Teach Secondary 13.5

Campbell – we point out that explaining aspects of your autism doesn’t mean apologising for it. If you tell someone that the buzz from the air conditioning is annoying you, they might not be all that receptive to adaptations. If you tell them you have highly sensitive hearing, and that what sounds like a small background noise to them sounds like a thousand wasps on the rampage to you, they should be far more willing to help and advocate on your behalf. To help them advocate for their own needs, encourage pupils to calmly explain their personal experiences if they feel comfortable in doing so. During teamwork activities with their peers, they may not wish to draw attention to themselves, but could perhaps be encouraged to make suggestions like, ‘I prefer to be the observer in this one, but I can take notes?’ Identifying how they can use their strengths to enhance their focus and minimise discomfort – all the while communicating that to others – is genuine work experience! 5. Persuasive presentation When discussing adaptations in Just the Job! , we use the terms ‘Poor Cinderella’ and ‘Ball Cinderella’. ‘Poor Cinderella’ lists everything she can’t do to her employer, in what looks like a list of complaints. ‘Ball Cinderella’, on the other hand, expresses herself more positively, highlighting what she can do when adjustments are made. Being a good self-advocate means learning how to communicate positively and persuasively. Predicting how the words you choose will land on another’s ears isn’t easy if you’re autistic, as it means taking an alternative viewpoint (the ‘aut’ in autistic literally meaning ‘self’). It would be slightly naïve to assume that someone who makes demands without first weighing up their words will work easily alongside others, but keeping quiet and saying nothing at all ultimately isn’t an option. Learning the art of negotiation and persuasion isn’t about becoming someone different; it’s about ensuring you have the tools to be influential when it benefits you. 6. Predicting challenges The next step towards self-advocacy is learning how to use self-insight to predict potential stressors, and coupling that with a proactive approach. This kind of initiative – when a pupil requests change – should be rewarded, even if you aren’t able to meet their exact request. Negotiating a good compromise can be an important exercise in itself. 7. Knitting it all together The final stage of developing self-advocacy is gaining experience of putting all of these elements together so that you’re able to predict challenges, successfully communicate how you work well and manage your own needs with tried and tested strategies. A proactive and planned effort on the part of school at knitting these learning elements together could help autistic pupils successfully transition from being victims of their environment to authors of their own success. INTHE KNOW Effective self-advocates will be aware of... The law when it comes to employers’ obligations. How they feel when they’re beginning to experience overload A range of self-calming strategies Which environments they work best in The adaptations that suit them How to articulate their experiences to others How to request adjustments in a positive way ABOUT THE AUTHOR Debby Elley has twin autistic sons and is co-founder of AuKids magazine; her book Just the Job! – A Light-hearted guide to office life for the autistic employee , is co-authored with autism advocate and author Maura Campbell and is available now (£13.99, Jessica Kingsley Publishers) 63 teachwire.net/secondary S E N D