I used to work in this public elementary school as a paraprofessional for AS, which stands for Autism Support. I worked with autistic kindergarten students, along with the AS teacher and my fellow paraprofessionals. I remember, during my second week of work, the AS teacher broke down crying in the classroom. I remember her sobbing uncontrollably and saying, “They hate us. This school hates us.” I would find out eventually how right she is. That school did not like their autistic students, and was actually systematically implementing discrimination against them.
Social change research is defined as the type of research that aims to implement social change or impact. This type of research targets public institutions, and how social change can impact the way these institutions interact with groups and individuals–especially those who are systematically disadvantaged. If I could, I would implement social change research aiming to change the systems of public schools in the United States–more specifically with their students who have autism spectrum disorder.
I first realized the issue at hand when I found out that there are changes in the schedule of our students. Apparently, the school board as well as the principal had a meeting about AS, and they agreed on implementing new rules and policies. The previous schedule that the kids had was that in what are referred to as “special classes”, (i.e. art, gym, music, etc.) they would be joining general education students. With the new rules and policies, the school indefinitely decided that each AS student should have a time limit of how long they should stay for each special class. They mentioned that the change in their schedules was needed because the AS students are “being a distraction” to their general education classmates due to their vocal stims and “tantrums”–which are basically panic attacks due to sensory overload.
If I was given the opportunity to work on social change research, it would be to tackle this issue. I would work on this type of research aiming for the right of all students to proper education, including autistic children. I would address the problematic systems of public schools as they punish very young and very vulnerable children just because they display behavior that they deem as “not acceptable.” To gather data, I would interview teachers in AS as well as the parents of AS children. I would interview them about the children, as well as the system of their schools. And then, I would hold a meeting with the school board and the principals of the entire school district. The meeting will be led by autism specialists, highlighting the importance of AS students’ right to education. Training the staff and holding meetings with students about autistic students should be included as well. I sincerely wish that this problem at hand be addressed as a huge, relevant problem, and not just swept under the rug like how the school I previously worked in treated it.
Brydon-Miller, M. (1997). Participatory Action Research: Psychology and Social Change. Journal of Social Issues, 53(4), 657-666.
Gruman, J. A., Schneider, F. W., & Coutts, L. M. (2017). Applied social psychology: Understanding and addressing social and practical problems (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications
I just wanted to say that working as a paraprofessional teacher is so impressive. Such regulations that you mentioned like limiting the amount of time an autistic student might spend in a special class are traceable to a continued issue of ableism in public schools. Educational studies also reveal that most schools do not meet the needs of neurodivergent students enough. Traditionally defined as research done to modify existing practices for the betterment of specifically excluded populations (Brydon-Miller, 1997), what social change research entails makes it central in addressing such inequities. Using participatory action research (PAR), educators, parents, and autism advocates could collaborate to identify discriminatory practices and develop solutions. This approach aligns with Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory, which emphasizes the interplay of environmental, behavioral, and personal factors in shaping outcomes (Bandura, 1986). By involving stakeholders directly affected by these policies, researchers can ensure that interventions are practical and contextually relevant.