Boy With Autism Gets Recognized By Teacher, His Skills And Talents Tests Cannot Measure

Tests do not measure the whole extent of a person. This is just the message a teacher has sent to a boy with autism through a letter enumerating the boy's numerous skills and abilities. The boy may have failed his Standard Assessment Tests (SATs) but the teacher still called him a "special person."

The Guardian's report on the heartwarming action included the letter, as posted by Ben's mother, Gail, on Twitter. The teacher, Ruth Clarkson, told young Ben that the SATs "only measure a little bit of you and your abilities." Clarkson added that "Ben Twist is made up of many other skills and talents that we at Lansbury Bridge see and measure in other ways."

Teacher Recognizes Boy With Autism's Skills And Talents

According to The Mighty, 11-year-old Ben Twist attends Lansbury Bridge School and Sports College which is located in St. Helens in England. It is a school for children with special needs, with most choosing not to take the standardized tests, making Ben an exception.

In her letter, Clarkson said that Ben has artistic talents, is able to work in a team, is increasingly independent, kind, expressive of his opinion, sporty, friendly, self-evaluating, designs and builds talents and has musical abilities. Clarkson said that people there are very proud of him.

Mother Of Boy With Autism Reacts To Letter

In her Twitter post, Gail said that she was in tears over the letter. "I just didn't expect it at all. For someone to take the time to think about it and write that, it shocked me. It just broke me. It's great when there's something positive to share about such a wonderful teacher," Gail Twist said in an interview with ABC Today.

Gail added that the people working at Lansbury as "shining examples of what educators should be." As for Ben, who was diagnosed with autism at five years old, he reportedly thinks that Clarkson's letter to him is "awesome."