There is an increasing prevalence of students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) participating in higher education. This presentation will describe challenges students with ASD may face as online learners. Participants will learn best practices for collaborative learner support strategies that intersect instructional design, online pedagogy, and disability support service.
Based on the current prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) (herein referred to in this article as autism and autistic students) in the United States which is 1 in 68, an estimated 49,000 autistic students graduated high school in 2015 (Sarrett, 2017). This rise in the prevalence of autism has resulted in the increased enrollment of neurodiverse students in post-secondary institutions since the mid-1990s (Cox et al. 2017; Gobbo and Shmulsky 2014; Hendrickson et al. 2013; Peña and Kocux 2013; Sayman 2015; Shattuck et al. 2012; Zeedyk et al. 2016). Undoubtedly, the number of neurodiverse learners, including autistic students, enrolling in online courses will also continue to increase in the coming years.
Typical academic accommodations for students with autism, in higher education, are similar to those received in high school, such as extended test time, distraction-free testing, flexible due dates for assignments, breaks during class, the use of technology in the class, note takers, clear directions, the use of visuals, and optional group activities (Sayman 2015; Van Hees et al. 2015; Zeedyk et al. 2016). These accommodations often reflect needs identified by practitioners for in-person classes, frequently leading to accommodations that are misaligned with the needs of the autistic student taking online courses. A research study on effective accommodations that includes the perspective of autistic individuals (Gelbar et al. 2015) identifies the need for accommodations with social interactions, organizational skills, time management, stress management, and communication skills to promote self-advocacy, all of which are germane to the online educational environment.
One approach that has been proposed by instructional designers to better address the needs expressed by neurodiverse students, including and beyond autistic students, and to improve access to the online educational environment is Universal Design for Learning, or UDL (Couzens et al. 2015; Sayman 2015; Zeedyk et al. 2016). UDL is the concept and practice of designing educational environments such that they are accessible to as wide a variety of diverse learners as possible, disabled and nondisabled.
Research has also shown concerns regarding neurodiverse students’ sense of identity and the challenges they encounter when developing a positive autistic identity in the presence of significant disability-related stigma. Identity-related struggles are an important consideration as the development of a positive disability identity is associated with being comfortable disclosing one’s autistic status, which is necessary to gain accommodations in higher education (Cai and Richdale 2016; Couzens et al. 2015; Cox et al. 2017; Fabri et al. 2016; Gelbar et al. 2015; Grogan 2015; Sayman 2015). Creating an accepting online learning community that boasts a UDL approach to learning is an effective way for post-secondary institutions can ensure they are aware of student needs and address them in ways that reduce the stress of disclosing one’s disability status.
Relatedly, many studies report a need for better faculty and staff training on autism and the needs of autistic students in higher education. In general, more campus training on autism that focuses on countering inaccurate and often discriminatory assumptions about autism is greatly needed (Couzens et al. 2015; Cox et al. 2017; Fabri et al. 2016; Fleischer 2012; Sayman 2015). Professional development on accessibility in online courses often focuses on sensory disabilities such as students with visual and hearing impairments or physical impairments that require the accommodation of a screen reader or keyboard strokes to access the online educational environment. Seldom does accessibility training address the needs of the autistic online student. Further, the Gelbar et al. (2015) study reported students described experiencing stigmatizing class discussions on autism that did not recognize that some students in the room may identify as autistic.
Thus, the objective of this presentation is to provide recommendations for instructional design and online pedagogy to successfully promote engaging online educational experiences for autistic students based on a UDL approach informed by the perspectives of individuals who identify as autistic and had experiences in institutes of higher education.
Note on language: I use the term ‘autistic student’ rather than the phrase ‘student with autism’ to reflect the preference of autistic self-advocates and the neurodiversity movement, which rejects use of person-first language because, for this community, autism is seen as central to identity formation and the latter phrasing seems to suggest the need to remind people that autistic people are, in fact, people (Kapp 2013; Silberman 2015).
References
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