Keeping possibilities open for the students: autism from the point of view of students and education professionals in two special educational contexts

This study aims to contribute with knowledge of how the autism spectrum diagnosis is used by education professionals and students in special educational environments in Sweden. Despite having been seen as focusing on inclusion, the Swedish school system offers various special and separate school contexts for students with autism. It is important to deepen our knowledge on how an autism diagnosis informs the reasoning of both students and education professionals, both as a matter of self-knowledge and as a tool to plan the students' education. The study reports data gathered through interviews (n = 23, with students) and open-ended questionnaires (n = 18, with education staff) and analyses the results using the MADIT methodology of discourse analysis. The results show that the students are configured as individuals and that the diagnosis does not play a key role, despite the schools being special educational schools with a profile towards autism. At the same time, the schools use interactive processes in which the diagnosis becomes a central element, especially to make 'justifications'. The results are discussed in relation to promoting the students' development and keeping possibilities open for them.