According to the World Health Organization (WHO), about 1 in 127 people has autism. It is a lifelong neurodivergent condition that affects how people’s brains develop, how they communicate with others and experience the world around them.

Schools in Poland have a legal duty to identify pupils’ special educational needs as early as possible and provide appropriate support, adapting teaching methods, learning conditions and the curriculum as necessary, but in practice this doesn’t always happen.

Although autism is fairly common, many schools are unprepared to help support their students. Understanding the condition and recognising that different students have different needs is the first step towards creating an environment where every child can learn and thrive.

One of the most striking findings from my interviews was that the ex-students found that their teachers are unlikely to provide meaningful support if they do not understand autism and how it can affect the way their students learn.

As Dominik, 25, explained: “When I attended school, both the teachers and students had no idea what autism is, no one was able to help me.” This reflects how helpless a person can feel when their needs are not understood.

Teachers, however, are only part of the school environment. Friends and classmates can shape early teenage years, and affect one’s self-image.

Aleksandra, 24, told me, “I did not have friends because all my classmates thought something was wrong with me.” This is exactly why educating students about neurodiversity is just as important as educating teachers.

If we help children understand that people can think, behave and experience the world differently due to autism, they can approach it with more understanding rather than judgement or exclusion.

Ways to help students with autism

Schools should be equipped to respond to each student’s individual needs, whether that means accommodating sensory sensitivities to bright lights or loud noises, offering alternative learning environments or allowing regular breaks throughout the school day.

Almost all of the interviewees explained how sensory overload caused by the school environment affected their ability to learn. Crowded corridors, loud school bells and constant background noise affected their focus and increased anxiety.

Some students find the normal classroom setting too difficult when it comes to concentrating.

Urszula, 25, explained: “The fact that I had the option to have lessons alone was always very comforting, because I hated sitting in classes with other people. The background noise always bothered me and prevented me from performing at my highest ability.”

Students highlighted how important it was to have quiet spaces where they could unwind.

 

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“I felt most comfortable in the school psychologist’s office because I didn’t have to talk to my peers. I liked that I could be alone during breaks while everyone else was talking among themselves in the hallways,” added Urszula.

I believe that such solutions are both realistic and achievable. Schools should provide designated quiet rooms, allow sensory accommodations such as alternatives to the loud school bell, and ask students on the spectrum to express their needs.

These steps could definitely be tried and implemented, as they are neither complicated nor expensive. Such small changes could have a huge impact on students’ well-being and ability to learn.

The people I interviewed were not asking schools to be perfect. They simply wanted to be understood. Maybe this is where true inclusion begins, with realising that everyone deserves the opportunity to learn in an environment where they feel seen and supported.