Internationally, there is a growing trend towards the inclusion of autistic pupils within mainstream schools. However, concerns have been expressed regarding this policy roll-out preceding empirical evidence demonstrating effective outcomes for autistic students. Concerns have also been expressed regarding the absence of the voices of autistic pupils themselves within research and policy literature. This review seeks to synthesise evidence from qualitative studies relating to the experiences and perspectives of autistic young people enrolled in mainstream second-level or post-primary education. Searches were carried out on three bibliographic databases: Education Research Complete, Education Resources Information Centre and PsychInfo. One thousand sixty-three studies were identified through a combination of database and hand searches of which 33 met the inclusion criteria for the review. Data were synthesised using ‘thematic synthesis’ and the validity of included studies was assessed using the ‘Critical Appraisal Skills Programme’ (CASP) checklist. Thematic synthesis resulted in the development of three analytical themes: ‘Demands of mainstream placements’, ‘Social participation’ and ‘Impacts on the student’. Our analysis revealed that for many autistic young people, mainstream school is a complex and demanding social environment. Further research conducted in partnership with this cohort is essential as inclusive policy and practice continues to develop. Lay abstract Internationally, more autistic pupils are being educated in mainstream schools. Some people have voiced concerns that this policy roll-out is happening before examining the effective outcomes for autistic students. Concerns have also been expressed regarding a lack of the voices of autistic pupils themselves within research and policy. This study was undertaken in order to gather literature that explores the views and experiences of autistic young people in relation to their mainstream school placement at the secondary level. This study aims to summarise the existing literature and provide a new, more complete account of the school experiences of this cohort. After an extensive search, 33 studies were identified by the authors as meeting a set of inclusion criteria. All of the studies included in this review elicited the views and perspectives of at least one autistic young person regarding their mainstream secondary school placement. Upon carefully analysing these studies, the authors developed three key themes as follows: ‘Demands of mainstream placements’, ‘Social participation’ and ‘Impacts on the student’. Our analysis revealed that for many autistic young people, mainstream school is a complex and demanding social environment. Further research that prioritises the voices and perspectives of this cohort is essential as inclusive policy and practice continues to develop.
Recent decades have seen an increase in the use of qualitative research methods within disability research, often seeking to include the voices of individuals with disabilities in research informing policy and service provision. However, such cohorts of participants often present with diverse communication profiles, leading to negative assumptions about their capacity to participate in traditionally common forms of qualitative data collection, such as interviews or focus groups. This effectively marginalises them from participating in research relevant to their lives and social inclusion. The current paper argues that, despite the existence of a range of participatory methods, there remain barriers across methodological approaches to the inclusion of participants with complex profiles within qualitative research. In particular, there is a lacuna within the literature regarding how to specifically differentiate or appropriately adapt qualitative methods to support access. An additional lack of guidance regarding the selection of methods and planning of research is also an issue. Drawing from a transformative perspective, this paper proposes adopting Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles to guide researchers in in how to differentiate the planning, designing, and conduct of research with participants with disabilities presenting with complex communication profiles. While UDL is not being proposed as an alternative to existing research methodologies, its principles provide a framework for researchers to select from existing methods or approaches in a flexible manner depending on the profile of participants they will be working with. A range of existing approaches and methods are discussed with examples that illustrate how they have been used to support participation and inclusion within qualitative research studies.
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