Blog #415: ALICE Drills and Their Impact on Neurodivergent/Special Education Students

As I get ready to head out to Irvine, California this week to train educators on School Safety Drills and School Assemblies and their impact on neurodivergent/special education students, I can’t help but notice one type of drill that has garnered a lot of attention in recent years and a drill that my town’s school district will be doing on Wednesday February 21st at the high school.

I am of course, talking about the ALICE drill that is both students and teacher are trained in the event that some crazed lunatic carries out a school shooting or situation. As a former special education student, I was lucky that this kind of drill was never used. However, I can’t help but empathize with neurodivergent and special education students that have to practice this drill in this day and age.

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Like a lot of drills, the ALICE drill is a drill that needs to be taken in baby steps when it comes to students that are neurodivergent and sensory friendly. Now, if you are part of a school district that has already been trained on ALICE drills, ALICE stands for:

A for Alert

L for Lockdown

I for Inform

C for Counter

E for Evacuate

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Back when I was in school, the only thing we had to do was lock the door, be silent and wait until the all clear was given. In fact, I didn’t even get exposed to lockdown drills until I was in middle school. Nowadays, students of all grade levels are being trained on this type of drill, including special education students. But there are going to be students who probably don’t understand the ALICE drill simply because of their difference.

Much like what I talk about lockdown drills in my training, “School Safety Drills and Autism,” ALICE drills should be approached in the same manner. What I mean is that the organizations that train schools on ALICE drills should meet with the special education students BEFORE the drill is carried out.

Most schools will use the ALICE drills without warning and that is doing more harm than good to the neurodivergent/special education student, even though the element of surprise creates a realistic feel of of an actual dangerous situation. Much like the town police and fire departments, the ALICE trainers can build bridges with neurodivergent/developmentally different students. The trainers can meet with the students in their own environment (such as a classroom) and in small roundtable/group discussions discuss what each step will happen in as slow a manner as possible.

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By doing so, the ALICE trainer can gain an understanding and empathize with the students in the same manner as the police officers who are coordinating the drill. The trainer can also come up with ways to help the student through the drill such as watching the drill being carried out from a safe space location which will explain to the student that it’s only a drill and nobody will be harmed in any way.

One of the tools I use in my “School Safety Drills and Autism” training is the importance of patience on the part of the teachers and administrators because a lot of developmentally different students will have a hard time processing the situation. I explain this in the following statement:

“Keep in mind that some students do have trouble processing certain situations and may take longer to respond to questions in general.  Patience is paramount when it comes to talking to developmentally delayed students.” 

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Now, let’s be real of the fact that most schools will want their students and teachers to understand ALICE as quickly as possible. But it doesn’t work that way. Forcing a special education student to learn ALICE quickly is like trying to force the fit in a job search.

The best way to approach the fit is taking one step a time that involves the student, teachers, administrators, counselors in addition to law enforcement and law enforcement specialists. It may go against what an ALICE training is supposed to be, but it will bring benefits to all in the end.

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Catch you all later!!

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