Miah Carter, a TikTok star and advocate, emphasizes that autism manifests uniquely among individuals, particularly girls. She highlights how schools are inadequately equipped to recognize autism's subtle signs, especially in girls who tend to mask their struggles. The National Autistic Society notes that girls are typically diagnosed later than boys due to social skills that may mask difficulties. Experts suggest that a lack of training in neurodiversity for teachers contributes to the missed opportunities for early identification of autism in students, with specific challenges faced by girls often overlooked.
For me, things like being overstimulated or shutting down were just seen as me being 'dramatic' or 'too sensitive,' ... Teachers often dismiss signs as just being shy, rude, or moody, and that can be really damaging.
Teachers are often on the front lines of early developmental observation, but most don't receive extensive training in neurodiversity or how autism can present differently from the traditional (and often male-centred) clinical profile.
Collection
[
|
...
]