Abstract

This paper is an analysis of a program at Cayuga Secondary School. The author reflects on her classroom program and the way in which it utilizes ideas expressed in Janice Janzen's book, Understanding the Nature of Autism.

Janice Janzen, in her book, Understanding the Nature of Autism, summarizes the learning strengths by saying that autistic students have the ability to take in chunks of information quickly, remember information for a long time, learn and use visual information meaningfully, learn and repeat long routines and concentrate on narrow topics of specific interest. Predictably they are honest, naive and overly compliant (p. 131). In addition, some of the learning deficits of those with autism she summarizes are that they have the inability to modulate and process or integrate sensory stimulation, perceive and organize events in time and understand language related to time, tolerate the closeness of people, solve problems that involve hypothesis testing and social judgment and analyze, organize and integrate information to derive meaning (p. 131).

My quest is to examine our present program with regard to these learning strengths and deficits and to note if our interpreters are given the opportunities and are able to address the learning deficits and enhance the learning strengths of those students with autism at Cayuga Secondary School.

Janzen, also states that an interpreter is one who can explain or provide the meaning or can clarify the meaning of events. The interpreter for a student with autism may need to guide the student and assist him/her in reading goals, attract the eye and provide quick reference when necessary (p. 442).

Most non-autistic adolescents entering a secondary school find it confusing, threatening and overwhelming for the first few weeks. When considering both the learning strengths and personality traits common in autism as well as the learning deficits of those with autism, a large secondary school may seem like an unlikely place for a student with autism to have much success. All teachers want to be able to say that each student that they teach is in a setting that will provide the student with the best educational experience. When I examine the modifications, adaptations, support systems and personnel that we are presently employing and are encouraged to use in our classrooms, I am pleased that our students with autism adapt well and thrive in our supportive and appropriate environment. To be an effective interpreter within this environment is an awesome task.

Addressing the learning deficits of those with autism

An interpreter must assist the student with autism to tolerate the closeness of people. Humans as well as animals have a "flight distance". Martel, in Life of Pi, defines flight distance as "the minimum distance at which an animal wants to keep a perceived enemy." He goes on to make interesting comparisons. He continues: "A flamingo in the wild won't mind you if you stay more than three hundred yards away. Cross that limit and it becomes tense. Get even closer and you trigger a flight reaction from which the bird will not cease until the three-hundred-yard limit is set again, or until heart and lungs fail. Different animals have different flight distances and they gauge them in different ways. Cats look, deer listen, bears smell. Giraffes will allow you to come to within thirty yards of them if you are in a motor car, but will run if you are 150 yards away on foot. Fiddler crabs scurry when you're ten yards away; howler monkeys stir in their branches when you're at twenty. African buffaloes react at seventy-five.

Our tools for diminishing flight distance are the knowledge we have of an animal...and the protection we afford. When it works, the result is an emotionally stable, stress-free...animal that not only stays put, but is healthy, lives a very long time, eats without fuss and behaves and socializes in natural ways" (p. 43).

All humans have a flight distance. Humans fear different things and thus flight distance varies from one individual to another. Also, some humans communicate comfortably with a very small distance between him/herself and another, while others require a greater social distance in order to feel at ease with any communication. The interpreter must be very aware that students with autism can be overwhelmed by auditory and sensory stimuli even in a small classroom. The student must feel comfortable with the distance he/she is from the interpreter and others in the classroom and the stimuli he/she is providing. Clearly, a separate "safe" place for the student to sit is essential (Janzen, p. 164). A calm and clear voice and an ability to listen and wait would be a comfort to a student with autism. Our interpreters are able to provide information and assist with clarification and communication. For students with autism, physical closeness may result in agitation, anxiety or inappropriate behavioural responses. The interpreter must carefully gauge the distance at which he/she sits in order to best assist the student with autism while continuing to support him/her with the task at hand. At the ideal distance, the interpreter is also close enough to respond to any interaction the student may initiate and respond to this appropriately.

I recently had an interesting experience. One of our interpreters was leaving her position in my classroom to move to another school closer to home. She had worked well with Adam (not his real name) for the last two years and I was worried about the stress he would experience by the change. I thought carefully about who I would want to take her place and to work with Adam for half of his day. I posed the question to him: "If you had the opportunity to work with any adult in my room, who would it be?" His choice was excellent. He chose an interpreter who is quiet, confident and does not frazzle easily. I was pleased. When I asked why he chose her, his answer was simple but so important to his success at school: "She doesn't talk too much." It seems it was his way of saying that too much auditory stimulation could affect his performance. What a great Choice on his part (Journal, April 25, 2003).

Every classroom/school has a timetable or schedule. The interpreter, with the teacher's assistance, is able to create a written or symbol schedule for the student with autism. This provides order to an hour, day, week or month. This visual or written schedule is essential (Janzen, p. 131). In a busy secondary school, changes in daily routines are predictable. The interpreter and teacher need to be adept at introducing change to a student with autism. The interpreter mush be flexible enough to adapt well to the change him/herself and to assist the student in learning that change is acceptable and that it could be fun. Loud assemblies with many students, spirit days with busy activities, swimming days, field trips and a change to the daily timetable are all situations that the interpreter must introduce. A brief introduction and explanation of the change and how it will affect the student, verbal and visual planning for the change, review of the change and a respect for the student's fear or anxiety of the new situation should all be considerations of the interpreter. Appropriate interventions by the interpreter to anxieties, fears or inappropriate behavioural responses exhibited by the student with autism should be considered in advance so that a plan is in place to reduce these. A sensitive interpreter with practice and a good understanding of the student with whom he/she is working will be able to notice signs of anxiety or fear early and thus reduce stress for the student in a manner that he/she know works best for the student. The earlier the signs of stress or anxiety are noted and responded to by the interpreter, the less likely it is that the student will exhibit inappropriate behavioural responses that may escalate.

If a situation does escalate and involve some inappropriate behavioural responses by the student, I find it of great benefit to discuss later, share feelings and ask questions. On March 5, Adam had a disappointing start to his day. His mom had asked him to carry three bags of garbage to the road, when the usual number was two. He was stressed by the change of routine and arrived at school out of sorts. His mom had noted in his communication book that he was totally unimpressed with his garbage duty this morning. Agitation progressed to bad language and aggressive actions. Clearly he needed a "time away" from work for a few minutes. His interpreter was keen to get the day's work started and insisted he get out his binder and get ready. More inappropriate behavioural responses ensued which resulted in a discussion with raised voices by both. The interpreter and I discussed later how she could better have handled the situation (Journal, March 5, 2003). What caused the stress? What did we do that worked? What could we do that will make it work better? A confident interpreter will be able to analyze well and discuss, without feeling that the discussion is a result of his/her personal error. By discussion we are better able to work as a team to assist our students with autism.

Our autism initiative group also provided an opportunity for us to discuss, share feelings and ask questions. Both elementary and secondary teachers who teach students with autism at a variety of age levels were able to gain from the knowledge that each brought to the group. Since we had such diverse backgrounds, we presented for each other many interesting perspectives on the challenges in our classrooms.

A student with autism lives in a world that is constantly confusing. A secondary school where lively adolescents talk loudly, move about quickly, hang about in groups and enjoy music at top volume could certainly create confusion and stress for a student with autism. Our interpreters and I have considered that our students are first of all teenagers and second, students with autism. They want to take part in everything that belongs to "teenagehood".

When considering an activity at school, our interpreters have had the best success when they know the students well. It is essential that they understand that what may create no stress for a non-autistic student may be a major stressor for a student with autism. It is his/her task to help the student with autism identify what is a stressor and how to guide him/her in the process of dealing with it. Students must be taught to indicate in an appropriate way, using spoken language, sign or symbols to say that they need time away from the present activity. Asking for this time away before inappropriate behavioural responses occur may be the student's first step in dealing well with personal stress. Better luck with restarting the activity will occur if a major upset has not occurred.

Many "seemingly" small adjustments by the interpreter may assist the student with autism with reducing stress. Turning the volume down on the announcements, sitting near the exit door during an assembly, talking about the activity several times before it happens and supporting the student with autism when he/she indicates stress all make a difference to his/her busy day in a secondary school.

To communicate effectively is part of life. Spoken language is often confusing for a student with autism (Janzen, p. 131). Our skillful interpreters assist our students with interpretation of spoken/signed language. Many of our students make literal translations for language. They are not making a deliberate attempt to be annoying, defiant or attention seeking but are having difficulty sorting out meaning. Patient interpreters understand and cope well with this deficit. They may have to explain multiple meaning for words, multiple labels for words and why something may or may not be funny or sad. Using picture symbols or written language to express oneself meaningfully is a skill be gained by every student in an educational setting. Also to comprehend language spoken or signed by others is of great benefit. The more our students with autism are able to interpret language and to communicate effectively, the greater are their abilities to cope well with a world that relies on language. Once again, this truly may be what an interpreter does in our school; he/she interprets for our students with autism.

Building on the learning strengths

A secondary school may be the ideal place for a student with autism. The interpreter in our school has the opportunity to take part in many activities that help develop and build on our students' learning strengths.

Many of our students with autism are able to learn and repeat long routines. We have been given the opportunity to be in charge of the weekly white paper recycling, the weekly collection of tins, plastic and glass, the attendance collection for our school and the folder of flyers at a nearby workshop facility. Since our school population is about 1000 students, these are busy but rewarding tasks for our students to learn. All these tasks are done during a time when the rest of the school is in class. The halls are quiet. Long, but accurate, routines can be taught. The interpreter must be creative in not only teaching the specific routine but in varying the routine slightly so that the student is not stressed by small changes in the procedure. Many explanations are necessary and must be carried out slowly with questions answered as they occur. "What do I do when a teacher forgets to put out the white box?"; "Is it OK to collect attendance in a different hall?"; "When is my task finished?"; "What do I do when I am finished?" Variations in a routine must be taught by the interpreter/teacher so that stress does not develop when the routine is not exactly the same. Many of our students develop a sense of pride when they are able to complete tasks without constant verbal direction and are able to contribute to the school in a very positive way.

Several of our students with autism have a strong interest in one specific topic. In this instance our interpreters are given the opportunity to assist our students with developing this interest. If a student is able to read, draw or create in some way, many can learn from what this student has learned. One of our students with autism was particularly interested in precious stones/jewels. With assistance, from the interpreter, he was able to research and learn more. He also had the opportunity to teach us about precious stones/jewels. I now know something about jewels and stones because he has taught me (Journal, February 18, 2003).

Conclusions

Many of our students with autism use visual information meaningfully. Janzen confirms this (p. 131). I had become frustrated by the lack of computer software in my room that would assist our students. I had asked everyone I know, how to get some the software I wanted. During one of our sessions with our autism initiative group, we completed a chart called, "I will start, stop continue" (Journal, April 3, 2003). In the "continue column", I commented that I would continue to request equipment and contact more people with the hope of getting it. Peggy Blair said, "leave that with me" (Journal, April 3, 2003). She was instrumental in providing all the equipment that I could presently wish for.

Our interpreters are able to capitalize on the strength of learning visual information meaningfully as well as address some deficits in this area. The amount of spoken language that is needed is reduced thus reducing auditory stimuli. The student is able to organize his time efficiently and more independently. For many of us, it is difficult not to talk when explaining. Our interpreters have learned patience and the ability to wait for the student to process when brief verbal directions are given. Using visual information and schedules allows for this.

When I reflect upon the learning strengths and personality traits as well as the learning deficits of those with autism, as stated by Janzen, our interpreters are able to enhance the learning strengths and assist with the learning deficits of those with autism at our school. We have been given opportunities within our school and are supported in many ways by our administrations to do so. We learn a great deal from our students with autism and this is maybe why I am not able to give up what I am presently doing.

References

Janzen, J. (1996). Understanding the Nature of Autism: A Practical Guide. SanAntonio, Texas: Therapy Skill Builders.

Martel, Yann. (2001). Life of Pi. Vintage Canada, Random House of Canada Limited, Toronto.