Ashley Lewis
Instructor Thomas
English 102
29 March 2013
Autism
in Mainstream Schools
Back in December, our nation was shaken to the core over
the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary. According to Aurélie Paré, writer of “Do
you know what ‘autism’ is?” it turns out Adam Lanza, the man responsible for
the shooting, had a form of autism. My point is not to say because he is
autistic that is why the shooting happened, but maybe the incident occurred
because of how his years in grade school were handled. No one knows what his
experience in school was like, if he socialized with other kids his own age, or
if he was even in school with other children. For autistic children, it is
important for them to be in mainstream schools and be included with all the
other children. In order for autistic children to get the best education
possible, special classes or programs need to be created that will be
beneficial for the children, parents, and teachers.
Why
does having a good teacher matter?
Autistic
children tend to seem like they are in their own world and have specific
routines that make them happy. If someone takes that away from them, they
become very upset (Paré). Dr. Temple Grandin, assistant professor at Colorado
State University, says that it is very important to have good teachers for
autistic children. She knows this on a first-hand experience because she is
autistic herself. She believes that autistic children need to have a structured
day and have teachers who will be firm, but gentle with them. Dr. Grandin
writes, “Good teachers helped me to achieve success. I was able to overcome
autism because I had good teachers.” She is saying that without the help of
teachers who care about the child’s well-being and future, then life will be
very hard for that child as he or she grows up.
In a YouTube video entitled, “ABA Autism Classroom Case
Study 2008,” it documents autistic children in a school setting over the course
of a year. The teachers were very hands-on with the children and worked with
them on their speech, motor skills, and behavior. Deanna Conner, one of the
special education teachers in the video, described times where she would fight
with David, one of the children, to sit down for about forty to forty-five
minutes a day. If Deanna were to get irritated with David and give up on him,
no progress would be made. Since Deanna continued to be there not only for
David, but all the other children, she was able to make great changes in them.
Deanna is a perfect example of what a good teacher should be.
How
are the parents affected?
All parents want to see their children do well and be in
a good environment when they are at school. They only have their child’s best
interest at heart. Some parents will do whatever they have to to make sure
their child gets the proper education that they need and deserve. Mila
Koumpilova, writer of the article, “St. Paul schools' effort to streamline
autism program has parents worried,” reports that in Minnesota, parents are
rallying against a change the school board wants to put in motion. Sometime
next year, smaller programs will be used for students at neighboring schools.
The school board thinks that doing this will help ease the children into
mainstream schools, but parents do not agree with this move. They are worried
about the transition, since autistic children do not like to be moved out of an
environment they are used to.
According to Stacey Chia, writer of the article, “Personal
help for special needs kids; parents hire shadow teachers to help their kids
cope in mainstream schools,” parents have even used a shadow teacher, who goes
from class to class and helps regulate behavior, for their children. A shadow
teacher could be a therapist, child-minder, or a parent. Some parents, if they
can afford it, hire shadow teachers for their children. One mother, who wanted
to be known as Ms. Chan, was having trouble with her son, who would run out of
the classroom when he was presented with something he did not want to do. His
occupational therapist suggested hiring a shadow teacher and Ms. Chan feels
that it is working. She said, “"It's only more successful when there's
intervention as he acts out, rather than talking to him at the end of the
day" (Chia).
There are even celebrities that raise awareness about
autism for their own children. Jenny McCarthy is a big advocate for autism,
since her son, Evan, is autistic. In an interview with Jeffrey Kluger, who is a
writer for TIME magazine, McCarthy
and Kluger discussed different topics having to do with autism. When he asked
her what the best prognosis for a child with autism is, she answered, “For a
seriously autistic kid, the best prognosis might be getting into a mainstream
school without being too much of a shadow.” In other words, she believes in
autistic children going to mainstream schools and being in classrooms with
other children, but parents need to keep their distance, that way a child can
function in a classroom without having their parents hovering overhead.
It’s
all about the children
In the end, the ones who stand to gain or lose the most are
the autistic children. They are the ones that go through the day to day
struggle of being autistic in a mainstream school. So it is important that the
children are comfortable and learning in their environment. In an article
written in The Toronto Star, Streetsville Secondary School has a program for
high-functioning autistic teenagers that is proving very effective. The program
is called Room 150, a safe place to work out frustrations, calm down, relax,
eat lunch, and learn to socialize, or write a test away from the distractions
of a regular classroom (The Toronto Star).
Programs like this are excellent for autistic children because if they do not
deal well with big crowds well, they can wait in the program’s classroom for
class change, then go to their class. The teachers of this program look out for
the kids, make sure their academic schedule is not too stressful, and make sure
that when exam week comes around, that the kids only have one a day.
In the video, “ABA Autism Classroom Case Study 2008,” not
only were the teachers viewed, but a majority of it was about the children in
the class. The video showed each child’s journey and their progress from fall
to spring. Three children that really stood out were Ethan, David, and
Alexander. For Ethan, when he first came to the class, he hated crowded rooms. He
would cover his ears, scream at the top of his lungs, and throw himself down
onto the floor. By spring, he was a different child. He was no longer bothered
by huge crowds and much more involved in the community. David was a handful
when he first arrived to the class. He was the child that fought with special
education teacher over sitting down for forty to forty-five minutes a day. He would
also get very frustrated when he did not know the answer to a question. Towards
the end of the year, his communication and his socialization with others
improved dramatically. Lastly, Alexander came to the class having a hard time
with his speech. He only knew a few sounds and could not pronounce any words. By
the end of the school year, he was able to read off short sentences for his
teachers. For those three boys, they have made amazing progress and the same thing
goes for autistic children everywhere.
For autistic children to be able to succeed in life, it
is very important for them to have a good education and still be a part of
mainstream school, with caring teachers and supportive parents on the sidelines
cheering them on. A program like one from the YouTube video could be created, a
program like Room 150 could be created, or maybe, we could allow shadow
teachers to go around with autistic children, to make sure they are doing well.
Overall, whatever plan that we come up with should be brought to the table soon,
to ensure the success of autistic children everywhere. We need to do everything
in our power to make sure that our autistic children do their best and prevent
another Sandy Hook tragedy from occurring.
Works Cited
Chia, Stacey. “Personal
help for special needs kids; Parents hire shadow teachers to help their kids cope in mainstream schools.” The Straits Times (Singapore) (1 Mar.
2013): n. pag. LexisNexis Academic. University of South Carolina Upstate. Web. 7
Mar. 2013.
classEmediaLLC. “ABA
Autism Classroom Case Study 2008.” Online video clip. YouTube, 16 Aug. 2011. Web.
3 Mar. 2013.
Grandin, Temple. “Teaching
Tips for Children and Adults with Autism.” Indiana
Institute on Disability and
Community. Indiana University: Bloomington. Dec. 2002. Web. 7 Mar. 2013.
Kluger, Jeffrey. “Jenny
McCarthy on Autism and Vaccines.” TIME
01 Apr. 2009: 1. Web. 07 Mar. 2013.
Koumpilova, Mila. “St.
Paul schools' effort to streamline autism program has parents worried.” St.
Paul Pioneer Press (Minnesota) (2 Feb. 2013): n. pag. LexisNexis Academic. University
of South Carolina Upstate. Web. 7 Mar. 2013.
Paré, Aurélie. “Do you
know what ‘autism’ is?” The Times &
Transcript (New Brunswick) (19 Jan.
2013): F7. LexisNexis Academic.
University of South Carolina Upstate. Web. 25 Feb.
2013.
“Welcome to Room 150; A
first-of-its-kind program at Streetsville school helps high-functioning autistic teens succeed.” The Toronto Star (13 Nov. 2012): A4. LexisNexis Academic. University of South Carolina Upstate.
Web. 7 Mar. 2013.
