Special school teacher Barbara Hippler reports on the challenges autistic students face in everyday school life. Overstimulation and sensory overload often lead to stereotypical behaviors and concentration difficulties. These experiences highlight the importance of adapted learning environments.
Overstimulation and stereotypical behaviour
My primary school pupils are often overwhelmed by the overstimulation of auditory and visual stimuli and then react in class with stereotypical behaviour, such as rocking on their chairs, putting their glasses on and off, making noises or socially inappropriate behaviour towards their classmates. This leads to negative feedback and many admonishments from the teachers and rejection by the other classmates.
Hustle and bustle and break times
Christine Preißmann, a German autistic doctor and author, describes the sensory overload at school as follows: “The volume and the hustle and bustle in the classroom were sometimes unbearable. I could hardly concentrate on the lessons.” The break times in particular, which many children perceived as relaxation, were often a time of excessive demands for them.
Clarity, structure, management and retreat options
Primary school pupils want clarity and structure, including during break times, guided group play, but also opportunities to retreat.
Social contacts, disrespect and constant changes
In secondary school, my pupils are often confronted with the following difficulties. My pupil Lena (name has been changed), 16 years old, with Asperger syndrome, describes the change to a new school as follows:
“I did my best at the new school, but I still wasn’t able to socialise at all. It was also very difficult to deal with my classmates, as there wasn’t much respect for the teachers or the school. That’s why it was often very loud and there was no structure.
There was a different room for each subject, the desks were constantly moving and the class group was different every time. This was very difficult for me. As the teachers and everyone else at the school thought it was normal and said “there’s nothing we can do about it”, I’m now going to move to another school.”
Isolation instead of belonging
“I had the feeling that I didn’t really belong. The other children seemed to speak a language that I didn’t understand,” Christine Preißmann recalls from her school days. She was often unable to correctly interpret social rules and nuances, which isolated her.
Sensitisation, understanding, support and suitable conditions
Parents and autistic pupils want understanding and support from teachers and their environment. This can be achieved by sensitising teachers and creating suitable conditions for autistic people so that they can realise their full potential.