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EPQ on Autism

I'm going to start writing a dissertation for my EPQ and I'm basing it on Autism but can't think of anything too controversial to write the dissertation on. I'd really want it to relate well with a book called "The Reason I Jump" as that was wrote by a child with autism and gives a great insight to the condition. Any things good thanks.
What does the book say about autism?

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Original post by seanking99
I'm going to start writing a dissertation for my EPQ and I'm basing it on Autism but can't think of anything too controversial to write the dissertation on. I'd really want it to relate well with a book called "The Reason I Jump" as that was wrote by a child with autism and gives a great insight to the condition. Any things good thanks.


Have you had info from school on EPQ? There s a lot to it.

I have supervised and marked EPQs.
I don't know the book but be aware that everyone with Autism or Aspergers will experience things differently and have different struggles.
Original post by SmallTownGirl
I don't know the book but be aware that everyone with Autism or Aspergers will experience things differently and have different struggles.


Very true. My son is autistic so I know several autists. His is most certainly not like the Autistic Gardener, Kevin from The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night or Ray Babbitt in Rainman.
Reply 5
Writing your EPQ on autism could be a good idea, but I would argue that writing it on "The Reason I Jump" may not be. The claim that it was written by an autistic child is really only true from a certain point of view, as it's really written by his mother based on interpretations from his very limited ability to communicate. It's been criticised a lot for reading like wish fulfillment on her part and not being accurate to what autistic people actually experience. The translation over to English also introduced a lot of generalising statements (e.g. we do this because...) which were not in the Japanese original (which claimed to only speak for the boy's own experiences) and a lot of what it says disagrees with almost everything else on the subject, such as assuming autistics can be particular about food due to not being able to taste certain foods, rather than the general agreement that it's due to being overly sensitive to the texture.

There are books which have been definitely written by autitistic adults in English, and from those I'd most strongly recommend the works of John Elder Robinson and Temple Grandin. Robinson's work comes entirely from an asperger's perspective and he has lived an overall quite successful life, from repairing equipment for bands to running his own car repair business. Temple Grandin started off quite low functioning and wasn't able to talk until the age of four, but is now a respected professor of animal science, lifestock consultant and author. You're not going to be getting anything directly from an autistic child from either of them but their books do go back into their memories of childhood, and Robinson has written ones on raising his autistic son.

It's also worth looking into the informative literature on the topic in addition to the stories, such as Tony Attwood's "The Complete Guide to Asperger's Syndrome". This book is also more focused on the high functioning end of the spectrum but is very informative. You can also look into a lot of information online and perhaps look at the Wrong Planet forum to get perspectives directly from autistic people.

In any case, I wouldn't recommend writing on "The Reason I Jump" unless you combine it with other, less dubious works on the subject, as you're otherwise going to be getting something very distant from the reality for most people. That's my perspective, at any rate, as someone with autism/asperger's. On that note, if you have any questions about autism, I'd be happy to answer them or point you towards something that can.

Good luck with your dissertation, whatever you decide.
(edited 8 years ago)
Reply 6
Original post by angelcake123
What does the book say about autism?

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The book is wrote by Naoki Higashida, a boy who has ASD and I think that it would be a good use for reference as it is write from his perspective when looking how he views himself and where he fits in society. It's the first book ever written by someone with ASD.
Reply 7
Original post by TeachChemistry
Have you had info from school on EPQ? There s a lot to it.

I have supervised and marked EPQs.


We haven't started yet but I'm just getting things prepared because I'm planning to have the majority of the text done before the run up to my AS exams
The autistic spectrum is so wide so people who are on different parts of the spectrum will function differently and will feel different things, I've got two autistic siblings and they are nothing like the boy in the book of the curious incident of the dog in the night :smile:
Reply 9
Original post by Urist
Writing your EPQ on autism could be a good idea, but I would argue that writing it on "The Reason I Jump" may not be. The claim that it was written by an autistic child is really only true from a certain point of view, as it's really written by his mother based on interpretations from his very limited ability to communicate. It's been criticised a lot for reading like wish fulfillment on her part and not being accurate to what autistic people actually experience. The translation over to English also introduced a lot of generalising statements (e.g. we do this because...) which were not in the Japanese original (which claimed to only speak for the boy's own experiences) and a lot of what it says disagrees with almost everything else on the subject, such as assuming autistics can be particular about food due to not being able to taste certain foods, rather than the general agreement that it's due to being overly sensitive to the texture.

There are books which have been definitely written by autitistic adults in English, and from those I'd most strongly recommend the works of John Elder Robinson and Temple Grandin. Robinson's work comes entirely from an asperger's perspective and he has lived an overall quite successful life, from repairing equipment for bands to running his own car repair business. Temple Grandin started off quite low functioning and wasn't able to talk until the age of four, but is now a respected professor of animal science, lifestock consultant and author. You're not going to be getting anything directly from an autistic child from either of them but their books do go back into their memories of childhood, and Robinson has written ones on raising his autistic son.

It's also worth looking into the informative literature on the topic in addition to the stories, such as Tony Attwood's "The Complete Guide to Asperger's Syndrome". This book is also more focused on the high functioning end of the spectrum but is very informative. You can also look into a lot of information online and perhaps look at the Wrong Planet forum to get perspectives directly from autistic people.

In any case, I wouldn't recommend writing on "The Reason I Jump" unless you combine it with other, less dubious works on the subject, as you're otherwise going to be getting something very distant from the reality for most people. That's my perspective, at any rate, as someone with autism/asperger's. On that note, if you have any questions about autism, I'd be happy to answer them or point you towards something that can.

Good luck with your dissertation, whatever you decide.


Thanks so much, this is really helpful. I was just writing it on autism and would've liked to include 'The Reason I Jump' in the literature review just because I akready have that book. But I'll be sure to look for them books, they sound really good thanks.
Original post by seanking99
Thanks so much, this is really helpful. I was just writing it on autism and would've liked to include 'The Reason I Jump' in the literature review just because I akready have that book. But I'll be sure to look for them books, they sound really good thanks.


Yeah, including a book just because you have a copy is not good research technique.
Original post by seanking99
The book is wrote by Naoki Higashida, a boy who has ASD and I think that it would be a good use for reference as it is write from his perspective when looking how he views himself and where he fits in society. It's the first book ever written by someone with ASD.


You could use this as one of many sources. But make sure it's not your only source. :smile:

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