As an autistic teacher starting my career, how should I respond to "Special Ed" colleagues promoting ABA therapy for autistic kids?

[savebees-grillcheese]

Hi all,

Let me start off by saying that I know that this is a very controversial topic, so I'd love to hear your honest thoughts/critiques/questions/concerns, but I'd appreciate it if you could please keep any debates in the comments respectful.

I'm a college senior starting a teaching residency program to get my teaching certification for public schools. Along with my track (middle school math), my residency program also has a licensure track for "special ed" teachers. As I'm starting to get to know them as peers and coworkers, I hear many of them praising ABA therapy in glowing terms - and as I interview with schools for teaching jobs and ask them about their supports and expectations for students with disabilities, many school administrators also speak proudly about their "top-quality ABA therapy" programs (which are inevitably the main support for autistic students, if not the only one).

As noted, I'm autistic, though I have not shared that with any of my colleagues or interviewers. Hearing my future coworkers gush uncritically about ABA therapy as if it's the ultimate "fix" for autistic children is more than uncomfortable. Frankly, it scares me. I know this is a controversial topic, and admittedly I'm still figuring out exactly where I stand. I wasn't diagnosed with autism until I was in college (though I suspect it only took so long because I happen to be verbal and female), so I've never had ABA therapy myself. I do recognize that "ABA" now stands for an increasingly diverse array of methods, some of which are affirming and supportive. I also recognize that my experience is very different from that of people who are more 'visibly' autistic and/or had a greater need for external supportive structures and therapies, and I don't deny that many autistic people have likely benefitted from skills taught through ABA.

Nonetheless, I'm deeply skeptical of the techniques and, especially, the end goals of ABA therapy. I've heard too many harrowing personal stories and insightful political critiques of ABA therapy from autistic adults and advocates. As far as I can tell, the consensus in the autistic community seems to be that ABA therapy does more harm than good, particularly when it comes to implicitly teaching autistic children that there is something "wrong" with them and/or attempting to "train" them into the mold of a neurotypical child. I don't believe that we should be trying to force our autistic kids into pretending that they are NT or "normal." I don't believe we should be instilling shame in them by insinuating that natural ways of expressing themselves and their emotions (such as stimming) should be stifled, so long as it doesn't endanger themselves or others. And I certainly don't believe that the subset of ABA "therapists" who shame or negatively punish autistic students for things like stimming or meltdowns do anything but traumatize the kids misfortunate enough to be sent through their doors. (Plus, while it may be one of the oldest and most widespread autism therapies on the market, many of the evaluative studies of its efficacy are pretty dismal.)

On one hand, these colleagues/schools don't know I'm autistic, and I'm already the youngest and most inexperienced teacher in the residency. On the other hand, I'll quite possibly be the only autistic teacher in the residency and whichever school I end up working at. Therefore, I feel like I have a particularly important responsibility to use any weight I have with Sp. Ed. colleagues and the schools to ensure that the voices of autistic kids are being heard, their neurodiverse selves celebrated, and their needs and wishes respected.

What do you all think?

I'm feeling very lost, and would welcome anything from recommendations of reading material to a "you're making a big deal out of nothing" eyeroll to a "give 'em hell" manifesto. Thank you, and sorry this is so long!

P.S., for reference, here are some of the articles I've looked at in thinking about this issue:

autisticadvocacy.org/wp-con...

abacontroversyautism.wordpr...

spectrumnews.org/features/d...

awnnetwork.org/?s=aba+therapy

childmind.org/article/contr...

early-childhood-education-d...

[Fuunycat]

ABA is very dependable on the person who does it and there reasoning. I know a couple of people who did it as kids to help them learn not to run off in the outdoor public areas but also help them learn skills such as sitting down in class. But I also heard terrible stories of basically abuse. It really depends on the end goal. ABA should be used to make everyday life easier for the person doing. If the end goal is to cure someone it isn't right.

[savebees-grillcheese in reply to Fuunycat]

Thank you so much for your input! I really appreciate it.

[Hidden]

Son rise program youtube just google has opinions about Aba and their training

[Rosita5]

I am here to attest that ABA can be wonderful but it can also be not so wonderful.

In my case, my son has benefited sooo much. They basically pulled the words out of his mouth syllable by syllable. This is very important for getting his needs met. He used to fall on the floor and throw tantrums because we didn’t know what he wanted. Now he can verbally say what he needs or wants. ABA taught me how to teach him. So step by step we taught him how to dress himself. Literally by showing him where to place his hand on the article of clothing to be able to get it on himself. He learns patience, literally starting on one minute and extending it as he masters one minute and then goes to two minutes of waiting etc. I am very grateful to have gotten a company who really cares about my family and my child. They really listen to our needs and try to accommodate us as much as they can.

So, after saying all that I can say that ABA could be hard on some. ABA takes consistency and so much effort on the village who raises the child. Everyone needs to be on the same page. I’ve received therapists who are not good at their job, they don’t care about it as much as others, who don’t understand the techniques. Without everyone on board the child will most likely not be successful.

ABA has been a god send for us, but I can also see how it’s not for everyone. Your child will cry and it will hurt but honestly them crying because they want immediate gratification is understandable, but life doesn’t always allow immediate gratification and that’s something they need to understand.

I hope I made sense, best wishes.