Autistic student denied graduation

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That would be cool if it worked out that way for this young man.

-Bill, otherwise known as Kraichgauer

They are letting him walk I believe, but just not giving him a diploma. He can probably take the math class over in summer school and retake the test and get his diploma. Thats how it works here and several of my daughters friends are having to do that.

It's not that big a deal, it's fairly common and I don't see why this even made the news unless someone thought that because he's on the spectrum it would be interesting and that he should also get a pass to graduate without passing the test because of his autism. I don't think it's unfair at all and I think that unless he has a problem with any type of math because of his ASD (and he has a dr's letter to back that up) then he should have to pass the same tests that the other kids have to pass.

I've seen many people here who are on the spectrum complain that people treat them differently because of their AS, and I've seen many complain that they don't get a chance to do what other people can do because of their AS. Well, you can't have it both ways. Either this guy is treated the same and given the same chances (with appropriate consiideration for his AS) or he's not. Being treated the same means you have the same risk of failure as everyone else, and just because someone has AS/ASD the shouldn't have success handed to them if they cannot succeed at whatever the task is they attempt.

Shouldn't someone be alarmed that he could do the math problems when working on them, but couldn't remember the steps? Some would think that could be a sign of other problems to be manifested later. I wonder if the school realized this problem all those years. And I doubt the kind of math on the exams is that advanced. I thought these tests are there to see if basic proficiencies are being learned.

Actually, it's not that strange for someone to be able to do work but not explain their steps. Not being able to remember what steps you took isn't that weird either; a lot of the times it's a subconscious thing - you cut out unnecessary details. If your focus is the answer, you're less likely to remember what the third step you took was.

I always have to completely rework problems to find a specific step.

A few years ago I worked for a "Head Start" non-profit Agency that had a bus driver that could not pass the math part of the GED (she tried many times) and the agency decided to change their requirements to require a diploma or GED to drive buses. They then fired this driver despite her excellent driving record and her best of all drivers on time record or even the fact she was the parents and children's favorite bus driver and my doing all I could to keep her employed. To make matters worse they had to go through a couple of dud drivers before getting a driver that was just acceptable.

I have seen this all through the NT world. These people were just standard NTs they did nothing different from others of their kind. They did not care one wit about this driver, they did not care that she was doing her job well above average they only cared about the appearance of being proper and in line with the rest of society.

I am afraid that this young man has the same problem... and is getting the same response.

NTs claim that we Asperger's have no empathy toward others. Yet, when faced with a real problem especially with someone different from them they will go beyond just ignoring that person.

I think I will keep my Asperger's I cannot even imagine being so dumb and self centered as many of the NTs I have seen.

I do hope that this young man and his family go after this school and the local school board. I should think that he can avail himself of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Hopefully, he will at least make them squirm.

I don't understand why he can't stay one more year and graduate next year when the rules change, according to the article. Maybe facts are missing?

It does get complicated, I can feel both sides.

The thing is, a diploma is supposed to mean something, that certain skills have been acquired. And while I know that is challenging for people with unique conditions, often what they need is not for the standard to change, but to be given an accommodation that helps them meet the standard.

My son has severe disgraphia, and he has needed accommodation to perform the written requirements of school. The school did a lot for him, but we also gave up things, he gave up things. He met them halfway. It may not be fair that he has had to invest so much in writing, but life isn't fair: everyone has their gifts and burdens, and he has accepted his. Now he can perform written work with the one accommodation of getting a net book at school. No other standards are changed for him, and he wants it that way: he wants his achievements to mean something in the broad world, not just as being good for someone who had ASD.

He failed because he couldn't pass the math exam. I don't see how being autistic has anything to do with it.

The fact that he could never remember the mathematical steps after learning them, while passing all other classes with flying colors, may very well be due to his autistic disorder. As I've stated before, he reminds me a great deal of myself at that age, which had been long before I had been officially diagnosed - or even suspected that I have Asperger's.

-Bill, otherwise known as Kraichgauer

Hmm... maybe that's another aspect of autism that I'm not familiar with. I've always thought that autistics tend to excel at math. I was doing math 3 years ahead of my regular grade in primary school (not to brag or anything ).

As one member of WP calling himself Dox had written just the other day, "When you've met one Aspie... you've met one Aspie."
While it's undeniable that many Aspies (Einstein most notably) excel in arithmetic, others (such as H.P. Lovecraft - who by the way sucked at math) make their mark in the arts. As I'm a (as of yet unpublished) writer who couldn't do higher math if my life depended on it, I fit in with the latter group.

-Bill, otherwise known as Kraichgauer

It seems us aspies are now being viewed as a minority group so things like this happening is not surprising at all.