ASD student, university adjustments

[BetterCallMe]

I have an ASD kid at university, who is struggling with sensory issues. They've spoken with the university's disability office and they're personal tutor - who just say there's nothing more that can be done for them.

DS finds the sheer number of students in the lecture hall overwhelming. It's a STEM course, so lots of students and lots of lectures too. They've tried bespoke audio equipment (but issues with the tech, charging for a full 6 hour day, having to ask each lecturer to use it every time) which has not been great and doesn't relieve the stress of being in such a busy environnent.

Lectures are recorded and later released, but that would mean learning in isolation, which is again not ideal. I wonder if it's a technical issue that lectures aren't or can't be live streamed?

I'm interested to know what other adjustments other universities have offered your ASD kids please?

I fear my kid will drop out, and I'm also beginning to feel angry that the university can't/ won't do more to accommodate a disability. Though DS isn't sure what could be done, they managed in school (quiet COVID years) because class sizes are so much smaller than lecture sizes. So I'm turning to the great MN hive to find out what else is out there, if anything, for their ASD uni kids. Thanks in advance.

Is there anything else he can think of to mitigate the sensory issues? Eg those loopy ear plugs that tone down the noise but let you still hear or sitting right at the front to lesson visual stimulation of seeing the crowd? Wearing a peaked hat if it's fluorescent lighting bothering him? Not saying it should be all up to him but they can't do much about the lecture hall itself and the numbers on the course

What about other sessions - tutorials, labs etc?

Wrt lectures, if he can't cope in a large lecture theatre (understandable), then recordings are likely the best option. Even a live stream would be isolating, so a delay shouldn't make a huge difference provided they're uploaded promptly. He could ask about a live stream if he thinks it would help but presumably that would have been offered if it was possible.

If he can cope in small group teaching then hopefully he's not too isolated on the whole and is able to access the whole curriculum.

I've taught plenty of students with ASD but they've all been ok in the classroom, adjustments have included things like a private room for exams, extra time, a prompter for exams and a notetaker for lectures. I haven't come across this issue yet (although I've had plenty of students with terrible lecture attendance for no reason other than laziness who have gone on to do just fine, so I don't think being in the room for a lecture is deal breaker at all if it's too difficult for him).

Why is watching the recording not suitable? I'm struggling to see the difference between sitting on own watching a live stream and sitting on own watching a recording a few hours later?

Me too. They aren't going to run more sessions of smaller groups either. A recording after is a reasonable adjustments which is what they are obliged to provide. Others have suggested ways to improve sensory issues.

Might they be better off getting to the lecture hall early to sit right at the front so they are less aware of others behind them.

What about atte ding half lecture in person sat at the front, maybe with those sensory overload earphones in, and the other half via recordings? Would that be a better compromise? I don't have ASD (well not diagnosed) and I hate excessive white noise so I sometimes put my nosies cancelling buds in and then turn off the noise cancelling part and that does help a bit. If at the front he might be able to hear ok or at least see the Baird and all the diagrams, equations etc which is probably 70pc of most stem lectures.

Thank you all for your responses.

He has had those ear loop heating aids, but said they don't make much difference.

I agree titchy, but just wondered if that would be an improvement for him. He says he's not the only one on his course with sensory issues.

And yes, I'm trying to understand why he can't do half the lectures in person, half online - but I think (he can't/ hasn't articulated to me) why that's not an acceptable compromise. He did a lot of his lectures in the first term online/ after the fact and found it depressing to be sat in his room alone - esp after so many covid years.

I'm just trying to find out if other universities make any other adjustments. Thank you all.

I agree with sitting right at the front, right in front the lecturer if poss. It's vital for ds who has ASD. Also would arriving early (before the hubbub of everyone coming in) or arriving a few minutes later and having a reserved space at the front (once everyone has settled down) help? What if the reserved space was closest to the door and if he was feeling overwhelmed he could just duck out for 5 minutes for a rest break and if he missed anything he could catch up from the recording?

It would be such a shame for him to just drop out, I'm sure there are things that could be done to help. Get him to have a good think about what he would like to happen that would enable him to cope.

I’m Autistic and was in my final year (also STEM) when Unis were locked down. I had to take a leave of absence as I just couldn’t learn like that.

What does his Access Statement say?

YY to sitting right at the front, there’s often 200+ in my old lecture theatres and half of them did nothing but chatter the entire time. Most teens would rather sit on the steps at the side than on the front row so it’s much quieter.

He says he's not the only one on his course with sensory issues.

I agree with PPs that it's unlikely the university can do much more to help if they're already providing recordings (and probably also the slides separately and in advance) so students can access the material outside of the lecture theatre. But if he knows other students who struggle with attending lectures, could he get together with a few friends and watch the recordings together to help with the isolation issue? If there are several students in his cohort who would benefit, his department might even be able to make a room available at certain times for them to catch up together.

Another STEM lecturer here. Please make sure your DS is getting his full range of accommodations. Is he entitled to a notetaker? To having materials posted in advance of lecture? If he is and these aren’t happening that is frustrating.

Otherwise I agree with the suggestions above, especially sitting in front and forming a study group to watch recorded lectures. That is a great idea for anyone.

But I am also wondering whether there is a subtext to the frustration of your DS. Has he focussed on something acceptable (in his view) to complain about, when the real problem could be something else? Could he be having difficulty explaining that he is generally feeling overwhelmed or scared? It might help if you could very delicately and supportively probe a bit.

You don't seem particularly clear on what you think your son wants.

If the university lifts the requirement to attend lectures (in my department we consider all scheduled timetabled classes compulsory & take attendance lists) so that he can watch the recording, that seems to be a reasonable adjustment.

The DDA requires 'reasonable' adjustments.

And it's your DS who really has to think this through and advocate for himself, with support if needed.

Thanks again for the responses, all food for thought.

Yes yes, I'm not sure what DS wants - because he's facing a problem he hasn't had to solve before (large lecture sizes) and he really doesn't know if or how that can be resolved for him (me neither, hence posting here to see if there are other options).

As for him advocating for himself, of course that's true in theory and we are very hands-off parents in the main - but I can't sit back and watch him struggle and fail, can I, without trying to investigate alternatives? ASD kids are not as mature as they're peers, mine in particular has difficulty in finding out what is available to him. But yes, this is something he's struggling with on his own, trying to work it out on his own. Which he and I fear will lead to failing the course and dropping out - not because he has difficulty with the content, that's manageable, but with accessing the content (the lectures and loud seminars).

I will ask him about where he sits in the hall, but bear in mind that he has 6 hours of lectures on some days, I doubt he can always be one of the first to arrive and pick his spot.

And I don't know that he's capable of approaching other students, to form a "sensory needs" group - would that be something the disability office could investigate I wonder?

DS is very academic and it would be very painful for him to not complete his degree, because of his autistic issues.

I completely get it OP and am following with interest as I will almost definitely be in this exact situation in a couple of years and am interested to know what is possible.

I hope you get some good steers and that things get easier for your DS.

@EmptyPlaces I'm not sure he has an access statement - is that the same as the DSA thing? He handled that so by himself, he's trying so hard to do it all himself, so I don't know the contents of his DSA award.

I agree, though, with the advice that he sits right at the front. I find that there are usually 3 or 4 rows empty at the front of the lecture theatre.

I also find the disruption from students whispering to each other to be very irritating, and I've had students complain to me that they find it disruptive.

My own irritation I just have to swallow (while wondering what sort of homes these rude young people were brought up in), but if a student mentions to me that others' talking throughout a lecture is disruptive for them, this gives me reason to ask the chatty ones to keep quiet as they are impeding others' learning.

I did once know a Engineering lecturer who used to announce to lectures where there was a lot of student noise that if the chatting didn't stop, he would switch to Mandarin, and then only the students in the 2 front rows would understand (both he and the students in the front rows were Mandarin-speaking Chinese people!) It was made as a joke, but I suspect he would have followed through ...

Sorry, should have added - if there's a particularly noisy lecture ie students chatting while the lecturer is trying to teach them - I should think the lecturer would be really pleased to hear from your DS that the level of background noise is a serious distraction for him. Encourage him to speak to his lecturers.

If they're like me, they are also irritated by the rudeness of other students, and will appreciate a legitimate reason to ask students to keep quiet or leave the lecture. I've done this, and haven't ever named students who've told me about how disruptive the chatter is.

But if it's the general hurly-burly of getting in & out of lecture theatres ... he really needs to try to go early, if that's possible. Many universities are quite short of space, particularly large lecture theatres, which are hugely expensive, so they're timetabled to the hilt (our teaching timetable is set from 08:30 to 18:30)

Or maybe he could do some lectures live, and some online each week? Could he tolerate 1 live lecture a day if he knew that he could get to a quiet space to decompress afterwards?

I work for a university disability team
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Here all known disabled students get their adjustments sent to their lecturers. So the lecturer knows how they are affected.

Unfortunately smaller lectures aren't possible but I agree with the suggestion of sitting at the front (a seat can be reserved). Another thing I'd suggest is regular sensory breaks, the use of sensory item if appropriate.

You say the recording equipment isn't working? What does he have?
Glean (previously sonnocent) is recording software that you can download onto your laptop and or phone, and it's usually great, much better than the physical recorders. If this is needed, get him to speak to his needs assessor at DSA, and the training for the software. Other software he should be receiving includes read&write, dragon speech ti text (if useful I don't get on with this) and mindview for mind mapping, again if needed.

We also offer extra lecturer tutorials of needed. This could be helpful if sensory needs means he needs to leave.

Sensory needs can be accommodated much more for seminars and labs, and these are the most important!

I wonder if it's a technical issue that lectures aren't or can't be live streamed?

DD did a STEM course with a large cohort. All lectures were recorded but not put online u til about 3 days later. This wasn't very helpful as DD has CFS/ME and would often fall asleep during lectures. One time she had three lots of three lectures over three days. She fell asleep during the first one and saw no point in attending the rest of them becase each lecture built upon the previous one. She ended up having to watch all nine one after the other in her own time.

So, I understand your DS's frustration.

Thank you all for your understanding and for suggestions.

@eloquent thank you. The lectures are recorded and later released by they're not streamed live. I wondered if other universities offered live streaming.

I will check with DS to see which if any of all the suggestions posted, he's doing, or is willing/ capable of doing.

Feeling deflated because (from what he's said so far this year) it does sound as though he's tried a lot of these suggestions and it's not enough for him. I'm railing as much against his disability as against the world for not being able to accommodate him, in an academic world where, as an academic person, he should be thriving. It's no one's fault, just the unfairness of his condition. It's difficult to stand by and watch one's child struggle.

Anyway, thank you all for your help.

Can you ask him to describe his ideal learning environment lecture wise and go from there? If he can’t quite articulate the problem it can be useful to come at it from a different angle.

Youve mentioned seminars - are they also a problem or is it just lectures for him?

Has he had any conversations with his student union?

Does he have opportunities for decompression and self-regulation? And is he using them? If his entire focus is on the specific problem area, he may have missed out ways he could mitigate the effects by using things unrelated to the specific problem area.

DD has a pass that allows her to use the study areas with computers in the Disability Services block. Means very few students in there and those who are mostly have ASD. She has a locker in there too to avoid the crushes at other main areas.

She got funding for printing- paper and ink-so she could print things and highlight/ make notes which helped her visual stress.

There is a silent area in the library which she uses. They have a quiet garden area too.

She got the software provided for recording and playback of the lectures when she is sitting in them as sometimes she is overwhelmed and gets lost during the lecture. She finds that better than the uploaded recordings as somehow it helps that she was there and made them, but knows if it gets too much, she doesn't need to panic she misses something.

She will get smaller accommodation room for exams and extra time. She didn't want just her in a room as that is as frightening as a huge hall!

She also got some kind of software that reads her books to her and reads back her writing to her to help her find mistakes.

DD also gets autism mentoring sessions where the person helps her with any "glitches" in interpretation, overwhelm with working out how things should be done etc.

And a well-being person for her anxiety.

Hi

I don't think anyone has suggested this yet (I may have missed it), but at some point he may decide that the adjustments are just not enough. At that time, rather than giving up, and given he's academic, why not consider looking for an online only course instead?