Happier on the outside? Discourses of exclusion, disempowerment and belonging from former autistic school staff

Wood, R. (2024) Happier on the outside? Discourses of exclusion, disempowerment and belonging from former autistic school staff. Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, 24(1), pp. 39-52. (doi: 10.1111/1471-3802.12612)

Abstract

Autistic individuals can have poor outcomes from school, including high rates of unemployment. Despite a growing focus on the work experiences of autistic people, and various approaches to remediate the difficulties they undergo, the school sector remains largely unexplored, as are the insights available from former autistic employees. In a discourse analysis of 12 former autistic school staff previously in a range of roles in the UK, the multiple and intersecting issues they experienced are analysed. These reveal different forms of marginalisation, disempowerment, invisibility and exclusion at play, including in relation to being autistic, before the final departure. However, participant discourses also demonstrate important autistic aptitudes of particular benefit to pupils at risk of marginalisation themselves, and provide insights into how autistic staff—including visiting professionals—can be better supported in the school sector in the future. Such steps could provide significant benefits for the education field generally, especially in relation to the inclusion of autistic and otherwise neurodivergent pupils.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: Funded by the John and Lorna Wing Foundation.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Wood, Dr Rebecca
• Authors: Wood, R.
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > School of Education
• Journal Name: Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs
• Publisher: Wiley
• ISSN: 1471-3802
• ISSN (Online): 1471-3802
• Published Online: 18 July 2023
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2023 The Author
• First Published: First published in Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs 24(1):39-52
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License