The school experiences of bilingual children on the autism spectrum: An interpretative phenomenological analysis.
Bilingual autistic pupils feel better about their identity when their school celebrates many languages, not just English.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Researchers talked with eight bilingual autistic children . All attended UK mainstream primary schools.
They used a method called interpretative phenomenological analysis. This lets kids describe their own school life in their own words.
What they found
Kids in schools with many languages saw their bilingualism as a plus. Kids in mostly English-only schools felt their home language set them apart.
Across schools, children shared three common themes. They were building a dual identity, had small friend groups, and felt anxious during class talk.
How this fits with other research
Buse et al. (2014) found that positive peer links lower bullying risk for autistic pupils. The new study echoes this: more multilingual classmates created the positive peer climate that boosted identity pride.
Begeer et al. (2016) saw no overall bullying gap between mainstream and special schools. Leezenbaum et al. (2019) add that social comfort depends on language diversity within the mainstream setting, not just the type of school.
Kiehl et al. (2024) showed that receiving an autism diagnosis reshapes adult identity. The child voices here preview that process: bilingual autistic kids already work to merge language and autism parts of the self.
Why it matters
You can ease anxiety and grow social circles by pairing bilingual autistic learners with peers who share or value their home language. Ask the school to create multilingual displays, buddy systems, or small-group work that lets the child use both languages. A welcoming language climate acts like an antecedent intervention: it prevents identity conflict before it starts and builds the positive peer context linked to lower bullying rates.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: With growing numbers of bilingual children on the autism spectrum in UK classrooms, the interaction between autism and bilingualism is becoming a pressing issue for practitioners, researchers and families. In this study, we report the school experiences of bilingual, autistic children in the UK through their own voice with focus on five aspects of their school life. METHOD: Using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) as a methodological framework, semi-structured, computer-assisted interviews were conducted with 11 children aged 7 to 14 from across England and Wales. Interviews were carried out in English and took place in mainstream schools or the children's home, depending on their preference. RESULTS: Results indicate that, while children's school experiences vary widely, there were commonalities in this population's identity formation, including being bilingual, and their classroom experiences. Most notably, children educated in more multilingual environments (i.e. in schools with larger multilingual populations) expressed more positive views about multilingualism than those in more monolingual settings. In line with previous studies, limited social circles and classroom anxiety were present in participants' school experiences. IMPLICATIONS: The findings of this paper suggest that giving autistic children from bilingual backgrounds opportunities to explore their linguistic identities in the classroom may enhance their experiences of school. Further research should focus on parents' and practitioners' attitudes and perspectives towards the support available for this population.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2019 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2019.01.008