This study explores discussion forums within two autistic community websites in an attempt to gain intimate insights into the educational experiences and cultural identification of high functioning autistics (HFAs). Throughout this thesis I have referred to people with Autism as 'autistics' or HFAs in recognition of their self-referencing on the websites and to strike consistency with their identity politics. (ex: Autistic Pride Parade). The study maintains a narrative component from the perspective of a teacher-researcher as a means of facilitating the development of a grounded theory for educating high functioning autistics. The study begins with an examination of contemporary controversies within the field of autistic studies, with a particular focus on issues surrounding the classification of Asperger's Syndrome under the deficit model of mental disorders. Several tables are then presented from data collected from Aspiesforfreedom.com and Wrongplanet.net. The tables present high functioning autistic opinions, thoughts and experiences related to emerging autistic advocacy efforts, as well as retrospectives of their social and academic experiences over the course of their schooling. An Internet Culture Theory (ICT) develops which honors the existence of an authentic community of autistics online. ICT explores how this acknowledgment can help shape educational policies and practices related to improving the self-esteem, identity formation, academic success and social experiences of HFAs in both our schools and communities. The study contends that modifications should be implemented prior to grade 7 due to reports of emotional deterioration during this particular year of development. Existing programs operating in the spirit of ICT are discussed in order to provide some concrete examples of what certain modifications might look like.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.99591 |
| Date | January 2006 |
| Creators | Goodman, Jason, 1977- |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Master of Arts (Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology.) |
| Rights | © Jason Goodman, 2006 |
| Relation | alephsysno: 002600052, proquestno: AAIMR32519, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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