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to go along with those lines of thinking ^^^^

if scientific data is being used to promote these types of abortions, it's probably going to take scientifc data to counter this debate and to make a case against why people shouldn't do this type of thing.

it shouldn't be this way but that's how it is

to make a working example:

as a science graduate student... my first teaching job (which is predominently how bio students support their research... teaching) was to help teach science in elementary schools.

this is a gk-12 program that my uni supports and the point is: year after year the gradstudents in this grant/fellowship go teach bio in the elementaries because the TEACHERS DON"T HAVE THE KNOWLEDGE to really adequately address these topics (i won't get into the whole teaching evo in schools...which we weren't allowed to do, btw.... but that's another issue)

there are a whole array of gk-12 programs that are implemented to improve all sorts of education venues...

so i would say it's not that far fetched to dream for a gk-12 program where gradstudents in the appropriate field of training could go to our elementary schools and teach these cater pedegogies to students with special needs.

this is kinda my hope, though i see other possiblities as well...

im sorry... im not meaning to make you furious, lau...

but i perceived your negative interpretations of my good intentions as an attack...

and juct cause you choose to link the word "ideology" to freud and put a negative spin on it....

is not the context in which i was using the word...

so that's why i was furious...

sorry, it's not my goal to have people arguing over definition of ideology...

if i so grossly misused the word, i humbly apologize, as it's not my intention....

and im not trying to be condescending by replacing words with what i had hoped to be a synonym or substitute of sorts... i just realize there are a variety of people reading this and figured i'd use a more common word. my apologies again, for doing so... if it offends

Apologies accepted, naturally.

I was really steaming on my last post... so much so, that I typed "about" instead of "above" in my third paragraph and "in" instead of "it" in my fifth. I find such tiny errors in my own posts to be irritating.

I suspect everyone else on this thread understood what I meant when I used the word "Freudian". To me, it has no negative connotation. A "Freudian slip" is where a person unintentionally does or says something which is more revealing about their underlying motives than they would have liked to reveal. Your use of the phrase "teaching ideology" seemed just that to me. A slip that revealed a desire to teach, not the truth, but the acceptable, majority opinion.

I gather you also (are forced to?) teach creationism and exclude evolution? I don't think I could do that. (I'm guessing again - is that what the "evo" abbreviation is about? I find it so hard to read your posts... the only thing "ect" means to me is "Electro Convulsive Therapy").

Oh dear. I really should stop watching this thread. Hey! No! I created the topic!

no, we were not forced to teach creationism in the elementary schools... just not allowed to teach evolution... not even to say the word.

but to bring the thread kinda back on topic...

i've tried to convey that while the current funding system is flawed no doubt...

that foundations like autism speaks do do some good... i think there are misconceptions from both scientists and non-scientists about how these types of foundations work... just as i get the feeling scientists are spearated from this political agenda of autism speaks (and im talking about their more specific views that go beyond "find a cure" cause that's just a pretty common tactic in proposals... you could fund a project that simply studies pretty much anything and tack on a "it's useful cause it would help to cure ______" and apply it to most any grant)

but at the same time... i think if we start adressing this issue, we can enlighten everyone involved... hopefully the families that support autism speaks as well

i just feel there is vast room for increasing knowledge on autism and casting it in a more positive light so that we can help to prevent all these misuses of some types of scientific research in these areas (the whole screening deal; though i do think that people should have access to this info too--touchy subject)... but the only way to do that is to generate some positive scientific data

and i intend on doing this through studying cognitive learning and taking my experience working on a gk-12 grant and working hand-in-hand with elementary schools (and their district legislation ect) to in the future create my own gk-12 grant to in turn improve learning conditions within elementary schools for people who are not NT and have different learning styles.

how would you like to have your children that are on the spectrum (or other) have "Scientists" (well, gradstudents.. but they're in training!) working in their elementary schools that have a working knowledge of how your child's condition works so that they can help your children make the most of their learning education? and i mean they would do this by teaching some sort of lesson that implements techniques catered to your child's needs...

i think this would be marvelous and it's perfectly plausible... universities are always looking for ways of funding gradstudents and expanding their capacity to fund more gradstudents... epsecially in the scientific fields. it also works around the issue of motivating the teachers to feel the immediate need to learn all these techniques... but it's the hope of these programs that teachers will eventually incorporate the techniques on their own. these programs are just a way of introducing it to the school and keeping it going until it's fully integrated.

teaching is a major tool that funds most science/math students...my teaching experience is what has allowed me to enter into gradscchool without paying a dime (basically) for my education... and it's a good avenue to use to promote awareness between the scientific and public community

and i know that, given the right scientific data to support creating one of these programs... that it could take off. i was fortunate to be at the very beginning of my gk-12 programs implementation and was part of working both with scientists and the public (school) community... to see how to make it work to meet everybody's needs and requirements

i have high hopes of making some sort of bridge between the two communities in the future of my career...

OK. Maybe we're back on topic a little, but I'm afraid I read you paragraph that started "that foundations like ..." several times, and couldn't work out what it meant.

The rest of what you said (when I could decipher it) seemed to be less controversial. I hope that, in summary, you're saying that you wish to contribute towards teacher training so that they will be more tolerate of those students who require accommodation. Your aim is to encourage teachers to give autistic children knowledge, not change them into something they are not.

A curious thought just crossed my mind. The classic image of the child standing facing the corner, wearing a dunce's hat. To an autistic child, (other than the hat, which may or may not be comfortable,) standing facing the corner might be a reward! Just think... no need to suffer eye contact with anyone. No need to speak. And so on, et cetera, etc. Wow! I'm sure I can't be the first person to realise that this "punishment" would act as a strong positive reinforcement to "being stupid", or of course, for an autistic, "acting stupid".

i do contribute to easter seals and st jude's which helps not only autism but other child health issues

oh no way! those people over there are a bit crazy