Issue relating to Autism
Students with Autism generally display challenging behaviours throughout their childhood. These challenging behaviours may reduce academic learning, cause social interactions to suffer or result in physical injury to themselves or others (Arthur, O’Reilly & Sigafoos, 2003). Many of these challenging behaviours start from frustration or anxiety of either not wanting to do something, not understanding something, or not being able to communicate their wants and needs effectively (The National Autistic Society, 2013).
Students with Autism also have difficulty understanding the consequences of bad behaviour as they sometimes see behaviour such as pinching, kicking, punching or slapping as a way of communicating their wants or needs to another person (Chiang, 2008). For example, if Henry is in a stage where the stimulus around him is becoming overwhelming, he does not enjoy other people coming up and touching him on the shoulder. This behaviour of other people causes Henry to result to physically pushing the other person away as quickly as possible, as he cannot effectively communicate his thoughts in an appropriate way. This behaviour then becomes very challenging in the classroom, resulting in Henry being even further isolated from the other students and sometimes even teachers for their safety.
Other challenging behaviours Henry displays include banging his fists on tables, pinching himself and flapping his arms. These are the typical characteristics of one of Henry’s meltdowns. These behaviours usually don’t harm other students in the classroom, but are distracting and need to be managed in order for all students including Henry to be able to achieve their full learning potential.
Various strategies can be put in place to limit the amount of challenging behaviour that Henry displays. However, these strategies will not reduce all challenging behaviour and strategies need to be in place to cater for issues as they arise, to prevent harm coming to any students in the classroom.
Response to the issue
Challenging behaviour can sometimes be an issue of safety for the student displaying the behaviour, other students in the room and even the teacher. In the classroom there should be a specific area set up where the student with Autism can go where they feel safe and are able to calm down if necessary. This area should also be known the other students in the classroom, and if the area is occupied, they should know not to enter the area. This area for Henry was a table and chair where he could complete his work, with markers set up around it so that other students knew not to enter that zone when Henry was working there as he needed some space. The markers were placed around this desk allowing a metre of space for Henry in which other students would not enter.
Other examples of chill out areas may look like the pictures below. These areas can be placed in the corner of a room so that students with Autism are able to go to relax during a time where everything becomes overwhelming. The purpose of this area will also be explained to other students in the classroom so that they understand and are more accepting of the individual with Autism and their behaviours.
A quiet corner doesn’t have to be this elaborate. The main idea is for it to be isolated from the rest of the classroom so the student with Autism is able to sit down and bring anxiety back to a reasonable level while not distracting the rest of the class.
Challenging behaviours when transitioning can be minimised using visual cues such as the PECS system (which will be further explained in the speech and language delays section). Frustration at not understanding something or not being able to communicate properly can also be minimised using this system.
References:
Arthur, M., O’Reilly, M., & Sigafoos, J. (2003). Challenging behaviour and developmental disability. London: Whurr.
Candrl, L (2006). The Book Nook. Retrieved September 30, 2013, from http://www.bulletinboardpro.com/images/BB98b.jpg
Chiang, H. (2008). Expressive communication of children with autism: the use of challenging behaviour. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 52(11), 966-972. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2788.2008.01042.x
The National Autistic Society. (2013). Challenging behaviour in children with an ASD. Retrieved Septemeber 30, 2013, from http://www.autism.org.uk/living-with-autism/understanding-behaviour/challenging-behaviour/challenging-behaviour-in-children-with-an-asd.aspx
Classroom Resources for Autism 
