Background: With around 200,000 autistic students set to enter universities and the workforce in the next decade, inclusive programs are receiving increased attention to helping educational systems carefully integrate these students' needs. Moreover, educational programs recognize that problem-solving is critical for school success and optimal postsecondary outcomes. Systemic ableism leads many academic programs to focus on fixing and normalizing autistic students' problem-solving differences. However, listening to their needs and perspectives is crucial for supporting these students in schools. Hence, this dissertation is developed to champion the voices of autistic middle schoolers who engage in informal educational contexts to build problem-solving skills. Method: This qualitative case study explores autistic students' problem-solving experiences in schools through three connected studies. The first study analyzed thirty-eight students' views on the Engineering Design Process (EDP) and compared them with thirteen existing interventions to identify shared steps for improving problem-solving skills. A conceptual map was created to pinpoint the specific steps students identified as crucial in the EDP. The second study explored sixteen students' real-time problem-solving experiences through Photovoice, a visual data collection tool. Students collected data in this participatory study, and their perspectives on participating in the Photovoice study as data collectors were explored in Study 3. Thematic analysis was conducted in studies 2 and 3. Results: Study 1 found that students valued planning, creating solutions, improving, and sharing results as crucial to problem-solving. Contrarily, existing interventions use therapist-led strategies that increase student dependence on them rather than using student preferences to support independence in solving problems. Study 2 revealed that students used the EDP to brainstorm creative ideas and improve their solutions. Study 3 showed that data collection with photographs enhanced visual problem-solving and improved interview engagement, as the physical photos and cameras increased their involvement. This dissertation is a foundational step toward creating authentic participatory research strategies that actively listen to autistic students, respect their unique problem-solving preferences, and democratize the research process. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com.bibliotheek.ehb.be/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]