Introduction
Learners possess different capabilities and face diverse challenges that influence their interactions at school and significantly shape their trajectory in education. Every educator should pursue to understand the individual and institutional factors that limit their students’ academic and co-curricular participation. According to Cunningham (2022), a friendly environment should facilitate students’ self-identity and enhance their ability to express themselves in multiple ways. Autistic children are among the exceptional groups requiring differentiated instructions for fruitful outcomes in and after school.
Autism Spectrum Disorder
Autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) is among the leading challenges affecting school-going children. It is an exceptionality characterized by difficulties with interpersonal skills, problems with repetitive activities, speech, and body language (Kistoro et al., 2021). In the US and the UK, between 1% and 2% of children have autism, as diagnoses rise yearly (Mingins et al., 2021). Autistic children demonstrate varying levels of intellectual functioning, necessitating personalized interventions. Mingins et al. (2021) assert that although half of the autistic learners have normal or higher IQs, the other half also have a coexisting intellectual challenge. Some characteristics of this type of learner include trouble deciphering spoken and non-spoken language, difficulty comprehending other people’s emotions, sensory sensitivity, and showing intensely focused hobbies.
The level of help depends on the extent to which the student demonstrates need and accepts help from an educator. According to Mingins et al. (2021), students may engage in habitual and repetitive behavior that presents difficulties, such as irrational outbursts or, in rare instances, violent behavior. Although some autistic children do not need much extra assistance, others require more specialized care, possibly even round-the-clock assistance. Since each pupil or student is unique, with likes, dislikes, and qualities that will influence the sort of assistance they need, every person requires individualized support and coping mechanisms.
Differentiated Instructions and Interventions
Differentiated teaching techniques are vital for enabling autistic learners to develop a sense of belonging and improve their classroom engagement. One technique that can be incorporated in this case is applying special interests to gain entry into academic and social skills learning. For instance, using a student’s love for a given sport or movie star to teach specific subjects is essential since it would keep the learner interested and involved. In addition, visual cues and maintaining predictable routines when dealing with autistic children would help them maintain focus and synthesize information more easily.
Project-based learning is an essential instruction approach that would be useful in directing autistic students away from assignments that include passive learning and toward those that encourage higher-level thinking and substantive participation. Kistoro et al. (2021) argue that excessive amounts of information should be discouraged in the classroom since autistic children may have challenges remembering most details. Learners should be urged to create a model, examine concepts, make a product, or draw a mural.
Conclusion
In conclusion, learners possess various capabilities and challenges that require specialized intervention and differentiated instructions. Autistic children have difficulty expressing themselves, although they may be as intelligent as other students. The interventions should be based on understanding that every person has unique and specialized skills that should be nurtured. Each child requires a specialized approach aligned to their level of need. Applying visual teaching cues such as charts, leveraging children’s interests and project-based teaching are some techniques that can assist autistic children in exploiting their great potential in the school environment.
References
Kistoro, H., Setiawan, C., Latipah, E., & Putranta, H. (2021). Teachers’ Experiences in Character Education for Autistic Children. International Journal of Evaluation and Research in Education, 10(1), 65-77. Web.
Cunningham, M. (2022). ‘This school is 100% not autistic friendly!’ Listening to the voices of primary-aged autistic children to understand what an autistic friendly primary school should be like. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 26(12), 1211-1225. Web.
Mingins, J. E., Tarver, J., Waite, J., Jones, C., & Surtees, A. D. (2021). Anxiety and intellectual functioning in autistic children: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Autism, 25(1), 18-32. Web.