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Podcast: Empower Students Now
Episode: Rethinking “Defiance”: When Students Are Drowning, Not Disobeying
Description: Host Amanda Werner discusses how schools often misinterpret student “defiance” as willful disobedience when it may reflect nervous system distress, trauma responses, autism, or ADHD. She shares her experience as a former teacher and as an autistic parent of an autistic/ADHD child, describing how her child’s early “defiance” led to an autism diagnosis and how she previously blamed students and parents. Amanda reviews behaviors commonly labeled defiant (not following directions, talking back, unfinished work, leaving class, sneaking items) and explains how multi-step instructions can overwhelm working memory and sensory processing. She recounts supporting a student with severe outbursts...