AUTISM AWARENESS
The Importance of Inclusion
and Autism Peer Awareness
By Claire DRONEY
A head teacher giving a high-five to a little girl with autism and hunching down to
chat to her at length—that’s inclusion. A teenage boy who feels confident to share
some information wit h his classmates about his autism diagnosis—that’s inclusion.
A girl with autism who is given a central role in a class assembly, even though she
may decide to opt out at the last minute—that’s inclusion too.
T
he number of children receiving an autism
diagnosis is on the rise. And 70 percent of
these children are being educated in main-
stream schools. This means that schools
have had to adapt and introduce new mea-
sures to ensure everyone’s needs are met.
The introduction of the Special Educational
Needs and Disabilities Code of Practice in 2014 in the
UK placed an emphasis on the ‘inclusion’ of children
with special educational needs. But what does this
inclusion actually look like? With 1 in 100 people in
the UK being diagnosed with autism, it’s heartening
to see Islington schools catering to the needs of their
students with autism and embracing their unique
strengths.
At its core, inclusion should be mutually beneficial
and work for every child. Recently, Sesame Street
welcomed its first autistic Muppet character, Julia. In
a clip that has been widely shared, Julia’s friend Abby
Autism Parenting Magazine | Issue 65 |
25