Any Teachers In The Crowd?

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I have always loved being around young children. My first jobs were in day care centers, and then as paras in special education classrooms, and finally I went to college to become a special education teacher. Last year I got my first teaching job.
I also have high functioning autism.
It is definitely not unusual for someone with autism to graduate from college, and not unusual for someone with autism to become a professional of some sort. But I have not heard of anyone with autism who became a teacher
I was at an autism conference today and one of the sessions was on requesting accommodations at work. There were all sorts of ideas for things like working at home, having a quiet place to work, etc. But none of these accommodations are possible when you are a teacher! In some ways, being a teacher is a nightmarish job for an autistic person. My autism, with no possible accommodations, is definitely at least part of the reason that I got non-renewed for the next school year.
I have another teaching job lined up for the coming school year and I'd love to hear if there are any other autistic teachers out there, and what you do in order to survive.
Also, do you ever feel embarrassed telling people you are a teacher? People out in the world definitely see me as having a disability, and when they find out I am a teacher they are shocked. Some people do understand that those with autism can be highly intelligent, and that they can be computer programmers or scientists... but a teacher? Perish the thought!
I hope to hear your thoughts on this topic! Thanks!

We certainly have a number of people here who have been teachers at the college level, and I think I've seen people talk about studying to be teachers at other levels. Somehow I think aspies could do well at either the elementary of the college level -- it's those intermediate middle and high school grades that might be especially hard for people like us.

I'm a teaching assistant, so not quite. I have mostly worked with deaf and hard of hearing children, at all ages, although I'm working in primary at the moment. I keep thinking I might try to qualify as a teacher one day but it does seem like so much more work! I was diagnosed with Asperger's early this year (at age 39) so I guess I am at the less visible end of the spectrum, as it's gone unidentified for so long.

It's not a job I would recommend if you're sensitive to noise.

But I don't see why there shouldn't be autistic teachers otherwise. One thing that be tricky is understanding the feelings of the children, but if you can learn a list of expressions or behaviours which could be indicators that something is wrong I think an autistic teacher would be a great thing. It provides children with an alternative role model, and it helps other teachers understand autism better which will help them support autistic children better. You mentioned you were working with special education (we call it SEN over here), which I think is brilliant, because you will be better able to understand their needs and their feelings and their communication than an NT teacher would.

I think that although you cannot put accomadations on your contact time with the children, you could request a quiet space for break times (recess?) to recover and for your preparation and marking time. You can make sure that you get told about changes as soon as possible and get as much information as possible. I use a weighted lap pad at work sometimes and this has also made me a favourite with a couple of the children who also have weighted pads- it's like we're in the same club.

One of the other things I find challenging is communication with other staff. Everyone always seems so busy, so conversations can be rushed. This can make it very difficult for me to think of what to say and get the words out right, especially if it's something I feel strongly about- like if I feel there is discrimination towards the pupil I work with. I have to rehearse these conversations a lot, and then they still might not go right so I have to go over them in my head a lot and try again. I think there is also a tendancy from other teachers to try and communicate things subtley, which of course I completely miss. I will not notice or understand a look which is trying to tell me to deal with a particular child, or if I have said the wrong thing- I need explicit information.

I think it's fantastic that you are challenging people's perceptions when they find out you're a teacher. They might be shocked at first, but that's one of the first steps in removing prejudice.

I hope your new job goes well! I think what you are doing is brilliant, so don't give up. Experience is very valuable as a teacher, the more you do it, the better and more confident you will become.

I could never forget how to identify with younger kids when I was a kid and teen, so I was really good with and loved by younger children. I wanted to run or work at a daycare when I was 12. I wanted to be a kindergarten teacher for a while later on. But now I've kinda lost my touch, and damn!! ! cuz I have a son now who's only 8.

I am from the UK and not a qualified teacher here but taught ESL in South Korea for 8 years and Shanghai, China for 1.5 years.

Like another poster mentioned, I found kindergarten and elementary best as you know what to expect and it's a nice playful atmosphere, naive and simple. Last year of elementary when they really start pushing the boundaries, Middle school and High school were more stressful and I did not enjoy it as much. Then yeah, teaching adults or people over HS age was comfortable too as they too are better behaved.

It took me a few years to learn to go at their pace as well as mine and that you cannot force knowledge into anyone's brain even though logically it should work (my logical brain said 'I have prepared the lesson well, have presented the material and exercises and activities well so the material should now be stuck in their heads.')

The best was Kindy and elementary though, yeah lot of fun activities and games and songs as well as more formal learning. Good times.

In life I am most comfortable around animals, young people and old people as they are more simple and less complicated, so it makes sense why I enjoyed Kindy and elementary best.

I know a person with quite intense HFA and one with bipolar who teach or are teaching assistants in my country. They are extremely dedicated and responsible in their work and great at what they do.

I teach chemistry courses at a large university. I love helping my students learn difficult concepts in ways that other teachers have trouble doing. The teaching side is good, but the politics of higher education can be horrible to deal with. I am currently dealing with a bullying issue caused by a coworker and a boss who allows it to happen. I had to become a whistleblower at the state and national level at my first college teaching gig, as the administration was attempting to do an illegal chemical waste dump with laboratory chemicals. They were going to blame me if they got caught in the act, but I thwarted their plans. In the end, they were forced to pay for proper disposal and I lost my job regardless. So, I have a natural tendency not to trust administration.



On a side note, I may just retire from teaching this year if all works out on something that I invested in. A few years ago, I purchased a piece of art at an estate sale of a very rich family on a feeling that I had. If deemed real, it may be way more valuable than what I originally thought it could be. I am in the process of having experts authenticate it, so now I have to be patient and keep my fingers crossed that it is the right one. Having that potential trump card in hand helps me deal with the bullying issues at work.

I taught English for a year at the junior college level, teaching mid-level English Composition and Reading Comprehension courses. It was interesting work. I think my Toastmasters training helped me a great deal in this job. I don't think I could have ever stood in front of a group of people without that very specialized training.

I'm starting teacher training for Secondary school Physics/Science (and probably a bit of Maths since it's in demand here) in September. I'm kind of terrified but I've done loads of work experience in schools and I really love teaching, I think the only problem I'll have is making sure I get enough time to be alone in a quiet room so that I can recharge - hopefully the staffroom will be quiet or I'll come off as more antisocial than I am. I'm also slightly worried that people will resent me for keeping on top of my workload, I went to the 'getting to know you' evening (it was hellish) and the people who qualified this year were joking about this one woman who got her essays done early and informing us that we'd all fall behind during our teaching placements. Except I don't think I will, I've always got my work done immediately in the past and I just hope it doesn't alienate me.

I am autistic, I hate the terms lower and higher functioning and refuse to use them, but I might suggest that I present as NT (although I have been asked directly if I was on the spectrum or had ADHD)

I am a qualified teacher and have taught in colleges and autism specific schools. I ran a small training dept for a couple of years and a qualified health and social assessor and internal verifier....I don't do any of these anymore, I can't.

I found that over time (and I took several years out in the middle) I found teaching to be totally overwhelming, I had no difficulty getting up and talking in front of people (as long as I didn't have to do small talk with them later) it was the relentless changes to qualifications, assessment processes, testing...you name it.

I viewed evenings and weekends as an opportunity to catch up in work which I could not possibly have done in the week. I could have worked all day and night all week and never have caught up with it. Further Education Colleges in particular have work loads which are just off the scale, small training providers delivering modern apprenticeships in the workplace are even worse. I am currently off work with anxiety, I have to go back later this week and I really don't want to.