Choosing a secondary school for young people on the autism spectrum: a multi-informant study

Abstract

Deciding on a secondary school for children with autism is notoriously difficult for parents. While current UK legislation emphasises the choice that parents of children with special educational needs should have in educational decision-making, there is a dearth of research in this area, which means that little is known about how parents come to make decisions about secondary school placements and the types of support, if any, they receive from professionals. The present study aimed to determine the factors that immediately influence secondary school choice for young people with autism in one London local authority from the perspectives of multiple informants. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with parents of children with autism (n = 7), young people themselves prior to secondary school entry (n = 6), parent advisors (n = 5) and secondary school professionals (n = 5). Parents emphasised the anxiety and burden of the decision-making process. There was, however, substantial agreement among adult groups on the factors necessary for a successful secondary school placement: a nurturing, flexible and inclusive environment that emphasised both academic and life skills. Few adults, however, mentioned the importance of children's social relationships – a factor that featured prominently in the reports of young people. These findings highlight both the different perceptions of those involved in making decisions about the educational placements of children with autism and the challenges associated with weighing up these potentially conflicting perspectives. More work is needed to ensure both that information is transparent and accessible to all parents and that young people are actively involved in decisions that ultimately affect their lives.

Keywords:

• autism
• education
• school
• parents
• decision-making
• special educational needs

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to all the young people, parents, school staff and parent advisors who so generously gave up their time to take part in this project. Thanks to Marc Stears for comments on a previous version of this manuscript. Research at the Centre for Research in Autism and Education (CRAE) is supported by The Clothworkers’ Foundation and Pears Foundation. We have no conflicts of interest of which we are aware.

Notes on contributors

Catherine McNerney is Outreach Coordinator at an autism-specific special school in London. This research was conducted as part of her Masters degree at the UCL Institute of Education.

Vivian Hill is Director of Professional Educational Psychology training at UCL Institute of Education and practices in London schools. She is chair elect of the British Psychological Society's Division of Educational and Child Psychologists and leads the DECP Medicalisation of Childhood Behaviour working group.

Dr Elizabeth Pellicano is Director of the Centre for Research in Autism and Education (CRAE) at UCL Institute of Education (www.crae.ioe.ac.uk). She is a developmental cognitive scientist and educational psychologist, who is committed to understanding the distinctive challenges and opportunities often faced by autistic children, young people and adults.

ORCID

Elizabeth Pellicano http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7246-8003

Notes

1. The term ‘autistic’ is the preferred language of many people on the spectrum (e.g. Sinclair 1999). In this paper, we use this term as well as person-first language to respect the wishes of such individuals.