Schools & Education

Education is one of the major areas of concern for anyone with TS/TS+ or families of members with TS/TS+. The first thing we must remember is that a diagnosis of TS/TS+ does not mean that individuals will have problems completing school. May people with TS/TS+ are doing fine as doctors, lawyers, educators, pilots, etc. TS does not affect intelligence; however, TS and its associated disorders such as ADHD and Learning Difficulties, can make classroom life a challenge.

Your local TSFC Chapter can be a primary source for assistance with in-service presentations to educators, classmates, families and other community groups.

Support within the education system will vary from year to year as the child progress with age and moves through elementary, middle & high school and college or university. The TSFC publication - The Educators Resource Kit is a primary tool for educators. This kit contains - Circle of Support: A Practical Guide to Tourette Syndrome for Educators VHS or DVD, an Interactive Workbook, a Facilitators Guide, Symptom Checklists, and a copy of Understanding Tourette Syndrome: A Handbook for Educators, 2nd Edition! This is also available in French.

College or university can be an incredibly freeing time for many students with differences. Many teenagers with TS/TS+ experience a reduction in their tics by the time they are entering post-secondary education. The behaviours and symptoms that may be a result of neurology seem to bring less attention because the student is surrounded by other people who are attempting to find their identity and is living in an atmosphere in which eccentricity and individuality seem to be more revered than reviled. Choosing a program or course of study can result in the subjects that caused the most problems in high school disappearing off the schedule entirely in post-secondary school.

The downside is that the level of support and supervision provided at post-secondary institutions is minimal. If your teenager attends a school that is a long way from home, he/she may quickly find him/herself in over his/her head if he/she is not yet ready to manage life on their own.

In addition to assisting your teenager in learning the skills for independence, you can use a few other strategies to assist your teenager in making the transition to post-secondary school:

  • Help your teenager pick a college or university program that suits his/her interests.
  • If your teenager has required accommodations throughout his school career, he/she will need those accommodations in post-secondary school. Look for schools that support students with special education needs at the level that your teenager requires.
  • Scholarships are available to students with special needs. Research what is available and whether your child qualifies.
  • If your teenager is planning on living in residence at the school, consider whether he/she is able to cope with a roommate. Most residences offer only shared accommodation to first-year students; however; they may be able to make exceptions for students with special needs.
  • Determine if your teenager would benefit by waiting for a year before entering post-secondary school. Waiting may be a good strategy if your teenager is not yet ready socially to manage post-secondary school, or if he would benefit by improving in some academic areas before continuing at the post-secondary level. Some alternatives are to work for a year, to take some courses either at high school or at a local college to improve an academic area in which he/she may be weak, or to combine work and study.
  • A program at a small community college can serve as a stepping-stone to the environment of a university. Courses can be selected that are credit courses for career path that will be continued in university.
  • When your teenager or young adult enrolls in a college or university, your role in deciding his/her courses and determining the level of support he/she needs is much reduced. All the work you invested as a parent in helping your teenager learn the skills he/she needs for independence will now pay off.
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