Eco,
He is fine with writing in general, especially non-fiction. In fact, he really gets into writing. He writes great essays. But sharing personal info or something that reflects on him as a person is a no go.
The two periods include a lot of in-class work, which has been the source of many melt-downs.
Okay--this sounds really familiar but my son doesn't erupt, he shuts down.
Not a short term type of question, just something to ponder:
--Has your DS been bullied, misunderstood, or treated unkindly by peers or school personnel in the past? I believe a source of my DS' shut-downs results from some school trauma related to his ASD (poor social communication) and the resulting treatment he received.
--If your DS does not feel emotionally safe sharing his feelings, a CBT therapist might be able to help with that. I know that doesn't solve the immediate concern.
I believe my DS12 (ASD) has some issues with alexithymia. Here is a link just to start:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2092499/I haven't researched it enough to be articulate. Perhaps there is a way to communicate with the teacher that this a "can't" and not a "won't."
I would think LA would be the most modifiable of all curricula (speaking as a former HS English teacher).
Good luck. I feel sorry that your DS and family are in distress--this is not fun.