Autism in Lagos: a case study of special education transfer

This research examined special education transfer as it pertains to students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), using a case study of the Lagos Speech Center (LSC), a special education program located in Lagos, Nigeria. The study also examined LSC’s advocacy and awareness efforts in relation to disability rights in Nigeria. David Philip’s theory of policy attraction and David Johnson’s model on postcolonial educational borrowing trajectories were woven together to examine the special education transfer process. This study also employed Eyerman and Jamison’s cognitive approach to social movement theory to explore the advocacy and awareness efforts of the program. Document and literature reviews, semi-structured interviews, and non-participatory observations were utilized for data collection.Findings show that the biomedical interpretation of ASD and disability rights ideologies plays a significant role in reshaping disability culture in Lagos. However, acceptance of the biomedical interpretation and the way in which LSC’s educational program is utilized vary. While some families accepted ASD as a neurodevelopmental disability, others continued to hold indigenous beliefs about the spiritual nature of the phenomenon. Families’ views concerning the cause of ASD impacted responses to program practices and interventions. At the same time, the severity of ASD manifestations in students influenced the duration and intensity of the program’s application of interventions. This research also found that colonial history guided the choice of Western knowledge concerning ASD, through access to nations with shared colonial histories, resulting in a preference for educational products marketed by these nations. LSC’s advocacy and awareness efforts centered on knowledge dissemination concerning the biomedical origin of ASD, the inclusion of individuals with ASD into society, and the benefits of specialized services. These knowledge interests wholly aligned with the special education transfer process, supporting the premise that special education must coextend with a social movement for disability rights.Results of this study suggest the success of LSC is a consequence of the willingness and desire, within the local context, for a cultural shift away from an exclusionary response to ASD. Results also highlight the need for localized research on ASD that is grounded on indigenous cultural perspective.