to get the superintendant’s attention, but if this fails you should get your parents involved. If you get to that point, there will be a lot of embarrassed faces of officials who have ignored the civlized, organized voices of an entire classroom of students trying to get an education in safety. Your efforts are creating a paper trail which will be an enormous tool for your parents to go into court if necessary.
Comment by Susan H — March 17, 2010 @ 10:01 am
This is a really important post. I used to hang out on yahoo groups for parents of kids with ADHD problems. My big ‘thing’ was to teach people about the importance of nutrition. I met a lot of wonderful, caring parents who were so totally focused on the rights of their problem kids that they totally lost track of the bigger picture. One cannot blame the parents, they were doing their job. But we desperately need better solutions that serve all kids. Easier said than done. But I am glad to see someone break the politically correct silence about how disruptive a problem kid can be to others.
Comment by Ieneke van Houten — March 18, 2010 @ 3:59 pm
PS: could someone see if that violent child has a problem tolerating wheat or other gluten grains? Wheat allergy is common in autism-spectrum people and can manifest as rage.
Comment by Ieneke van Houten — March 18, 2010 @ 4:08 pm
You can’t control other people; the only person you can control is yourself. “Appropriate” behavior starts in the home. So does developing relationships and communication. You can give a child all the attention they need until they’re sick of you and it’s not going to make them feel like they’re supported or someone cares about them. Until you change the behavior of those who this child trusts and will model themselves after; it’s a lost cause, especially if this person doesn’t bother to find interventional programs that will allow the parent and child to communication effectively so that they actually have a relationship; and then you can start trusting. You sound like your IEP has been structured for quite some time. You see someone who is constantly disruptive. Until you know what kind of shoes this other child wears, you should not judge. Misdiagnoses are commonplace; there is too much similarity between several diagnoses with each having their own individual twist. It’s the childs’ parent’s job to do what’d right for the child. Not the teacher, not his friends and not strangers. The parents need to initiate participation in their child’s life and show a true concern and love and support for the child. Until that happens, “no child left behind” will become a complete failure with us just going further and further in to debt. That goes for any education legislation that Obama signs as well. If you think you’re irritated with the behavior of another child; you should be reminded of what you were like before you went on meds and had interventional therapy. Put yourself in this other child’s place and ask yourself; is he loved as much as me? Does he have the support that I have at home. Does anyone care about him? The answer is obvious; he doesn’t care and he’s letting everyone know.
Comment by Marie — March 29, 2010 @ 11:28 am
I have several children with Aspegergers and pdd nos and it seems I am all alone in both the diagnoses and the treatment of my children.
the schools ignored their strange behavior and then we discovered it was Autism they dont know how to act. the IEP is a joke and I am so mad that they let them go so long before we had to take the bull by the horns and get the diagnoses no hints no advise nothing from the schools
Comment by Donald Cleveland — April 8, 2010 @ 2:19 pm
Matthew
I think that you are right about this student is getting to much of your teachers time. The school needs to recognize that this student is violent because he wants attention. When he does not get the attention that he seeks he disrupts the class. You are his audience, and if you complain in the classroom
then he wins. The school needs to remove him to another room so that he does not interfere with your education. The class is his audience and as long as he can disrupt the class he will. This is attention seeking behavior and will continue as long as he has an audience. He is entitled to an education but his entitlement does not supercede yours. His continued disruption of the classroom is defeating the purpose of your IEP, and you need to complain to the principal with your classmates specifying how your IEP needs are not being met. The school is required by law to meet your IEP needs.
Ken Brzezinski Teacher
Comment by Ken — April 10, 2010 @ 11:52 am