Asperger's and Girls (3 page)

School psychologists above all should be knowledgeable enough to at least question the presence of Asperger’s Syndrome in female students who are referred to them. Any time there is the combination of social immaturity, perseverative interests, lack of eye contact, poor handwriting, poor gross motor coordination, repetitive behaviors, isolation or teasing by peers, falling grades, and being viewed as “odd” by teachers and peers, Asperger’s Syndrome should be investigated.

Teachers

Although we always wish that the teachers would have sufficient knowledge and training in the entire spectrum of autism, this is rarely the case, especially when taking the general education teachers into account in an inclusive classroom. The results of a recent study (Mandell, et al., 2005) clarified the average age for those already diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome to be 7.1 years for males and 7.3 years in females due to limited knowledge in the presentation of the disorder, prognosis and treatment of ASD, and the suspicion of other developmental disorders delaying the referral for evaluation. So it is not uncommon for teachers to be among the first group of people that picks up inconsistencies in behavior or performance with a particular student. Teachers are in a unique position to compare one student to a whole host of typical students and clarify where someone is diverging from the developmental pathway generally walked by most students. This is a perspective that parents, with the exception of comparing their child to siblings or cousins, do not have. Teachers see it all, but if not cognizant of this sophisticated developmental disorder, may not pick up the signs early enough to refer them for an evaluation or to make changes in educational programs sufficient to produce improvement.

Once the disorder is recognized, training should be offered to
all
of the student’s teachers. This becomes imperative as the student ages and travels through the system, since research has shown that treatment yields diminishing returns with older students (Mars, Mauk & Dowrick, 1998). Ideally, if we wish for this girl to show improvement in needed skills, it will come as a result of encountering multitudes of trained teachers as she ages. In elementary school, the teachers she will encounter include the special education teacher, general education teacher, teachers for P.E., art and music, as well as support and related staff. However, as middle school and high school come onto the horizon, the number of teachers involved with this same student will rise dramatically. You now have a team of teachers for general education classes alone, plus the special education teacher, and any teachers of elective classes that are chosen each term. The difficult part is that, at end of term, all those teachers may change and another whole set of teachers needing training will begin teaching her. All students with disabilities, including the female student with AS, deserve to have teachers who are knowledgeable in their disorder so that students receive the most appropriate education, but this business of training keeps getting more intense over the years. It is a critical need that is often not met, resulting in the lack of diagnosis, fewer students being recognized under appropriate educational eligibility, and less effective teaching strategies being employed in the classroom, generating socially-isolated, lonely, potentially depressed individuals who will not be able to capitalize on their high potential.

Educational Programs for the Female Student with AS

Peer Programming and Support

As with male students with Asperger’s Syndrome, the female student with Asperger’s will need the help and support of her typical peer classmates in order to improve her skills, and to increase the opportunities for a better outcome. Research has clearly proven that peer programming can help students with disabilities become better-included in the typical population at schools (Strain, Shores, & Timm, 1977; Odom, Hoyson, Jamieson, & Strain, 1985; Roeyers, H., 1996; Kamps, D. M., Barbetta, P. M., & Delquadri, J, 1994 among so many other researchers). Peer programming is a tried-and-true means to overcome the huge barriers posed in the areas of academics and the social and behavioral interactions that students struggle with on a day-to-day basis. It also targets a critical area of instruction that is difficult for a teacher to address. In light of the female student with Asperger’s, we need to look closely at this area of peer support and recognize that the area our special needs student struggles in is the very same area that typical students fight over to gain dominance. Typical girls mature more rapidly than their male counterparts and learn how to use sophisticated levels of verbal and non-verbal communication too quickly, isolating non-favored girls from a group. Cliques form rapidly and change often—sometimes within the span of a day. A collection of three boys is not usually a problem; a collection of three girls is almost always a problem. This mastery of the verbal and non-verbal communication by typical girls often results in the girl with Asperger’s being quickly targeted for exclusion, and it is highly likely that she will remain isolated unless peer programming can be established in the classroom and fostered throughout the school.

Peer programming will take on different structures depending on the age and grade of the students. In elementary school, the whole-class approach can be quite formal, with the individual’s accomplishments helping the entire class earn rewards for helping one another. In middle school, it is often wiser to begin with a small group of socially mature, trustworthy students to build a core network of peers with the expectation that they will not only support her in class, but also protect her in hallways and the lunchroom, and help to deflect the (sometimes vicious) teasing and bullying she may encounter. In high school, individual students can be found to support this young woman in elective classes, after-school activities and from the college-track and socially or community-aware organizations such as Beta Club, Honor’s Club, Environmental Club, etc.

Regardless of what age this student with Asperger’s is, teachers and parents should investigate and implement peer programming in order to build socially appropriate behaviors, improve chances of acceptance, better the possibility of inclusion, increase self-esteem and lessen the chances of depression. This student should go through the educational years with
all
her areas of need addressed, not forgetting the important skills of social interaction and how their mastery will impact her entire life.

Academic Modifications

Girls with Asperger’s Syndrome will face the same academic challenges as boys, but may not be as vocal about their struggles, nor call the teacher’s attention to them as readily as the boys will. In this author’s experience, girls with Asperger’s are much more likely to suffer in silence, hoping that they won’t cause the teacher to become upset with them, and many times they try desperately to hide their difficulties. As they age and the class content becomes more abstract, calling for higher order thinking, we in this business of inclusion often see these students withdraw into themselves, and sometimes demonstrate an increased anxiety regarding assignments. It is likely that this student will disappear into the mix of students who just barely get by with passing grades and are viewed as poor performers. Expectations for this student begin to lower over the years until teachers anticipate that she will not likely succeed in post-secondary institutions, and start lining her up for lower-paying jobs as an outcome. This is unfortunate. Because, with academic modifications, many female students with Asperger’s could very likely go on to college, university, or a technical school, and pursue a professional job. But what academic modifications would prove helpful?

Academic modifications for this student could include:

Pre-teaching of content:
Typical girls are sometimes hesitant to raise their hand in class if they do not understand the content and want to avoid being looked on as “stupid” or “dumb” by the peers. Girls with Asperger’s may feel the same hesitancy, but this can be eliminated if they have some advance knowledge of the content, have a better understanding of the lesson, and feel more confident of their answers. This would also be a good way to have them “shine” in the classroom and be viewed as “smart” by their peers and teachers alike. Pre-teaching can accomplish this. Alternately, if this girl is one who raises her hand to answer every question whether she knows the answer or not, pre-teaching would at least help her to know the correct answer, eliminating the negative impressions of peerswhen she provides inaccurate or inappropriate responses. Pre-teaching is a great benefit to anyone with Asperger’s, since it allows them to not only know the academic content and understand it at a slower pace, but can also help them make inroads into the peer population, resulting in their being viewed in a better light.

Reduced homework assignments:
Almost all students with Asperger’s struggle with the huge amount of homework that is assigned each night. The boys with this disorder frequently end up shutting down, having emotional storms and/or refusing to do the work; girls sometimes similarly dissolve into emotional storms including tears, shutting down and refusing to do the work. Teachers should inquire as to how much time is spent doing homework each night for these students and lessen the amount, if needed. Many families that have children with Asperger’s find their entire home life is being ruled by homework, leaving little time for family time or social outings. Homework should not be destroying family lives at all. Alternatives to homework can be considered, including providing time at school to do the homework under supervision, oral testing of content, eliminating portions of the written assignments with multiple-choice answers, switching to word processing or computer generated output, etc. Homework problems appear to be at the root of school failure for many students with Asperger’s—both boys and girls—and both teachers and parents should be aware of this minefield of troubles when working with someone with this disorder.

Written production:
As stated above, written assignments may need analysis to try to prevent some of the common problems that we see in students with Asperger’s. However, it is not wise to eliminate all aspects of writing unless there are no other choices. As an adult, this person will continue to need to write for various reasons—filling in job applications, writing letters, signing checks and paying bills, etc., although, admittedly, these needs are lessening as computers become more and more embedded into our culture. Many teachers struggle mightily to have the student with Asperger’s write in cursive, creating problems where there were none before. With the exception of signing their name, adults can get by quite easily using only the printed format. Students with Asperger’s often have difficulty switching from printing to cursive. This should be considered a non-issue and the student should be allowed to continue to print her letters if, after sufficient amount of practice time, she is still unable to write in cursive. Unfortunately, in this author’s experience, there are teachers who press this issue beyond the student’s endurance, creating far more problems than justified. It is hoped that these teachers will finally understand this disorder and cease pressing the student with AS over the writing component. Many assignments can instead be written on the computer, immediately solving the crisis. Computer skills can also open many doors for future employment.

Using perseverative interests to teach:
If the student is into Barbie dolls, Bratz Girls, horses or ponies, these interests can be used to help her learn academic content. She will be much more inclined to listen to a lesson if it involves her areas of intense interest. For example, the teacher can ask her to write one paragraph on unicorns, making sure she states her topic clearly, has a beginning, middle and ending, or ask her to do a research paper on the history of horseracing.

Additional time for testing:
Many of those with Asperger’s Syndrome do better on tests if they have additional time. This can be accomplished in small groups away from the classroom or during study skills classes, or before/after school. Providing additional time for tests usually means that it is away from the noise and distractions of the main classroom, as well, making it easier to concentrate.

Social Skills Assessment and Intervention

Another area that needs to be addressed concerning the female student with Asperger’s is the assessment of and direct instruction in social skills. Prior to helping this young woman improve her social skills, teachers and parents should have some idea of how much she diverges from the typical social pathways. Parents and teachers often have differing viewpoints as to which skills are most needed. Parents may believe that her table manners are fine, needing only a few reminders to use her napkin or fork appropriately, etc., but teachers judge how she performs independently in a loud, noisy cafeteria with hundreds of students. They may feel that her inappropriate table manners alienate peers, causing her to lose friends. Therefore, a formal assessment of social skills should be conducted prior to making the decision as to what skills should be included in any direct instructional program.

Parents and teachers should be able to select from a variety of commercially available social skills assessment instruments, including:

Social Skills Rating Scale
, Gresham (AGS)

Walker-McConnell Scales of Social Competence and School Adjustment
(Wadsworth/Thompson Learning)

Skillstreaming
(Research Press)

These instruments have the advantage of assessing a large number of social issues and have separate forms for elementary and adolescent age ranges. One (Gresham’s) includes a student self-report, which can come in handy when teaching social skills and gaining a better understanding of how the student feels they are performing. Other instruments measure social skills embedded into the wider instrument, such as the
Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales
and the
ABAS,
but these instruments cover a smaller portion of the social skill set than the ones listed above.