Home vs. School 1
When the lines of communication are open between home and school, parents, teachers, and other professionals can work together in the best interest of a youngster with autism. For a variety of reasons, communication can break down or become muddled, causing some concern with parents or with teachers.
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Teachers and therapists can get frustrated with, among other things, what they perceive as a shortage of consistency and cooperation from parents. For example, a teacher sent an e-mail to FAQautism.com expressing concern about the lack of follow-through with behavior strategies at home. The teacher wrote, “I have run into a few situations where parents are not encouraging self-sufficiency at home. The few tasks I have suggested at home are generally done for a period of time and then dismissed when they say life becomes very busy. Most of our families have more than one child and need to attend to the needs of the other children in the family. How can I encourage parents to be more pro-active at home without seeming to insult or judge the family? It is a fine line that we walk as resource teachers and I am still uncertain how to navigate it.”
On the other side of the fence, FAQautism receives e-mails from parents expressing concerns that, among other things, the schools are not working as intensely as they could to address the specific needs of their youngsters. For example, a dad wrote recently, “We always leave our son’s annual ARD meeting filled with hope thanks to the cooperative comments and great ideas expressed by teachers and therapists. But as the school year progresses, it is difficult for us to see that those strategies and programs are implemented. We recognize that our son’s behavior issues are challenging, but it almost seems like the school personnel just try to get through each day without a major incident rather than actually trying to teach him anything.”
In my professional work over the past 35 years as a consultant with both teachers and parents, I have heard similar concerns and witnessed similar misunderstandings on a regular basis. What recourse to parents and teachers have when they do not see eye to eye or when they feel the lines of communication are muddled? In part 2 of this podcast topic, we will discuss options for dealing with miscommunication between home and school. Tune in tomorrow as we continue discussion on this important topic.
NOTE TO READERS AND LISTENERS: I am Cathy Knoll, a board certified music therapist and long-time friend of many folks with autism. At FAQautism.com we are committed to providing free, practical, everyday tips for making life better for people with autism. Feel free to send me a confidential email at talk@FAQautism.com with your thoughts or challenging situations or innovative solution. And don’t forget to check out our website for a wealth of ideas and a glimpse into the world of autism. http://FAQautism.com
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