People with Asperger Syndrome have many of the same characteristics ('triad of impairments')
as people with Autism Spectrum Disorder but usually to a lesser degree, so are generally more able.
The Challenge...
Many people Asperger Syndrome have above average IQ's and many are very clever or gifted
Consequently their needs are different from people with the most debilitating
forms of Autism Spectrum Disorder.
The challenge is to provided the correct support (where needed) so that there is the opportunity to fulfil potential.
PRIMARY EDUCATION - I believe that many children suffering from Asperger Syndrome need special help (perhaps in a specialist school) in their first years of education to teach them ways around their problems and how to cope with situations which they find difficult. Learning to manage the condition will be crucial to survival in the adult world.
SECONDARY EDUCATION - providing an Asperger syndrome sufferer has learnt adequate life skills (and is given any extra support needed) I am convinced that secondary education is best spent in the mainstream education system. It will probably be hard but it is in the world of 'normal' people where Asperger syndrome people will be expected to serve as adults. This time in mainstream school needs to be used to help the Asperger suffer adapt to the 'real' world.
HIGHER EDUCATION - in my experience Asperger Syndrome is poorly understood but there is a willingness from the Universities/Colleges that I have attended to try and provide support if requested. Support is not provided unless asked for. So my advise would be, if it is likely that extra support will be needed, to talk to the university/college department/faculty before applying. The other obvious option is to do correspondence course from home - in my case this was not possible because of the sort of degree I wanted to take.
LIFE - Simply knowing that I do not read people, is in itself an enormous asset. I no longer worry about having an idealised normal life; if I get married, have lots of friends, etc. that's fine, if not, I shall not worry. Hopefully, I will find my niche in life. I believe one of my strongest defences against all my disabilities is the awareness of exactly where my problems lie. If I want to go out into the world and successfully work or study I know that it is essential to conform to the 'rules of conduct for our society'. (Even if much of society seems to operate using rules which are an enigma from my perspective!) The underlying method/attitude I use is to truly respect everyone and treat anyone I meet very politely - its worked so far and I have my parents to thank for teaching me how to behave in a polite acceptable fashion. However being unable to read people is often problematic as I am very often unsure how they are or what they are thinking.
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