Dealing with students on the spectrum

[fuzzylogician]

So this is a somewhat sensitive situation, but I was wondering if anyone has ever had to deal with students with some kind of Autistic or similar disorder in a class you were teaching. I have a student who is probably some kind of genius is what he does and is also very interested in the material I teach, but unfortunately he often goes off on tangents or asks unrelated and/or too advanced questions that I cannot address in class. He constantly has his hand up to ask some kind of question and he certainly means well and is excited about what we're doing. He's not one of those students who just want to appear smart by asking complicated questions. I don't want to stifle his enthusiasm but on the other hand I need to think of the other students in the class, to whom I'm sure he is very distracting. Has anyone been in a similar situation in the past?

[SymmetryOfImperfection]

The way I've seen it done is:

"That's a great question but it is out of the scope of this class. If you want to discuss it, talk to me later." Then brush it off when he talks to you.

[fuzzylogician]

The way I've seen it done is:

"That's a great question but it is out of the scope of this class. If you want to discuss it, talk to me later." Then brush it off when he talks to you.

Yeah, that one I know. I was hoping for something more.

[Sparky]

Do you use PPTs during discussion or while you lecture? The prof I'm TAing for right now does, and he color-codes his slides. If the background is green, students are free to ask questions related to that or the previous material. If the backgroud color is e.g. yellow, it means don't interrupt. And so forth. Of course he explains the system to the class at the beginning of the semester/at the point when it becomes necessary to do so.

That doesn't help deal with the "unrelated tangents" problem, but it might keep them more manageable time-wise, and thus be fairer to the rest of the class as well as still giving your enthusiastic but needing a little help student a legit chance to engage.

The prof has also remarked that he started getting more questions in general once he implemented the color-coded slides. Apparently students felt like he was giving them "permission" to ask questions, even though ostensibly the floor had always been open for them. So there's that as well!

[vonLipwig]

Depending on the student, you may be able to make some progress by just talking to them - explaining that they need to stick to questions related to what you're talking about in class, but you're happy to talk about other stuff afterwards. This might at least reduce the frequency of interruptions and/or help you to shut them down faster when they do happen.

[aberrant]

How about suggest this student to take classes (probably graduate level?) that are related to those "advanced questions"? (Besides talking to him outside of class/discussion.) Or recommend him to read a few books, do a few google search, instead of you spoon-feeding him everything?

I rarely gave out the answer unless my students been through the thought process and did some research beforehand.

[Arcadian]

I think there's nothing wrong with asking questions beyond the scope of a class. If he is asking good insightful questions, then other students will gain from them as well. As long as the questions aren't detracting from the thrust of the class, then I say just go with it. Of course, you can't spend too much time on extra-curricular questions - so in that case, offer to talk to him outside of class! Why not?

Edited October 3, 2012 by Arcadian

[rising_star]

Yes, I've dealt with this. One thing you should do is meet with the Disabilities Center on your campus. They will have specific knowledge of how to deal with autistic students, even if you can't discuss that specific student. On our campus, students have to self-identify, at which point you can have a consultation with the Disabilities Center Advisor/Counselor, you, and the student to discuss learning strategies, classroom behavior, etc. In class, the thing I did most often was encourage ze to ask the more advanced questions outside of class (afterward or office hours), to let others ask and answer questions, and to be brief and to the point when speaking.

[fuzzylogician]

I think there's nothing wrong with asking questions beyond the scope of a class. If he is asking good insightful questions, then other students will gain from them as well. As long as the questions aren't detracting from the thrust of the class, then I say just go with it. Of course, you can't spend too much time on extra-curricular questions - so in that case, offer to talk to him outside of class! Why not?

I'm not just talking about a smart student asking smart questions. I'm talking about a student who consistently asks questions that are outside the scope of our discussion, and who can't take no for an answer. We have a quiz coming up next week and as much as I'd enjoy discussing (genuinely) interesting stuff that is tangentially related to the class, I want my kids to succeed in the quiz and for that we need to focus on drills that are directly related to what we're doing in class, even though they may not be as exciting. We're talking here about someone who can't sit quietly and raise their hand, nor do they let any other person in class answer questions - they just shout out all the (correct) answers to my questions. So, it's more than just a bright kid who wants to learn more.

Yes, I've dealt with this. One thing you should do is meet with the Disabilities Center on your campus. They will have specific knowledge of how to deal with autistic students, even if you can't discuss that specific student. On our campus, students have to self-identify, at which point you can have a consultation with the Disabilities Center Advisor/Counselor, you, and the student to discuss learning strategies, classroom behavior, etc. In class, the thing I did most often was encourage ze to ask the more advanced questions outside of class (afterward or office hours), to let others ask and answer questions, and to be brief and to the point when speaking.

Thanks, that's good advice. I'll see if we have a similar office on campus. I should say that the main instructor has been very good about helping me deal with this person and their questions but it's hard to have someone who just won't let the other kids speak up. They also don't self-identify as having a problem, so bringing the issue up is a little bit tricky.

[Sio68]

They sound almost exactly like a student that I had last year. This student had Aspergers. At a guess, although not diagnosed, it sounds like your student may also have aspergers.

 

I really wish I could offer you some great advice, but honestly, it was a struggle for me too. My student, like yours, was hugely intelligent and enthusiastic, but like yours could not understand the dynamic of the class correctly and frequently monopolised seminars with lists of questions or very long verbal explanations/ideas. I didn't want to dampen this person's spirit, and indeed, appreciated the contributions on those days where the others had been out drinking and turned up hungover

 

In the end I learned a few techniques that worked with this one particular student - I tried to get to know them a little better, stay behind after class to let them ask me questions and even on occasion, I absolutely had to point-blank ignore their hand up, or cut them short. It ended up being a balance between offering my time and energy, and being a little blunt/harsh to protect the learning environment of the other 15-20 students.

 

I think if you're really struggling you should do what I couldn't (lack of resources!) and go and speak to your University's Disabilities Centre so that you can get some help understanding this student. They may not self-identify as autistic or as having aspergers, but if you describe their behaviour to an expert they should be able to offer you some strategies. I realised that a syndrome is not a personality. You can often deal with difficult personalities through previous life experience, but to deal with a syndrome you need to understand how a student sees the world.

 

Good luck, I wish I could be of more help.

[fuzzylogician]

Well, the semester is over. Thank you all for your suggestions. I suppose I should reflect on what techniques actually worked for me.

 

What ended up working was a combination of: (1) staying around after class to let the student talk for a bit - he was awkward but was obviously trying to connect; (2) hanging out near the student whenever I had the class work through a problem by themselves before we solved it together on the blackboard - that's a good time to let him ask about whatever irrelevant detail is on his mind; (3) teaching him what questions are appropriate by giving feedback on the question itself as well as giving a reply (and explaining that I am ignoring X because it's not relevant now -- but then talking about it with him after class); (4) and simply ignoring some comments and remarks when there was no time. Because of the nature of the class, slides were impossible. But whenever I could have handouts I tried to do that, so there was a clear agenda of where we are headed and what we need to cover. That made it easier to deflect questions and comments that would have otherwise derailed the class.

[Wicked_Problem]

It sounds like your strategy was successful. Difficult situation, well played. I hope your student finds his/her niche at the university. I know it can be very difficult for those on the spectrum. Hopefully your efforts contributed to that persons being able to...

[Lasily]

Yeah, that one I know. I was hoping for something more.

 

You may use lucrative ways for presenting your concepts like the ppt's or the info graphics as they help you in getting atention. Look for online tutors for subjects like maths as they are quiet helpful in this aspect.

[fuzzylogician]

You may use lucrative ways for presenting your concepts like the ppt's or the info graphics as they help you in getting atention. Look for online tutors for subjects like maths as they are quiet helpful in this aspect.

 

As I think I mentioned twice in this thread, the structure of the class did not support ppt presentations. But thanks anyway.