Willie was in an elementary school program for kids with autism. The school district couldn't hire special education teachers. There weren't any. The district hired subs and paid for them to get their degrees online.

Willie was slowly regressing and his parents were upset.

They should be.

His parents had paid thousands of dollars to hire a behavior specialist when Willie was a toddler. They had had a home program for thirty hours a week. Now Willie was in a classroom with a very low tech program.

The school district was trying to solve a personnel problem.

The parents were trying to educate their son according to best practices.

When I talked to them, I told Willie's  parents that it was not acceptable. Willie was having accidents in his pants. He was screaming and crying.

Although according to the federal law, the program was determined to be appropriate.

However, if it is your child, appropriate isn't enough.

I visited a high school autism classroom. The teacher was inexperienced and undertrained. The principal led the tour. He seemed excited and supportive.  He had never known a student with autism before his school was designated as the secondary autism site.

"Great kids!"

He meant well.

As soon as I entered the classroom, I felt sick.

There, above the blackboard was a poster.  It was one of those packaged pictures that every school features.

Here, in a secondary classroom of kids who were fifteen and sixteen with autism, posters of Jack and Jill framed the bulletin board.

Twenty years ago, I had learned about age appropriate. 

The teacher asked me if I had any suggestions.

I did.

These students deserved to be treated and educated as other secondary students.

Jack and Jill needed to go.

Although most teachers in classrooms for children with autism aren't highly trained or effective, there are a few rays of hope.

Only a few.

But that can make a huge difference.

I recently spoke to some bright student teachers who are working in classrooms for children with autism. They acknowledged their lack of training but readily and eagerly, sought help and information. They were passionate about their students. They were realistic about the difficult challenges faced by the families and educational systems.

They wanted to make a difference.

They were bright and energetic.

They were caring and intelligent, scholarly and resourceful. They were committed and motivated.

They reminded me that one teacher in one classroom can make a difference.

They reminded me of my years in the classroom and why I had been there.

They are the solutions.

The twins were three and attending a generic preschool for children with special needs. The program was far from intensive or effective. However, it was the only public program for children with autism in the county.

Luckily, their parents were committed and informed. They decided to have the boys seen by a doctor  trained in biomedical treatments. The parents paid out of pocket for the visits. However, the results were impressive and worth the costs.

When I spoke to the mom, she described how quickly her sons responded to the gluten free diet . She admitted it was difficult at first to learn the details and follow the guidelines. However, the impressive changes in the boys' behaviors motivated the family. During the school break, the boys rapidly changed. They were calmer and more communicative. 

That was the good news.

The bad news was that when school started, the teacher was unable and unwilling to follow the strict guidelines.

Sadly, as the boys' behaviors deteriorated in school, the teacher neglected to admit her lack of compliance.

One day, the mother decided to observe her sons and try to determine what was happening and  how she could help the school.

"The teacher just let him eat an entire box of animal crackers!" the outraged mother told me.

"I stopped observing and ran into the room, pulling the box from my son's very tight grip," she said.

The teacher was calm and nonchalient. She didn't believe in the diet and thought it was silly.

The mother was beyond upset and angry. She was protective. 

"To them, the cookies were poison. She was poisoning my boys."

This is what happens when children are in classrooms with teachers who lack specialized training in autism.