Learning with autism in public schools

AUSTIN (KXAN) - For the Bleier family in Central Texas, finding the best education for their autistic son, Joshua, was not supposed to be difficult.

Joshua is mildly autistic. He is just like any other 4-year-old: He likes to watch cartoons, bounce around and play with his mom. He just learns differently.

However, since there is not a required student-to-teacher ratio in public schools, public schools did not have the staff Joshua needed. His mother, Maria, said Joshua needs intense therapy and one-on-one time in the classroom. Also, special education teachers in public schools are not required to go through specific training for teaching autistic students, according to Maria.

"We think the public school system should work," said Maria Bleier. "While they are very well-intended, I would never say anything bad about the women that were working with because I think they really cared about him. They just couldn't spend the time it took."

Maria was scared about Joshua's future in the classroom, since teaching autism can be as complex as the disorder itself.

"What was going to be the next step," asked Maria. "Go into a regular kindergarten class? I think there is still a lot of misunderstanding about autism."

Teaching methods

It was due to that misunderstanding that Maria decided to move Joshua out of public school and into curriculum with a private therapist. Maria said her goal with Joshua's education is to shrink the student-to-teacher ratio. Moore-Weis Children's Center, a school specifically designed to educate autistic students from ages two to eight, is one example of a place that focuses on student-to-teacher ratios.

"Our average ratio is a two-to-one ratio, so you are going to see a small setting," said Bernice De La Cruz, a behavioral analyst and program director of the Moore-Weis School. "One thing that all kids with autism struggle with is social interaction. If you are in a really big setting, that can be difficult and really overwhelming for our children. So, a small setting makes it safe for them."

De La Cruz said the approach for teaching a suppose simple task is taught differently at Moore Weis.

"[Hand-washing] sounds really simple to us," said De La Cruz. "But, that's turning on the faucet, that's pumping the soap, rubbing your hands. I mean, we break it down for them. We make visuals for them. We work on which step is going to be independent first."

However, Moore-Weis is expensive, ranging from $125,000 to $150,000 a year. Not every parent can afford that. However, that is one reason why the school only teaches up to 8-year-olds. Moore-Weis founder, Suzanne Moore, said she believes in the public school system and thinks school districts are doing everything possible to educate autistic students. Some public school systems are truly thriving at this type of education.

"We've seen districts that are doing a fabulous job with appropriate ratios and putting the effort to getting really good training," said Kelle Wood Rich of the Central Texas Autism Center. "And then, we still see districts that need a lot of help."

Nadine Hogan with the Hays Consolidated School District points to an exemplary program at Fuentes Elementary. Special education teachers use a "motor room" which has small trampolines, bikes and tire-looking devices that make a child feel as if they are being hugged.

"We use strategies, behavior strategies all throughout the day," said Hogan.

While these strategies are available to public schools, they are not mandated. The Bleiers are looking for a specific type called applied behavioral analysis. That kind of therapy helped Joshua in the past, improving his verbal skills by 37 percent in one month.

Mari Beth Speight also has a child with autism. He was pretty severe at first. He was not speaking and would not respond to questions. He was not eating with silverware. He was finally able to participate in small group settings. Now, he is talking. However, he did not say his first word until he was 6-years-old. Below, she discusses her experience with finding a school for her child and strategies they used to get him acclimated to the school.

School districts said every autistic student is different, which makes it difficult to target the best strategies for teaching them. The same could be said when it comes to education.

Wood Rich said she focuses on teaching teachers how to analyze behavior.

"{They have to ask] 'why our kids are behaving the way they are behaving?'" said Wood Rich. "Not just say 'Oh, they are screaming' and 'what do we do to reduce screaming?' We look at why are they screaming under what environmental condition do they scream and we treat the 'why.' Is it attention seeking? Is it functioning for escape?"

According to the Web site Autism Speaks, autism is more common than pediatric cancer, diabetes and AIDS combined. There are more than 19,000 children with autism in Texas alone. The Autism Society of America shows that in 2007, almost 4 percent of the special needs child population in Texas has autism.