‘I shouldn’t have to educate their school about what autism is’: Community attitudes and parent reports of autistic primary and secondary school experiences in Australia

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Jones, S. C., Gordon, C. S., & Mizzi, S. (2025). ‘I shouldn’t have to educate their school about what autism is’: Community attitudes and parent reports of autistic primary and secondary school experiences in Australia. Autism, 29(10), 2451-2462. https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613251338908

Publication date: 31 May 2025 Added to AutiHub: 6 Jul 2026 Type: Article Article language: English
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Authors

Publication authors
3
Publication authors identified as autistic
1 / 3 (33.3%)
  1. Sandra C. Jones *
  2. Chloe S. Gordon
  3. Simone Mizzi

Abstract

This study aims to understand experiences of inclusion for autistic school students. The study reports on findings from three surveys, one conducted in 2021 with the general population (N = 1983) and two conducted with parents/carers of autistic school students, one in 2020 (N = 2212) and one in 2021 (N = 528). The general population had a favourable attitude towards autistic students receiving supports in school. However, the lived experience of autistic students, as reported on by their parents, highlighted significant gaps in the provision of support. Qualitative data from the 2021 survey with parents of autistic students found that system-level challenges were pervasive, and a lack of inclusion and support caused significant harm to autistic students. Although the perspective is that of the parent rather than the student, this study may provide insight into the experiences of autistic students who otherwise may not engage with traditional research methods. Future research should seek to hear directly from autistic students themselves and to explore case study examples of schools that are excelling in the area of supporting autistic students. These exemplars could be used to advocate for the provision of support in schools and referred to in professional development for school leaders and teachers. Lay abstract This study explored the experiences of inclusion for autistic students in Australian schools. Our survey in 2021 with the general public (N = 1983) found that people agree that autistic students should receive support in schools. Our surveys with parents of autistic students, one in 2020 (N = 2212) and another in 2021 (N = 528), found many barriers within the school system that make it hard for autistic children to feel included and supported. This lack of support negatively impacts the well-being of autistic children. It is important to note that this study focused on the perspectives of parents, not the students themselves. Future research should identify and learn from schools that are doing a great job supporting autistic students. These examples could be used to advocate for better support for all autistic students and to help train educators to be more effective in meeting the needs of these students.

Bibliography cited by this reference

Cited references are imported from external metadata sources when they are available. The list may be partial.

Cited bibliography overview

These indicators describe the bibliography cited by this publication. An author name is counted each time it appears in one cited reference, so the same person can be counted more than once. Names not yet linked to an author already present in AutiHub are treated as unknown, not as non-autistic. Last computed: 2 Oct 2026 11:55.

Cited references
42
With a DOI
31
Without a DOI, from raw bibliography text
11
6 / 42 (14.3%) cited references include at least one author identified as autistic.
References with data to complete
13 / 42 (31.0%)
References with detected author names
32 / 42 (76.2%)
Without detected author names
10
Without a structured title
11
Without a stable identifier
11
References with raw author names still to review
8
References with external metadata lookup issues
0
These indicators apply to cited references displayed on this page, after technical duplicates have been merged. A reference without a DOI can still support author statistics when a title and author names are available.
Author names detected in the cited bibliography
118
From DOI or external metadata
118
From validated raw bibliography text
0
Raw names already validated
0
Raw names still to review
9
54 / 118 (45.8%) names are linked to an author already present in AutiHub. 64 / 118 (54.2%) names are not yet linked.
Names linked to a person identified as autistic
7 / 118 (5.9%)
Calculated across all author names detected in the cited bibliography. Among names linked to an author already present in AutiHub: 7 / 54 (13.0%). Distinct people identified as autistic: 5 / 109 (4.6%).
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