After the Autism Elementary Education Unit (UEEA) at the Ampère school in 2021 and the Autism Nursery Education Unit (UEMA) in 2022 at the Buffon nursery school, the City of Grenoble now has a self-regulation system (DAR) in order to meet the specific needs of children with autism spectrum disorders and to offer them an environment adapted to their development. He has been at the Elisée Chatin school since the start of the 2023 school year.
Improving schooling conditions for children with autism spectrum disorders
In Grenoble, an innovative initiative in the field of education has been in place since the start of the 2023 school year at the Élisée Chatin school: the Self-Regulation System (DAR). The aim of self-regulation is to increase the child’s autonomy, motivation and self-esteem, through the control of their thoughts, behaviors and emotions, and the development of cognitive, social and emotional skills. The DAR was designed to meet the specific needs of children with autism by providing techniques and strategies to help them manage their emotions independently. With a maximum capacity of 9 children, the system currently accommodates 2 students, and plans to welcome new children from the next school year.
This project, the result of a partnership between National Education, the Regional Health Agency (ARS), the Mutualité Française and the City of Grenoble, aims to provide an environment adapted to children with autism spectrum disorders. It is part of the 2022-2027 Educational Project which aims to promote an unconditional welcome for all children adapted to the uniqueness of each child.
Concretely, the ARS contributes €140,000 to the project, the National Education provides a specialized teacher, the Mutualité Française provides 2 full-time specialized educators, 1 neuropsychologist at 30% and 1 speech therapist. Finally, the City provides premises (an available refurbished classroom and a room which will be transformed into a hypo-demand room so that children can rest away from any sensory stimuli).
Education for all: The DAR, symbol of Grenoble’s commitment
The DAR at the Élisée Chatin school has already had a significant impact on the children hosted, their families and the educational team. By providing a suitable environment and tools to promote autonomy, the system allows autistic children to flourish and progress in their schooling. In addition, the DAR offers training and regulatory time for all the educational actors involved, thus strengthening the skills and practices of inclusion within the school.
This system is emancipatory, because it offers a place where the child – who benefits from the necessary support within the establishment – is himself an actor in the construction of his own favorable conditions for learning. It was developed in conjunction with the students’ parents, with the commitment of the principal and the teacher responsible for the class.
In the future, DAR aims to welcome more children and continue to improve its practices to ensure quality education for all. This project could serve as a model for other similar initiatives in the country.
A commitment to accessibility in all areas in Grenoble
In 2022, according to the Interministerial Delegation for the national strategy for autism within neurodevelopmental disorders, only 65% of autistic children were in school.
full time. Beyond the breakdown in equal access to education, this implies an impoverishment of families forced to reduce or even interrupt their professional activity for lack of a solution, situations of parental burn-out and isolation.
Grenoble is helping to find solutions. To cite a few:
- the city represented all the other territories of the France Urbaine network at the last national disability conference at the Elysée in 2023 and acts through “France Urbaine” to continue to offer the State concrete solutions for schooling children with special needs;
- we invest €300,000/year in the accessibility of our school assets;
- as part of national autism day, we host various events offered by local associations, including, this year, a conference on autism and schooling;
- the city of Grenoble supports various partnership schemes to promote compliance with the 2005 law for children with disabilities, such as the Autism Nursery Education Unit (UEMA) at the Buffon nursery school and the Elementary Education Unit Autism (UEEA) at the Ampère school.
){kind=link}