How did autistic children, and their parents, experience school transition during the Covid-19 pandemic?

TY - JOUR

T1 - How did autistic children, and their parents, experience school transition during the Covid-19 pandemic?

AU - Code, Aimee

AU - Fox, Laura

AU - Asbury, Kathryn

AU - Toseeb, Umar

N1 - © 2022 The Authors. British Journal of Special Education published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of National Association for Special Educational Needs.

PY - 2022/6/4

Y1 - 2022/6/4

N2 - Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the start of the academic year in September 2020 was a unique time for those transitioning to a new school. This study aimed to explore the experiences of parents who supported autistic children making a range of different school transitions in 2020. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with 13 parents of autistic children in the UK, and data were analyzed with reflexive thematic analysis. For some parents, the Covid-19 pandemic negatively impacted on aspects of school transitions. However, other parents expressed the view that these same circumstances created opportunities to approach the school transition in a unique, improved manner. This article sheds light on the heterogeneity of experiences and perceptions of parents of autistic children, and highlights the need to examine the impact of Covid-19 on school transitions, including practices that it may be advantageous to retain.

AB - Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the start of the academic year in September 2020 was a unique time for those transitioning to a new school. This study aimed to explore the experiences of parents who supported autistic children making a range of different school transitions in 2020. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with 13 parents of autistic children in the UK, and data were analyzed with reflexive thematic analysis. For some parents, the Covid-19 pandemic negatively impacted on aspects of school transitions. However, other parents expressed the view that these same circumstances created opportunities to approach the school transition in a unique, improved manner. This article sheds light on the heterogeneity of experiences and perceptions of parents of autistic children, and highlights the need to examine the impact of Covid-19 on school transitions, including practices that it may be advantageous to retain.

U2 - 10.1111/1467-8578.12414

DO - 10.1111/1467-8578.12414

M3 - Article

SN - 0952-3383

VL - 49

SP - 168

EP - 189

JO - British Journal of Special Education

JF - British Journal of Special Education

IS - 2

ER -