Welcome back to Reading the Research, where I trawl the Internet to find noteworthy research on autism and related subjects, then discuss it in brief with bits from my own life, research, and observations.
Today's article talks about mindfulness as a tool to help autistic students "take a break" from the demands of life and school. While in-person school is not currently a thing, it's valuable to have the ability to take a moment for yourself in home schooling, when on an outing, or really just any time the rigors of life get to you.
It's not unusual for autistic people to get overwhelmed in the course of daily life. The world isn't built for us, after all. Having a safe place to retreat to can be invaluable to staying sane. Sometimes, however, you can't physically remove yourself from a situation. Meditation or other forms of mindfulness can stand in for that, or just allow you to take stock of how you're doing and find the words to convey that state.
It's also typical for autistic people to have a harder time with planning, emotion recognition and control, and anxiety... so adding in something to school that boosts these skills seems like a no-brainer. In typical fashion, what's good for autistic people is often good for people overall. Adding mindfulness training to all schools would likely have major positive effects on grades and student learning.
I had no such opportunities when I was in school, and I suspect my grades (and mental state) suffered as a result. Unlike many autistic kids, I don't think I came home from class and imploded, leaving my parents to clean up the mess... but that situation is distressingly common, and mindfulness might help alleviate the tension and stress before the autistic person reaches that point.
It remains to be seen what schools are going to look like next fall, and whether home schooling is going to be the "new normal" (hopefully not: most parents are not equipped to be teachers). But it's my hope that the focus on school, whatever it looks like, can be less on standardized tests and grades, and more on student wellbeing and skills they'll need as adults.
As is required every time I talk about improving schools, please watch this insightful Youtube video about changing what schools teach.
(Pst! If you like seeing the latest autism-relevant research, visit my Twitter, which has links and brief comments on studies that were interesting, but didn't get a whole Reading the Research article about them.)
Today's article talks about mindfulness as a tool to help autistic students "take a break" from the demands of life and school. While in-person school is not currently a thing, it's valuable to have the ability to take a moment for yourself in home schooling, when on an outing, or really just any time the rigors of life get to you.
It's not unusual for autistic people to get overwhelmed in the course of daily life. The world isn't built for us, after all. Having a safe place to retreat to can be invaluable to staying sane. Sometimes, however, you can't physically remove yourself from a situation. Meditation or other forms of mindfulness can stand in for that, or just allow you to take stock of how you're doing and find the words to convey that state.
It's also typical for autistic people to have a harder time with planning, emotion recognition and control, and anxiety... so adding in something to school that boosts these skills seems like a no-brainer. In typical fashion, what's good for autistic people is often good for people overall. Adding mindfulness training to all schools would likely have major positive effects on grades and student learning.
I had no such opportunities when I was in school, and I suspect my grades (and mental state) suffered as a result. Unlike many autistic kids, I don't think I came home from class and imploded, leaving my parents to clean up the mess... but that situation is distressingly common, and mindfulness might help alleviate the tension and stress before the autistic person reaches that point.
It remains to be seen what schools are going to look like next fall, and whether home schooling is going to be the "new normal" (hopefully not: most parents are not equipped to be teachers). But it's my hope that the focus on school, whatever it looks like, can be less on standardized tests and grades, and more on student wellbeing and skills they'll need as adults.
As is required every time I talk about improving schools, please watch this insightful Youtube video about changing what schools teach.
(Pst! If you like seeing the latest autism-relevant research, visit my Twitter, which has links and brief comments on studies that were interesting, but didn't get a whole Reading the Research article about them.)
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