Attitudes of a Post-secondary Student with ASD toward Reading

The purpose of this case study was twofold. First, the study was conducted in order to understand the perspective of a post-secondary reader with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) on reading. In addition, factors that might influence the student’s perspective were investigated. The student and his teacher participated in the study. Interviews with the participants and classroom observations were the primary sources of data. The data analysis produced three core categories. The categories showed that the student loved and enjoyed reading books that he was interested in and that were easy. However, he would read difficult and uninteresting books because reading such books would provide him with a sense of accomplishment. Responsive instruction and familial support may be possible factors that influence his perspective. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed in the study.