It’s been a little over three years since my son was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. In that time, it seems that my experience as a parent of a neurodivergent child has been typical, in that it has involved a great deal of learning.
From what I understand, my son’s classmates are actually quite understanding. The same cannot be said of all the parents. Last year, when my partner arrived at the school’s aftercare, she witnessed the father of a student threatening our son. When she confronted him, the father justified it because he said our son had kicked his daughter. I understand the protective instinct, but the situation should have been resolved by speaking with school staff, as well as the other parents involved.
Please believe me when I say that we’re trying. His mother and I are up-to-date on all the latest best practices, and we are seeing substantial improvements with our son’s behaviour. But as with anything to do with the development of children, these things take time and patience. On several occasions, he’s spent a large part of his day in the principal’s office, or the school has called and asked that we pick him up early. That means that he is missing valuable classroom time; over 13 years, that can really add up. As disability lawyer and activist Robert Lattanzio wrote, such failures in accessibility effectively result in children with disabilities not adequately receiving the right to education that is otherwise enjoyed by their peers.