Helping autistic kids shine
April 2 is observed annually as World Autism Day. Autism causes impairment in development, communication skills and social interaction and is difficult to diagnose before 24 months of age.
Celebrating the unique gifts autistic children are born with, DOSTI (a unit of Study Hall Educational Foundation (SHEF) that has been working for the past 16 years to educate special children) shares stories of significant progress made by children with autism.
Arya was enrolled into DOSTI school at the age of two and had difficulty adjusting, but he did not resist either school or any therapy centre. He took more time to learn new concepts but once he grasped, he wouldn’t make any mistakes in his class work. His mother Anamika says, “The only difference between me and my son is that we look at the world in different ways. His visual learning is very strong as compared to audio learning. The DOSTI team uses interactive activity-based teaching methods that are helpful and important for autistic children. This has helped Arya a lot.”
Arya has good balancing power, a sharp memory and is quite good at mathematics. At DOSTI school, he has shown interest in swimming, skating, cycling, horse riding, painting or singing, and has been performing really well. Satvik Khanduri (14), was diagnosed with high functioning autism (HFA) at the age of six. At that time, he was studying in a regular school where he did not show any improvement. He was later enrolled in DOSTI School and through offline and online classes he improved in academics and co-curricular activities.
Satvik has won second prize in Uttar Pradesh state skating championship for disabled children. His mother Dr Shivangi Katara says, “We were elated when he got second prize. Sports training at DOSTI School has helped boost his self esteem and confidence. We as parents are happy with the continuously improving graphs in all aspects of life and our endeavour is to make Satvik self-independent and self reliable.” Satvik loves sports and can converse well in English. He can read story books and newspapers. He loves to participate in poetry recitation competitions and now he has also started using computer and laptop.
“Arjun was only 18-months-old when he was diagnosed with high functioning autism also called Asperger’s Syndrome. “Experts have said time and again that the involvement of the parents is one of the most important things for any child. I have always received amazing support from the teachers at DOSTI. An autistic child needs structure, discipline, and interaction as much as any other child. There’s no question that it takes a child with autism a lot longer to learn almost anything. So I began by reinforcing his school lessons at home and visited his classroom regularly, and if Arjun could do something at school like hang up his bag or eat his snack without help, then I made him do it at home too,” says Arjun’s mother.
Arjun,12, now enjoys the company of his classmates and also proudly calls one of them his best friend. It took three years of shadowing and a lot of hard work for his mother and his teachers but Arjun is now doing very well at school on his own and requires only minimal assistance from an aide. He has developed a keen interest in painting and music and is progressing well.
Another student, who is equally intelligent, is an excellent pianist, singer and a music enthusiast. She loves to play with colorus on canvas. Her mother says, “It’s only her low social interaction which has more to do with low acceptance from people who treat autism as a taboo. But we need to educate people and raise awareness to create an inclusive space for every child.”
Surabhi Kapoor, principal, Study Hall DOSTI, says, “Every child has different needs and capabilities. We need to focus on the capabilities and help in their journey of progress and we have great support from parents which is imperative for the children’s growth.” DOSTI school has an early intervention programme and also provides vocational training and therapy to make children with special needs self-reliant.
Since the outbreak of Covid-19, and closure of schools, DOSTI and its special educators have been helping special children continue learning at home and supporting parents wherever required.