AGXStarseed
Well-Known Member
(Not written by me)
When Hoboken special education teacher Michelle Zube went to Indonesia this spring, she was shocked. One swindler peddling a "cure" for autism, she said, was in jail for fraud -- but anxious parents still came to him, undeterred.
Beyond the snake oil treatments, diagnoses and treatment are lacking in Indonesia, and diagnoses are widely misunderstood, Zube said.
"A lot of [Indonesian] people don't accept autism or they don't think it exists," the teacher said.
Zube, 35, went to Indonesia with the express purpose of helping combat the stigma, and to help teach the scientifically-recognized method of analysis.
On her own, she fundraised for the May 29 through June 13 trip, which was organized by the Global Autism Project. The project's intent was to gather professionals to help three Indonesian women establishing a school for autism based on "applied behavioral analysis" (ABA) -- the same analysis Zube uses in her classroom at Wallace Elementary School.
According to Zube, a 10-year board-certified behavioral analyst, ABA is "kind of the hot thing right now" in autism, since, according to the organization Autism Speaks, research shows ABA techniques can help autistic children.
"I think when you look at where we are as a country [in the U.S.] we're moving past that [the fake treatments] a little bit more," Zube told NJ Advance Media on Friday. "These [Indonesian] women are doing this with nothing, literally nothing, and they're going against the grain... Their perseverance through all of this was very humbling and inspiring."
In Hoboken's ABA program, Zube serves five children, aged 3-5, who she teaches via systematic "small step" lessons, data collection, and positive reinforcement based on personal preferences (think: food, toys, tickles). Zube's oldest ABA student, who likes time with an iPad as his reward, went from non-verbal to verbal in the program, she said.
"Everything is very systematic," she said.
Hoboken's three-year-old early intervention ABA program, with 16 children, also has 2014 New Jersey teacher of the year, Mark Mautone. He was recently recognized for his work by President Barack Obama.
Zube's knowledge of analysis has been "instrumental" and they're frequent collaborators, Mautone said.
Zube's international trip to teach other people what is done in Hoboken has also been "an awesome opportunity for her to raise awareness within our own community," ABA aide Erika Alvarez said. "The amount of work that goes into each child [in the ABA program] makes a difference."
Laura Herzog may be reached at @LauraHerzogL. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
SOURCE: This N.J. teacher is fighting autism's stigma – halfway around the world | NJ.com
When Hoboken special education teacher Michelle Zube went to Indonesia this spring, she was shocked. One swindler peddling a "cure" for autism, she said, was in jail for fraud -- but anxious parents still came to him, undeterred.
Beyond the snake oil treatments, diagnoses and treatment are lacking in Indonesia, and diagnoses are widely misunderstood, Zube said.
"A lot of [Indonesian] people don't accept autism or they don't think it exists," the teacher said.
Zube, 35, went to Indonesia with the express purpose of helping combat the stigma, and to help teach the scientifically-recognized method of analysis.
On her own, she fundraised for the May 29 through June 13 trip, which was organized by the Global Autism Project. The project's intent was to gather professionals to help three Indonesian women establishing a school for autism based on "applied behavioral analysis" (ABA) -- the same analysis Zube uses in her classroom at Wallace Elementary School.
According to Zube, a 10-year board-certified behavioral analyst, ABA is "kind of the hot thing right now" in autism, since, according to the organization Autism Speaks, research shows ABA techniques can help autistic children.
"I think when you look at where we are as a country [in the U.S.] we're moving past that [the fake treatments] a little bit more," Zube told NJ Advance Media on Friday. "These [Indonesian] women are doing this with nothing, literally nothing, and they're going against the grain... Their perseverance through all of this was very humbling and inspiring."
In Hoboken's ABA program, Zube serves five children, aged 3-5, who she teaches via systematic "small step" lessons, data collection, and positive reinforcement based on personal preferences (think: food, toys, tickles). Zube's oldest ABA student, who likes time with an iPad as his reward, went from non-verbal to verbal in the program, she said.
"Everything is very systematic," she said.
Hoboken's three-year-old early intervention ABA program, with 16 children, also has 2014 New Jersey teacher of the year, Mark Mautone. He was recently recognized for his work by President Barack Obama.
Zube's knowledge of analysis has been "instrumental" and they're frequent collaborators, Mautone said.
Zube's international trip to teach other people what is done in Hoboken has also been "an awesome opportunity for her to raise awareness within our own community," ABA aide Erika Alvarez said. "The amount of work that goes into each child [in the ABA program] makes a difference."
Laura Herzog may be reached at @LauraHerzogL. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
SOURCE: This N.J. teacher is fighting autism's stigma – halfway around the world | NJ.com
