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Kevin Foley BA (Hons) Econ. PGCE had been teaching for four years before Aspergers Syndrome was actually called Aspergers Syndrome (AS). A specialist in getting young people through exams, he was - like most teachers- totally oblivious to autistic spectrum disorders. Had it not been for a chance encounter with his son, Sean, he would probably have remained ignorant of autism bar 'a little knowledg... More

Kevin Foley BA (Hons) Econ. PGCE had been teaching for four years before Aspergers Syndrome was actually called Aspergers Syndrome (AS). A specialist in getting young people through exams, he was - like most teachers- totally oblivious to autistic spectrum disorders. Had it not been for a chance encounter with his son, Sean, he would probably have remained ignorant of autism bar 'a little knowledge' gleaned from watching Rainman and Forest Gump. Kevin Foley enjoyed a quarter of a century's teaching in a variety of 'challenging' settings in and out of the mainstream. In that time he saw some of his students graduate to Oxbridge whilst others graduated to penal institutions. On this journey he came to appreciate the efficacy of Solution Focused interventions and worked as Education Consultant with Eileen Murphy Consultants. But in terms of understanding autism, more important have been the lessons his son has taught him during the past eighteen years: Such as who lived at No 7 Coronation St. in 1977. And why somebody with autism would be jealous of Mr Berkeley from Star Trek. Having seen his son struggle with the demands of the mainstream, Kevin Foley now believes that: "Too many children with AS suffer 'meltdown' as a result of being forced to operate in environments that test their immature executive, social, and emotional skills to breaking point - and beyond. We need to ' personalise' our children's education so that this doesn't happen. We need to cast a cold eye on what currently passes for 'inclusion' and be aware of the intrusion and exclusion that is the daily reality for many of our children in mainstream schools" Kevin Foley has home-educated his son for the past four years.

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