Many years ago, when I began teaching, the students who had a unique approach to learning, who didn't fit the 'stereotype' and/or had challenging behaviours, were largely labelled as naughty, brats, 'feral', and other such labels. Their parents were seen as lacking good parenting skills and generally speaking, were regarded as part of the problem. Thirty or more years ago, ADD, ADHD, OCD, ODD, Autism Spectrum, etc., were not a regular part of the teacher's knowledge and vocabulary and quite frankly when children exhibited extraordinary behaviour, we tried different teaching strategies to help support our students, with little direction and support from mentors and school organisations.
There were students who broke my heart as I tried to find a way forward for them. I remember one young boy who had a challenging home life, begging me to allow him a special privilege even though he hadn't earned it. He said, "If you love me, you would let me do it," and I replied, "Because I love you, I can not." (Obviously there was more to it but for confidentiality and privacy, I choose not to say more.)
Over the years, we have become more aware of the many different learning needs of students and have learned different strategies for providing an optimum learning environment for them. We have many different PDs we can attend, books/papers to read, and people who are specialists in fields that we can access to obtain resources and practical help from. When I think back to that boy mentioned in the previous paragraph, I wish I could go back and use the knowledge and experience I have now, to support him better in his learning. He possibly had Oppositional Defiance Disorder (ODD) and it was quite likely he was on the Autism spectrum with a comorbidity of ADHD.
When I was learning about educating children with special needs as part of my Masters, ODD scared me somewhat. How do we educate children who look you in the eye and lie without any remorse if they're found out to be lying? I watched an episode of "New Amsterdam" and the child psychiatrist was faced with an 11 year old girl who would hurt her brother and cause serious injuries and yet appeared charming. I called someone who is a psychologist and asked him if there was any hope for children diagnosed with ODD and he said there is in the early stages and if people were willing to take the time to work with the child.
A few years ago I was teaching a student who would get up close in my face and demand to use the bathroom or demand to be allowed to do something that was against the ethos of the school. He could be very charming but even his school friends would try to move away from him without him noticing. He would argue with the PE teacher and in the art room, he would throw scissors on the floor and argue that there was no room on the bench for them. We tried a lot of different strategies but none of them seemed to work for more than a day.
Being in a classroom, teaching 25 students, all of who have a wide range of learning needs, can be a daunting task. There will be days you feel like you're on top of it and many days when you just want to curl up under the blankets and wait until it all goes away. I want to encourage you to not only hang in there but also be proactive about dealing with a challenging class while also looking after your own wellbeing. You can make a difference; it might not be a fireworks-hooray moment, you might not get teacher-of-the-year award and in fact, it's likely that you might be the only one who notices the almost-imperceptible moment when a student finally gets it.
A well-known person who runs courses and provides practical resources in Autism, is Sue Larkey. If you have not heard of her, look her up, listen to one of her free podcasts and I can assure you, you will not be disappointed. Sometime last year, I listened to one of her podcasts on teaching students with pathological demand avoidance (PDA) and I also bought a book she recommended called "Collaborative Approaches to Learning For Pupils with PDA" by Ruth Fidler and Phil Christie. The book describes what PDA is and how it impacts a child's learning, as well as giving practical strategies to implement in the classroom. I wondered if the students mentioned above had PDA.
Individuals with PDA share difficulties with other people on the autism spectrum but often seem to have a better social understanding which means their difficulties may be less obvious at first. "PDA is best understood as an anxiety-driven need to be in control and avoid other people's demands and expectations." If you want to know more about it, you can check out this site: What is Pathological Demand Avoidance?
My purpose in writing this post is to encourage you to know your students and do your research, not because you have to fill out an IEP but in order to help you teach your class more effectively. When I was faced with those 2 students, I wasn't sure how to best support them in their learning as well as provide a safe learning environment for the other students in my class. When you know your students well, when you find strategies that work, it will help you and give you more confidence. It is important that you reach out for support from someone who can help you. Find them. Go to a PD and network with others. Find like-minded colleagues who you can collaborate with, share with, and who help you find solutions.
If this post resonates with you, feel free to contact me and if you need support, please reach out.
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