Re . B as. Ed. Esp., Bau u, .25, n.1, p.83-98, Jan.-Ma ., 2019 83
Juan, a child wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome Resea ch Repo
JuAn, A child Wi h AsPe ge ’s synd ome: A cAse s udy o A good
P Ac ice o educA ionAl inclusion h ough cooPe A i e leA ning1
JUAN, UMA CRIANÇA COM SÍNDROME DE ASPERGER: ESTUDO DE CASO DE UMA BOA
PRÁTICA DE INCLUSÃO EDUCACIONAL POR MEIO DA APRENDIZAGEM COOPERATIVA
Felipe T illo ALONSO2
Ana Pa ada GAÑETE3
Ab aham BERNÁRDEZ-GÓMEZ4
ABSTRACT: A en ion o di e si y o make inclusi e educa ion e ec i e is he concep ual amewo k in which we p esen his
case s udy on a s uden wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome (AS), whose name is Juan. Th e pu pose o his pape is o iden i y, desc ibe,
analyze, in e p e , unde s and and make isible a good p ac ice o educa ional inclusion wi h a child wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome
based on coope a i e lea ning. Th us, h ough a quali a i e me hodology wi h a single case s udy, we analyze an educa ional
inclusion expe ience epo ed by child en hemsel es, and his ep esen s a coope a i e lea ning expe ience. Mee ing Juan’s speci i c
educa ional suppo needs (NEAE) o acili a e his inclusion is he backbone o his wo k.
KEYWORD: Special Educa ion. Aspe ge ’s. Collabo a i e lea ning. Inclusi e p ac ices.
RESUMO: A a enção à di e sidade pa a o na a educação inclusi a e i caz é o ma co eó ico concei ual no qual se ap esen a es e
abalho sob e um aluno com Sínd ome de Aspe ge (SA), que se chama Juan. O obje i o des e a igo é iden i i ca , desc e e ,
analisa , in e p e a , comp eende e o na isí el uma boa p á ica de inclusão educacional com uma c iança com Sínd ome
de Aspe ge baseada na ap endizagem coope a i a. Assim, po meio de uma me odologia quali a i a com um es udo de caso
único, analisa-se uma expe iência de inclusão educacional ela ada pelas p óp ias c ianças, e isso ep esen a uma expe iência de
ap endizagem coope a i a. A ende às necessidades especí i cas de apoio educacional (NEAE) de Juan pa a acili a sua inclusão é
a espinha do sal des e abalho.
PALAVRAS-CHAVE: Educação Especial. Aspe ge . Ap endizagem colabo a i a. P á icas inclusi as.
1 in oduc ion
Messiou (2006) a gues ha lis ening o child en abou inclusion in schools is a
ecommenda ion ha mus be ollowed o ensu e success in ela ion o inclusion in hese
spaces. Th e e o e, his esea ch, which aims o con ibu e o he imp o emen o educa ional
p ac ice, is done h ough he collec ion and e alua ion o child en’s oices.
In ac , i was h ough he analysis o he pe cep ions o he classma es o a class oom
ha a good p ac ice o educa ional inclusion o a child wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome was
1 h p://dx.doi.o g/10.1590/S1413-65382519000100006
2 Depa men o Pedagogy and Didac ics - Uni e si y o San iago de Compos ela, San iago de Compos ela, Spain. elipe. illo@
usc.es.
ORCID h ps://o cid.o g/0000-0002-0107-7275
3 Depa men o Pedagogy and Didac ics - Uni e si y o San iago de Compos ela, San iago de Compos ela, Spain. ana.pa ada@
usc.es.
ORCID h ps://o cid.o g/0000-0001-5051-063X
4 Depa men o Didac ics and School O ganiza ion - Uni e si y o Mu cia, Mu cia, Spain. [email p o ec ed].
ORCID h ps://o cid.o g/0000-0003-1862-5554
Th is is an open-access a icle dis ibu ed unde he e ms o he C ea i e Commons A ibu ion License.
84 Re . B as. Ed. Esp., Bau u, .25, n.1, p.83-98, Jan.-Ma ., 2019
ALONSO F. T.; GAÑETE A. P.; BERNÁRDEZ-GÓMEZ, A.
disco e ed h ough a coope a i e lea ning expe ience; in such a way ha knowing, explaining
and unde s anding his expe ience is he objec i e o his wo k. Thus, we poin ou as objec i es
o his wo k:
a. Gene al objec i e:
• Iden i y, desc ibe, analyze, in e p e , unde s and and make isible a good p ac ice o
educa ional inclusion wi h a child wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome based on coope a i e
lea ning.
b. Speci ic objec i es:
• Iden i y he cha ac e is ics o Aspe ge ’s Synd ome ha can assume dis up i e beha io
pa e ns in he con ex o he class oom and he School Cen e .
• Desc ibe he pe cep ions o classma es in he class oom o a child wi h Aspe ge ’s
Synd ome, as indica o s o good p ac ices o educa ional inclusion.
• Analyze how he g oup o classma es o a child wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome espond o
si ua ions gene a ed by he dis up i e pa e ns o hei beha io .
• In e p e and unde s and he s a egies o ( e)lead he si ua ion, as indica o s o good
p ac ices o educa ional inclusion.
Fo ha , his wo k was s uc u ed in o i e sec ions ha add ess consecu i ely: he
main cha ac e is ics o Aspe ge ’s Synd ome, coope a i e lea ning and good p ac ices, as well
as he me hodology used in his s udy, he main esul s and conclusions.
1.1 AsPe ge ’s synd ome: A conceP uAl APP oAch
Aspe ge ’s Synd ome is included in wha is known as Au ism Spec um Diso de (ASD)
along wi h childhood au ism, Childhood Disin eg a i e Diso de and Global De elopmen al
Diso de - No O he wise Speci ied (DSM-5, Ame ican Psychia ic Associa ion [APA], 2016).
I was i s desc ibed by Hans Aspe ge , in 1944, and coined by Lo na Wing in 1981 (Wing,
1981). People wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome ha e a numbe o common cha ac e is ics and a e
iden i ied in h ee speci ic unc ional domains ha a e quali a i ely al e ed (APA, 2000).
They a e known as he Wing’s T iad (Wing & Gould, 1979): (1) Abili y o social ela ion; (2)
Communica ion skills; (3) Men al and beha io al lexibili y.
The e a e many desc ip ions in li e a u e (Tan am, Monaghan, Nicholson, &
S i ling, 1989; Sza ma i, 2006a, 2006b; APA, 2016); howe e , i is unde s ood ha he one
o Ri iè e (2001, as ci ed in Pé ez, Pascual, P udencio, Na a o, & Comí, 2006) is he one
ha con ibu es mos wi h de ails o ou esea ch, since i conc e ely cla i ies each one o he
cha ac e is ics o he Aspe ge ’s Synd ome :
• Quali a i e diso de o he ela ionship: lack o empa hy, lack o sensi i i y o social
s imuli, li le emo ional ecip oci y and incompa ibili y be ween beha io and social
con ex .
• In lexibili y in beha io : dominan and i ual in e es s, some imes ex eme in na u e.
Re . B as. Ed. Esp., Bau u, .25, n.1, p.83-98, Jan.-Ma ., 2019 85
Juan, a child wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome Resea ch Repo
• Speech p oblems: ocabula y no adap ed o he age o en i onmen in which he/she is
ound and di icul y in e p e ing non-li e al s a emen s.
• Emo ional and mo o exp ession changes: lack o mo o coo dina ion and di icul ies in
he use o ges u es.
• Common abili y o impe sonal in elligence o singula abili ies ha appea in he limi ed
a eas, which s ands ou when wi h his/he companions.
1.2 A Wing’s iAd in he educA ionAl con ex : di icul ies hA A e gene A ed
Acco ding o A wood (2002), Pé ez e al. (2006) and González Na a o (2012),
i was ound ha he i s domain, social ela ion capaci y, shows changes in he p ocesses o
social cogni ion in which nai e beha io p e ails, beha io s no adjus ed o social con en ion
o o imma u e easoning. In p ac ice, acco ding o a s udy conduc ed by Po way and Johnson
(2003, as ci ed in González Na a o, 2012), which b ings s a emen s om s uden s wi h
Aspe ge ’s Synd ome, his ansla es in o:
“I emembe eeling uncom o able a ound people. I ealized ha i was no app op ia e. I was
a ague sense o discom o ha g ew as I g ew olde ”.
“I eel sad and dis essed because I don’ ha e iends a school. I makes me su e ”.
This e e s o eelings o loneliness, di e ence and isola ion.
When e e ing o he domain o language and communica ion, i is ecognized
ha , despi e being able o cons uc sen ences co ec ly, Juan p esen s di icul ies in he use o
language. This is demons a ed by he use o elabo a e ocabula y, di icul y in knowing wha
o say o espec ing he o de o he con e sa ions, li e al unde s anding o he language o
es ic ions on he exp ession o emo ions.
Finally, in ela ion o he domain whose cha ac e is ic pa e n is he men al and
beha io al lexibili y, i is possible o emphasize he p edominance o a igid and dicho omous
easoning, o en limi ed o opics o in e es . In addi ion, di e en i uals and pe ec ionis
a i udes can be mani es ed in di e en asks. In he s udy done by Po way and Johnson
(2003, as ci ed in González Na a o, 2012), a eenage wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome explains as
ollows:
“I don’ unde s and wha happens o he ules. I say he ules a e made o be ollowed, bu
o he s say he ules a e made o be b oken and changed. I ne e b eak any ules. No e en he
o hog aphic ones. I ne e make a mis ake, no e en when I send messages on my cell phone”.
The e o e, he domains a ec ed by he s udy objec discussed he e a ec in a special
way he ela ionship wi h hei pee s, which undoub edly a ec s he p ope educa ional use o
hei school expe ience. This ac indica es he need o espond o he objec i es es ablished in
his in es iga ion.
86 Re . B as. Ed. Esp., Bau u, .25, n.1, p.83-98, Jan.-Ma ., 2019
ALONSO F. T.; GAÑETE A. P.; BERNÁRDEZ-GÓMEZ, A.
1.3 good P Ac ices And cooPe A i e leA ning
Fo a long ime, educa ional esea ch in gene al has e ol ed in quali y in absolu e
e ms, based on he iden i ica ion and isibili y o good p ac ices. Thus, om he de ini ion
o deduc i e and no ma i e, habi ual in Pedagogy (o a no ma i e na u e, in i sel ), he a ea
mo es owa ds a much mo e induc i e and si ua ed pe spec i e (Zabalza, 2012).
In his pape , in ela ion o he e m “good p ac ices”, i is mean ha hey a e
examples o success ul p ocedu es and beha io s (Anne, 2003), bu , acco ding o Zabalza
(2012), i is impo an o highligh ha no good p ac ice eaches he a ibu ion o alue in he
summa y: he idea o uni e sal p ac ices is no good; a leas in educa ion. Good p ac ices a e
always in a con ex and unde ce ain condi ions.
Wo king om he pe spec i e o good p ac ices in inclusi e educa ion is, i possible,
gi en g ea e meaning by unde s anding ha i co esponds o “a p ocess ha has no end” (Simón
& Echeí a, 2012, p. 34), which elies on conc e e cases ha ha e succeeded and would p obably be
“ ans e ed o o he si ua ions and ac as poin s o e e ence and/o con as o hose who wish o
ad ance in he imp o emen o Educa ion” (Zabalza, 2012, p. 20). Thus, his pape ies o explain
wha is conside ed o be a good p ac ice o educa ional inclusion h ough coope a i e lea ning; ha
is, wha leads s uden s o coun on each o he , o collabo a e, o help each o he h oughou he
de elopmen o e e yday ac i i ies (Pujolàs Mase , 2012). This a o s and gene a es app op ia e
dynamics o be e add ess he “daily asks” o class oom li e (Jackson, 1992).
Pujolàs Mase (2009, p. 8) de ines coope a i e lea ning as
a way o s uc u ing he class, so ha he eache is no he only one who “ eaches”,
bu also he s uden s in small coope a i e eams a e able o “ each” each o he , coo-
pe a e and help one ano he when i comes o lea ning [...]. Coope a i e lea ning has
g ea ad an ages: i imp o es lea ning o all s uden s, no only con en ela ed o
a i udes, alues and no ms, bu also o he con en (bo h concep s and p ocedu es).
And no jus he s uden s who ha e he mos p oblems lea ning, bu also hose who
a e mo e abled o lea n. I also acili a es he ac i e pa icipa ion o all s uden s in
he eaching and lea ning p ocess, emphasizing hei ole in his p ocess. This un-
doub edly con ibu es o he c ea ion o a class oom en i onmen ha is much mo e
conduci e o lea ning o all s uden s. On he o he hand, i acili a es he in eg a ion
and in e ac ion o s uden s wi h di icul y wi h hose who lea n easily, so ha among
hem he e is a s onge and highe quali y ela ionship.
Following his au ho , o us, coope a i e lea ning in ol es he es uc u ing o
class oom space, inco po a ing new eaching me hodologies by he eache and, mainly, a change
o philosophy in eaching-lea ning cha ac e ized by he ho izon ali y be ween eache -s uden ,
u o ing pee educa ion and pe sonaliza ion. I also in ol es a class oom o ganiza ion ha
encou ages eamwo k, which a o s educa ional inclusion and he uni e sal design o lea ning.
Thus, a pedagogy in which he school mus adap o he s uden s, no he o he way a ound.
In e es and ele ance o coope a i e lea ning - unde s ood as an in en ional and
sys ema ic s a egy, ha is, as a me hodology, bu also as a spon aneously gene a ed expe ience
among pee s and ha , in one way o ano he , is o all s uden s o achie e cogni i e and social
Re . B as. Ed. Esp., Bau u, .25, n.1, p.83-98, Jan.-Ma ., 2019 87
Juan, a child wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome Resea ch Repo
skills o op imize hei de elopmen - he ex ensi e li e a u e explains on he subjec : Domingo
(2008); Du an and Blanch (2007); Fe nández-Río (2006); González, Cecchini, Fe nández-
Río, and Méndez-Giménez (2008); Langhe , Ricci, P ope si, Glumbic, and Capu o (2016);
Loba o F aile (1997); Lo en e and Jo en (2009); Méndez-Ga cía (2007); Paloma es Mon e o
and Chis e Ta azona (2016); Pujolàs Mase (2012); Ve ne a San ana, López Bedoya,
Gu ie ez-Sanchez and A iza (2014). In he ligh o his app oach, his expe ience co esponds
o wha Pujolàs Mase (2012) says, al hough inclusi e schools and class ooms, on he one
hand, and coope a i e lea ning, on he o he , a e wo di e en concep s, in p ac ice hey a e
in ima ely ela ed because:
a) The only way o se e di e en s uden s in he same class, as equi ed by he choice o an
inclusi e school, is o in oduce in o i a coope a i e lea ning s uc u e, o he de imen o
he indi idualis ic o compe i i e s uc u e, e en dominan in he class oom oday.
b) The e canno be adequa e coope a ion - wi h he de elopmen o solida i y and espec
o he di e ences ha coope a ion implies - i p e iously hose who we e di e en we e
excluded om a class oom i he class oom was no inclusi e.
2 me hodology
Acco ding o he s udies o Sandín Es eban (2003), his wo k adop s a quali a i e
esea ch me hodology (Báez & Pé ez de Tudela, 2007; Bisque a, 2014; Taylo & Bogdan,
1990; Tója Hu ado, 2006) o e hnog aphic adi ion, since “i aims o p o ide aluable
desc ip i e da a o he con ex s, ac i i ies and belie s o he pa icipan s in he educa ional
scena ios” (Goe z & Lecomp e, 1988, p. 41). I is he e o e abou “ econs i u ing analy ically
in ac cul u al se ings and g oups” (Goe z & Lecomp e, 1988, p. 28). In his way, wha is
p esen ed is a unique s udy “o he cul u e o a communi y, o o one o i s undamen al
aspec s, om he pe spec i e o i s global comp ehension” (Agui e, 1995, p. 3).
In his sense, he me hod used o ga he in o ma ion was he case s udy (Macdonald &
Walke , 1975; Me iam, 1998, Muñoz & Muñoz, 2001, Simons, 2011, S ake, 1998; Yin, 1989),
unde s ood as a p ocess o sys ema ic and in-dep h esea ch on he pa icula i y and complexi y
o a singula and con empo a y expe ience in i s ac ual con ex . Speci ically, a single case s udy
was conduc ed whose uni o analysis a e he pee s o he child wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome.
Juan is en olled in a Public Educa ion Cen e loca ed in a u al a ea. He is cu en ly
en olled in he 6 h g ade o Childhood Educa ion. He has ne e ailed any cou ses. His
academic pe o mance is good. He belongs o a amily o a e age socioeconomic s a us. He
li es wi h his pa en s and his li le sis e . His amily en i onmen has an adequa e deg ee o
accep ance o Juan’s cha ac e is ics and suppo s his educa ional p ocess. Juan has ex e nal
ein o cemen wi h a psychologis .
The popula ion is con igu ed by all Childhood Educa ion s uden s in he six h g ade
(ages be ween 11 and 12), who a e 9 in o al. All we e in e iewed, excep one, who did no
wan o. F om he se o hei answe s, hose o i e s uden s we e selec ed because hey we e
mo e subs an i e and ele an . The p ocess and he analysis o he collec ed da a wen h ough
he ollowing phases:

88 Re . B as. Ed. Esp., Bau u, .25, n.1, p.83-98, Jan.-Ma ., 2019
ALONSO F. T.; GAÑETE A. P.; BERNÁRDEZ-GÓMEZ, A.
1. Design o he in e iew. A semi-s uc u ed model was adop ed so ha , a he ime,
he in e iewe could adap he ques ions and comple e hem wi h o he people. I is
composed o 19 ques ions, wi h he objec i e o in es iga ing he pe cep ions o he
classma es o a child wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome.
Pe cep ions Ques ions
Abou he cha ac e is ics o a
classma e wi h AS
1. I we alk abou a child wi h AS, can you iden i y which classma e we
a e alking abou ? Please ell us he i s and las le e o his name.
2. When did you ealize ha you pa ne had some peculia cha ac e is-
ics?
3. Wha was you eac ion? Wha did you hink? Did you ell anyone
abou i ?
4. How would you desc ibe you classma e? Wha a e he cha ac e is ics
ha mos call you a en ion? Would you add any hing else?
5. Did you ha e o s uggle o ela e o him?
6. How would you a e you expe ience wi h him?
7. Could you desc ibe good momen s wi h him ha you laughed a , had
un wi h, e c.?
8. Do you emembe bad momen s when you go ne ous o bo he ed in
class?
9. I you had a iend o sibling a school, wha would you ecommend
ha he did o deal wi h o he child en in gene al?
10. And, wha would you say i hey had a classma e in he class simila
o who we a e e e ing o? Wha should hey do? How would hey ha e
o do ha ?
Abou he s uden ’s si ua ion wi h
AS wi hin his pee g oup
11. Do you do hings ha o he s do no unde s and?
12. How did you classma es eac o he way he is? How did you eel?
Would you say hey ha e adap ed?
13. Wha wo ds do you hink you classma es would use o desc ibe you?
14. Wha did he class do o deal wi h his?
15. Do you hink hey we e help ul a making you eel good?
On he pe o mance o eache s
16. O e hese yea s oge he , wha would you say you eache s did o
make you classma e eel good and coexis ence be acili a ed?
17. How do you hink hey conside ed i ?
18. How did hey espond o his peculia i ies?
19. Did you do any hing conc e e ha would ease he si ua ion o him
and e e yone?
Table 1. In e iew ques ions
Sou ce: Elabo a ed by he au ho s.
2. Reques o pe mission o in e iew child en in his o de : i s o he eache and, acco ding
o he , immedia ely o he pa en s o he child wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome; hen o he
School managemen ; and inally o he pa en s o he child en in he g oup o he 6 h g ade
o Childhood Educa ion. All ag eed o coope a e and he p oposed o de was app o ed by
he head o he esea ch g oup, because in ou ins i u ion, he e is no e hics commi ee.
3. Conduc ion o he in e iews wi h he child en o he school. In o de o accomplish hem,
he esea che wen o school on he day p e iously ag eed wi h he eache o Juan’s class.
Re . B as. Ed. Esp., Bau u, .25, n.1, p.83-98, Jan.-Ma ., 2019 89
Juan, a child wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome Resea ch Repo
The in e iews we e done indi idually o one mo ning. Thei du a ion a ied wi h each
child, be ween 10 o 20 minu es. Thei a i udes we e usually o in e es and cu iosi y in
he p ocess, since hey no only in ui ed bu also unde s ood ha hei con ibu ion was
aluable.
4. T ansc ip ion o he in e iews by he esea che s hemsel es, keeping li e ally he
exp essions used by he child en. The eco dings ook a o al o 3 hou s and 16 minu es,
which in ol ed 47 pages o ansc ip ions.
5. In e p e a ion o da a using he ATLAS. i so wa e ea u e. Thus, he di e en ci a ions
induc i ely by seman ic a ini y we e coded, aking in o accoun he good p ac ices ound
in esponse o he dimension in he di e en a eas men ioned in he Wing’s iad. In his
way, he codes used we e ela ed o Social Rela ionship Abili y, Communica ion Skills, and
Men al and Beha io al Flexibili y.
3 AnAlysis And dA A in e P e A ion: JuAn’s clAssmA es desc iBe good P Ac ices o
educA ionAl inclusion h ough cooPe A i e leA ning
In he analysis o he in o ma ion collec ed in in e iews wi h he pee g oup o he
child wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome, good p ac ices o educa ional inclusion based on coope a i e
lea ning we e iden i ied, due o how s uden s, eache s and he Educa ional Cen e in gene al
aced Juan’s singula i ies. Rema kably, a e u he in es iga ion, we do so h ough he looks
and oices o child en in Ea ly Childhood Educa ion (Ainscow & Kaplan, 2005; Fielding,
2001; Messiou, 2006, 2012a, 2012b; Messiou & Jones, 2015), Juan’s classma es o Childhood
Educa ion (wi h he excep ion o one) and wi h whom hey ha e coexis ed o he las 9 yea s.
Fo he iden i ica ion o he ci a ions, he coding o e ed by he ATLAS. i analysis p og am
was used.
Then, he in o ma ion ob ained in he in e iews wi h child en was g ouped in o
i e ca ego ies o analysis, which in u n a e loca ed wi hin each o he h ee dimensions o he
Wing’s T iad (Wing & Gould, 1979).
3.1 cAPAci y o sociAl elA ionshiP
3.1.1 Aluing he Po en iAl o you colleAgue
I seems impo an o emphasize ha despi e he exis ence and mani es a ion o
Juan’s ce ain dis up i e beha io s in he class oom, his colleagues can ecognize and alue his
po en ial.
”E.5- How would you desc ibe you classma e? Wha a e he cha ac e is ics ha mos call you
a en ion? Would you add any hing else?
R. - Oh, i ’s g ea , bu some imes in class he s a s o bo he a li le. Bu , well, my mo he al e-
ady old me ha I had o ha e pa ience, and I do, because some imes he s a s alking, alking
abou he bell and his .... bu o he es he is a good iend and always wan s o play wi h us
and, al hough he c ies, some imes we play c ying. I don’ know why and he s ill ca es abou us. I
don’ know ... One day we go like ha because we had a es and he old us: wha ’s w ong wi h
you? Do you wan a snack? I don’ know, o me he’s a no mal child (P1, 41-44).
5 The le e E e e s o he ques ion asked by he in e iewe and he le e R is he s uden ’s esponse.
90 Re . B as. Ed. Esp., Bau u, .25, n.1, p.83-98, Jan.-Ma ., 2019
ALONSO F. T.; GAÑETE A. P.; BERNÁRDEZ-GÓMEZ, A.
“E.- You ha e o ell me wo o h ee li le wo ds ha you hink you classma es would use o
desc ibe Juan, um, h ee li le hings o , hose you can hink o , bu ...
R.- “Funny, cool, e y nice ...”
R.- “Especially unny, yeah ... Because he con e sa ion he had wi h my mo he when I couldn’
go in he on sea o he ca , she pampe s me, I s a ed o b eak my bu ” (P1, 104: 109).
As i can be seen, he ision ha Juan’s classma es ha e is no o ypi y him as a
“s ange” o peculia child. Th ough hei wo ds, i can be no iced how hey become awa e o
he human backg ound behind he classi ica ion, o , wha is wo se, he objec i ica ion o which
s uden s wi h di e se cha ac e is ics a e subjec o.
“Okay, and now I wan you o desc ibe Juan. Wha is he like?
R. Yes, Juan is e y special, because he is also e y sma , e y in elligen , because he has a
memo y ha is, he seems like a gi ed child because he knows he license pla e o my mo he ’s
ca . So one o Juan’s main cha ac e is ics is ha , when he becomes obsessed wi h some hing, he
keeps saying e e yday ... The e was a ime when he became obsessed wi h ele a o s, he b ands
o he ele a o s, whe he hey wo ked co ec ly o no and we ha e a lo o un, I ha e a lo o
un when he says ha , and ... I eally like him because he’s e y nice, besides he hinks I’m his
gi l iend (P3, 52:53).
As i can be seen, o his classma es, Juan is a sma , in elligen , unny, iendly and a
good iend. In his di ec ion, s uden s who ha e been pa o Juan’s li e o yea s ha e managed
o o e come ba ie s ha he singula i ies ha Aspe ge ’s Synd ome may cause and hey a e
hose who accep and alue him as such.
3.1.2 solidA i y, eAmWo k And elloWshiP
Mos classma es ag ee ha some imes i is a li le complica ed o ela e o Juan,
because he can be “ edious”, “bo ing”, and e y “pe sis en in some hings”. Howe e , e en so,
he u h is ha hey ha e de eloped coope a i e lea ning skills ha ha e led hem o be in
solida i y wi h him, o wo k as a eam and o be good classma es.
“E.- Yes e day, o example, he go sick o h ee days and a i ed on Monday and suddenly
opened he doo jus by s e ching his head and said: ‘I hope you guys ha e a su p ise pa y
eady o me!’ - and we did. .., i you saw he boa d, he e was - qui e la ge “su p ise pa y” and
we all shou ed – Boo! -, he lo es su p ise pa ies ...
E.- Yes?
R.- “And we always do i o him, excep ha on ha day we ac ually o go , he did no see ha
we we e sc eaming o whispe ing, so he opened he doo and said: ‘Guys, I hope you guys ha e
a su p ise pa y eady o me!’.
E.- Tha is, you do hings you know Juan likes, igh ? And do you like o do hem?
R.- “Yes, and he smiles e y well, hey, he has a smile up he e (he poin s high abo e he co ne s),
i you see him smiling in he pho os, i ’s e y unny” (P1, 111: 115).
“E.- Wha do you hink hey el ?
R.- “Um, I don’ know ... I don’ know, hey easily became his iends, Dd ailed and became
ou iend and Je came om ano he school in he i s place and became iends wi h e e yone,
I don’ know ...”
E.- OK, e y good.
R.- “We a e ew, we ge along wi h e e yone” (P1, 99: 102).
Re . B as. Ed. Esp., Bau u, .25, n.1, p.83-98, Jan.-Ma ., 2019 91
Juan, a child wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome Resea ch Repo
As i can be seen, child en know Juan’s cha ac e is ics. No only does i no bo he
hem, bu hey do enjoyable hings ha acili a e his in eg a ion and coexis ence in he
class oom and in he Educa ional Cen e in gene al. This con i ms he idea o Pujolàs Mase
(2012) on “coope a ion implies he de elopmen o solida i y and espec o di e ences”.
3.1.3 AccomPAnying And BAlAncing Be Ween demAnds And needs: he P Ac icAl
exAmPle o eAche s
Child en wa ch e e y hing. They lea n mo e by looking a wha is done han wha
hey a e old o do. In his con ex , i seems especially ele an o make isible a good p ac ice
ca ied ou by he eache s in ela ion o he case. The issue is abou acili a ing lea ning and
de elopmen . This is no hing mo e han he wo k o accompanying he s uden .
““E.- Okay, so wha would you say you eache s did so Juan el good and ha all o you go
along?
R.- “Well, o example, Ma, a classma e we had in childhood, go along e y well wi h Juan,
because, a he beginning, we we e no all wi h e e yone, as Juan said i was he pe iod o adap-
a ion. And I was wi h Jn all he ime” (P1, 132: 134).
R.- The eache s, because as adul s and such, unde s and ha you ha e o ha e pa ience wi h
Juan and ha e o help him because he does no ha e i , as he has Aspe ge ’s, bu I hink e e yo-
ne ies ha d and has a lo o pa ience , because eache Ea has a lo o pa ience wi h Juan,
al hough some imes hey ge ne ous and sc eam a him, bu hey e en yell a him, bu , bu
hey ha e a lo o pa ience and hey ea him well (P3: 139: 139).
I is in e ed om his obse a ion ha a balance wo ks p ope ly be ween he
demands exe ed by eache s on he asks ha Juan mus ca y ou and his needs.
R.- In ou h place, I don’ emembe , in i h we had Ea, oh yes!, in ou h we had Me, well, I
ea ed him like a no mal pe son, bu I always ga e him a ewa d when he beha ed well. I’d le
him use he compu e s o lea e o he b eak ea lie . Then, Ea, whene e Juan wan s some hing,
i s asks him o do his homewo k, and hen asks him wha he wan s o do and le him do i ;
well, i i ’s no e y special, le him do i e e y F iday, e e y F iday she le s him do i i he did his
homewo k well, Ea le s him use he compu e o wo hou s and Juan ado es i (P1, 142: 143).
As i can be seen, he needs o he s uden wi h Aspe ge ’s Synd ome a e no
con on ed; on he con a y, his own ixa ions and ou ines a e used in his a o , c ea ing a
mo i a ing elemen ha esul s in he achie emen goals in school lea ning.
3.2 communicA ion skills
3.2.1 ecogni ion, AcceP Ance o di e ences And emPA hy
Some o he beha io s associa ed wi h he social de ici o child en wi h Aspe ge ’s
Synd ome a e, acco ding o Alonso Peña (2004), A wood (2002) and Pé ez e al. (2006), lack
o in e es in games and ac i i ies o his age, inadequa e app oaches o beha io , imposi ion
o ules, exagge a ed eac ions. Con a y o his, he awa eness o Juan’s uniqueness, which his
classma es possessed, made i possible spon aneously and in ui i ely o ake a ious measu es o
egula e his eac ions o educe his chance o appea ing. Thus, he e a e a i udes ha p omo e