I have met with the team of policymakers responsible for revamping the current Inclusive Education policy and will be meeting with them again later this month to discuss mental health issues in ASD and barriers to service.

I have provided a lengthy report that included discussion points and reflective questions, concerns about 'best practices', human rights, and the practice of curriculum modification. As well I have included written resolutions and proposed recommendations. 

I will post just the resolutions/recommendations in this update as the full report is over 13 pages single-spaced.

Resolution and Recommendations:

Where the current Inclusive Education policy sees children grouped according to age;  

Where children with HFASD entering school are often delayed in readiness-to-learn skills (as outlined above), chronologically younger, but are subsequently promoted to next school grade under the current Inclusive Education policy;

Where the New Brunswick District of Education guidelines and "best practices" for grade retention are being applied to children with ASD, without studies or research of the impact of grade retention on children with ASD;

Where promoting children who have not acquired the skills of 'readiness-to-learn' often leads to placing them on modified educational tracks;  

Where curriculum modification is intended for children where there is clear evidence of intellectual impairment;

Where children with HFASD are not intellectually impaired but experiencing delays;

Where children with HFASD are being disadvantage based on policy and practices that create barriers to access the grade-level curriculum and their right to a full education, such as modifying their curriculum and relying on Educational Assistants to cover educational material rather than teachers delivering curriculum;

Where there are known adverse impacts for students placed on modified programs in their opportunities for post-secondary schooling and employment, which subsequently negatively impacts quality of life, mental and physical health, sense of community membership, and community participation;  

Where these barriers "can prevent persons with disabilities from achieving their full and equal participation in society" (Bill C-81);

Where the Act to ensure a barrier-free Canada states, "the development and revision of accessibility standards and making regulations must be done with the objective of achieving the highest level of accessibility for persons with disabilities" (Bill C-81);

Where government has an obligation to proactively protect and ensure Human Rights;

It is hereby resolved that the following suggested amendments, designed to integrate consideration and respect for human rights into the current Inclusive Education Policy, be submitted for consideration by the Province of New Brunswick:

Recommendations:

The New Brunswick Preschool Autism Program delivered by Autism Intervention Services (AIS) under the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development delivers services to eligible pre-school children with ASD. The goal of the N.B. Preschool Autism Program is to reduce ASD symptoms and improve "…the quality of life for children in the areas of social, adaptive and behavioural functioning" (DEECD, 2016, p.6). This program does not include speech-language service intervention; despite, language delays being the most common delay in HFASD and one of the most critically involved in early literacy skill development. It is a must that this service gap is closed and children with ASD in their pre-school years given the appropriate intervention that could foster better academic starts in their early school journeys.

Recognizing that many children with HFASD are diagnosed beyond their pre-school years (Lugnegård et al., 2011; Matson & Konst, 2014; Reiersen, 2017) and miss the opportunity to benefit from early intervention services, support should be front-loaded in the early years of schooling. This is a Human Rights framework; article 24 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006) recognizes the rights of persons with disabilities to education. In realizing this right, the Article states that parties must provide reasonable accommodation of the individual's requirements.  In order to fulfill this obligation, remedial, resource, and service support should be provided to assist the child's development in the areas of language/literacy, motor, and social domains to foster the skills necessary to learn; indeed to be educated. 

Autism spectrum disorder is a heterogeneous lifelong disorder; thus, grade placement decisions should be made on a case-by-case basis, with parents having the right to inform the decision-making process where they have the most vested interest in their child's adult outcomes.  

Grade retention should be considered a viable option when there is appropriate documentation and/or justification (i.e., pediatrician recommendations, professional assessment, etc.) regarding the child's delays in development and/or disability.

It is recommended that a Child Rights Impact Assessment be completed before the new policy is created. Please see link provided:  https://www.unicef.ca/sites/default/files/imce_uploads/BLOG/new_brunswick_cria_form_-_eng.pdf