Post by Janine Briscoe on Oct 18, 2015 17:32:23 GMT
I am an instructional aide who works in an autistic classroom with 10 students. I was told there would be a total of 4 aides in the classroom to support the teacher. Before I started my first day, I was called to attend a mandated preparation course. It was titled Nonviolent Crisis Intervention Training Program. Its purpose was to provide the best care, welfare, safety, and security, for the individuals in my charge, even in violent moments. The program’s intentions are also to provide the same care, welfare, safety, and security for me as I learn the techniques and skills during the training. I was told many of the students in the class would have behavior problems, but that the “majority” were sweet and cooperative children. They range in age from 14 to 18 years of age. The person I will be describing is a boy in my class. For the sake of privacy, I will call him Fidel.
Name: Fidel
Grade: Junior
Age: 16 years old
Weight: 90 lbs
Diagnosis: Intellectually Disabled/Autistic
Behavior: Tantrums, Aggression, Meltdowns
This student is known all over the district as having outrageously aggressive behaviors. At first meeting, you would believe him to be a typical teenager. Skinny, lanky, acne, and a little bit of a wallflower. Fidel has been described as an “old man in a young man’s body”. A staff member will ask him a question and he will reply in a grumpy tone.
Question: “Fidel, do you need any help solving your math problem?”
Response: “No!!!! Just leave me alone!”
In the beginning of the school year, he wouldn’t want to be bothered unless he initiated the interaction. If a staff member were to pass out a piece of paper, upon the exchange, he would snatch it out of the staff member’s hand very forcibly. All autistic children range in behavior; each is unique. While Fidel is in an autistic classroom, autism is his second diagnosis. His primary diagnosis is ID. Now, I was told by a staff member that his grandmother refers to him as evil. She stated that he throws tantrums, screams, and threatens to inflict bodily harm on her if he doesn’t get his way. The teacher told me that last year he threatened to bring a gun to school. He told Fidel’s father, but he just laughed it off as if it wasn’t a big deal. Those threats aren’t to be taken lightly; even if he is only 90lbs. I can attest to at least a dozen times where I have heard Fidel tell me and other staff members that he will kill, stab, and hurt us. Many people who don’t work with special needs, or haven’t been exposed to that population need to understand how difficult it can be at times. Student’s who suffer from autism, have a difficult time regulating emotions. They can go from level zero to level 100 in a matter of seconds. They can go from having a pleasant conversation amongst classmates on minute, to having a full on boxing match the next second. This is why we are given training rules. They remind the staff of “proxemics”. We are told to give ourselves a 1.5 to 3 ft personal space safety zone. Well, this isn’t exactly realistic when working in a classroom. You have to get close to Fidel when he needs help with his classwork. I will be assisting another student and Fidel will run up to me and invade my personal zone. There was a teacher’s aide in a different school who worked with the same population of students. A student in the classroom during a moment of rage, picked him up and threw him on the ground. The staff member hit his head, but stood up and said he was fine. He went to sleep that night and never work up to see the light of day. This rule of proximity is great in theory, but doesn’t work well in reality.
After working with Fidel I started thinking about his behavior and comparing it to the readings. Sigmund Freud states that there is a part of our unconscious state called the Super Ego, which develops around the age of 5 years old. Now, I’m not a specialist in the field of psycho-analytic research, but this information is important to know when working with Fidel. Staff members are cautious to work with him due to his behavior and outbursts. I believe after studying Freud’s Civilizations and Its Discontents I have a better understanding of Fidel’s outbursts. It’s not that he is evil like his grandmother says. Due to his diagnosis, he hasn’t learned how to control his behaviors. His ID ego isn’t fully developed. He still operating on pleasure-principle. He wants immediate gratification, and if he doesn’t receive it the world around him will suffer because of it. For example, here is a typical day when Fidel asks for time on the IPAD, but is told he has to finish his classwork first:
Fidel: “I need to use the IPAD.”
Staff: “Did you finish your work Fidel?”
Fidel: “No, but I want to use the IPAD!”
Staff: “After you complete your work, you will have 5 minutes on the IPAD.”
Fidel: “BUT I HAVE TO USE THE IPAD!!!!!!!!” (Then he rips up his classwork, screams, and threatens to kill everyone in the classroom,)
The other day this happened, and I walked down his isle about 20 minutes after his outburst. He had a pencil in his hand and turned towards me with his pencil in a dagger motion and screamed and leaned in to stab me. I jumped back and the teacher had to get the pencil out of his hand.
Freud would say, “A strict consciousness is the sign of a virtuous man” (Freud, 30). Reality reveals that there are temptations which plague us, and force us to make moral decisions; good vs evil. Now it isn’t that Fidel isn’t a virtuous person. He just doesn’t have the tools one needs to develop appropriate social behaviors. After he decided that he wanted to play on the IPAD, his immediate gratification level, brought on by the ID didn’t have anything to balance with. His desire to play turned into suffering. The prolonged desire, remained protracted. If the need for happiness and pleasure isn’t satisfied Fidel explodes. Freud wrote, “One might say the intention that man should be happy is not included in the scheme of Creation. Happiness comes from satisfaction from pent-up needs which have reached great intensity, but by its nature can only be a transitory experience” (Freud, 8). Even if Fidel got the IPAD after completing his work, the state of happiness is fleeting. It results in mild comfort, and will be temporary pleasure. Then his behavior will negatively be affected by the lack an Ego/Super Ego. The cycle will continue until a behavior plan will be put in place by the school psychologist.
Fidel’s grandmother should be encouraged to read this article by Freud. Then her grandson’s inappropriate behaviors will make much more sense to her. He isn’t evil. He just hasn’t developed what he needs to function in reality. The Ego is responsible for dealing with reality. The ID is the primary component of our personality. It operates off of the pleasure principle (Fidel and his IPAD). Fidel operating off of the ID will rip up his paper, and threaten to kill me if he can’t have what he wants. The Ego develops from the ID, which ensures the impulses from the ID are regulated according to real world standards. Fidel is lacking this aspect of his unconscious. He will have a tantrum and make threats in public environments. He doesn’t care about societal norms, and what behavior is acceptable vs unacceptable. The concept of delayed gratification doesn’t apply to him. The reality principle is non existent. It strives to operate off of the ID’s wants and needs in a realistic way. It ways costs and benefits. The Super Ego, which shows up around the age of 5 years old, is supposed to deal with the moral aspect of our personality. It holds all of our internalized righteous standards we were supposed to acquire from parents, teachers, and society. He is 16 years old and hasn’t developed his ego/super ego. I’m sure his diagnosis has a lot to do with it. I’m also aware that parents tend to have a significant part in their child’s behavior as well. What do they do at home when he throws a fit? Do they just give him what he wants to avoid the outburst? If so they are delaying the opportunity for Fidel to develop his personality tools (Ego and Super Ego). This is an interesting topic and it has helped me better understand Fidel and his behavior. Now I can be of more support to him in the classroom while he’s on my watch.
Name: Fidel
Grade: Junior
Age: 16 years old
Weight: 90 lbs
Diagnosis: Intellectually Disabled/Autistic
Behavior: Tantrums, Aggression, Meltdowns
This student is known all over the district as having outrageously aggressive behaviors. At first meeting, you would believe him to be a typical teenager. Skinny, lanky, acne, and a little bit of a wallflower. Fidel has been described as an “old man in a young man’s body”. A staff member will ask him a question and he will reply in a grumpy tone.
Question: “Fidel, do you need any help solving your math problem?”
Response: “No!!!! Just leave me alone!”
In the beginning of the school year, he wouldn’t want to be bothered unless he initiated the interaction. If a staff member were to pass out a piece of paper, upon the exchange, he would snatch it out of the staff member’s hand very forcibly. All autistic children range in behavior; each is unique. While Fidel is in an autistic classroom, autism is his second diagnosis. His primary diagnosis is ID. Now, I was told by a staff member that his grandmother refers to him as evil. She stated that he throws tantrums, screams, and threatens to inflict bodily harm on her if he doesn’t get his way. The teacher told me that last year he threatened to bring a gun to school. He told Fidel’s father, but he just laughed it off as if it wasn’t a big deal. Those threats aren’t to be taken lightly; even if he is only 90lbs. I can attest to at least a dozen times where I have heard Fidel tell me and other staff members that he will kill, stab, and hurt us. Many people who don’t work with special needs, or haven’t been exposed to that population need to understand how difficult it can be at times. Student’s who suffer from autism, have a difficult time regulating emotions. They can go from level zero to level 100 in a matter of seconds. They can go from having a pleasant conversation amongst classmates on minute, to having a full on boxing match the next second. This is why we are given training rules. They remind the staff of “proxemics”. We are told to give ourselves a 1.5 to 3 ft personal space safety zone. Well, this isn’t exactly realistic when working in a classroom. You have to get close to Fidel when he needs help with his classwork. I will be assisting another student and Fidel will run up to me and invade my personal zone. There was a teacher’s aide in a different school who worked with the same population of students. A student in the classroom during a moment of rage, picked him up and threw him on the ground. The staff member hit his head, but stood up and said he was fine. He went to sleep that night and never work up to see the light of day. This rule of proximity is great in theory, but doesn’t work well in reality.
After working with Fidel I started thinking about his behavior and comparing it to the readings. Sigmund Freud states that there is a part of our unconscious state called the Super Ego, which develops around the age of 5 years old. Now, I’m not a specialist in the field of psycho-analytic research, but this information is important to know when working with Fidel. Staff members are cautious to work with him due to his behavior and outbursts. I believe after studying Freud’s Civilizations and Its Discontents I have a better understanding of Fidel’s outbursts. It’s not that he is evil like his grandmother says. Due to his diagnosis, he hasn’t learned how to control his behaviors. His ID ego isn’t fully developed. He still operating on pleasure-principle. He wants immediate gratification, and if he doesn’t receive it the world around him will suffer because of it. For example, here is a typical day when Fidel asks for time on the IPAD, but is told he has to finish his classwork first:
Fidel: “I need to use the IPAD.”
Staff: “Did you finish your work Fidel?”
Fidel: “No, but I want to use the IPAD!”
Staff: “After you complete your work, you will have 5 minutes on the IPAD.”
Fidel: “BUT I HAVE TO USE THE IPAD!!!!!!!!” (Then he rips up his classwork, screams, and threatens to kill everyone in the classroom,)
The other day this happened, and I walked down his isle about 20 minutes after his outburst. He had a pencil in his hand and turned towards me with his pencil in a dagger motion and screamed and leaned in to stab me. I jumped back and the teacher had to get the pencil out of his hand.
Freud would say, “A strict consciousness is the sign of a virtuous man” (Freud, 30). Reality reveals that there are temptations which plague us, and force us to make moral decisions; good vs evil. Now it isn’t that Fidel isn’t a virtuous person. He just doesn’t have the tools one needs to develop appropriate social behaviors. After he decided that he wanted to play on the IPAD, his immediate gratification level, brought on by the ID didn’t have anything to balance with. His desire to play turned into suffering. The prolonged desire, remained protracted. If the need for happiness and pleasure isn’t satisfied Fidel explodes. Freud wrote, “One might say the intention that man should be happy is not included in the scheme of Creation. Happiness comes from satisfaction from pent-up needs which have reached great intensity, but by its nature can only be a transitory experience” (Freud, 8). Even if Fidel got the IPAD after completing his work, the state of happiness is fleeting. It results in mild comfort, and will be temporary pleasure. Then his behavior will negatively be affected by the lack an Ego/Super Ego. The cycle will continue until a behavior plan will be put in place by the school psychologist.
Fidel’s grandmother should be encouraged to read this article by Freud. Then her grandson’s inappropriate behaviors will make much more sense to her. He isn’t evil. He just hasn’t developed what he needs to function in reality. The Ego is responsible for dealing with reality. The ID is the primary component of our personality. It operates off of the pleasure principle (Fidel and his IPAD). Fidel operating off of the ID will rip up his paper, and threaten to kill me if he can’t have what he wants. The Ego develops from the ID, which ensures the impulses from the ID are regulated according to real world standards. Fidel is lacking this aspect of his unconscious. He will have a tantrum and make threats in public environments. He doesn’t care about societal norms, and what behavior is acceptable vs unacceptable. The concept of delayed gratification doesn’t apply to him. The reality principle is non existent. It strives to operate off of the ID’s wants and needs in a realistic way. It ways costs and benefits. The Super Ego, which shows up around the age of 5 years old, is supposed to deal with the moral aspect of our personality. It holds all of our internalized righteous standards we were supposed to acquire from parents, teachers, and society. He is 16 years old and hasn’t developed his ego/super ego. I’m sure his diagnosis has a lot to do with it. I’m also aware that parents tend to have a significant part in their child’s behavior as well. What do they do at home when he throws a fit? Do they just give him what he wants to avoid the outburst? If so they are delaying the opportunity for Fidel to develop his personality tools (Ego and Super Ego). This is an interesting topic and it has helped me better understand Fidel and his behavior. Now I can be of more support to him in the classroom while he’s on my watch.