CONTINUED From SaphiraGrace' response to @[email protected] below.....world and society as a whole - you do not possess the required data or facts or lived experience to assign intent or reason to why a student doesn't comply with a task or demand. You just don't. And its not yours to assume.

Please, I know this is long. I am quite aware. (Yes, I will have a TLDR for reference here in a second) but it is fully necessary in response to such vapid ignorance and harmful assumption when it is so clear that you know very little about autism from a lived experience perspective. I get it. I'm not mad at you - just disappointed at how rampant such a take is in our society. So rampant that I have dedicated the rest of my life to educating those like yourself about what being autistic and neurodivergent really is like - and I will likely be doing such until I die.

Please find autistic voices to listen to. Autistic experiences to widen your understandably neurotypically-limited perspective. We need better understanding. We need better levels of empathy and care than we are currently receiving. We need better inclusion in society - not just surface-level, but inclusion that gives us a sense of truly belonging. We need those who don't process and experience life the way we do to still give us a chance at living an authentic life without such a steep risk of burnout and stress that too often culminates in losing our lives to it.

If you would like some resources to learn more, please, DM me (this goes for anyone who has read through this mammoth of a post thus far and are also intrigued to know more). I have bookoos of them that I have collected and acquired through about half a decade or more of research and self-introspection. I am proverbial fount of information and I do not wish to keep all my knowledge and insight to myself - for having an outlet to share it is one of my few ways to safeguard myself from my own burnout and potential demise.

OK HERE WE GO! The TLDR:

From the top:

• Autism is a spectrum, not a gradient.
• Terms like "mild," "moderate," or "severe" autism are harmful and inaccurate.
• Language matters; it affects how autistic individuals are perceived and accommodated.

Spectrum vs. Gradient:

• Autism spectrum: A full color wheel with varying traits.
• Example: Hyper-verbal vs. nonverbal traits represented as different colors.
• Importance of understanding autism's complexity and varied presentations.

Masking:

• Masking: Concealing autistic traits to appear neurotypical.
• Masking does not lessen the impact of being autistic.
• Examples of masking: concealing stimming behaviors due to external pressures.

Utilize a Better Approach to Educating:

• Do not assign reasons or intent without asking autistic individuals.
• Importance of directly communicating with autistic students to understand their actions.
• Examples of how assumptions can lead to misunderstandings and inadequate support.

Personal Experience:

• Autistic individuals may not know or articulate their needs due to lack of self-awareness or language.
• Importance of educators' flexibility and willingness to accommodate neurodivergent students.
• Personal anecdotes to illustrate the challenges and needs of autistic individuals.

Call to Action:

• Greater understanding, empathy, and true inclusion are needed in society.
• Encouragement to learn from autistic voices and lived experiences.
• Offer to provide resources for those interested in learning more about autism.