PDA and School Struggles – Autism Parenting Magazine

Here are some suggestions for children with PDA who may be struggling in school. 

Some children with autism will present with Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA). When dealing directly with the behavior concerns of children with autism, it is important to understand what PDA means and what it involves.

What is pathological demand avoidance?

Pathological demand avoidance occurs when an individual seems to challenge requests made by authority figures. Some children with autism will provide reasons for not responding to a request. However, others may ignore or adamantly challenge the request.

Some professionals may see PDA as a simple refusal to comply, and others may disagree with using the term and will not recognize it clinically. PDA is not accepted as a diagnosis in the United States and Canada but is more recognized in the United Kingdom. 

Parents and educators who view PDA as defiance will go into a “discipline mode,” which worsens the situation.

Most individuals with autism experiencing PDA do not engage in this behavior intentionally. They may not know how to communicate their reasons for not wanting to comply with the request.

Understanding PDA in the school context

School challenges include school exclusion and various problem behaviors. These negative school experiences can lead to higher anxiety levels. Many parents also feel that there is a lack of understanding and support.

Many children with autism are being educated in regular education classrooms with their neurotypical peers. While you may see improvements with your child with autism and PDA at home, your child may struggle at school. 

Work with school administration

Keep your child’s teacher informed. Share the interventions that work at home, although not all successful home interventions generalize to the school environment. 

Provide a notebook for your child’s regular educator to send weekly messages about your child’s school progress. You can also include a weekly note updating the teacher on progress at home.

Many autistic children in regular classrooms receive special education support. Your child may see a special education teacher, autism teacher, speech-language pathologist, or other professional at school. 

Check in with these individuals regarding your child’s progress with interventions at home and school. Your child may demonstrate success with an intervention at school, which you can attempt to transition into your daily routine at home. 

These staff members can also observe your child in settings throughout the day. They may see your child at lunchtime in the crowded cafeteria, on the playground, in a noisy physical education class, or during emergency drills (fire or tornado) and unexpected changes in your child’s routine. 

These specially trained individuals can assist with identifying possible triggers in these environments that could upset your child. These staff members can provide valuable information on how your child is progressing with their PDA concerns. A positive relationship with these individuals is critical to your child’s success.

Many children with autism who become overstimulated need a safe place to go in the event of a sensory overload. Your school counselor, whose services are often overlooked by families with autism, can create this “safe place” in their office. It can be a quiet place with dimmer lighting where the child can relax, wear headphones to listen to calming music, or access sensory items such as fidgets, weighted vests, etc. 

School counselors can also engage with the student in social skills groups to deal with PDA and the coping skills needed to address requests for compliance appropriately.

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Accommodations at school

It is important to explain PDA to school personnel, but accommodations should be in place for your child’s success.

Written requests

Verbal directions and requests directed at your child with autism and PDA may pose a significant issue in the classroom. Written requests may be more comforting.

Visual timers and daily schedules

Transitioning from a preferred to a non-preferred activity may be challenging, and a child on the spectrum may prefer “advanced notice” so they know the transition will occur soon. Providing a visual timer or daily schedule can help make that transition smoother.  

Assessments

Many children with autism endure multiple school assessments to determine their social skill functioning, academic ability, intelligence levels, etc. These assessments are often provided during the school day without advanced notice, causing an abrupt change in their routine. 

This throws their day into a “tailspin.” They may become dysregulated, and their ability to follow directions or engage in an assessment procedure may become seriously hampered. 

In addition, most of these adults assessing your child with autism may be strangers, causing anxiety and hampering the child’s ability to engage or do well on the assessments. 

Parents should always ask how much time examiners spent with their child while assessing them. Any assessment that diagnoses a child’s weaknesses should not be utilized to make educational decisions but should be paired with other assessments.

Children with PDA should be assessed multiple times in various environments. This allows examiners to see differences in how your child responds to requests dealing with different individuals, times of day, and environments and which are the most successful for your child. 

Guidelines for educators

Many educators may become frustrated when students refuse to engage in a task, transition to a different activity, or respond to a question. However, there are a few strategies teachers can use.

• Allow additional time to process requests.
• Present two options within the request. This allows the child to make a “choice” rather than be forced into a response.
• Avoid “power struggles.” For a better outcome, ask open-ended questions rather than “Yes” or “No.”
• Post school rules in all classrooms. The child may struggle with school rules. Special education teachers can assist with writing social stories to review the rules daily.
• Use a positive reinforcement schedule. Some children may have difficulty waiting until the end of the week for a reward. When a positive outcome, such as homework completion or positive engagement in a social skills situation, is achieved, a child may need immediate reinforcement to connect their actions to the reward.

Allow the child to select their reinforcements or rewards before an activity. This will ensure that the activity is meaningful to the child and likely to encourage a repeat positive response. 

Practical strategies for parents

There are several practical ways parents can help their child with PDA in the school setting:

Recognize PDA occurrences

Recognizing when PDA occurs is an important first step. Each child with autism demonstrating PDA may do so differently. Some may become withdrawn and quiet, while others may engage in severe behaviors like yelling, hitting, or crying. 

The behaviors may mimic those of an autistic child experiencing a severe sensory overload.

Treatments and early intervention

Whatever issue your child displays, early intervention to address it is critical. The sooner a treatment plan is developed, the sooner the family can use effective interventions at home, school, and in the community.

Many parents of autistic children have found early intervention services from a Board-Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) helpful in addressing issues. Other parents have found involving their children in social skills groups or speech-language therapy helpful. 

Effective home strategies should be transitioned and generalized into the classroom. Parents should inform their child’s teacher of any progress toward appropriately accepting authority figures’ requests at home.

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Parental support

Parenting can be tough! It can even be tougher when dealing with a child with autism and PDA. For parents to effectively take care of their children, they need to take care of themselves. 

Joining a local parent group that deals with children with autism could allow mingling and meeting other parents experiencing similar issues.

Becoming involved in an association dealing directly with autism will give parents access to autistic adults in their home community. They’ll discover that many individuals with autism agree on certain issues, such as PDA. 

Some adults with autism believe that PDA is just part of their autism. Others believe that all individuals with PDA are autistic. However, not all individuals with autism have PDA. 
Parents should be exposed to many divergent thoughts since all individuals with autism are not the same.