Don't isolate students with autism

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In Italy segregated schools don't exist so autistic children attend mainstream schools. This causes advantages and disadvantages. The main issue is that techers are not skilled to work with autistic children and they shouldn't be able to pass all schooltime in the classroom. I had to find a solution for my son, so I found a school that is administered by catholic nuns. They are the ones that can provide a classroom for my son only where he can have therapy with a skilled therapist. He is in the classroom only for a part of the schooltime. I don't like that they will try to give him a religious education but I don't think he cares. I believe in secular education but in public school he would be forced to stay in the classroom all the time and to be given an unqualified teaching.
It seems to work, he has a friend that wants to have therapy with him (children...).

There is a neat school in Columbus, Ohio called Oakstone Academy. It is geared toward autistic children, but also has NTs attending too. It is a private school and stresses academic rigor. Certain NT children like the school for its smaller student to teacher ratio, and the autistic children like it because it helps them with their needs. And---NTs have needs too. Students are often paired up based on their needs---often times autistic with NT. Both the autistic and NT student benefit from the other. Just as the autistic children learn from the NT children, the NT children learn from the autistic children. It takes about a year of enrollment at Oakstone before a thorough assessment of the students' interests can be ascertained. One of the goals for the autistic children is to find their interests and allow them to explore those interests and learn about them for future success.

As long as students and their families really do have a choice, I like the idea. Some kids on the spectrum will do better in that environment. They should have that option.

I never learned many chat things as I never chated much. I know IMO means something chat. What does it mean?

In DC:

"hey, hey, guys, i just got the realllllly good idea! ok ready?

See there are this subset of regular people, right. its called autism, right. They have some issues with figuring out how to socialize right?

so, lets take them, and get this, separate them from other people so they have an even bigger issue socializing with anyone who doesn't share there uniqueness.

Makes perfect sense right?"

ಠ_ಠ

Summing up autism to a social disability is wrong in the first place. For me the sensory overload, transitions (changes) and the in general environment were way to much. I spent all of my time coping with them and did not cope well. For others with autism who are included easier and who do not have a difficulty like mine or another major difficulty then mainstream them. For those that have these difficulties just make mainstream integration part of the goal when chosen and offer the supports.

Sorry but mainstream for me was extremely stressful, very harmful and I could not learn well in them.

I think you lack understanding.

Nathan Young

I thought 'IMO' was similar to 'lol' for a long time. Latter I found our it means 'In my opinion', which makes much more sense.



@ segregation vs inclusion

Frankly I would think it's pretty obvious that different kids need different things. By all means have the separate school, but put it right next to, or even in the main school. Work with each child and let them take either normal classes at the main school, classes in the special school or a combination of the two. Give them their own 'recess/lunch areas, but encourage them to use the main campus's facilities if they can handle it.

I think there are times when mainstreaming doesn't work, so those schools are a nice option. I think parents should be able to make that choice for whatever is best for their child. While mainstreaming early works for some, others need the extra supports offered at those schools, and there's still a chance that they could be mainstreamed at a later time, or not at all. I know of at least one school that actually has NT children attending to help prepare children for possible mainstreaming, and I think it might teach the NT to accept those who are different.