While showing the Autism video during class to go along with Yergeau's text, I had a student laugh. I shot him the teacher "glare" hoping he would get the picture that he was being immature and disrespectful. After the video was finished, we started a conversation about communication and the language we use to communicate with others. The same student said "I don't think this is a language or a way to communicate. I think it's a person with a disability and we are watching them in a video that doesn't matter to this class. I'm supposed to be learning about writing." To this I answered, "This does have to do with this class because people communicate in many different ways. Yeargeau describes her experience with Autism as wanting to speak for others just like her, but continually people think they need to speak for her because they are under the impression that she cannot. The difference between being an advocate and a supporter is very different. This is why it's important to not speak for a group you are not part of. It's like trying to translate a Spanish speaker's feelings when you do not know Spanish. You cannot speak for an autistic person if you are not autistic. Understand?"
I was very nurturing while saying this, not trying to be rude but continually trying to be helpful in processing, and the student's face turned red and he shut down. At the end of class I tried to talk to him and he just kept walking passed me. My initial response was to worry that he felt in some way that I was asking if he was autistic in front of the class by asking why he was speaking for them. This might be a bit of a stretch, but I worry about things. So I e-mailed him and asked if he could come see me during my office hours. I got no response. On Wednesday I asked if he received my e-mail and he said yes, but offered no other answer. So after class I asked him to please come see me on Thursday during my office hour, and so he did. I explained that I felt like he thought I was dismissing his ideas in class but assuming things I should not have. I explained to him that I have no idea unless I'm contacted whether or not a student has learning impairments, and I shouldn't have assumed that he could not speak for autistic people. He, again, laughed and told me that he shut down in class because he knew I was right in my point. He just didn't like hearing it but he did not feel as though I dismissed him.
This was a big worry off my chest! Friday's class went great, with no lingering cloud over top of me. We discussed Project #3's deadline, the process of sending it to their peer and myself, and workshopped an introduction. The students found the workshopping to be very helpful and many of them submitted papers on time that evening.
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