Discuss teaching and classroom management strategies to incorporate children with Asperger's Syndrome in Mainstream Primary Classrooms.
I have chosen this subject because one of the pupils in my stage two, year four class, has been diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome and is treated by the school in accordance with that diagnosis. Since I have not encountered a student with this disorder before; I believe it would be a beneficial area for me to explore in depth and observe the relationship between theory and practice. .
In order to understand Asperger's syndrome a teacher must be able to understand and recognise the characteristic behaviour that accompanies the disorder. An understanding of the diagnostic methods and the relevant theory relating to Asperger's Syndrome would give a teacher these tools.
"Both Autism and Asperger's Syndrome share the core features of impaired social interaction; repetitive stereotypical patterns of behaviour and activities; inflexible thinking; and lack of imaginative play."" (Wing and Gould, 1979. Page 10.).
It can be seen from the above reference that a diagnosis of a child with Asperger's Syndrome would need to examine specific aspects of social, language, cognitive and movement skills as well as the quality of the child's individual interests. In order to make the diagnosis complete, time would need to be spent with the parents to obtain information regarding the history of the child, the development or appearance of the syndrome and the child's behaviour in specific situations. Since the child spends many hours of hisher week at school, another valuable source of information would be reports from teacher. .
"The major source of stress in life for the person with Asperger's Syndrome is social contact, and increased stress generally leads to anxiety disorders and depression.""(Tony Attwood, Asperger's Syndrome. A Guide for Parents and Professionals) since the classroom is always a social group and engenders social contact a classroom is the major source of stress for a child with Asperger's Syndrome.
