Not to mention being an aid I’m assuming for special ed children if you can’t handle that responsibility. I’m the mother of an autistic child and it is painfully obvious that a number of individuals here know nothing about the disorder and have chosen to take their GENERAL frustration of violence in schools and PROJECT into a situation completely unrelated to the general school violence issue.
BTW, if the child at 6 can acknowledge that he hit his teacher, he is likely Asperger’s—the verbal high functioning form of autism. I bet most here didn’t even know that much to pull that out of the brief story. Another little tidbit, autistic children usually show frustration because of their lack of verbal skills and being unable to communicate their needs or desires to other people. They aren’t stupid or retarded in most cases and their frustration can be helped with things like Dynavox and other augmentative communication devices that speak for them with their input. I wonder if the teacher is pro-active enough to consider PECS or a Dynavox machine or has the skill to help an autistic child deal and navigate the frustrations in school.
I’m sure many here don’t understand either that most states will NOT help parents with autistic children unless they are ‘poor’. Insurance won’t pay for private school tuition for these children(and their are schools with LONG waiting lists that accomodate such children) and states like Ohio that offer an ‘autism scholarship’ as well as Medicaid waivers based on disability only are rare.
I’m sure this ‘teacher’ will survive. I feel for the parents. Most individuals can’t imagine what it is like to live with autism everyday. The callous statements made here really highlight why so many parents end up self-isolated or relegated to only dealing with other parents dealing with this. I started to let this happen to us and I roundly rejected it at some point. My child NEEDS to be around other people and I have 2 other typical children who need a normal existence too.
What I find shameful when conservative sites start in with this kind of thing is that they often forget how poorly this situates itself next to a pro-life view. If one is pro-life, then I would think one is also far more understanding of human conditions and frailities like autism and down’s syndrome. Folks, you can’t have one way or the other. If you are all for saving disabled children from the abortionist’s vacuum, then you have accepted these children with all their difficulties will live among the rest of us in society.
BTW, this poor excuse for a school makes me so thankful I am where I am. My son’s teachers adore him and actually were pensive at the idea of him leaving for an ‘autistic school’. They know what to expect from him most of the time and they help him navigate frustration and they too are skilled in how to deal with autistic behaviors and how to anticipate frustrations. Odd it would seem how people EQUIPPED to deal with this situation can somehow manage NOT to end up with a 6 year old so frustrated he lashes out.
PSS My son when he was 4 scratched his preschool teacher when he was frustrated(the worst thing he ever did). He recently attended her wedding that she invited him too. Amazing she didn’t charge him with assault for the scratches. *rolls eyes*
Do I give the young man a pass—not entirely, but I do think those that spoke initially in this thread have done so from such an extreme position that another side needed to be presented. I’m sure i’m not the first given the posts on this thread, but I really wanted to put some personal experience into this as someone who deals with autism everyday.
Thanks for your post.
I was the person to whom you replied. I had posted, “How about not teaching if you can’t even handle a six year old.” I haven’t kept up with this thread, and I’m amazed that the thread has over 700 replies now. :-0 I don’t know what everyone is saying here now.
But I do want to point out that this child was mainstreamed in a regular classroom, so maybe the aid in that classroom was not trained to handle a special student.
I was amazed that any six year old would be charged with a crime for pushing his teacher. That is something the school and parents should handle together. But, some teachers here have pointed out that maybe the aid had to press charges in fear that charges would be pressed against her. (If I remember correctly, the article says the parents had already threatened to sue a schoolbus driver for handling their son too harshly. Maybe this aid did nothing to stop the child - otherwise, I can’t imagine how a six year old was able to push an adult down - and she decided to file charges before the parents did. Since then, the charges have been dropped.)
Because you mentioned school programs, I feel compelled to say that I don’t believe schools are the answer. I have met many homeschool mothers with children who are struggling with these types of issues. I know one mother whose son has Aspergers. She was a schoolteacher herself, and there was no suitable spot at the school for her child. He is a gifted child, and she has done a tremendous job with him outside the school system.
I know another homeschool mom whose autistic son was expected to be profoundly disabled including unable to walk. Not only does he get around just fine, but he too is very gifted particulary in math. She never sent him to school, yet in addition to his math skills, he has become very sociable, too.