When you know a situation,
you know how to act: automatically when you enter a dark room,
you know that you have to press the the switch to turn on the light.
You also know how to prepare a coffee without without paying too much attention to it.
These are activities, gestures, that you have reproduced Mechanical noise
so many times that they're automated. Mechanical noise
While facing a new situation,
you will need to think about it in a more conscious way.
If the coffee machine breaks down, what should you do?
Maybe check if it is plugged in properly, or let a
a member of the staff know so they can contact the manufacturer.
In an unexpected situation, you have to be able to determine
what actions to take and how to react.
And it is much more complicated if the executive system is altered.
Executive dysfunctions limit, among other things
the person's ability to adapt to new situations.
Facing an unexpected event,
the person loses all his bearings and this leads to high anxiety.
Impact noise
[Teacher] So, as I was saying So now you're at the police station,
you have filed a complaint for the theft of your phone or your bag.
So, he's going to decide... Knock on the door
Yes, come in.
Hello.
Whispers
Hi everyone! With my colleague, we're from socio, from the building next door.
[Narrator] The intervention of these two students was obviously not planned.
[Student] It's an association that organizes a lot of sports activities.
[Narrator] This change, which may seem insignificant, is very destabilizing for the student.
Adapting to the unexpected requires mental flexibility
which may be lacking in people with with executive dysfunctions.
This is one of the reasons why autistic people are very attached to their families.
to their routine, to their habits.
They changed the room again... I was right next door this morning.
Plus, it's right at the other end.
So we're going to be running late.
[Narrator] This need for immutability can be disrupted by changes in the room or the schedule,
which are frequent in the university environment.
And these changes often happen at the last minute, which is even worse.
How can we avoid this kind of thing?
Well, first of all, as far as possible, avoid the unexpected at all costs.
Try to, for example, plan your homework assigbments
rather than announcing them at the last minute.
If you can't avoid it, at least try to anticipate
a change in schedule.
Whether it's a change of schedule, a change of room a cancellation or postponement of a class.
And in addition, this organizational effort will benefit all students.
Also, from the beginning of the year, pass on to the autistic students
some kind of procedure to follow in case of unforeseen circumstances.
For example, having someone's mobile number,
who would be a contact person in case of a problem.
The role of this person would be to reassure her,
to accompany her and to and to show her what to do.
I got your message, we've moved to lecture hall C
When we experience situations that are particularly far from routine,
it is important to to contact these students to make sure that
to make sure that they are able to get their bearings.
one person in a hundred is affected by autism.
It is the responsibility of all of us
to improve their social participation and their quality of academic life.