Interesting article on ABA and older kids

[Fran]

http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/02/04...ion/index.html

[Fran]

I tried to delete but don't seem to know how anymore.
Star already posted on this article. Sorry for the duplicate.

[4sumrzn]

Thanks for sharing! My Sister is an ABA Therapist & has been telling me to get certified also. She believes the therapy works wonders...at least it has for the children she's been working with. Maybe when she graduates college this year, she will move closer to me & work with GFG too! Thanks again for sharing....love to hear that the family is making progress.

[Fran]

Every little step forward is a huge success in my eyes.

[Allan-Matlem]

Fran,

You recently shared with us Nancy Perry- executive functions and Autism - looking forward for the next instalment . My initial reaction to the article is that the prensence of the therapist , the structure and rewards did manage to get her initially interested in cooperating. In the longer term she will need help in aquiring skills like executive functions etc to sustain the progress, she is staring to lose interest in the rewards and not developing any intrinsic motivation and self pride , intrinsic reward in the things she does. Most parents can't reproduce the structure of a RTC or maintain the same atmosphere that existed when the therapist was in.

Allan

[svengandhi]

My daughter has always planned to be a teacher of younger kids. Since last year, she has worked as a volunteer with autistic pre-schoolers; some are more high functioning than others, but all are on the spectrum. She has been getting some ABA training as that is the focus of the program.

I have not been able to find any undergraduate college programs that teach ABA so she will get an undergrad teaching degree and then take her masters' in ABA. I have gone to some of the sessions and have seen the method working.

It just seems so simple (in theory, not in practice) that I can't believe it's not done all over.