According to Learell Faulk, he knows what it's like to be a child struggling to sit in school to learn. Even in his adulthood he said, he had experienced symptoms of attention deficit disorder that made it hard to thrive in a classroom of the traditional setting. Although ADD isn't on the autism spectrum, he does understand how hard it can be to function in an environment that's not conducive to his needs.
He also stated, When he heard that Dalton State's School of Education was going planning to offer an autism spectrum disorders endorsement, he knew that he wanted to enroll in that program. He wants that additional expertise in his skill set as a teacher according to DC or The Daily Citizen News.
Undergraduate teacher candidates and certified professionals who wish to gain knowledge in the area of teaching students with autism can earn this credential. It can also be added to existing teaching certifications. For those other professionals that are from related fields who have a particular interest in serving students with autism may also look for this endorsement.
Courses will be offered on a flexible schedule, making it easier to complete the program for professionals, stated by Roben Taylor, the assistant professor of special education, who has spearheaded the effort to obtain the endorsement.Autism is becoming better understood and more prevalent. 1 in 168 children was diagnosed with autism in 2000 based on the CDC. The rate has gone from 6.7 percent of children diagnosed in 2000 to 14.6 percent in 2012.
Taylor said that though the cause of autism is still unknown, more research is developing and even more is understood about the spectrum. For a student with autism, looking at a teacher may be distracting. That may lead the teacher to believe the student is not listening.
Taylor also stated that many on the spectrum are often brilliant and have an above average IQ. So the problem, he said, isn't that they aren't smart enough to do the work. "The environment is the problem" stated by Taylor. "It's very easy for these children to have a sensory overload -- everything is too loud or too bright." Taylor's the last statement.
The three-class endorsement is designed to educate students on research-based assessments, intervention, instruction and program management for students on the spectrum During Faulk's field experience as part of his early childhood education degree, Faulk observed and had taught many children on the autistic spectrum. He knows the challenge teachers sometimes face dealing with the students with diverse needs all in the one same room.
He said that he thought that he'd be the person who could pass through to that child with autism and explain things the way those need. And that didn't happen. Those students are just as eager to learn and grasp the work as any other student there.
As reported in in the DC, The Daily Citizen News, in the Barry University website, according to this, it is also reported that this day, 1 out of 68 children in the U.S, is classified as having autism or autism spectrum disorders (ASD), based on report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) last 2010. This increase from 2000 is significant when the projected prevalence rate was 1 in every 150 children. This means to say, the rapid expansion of the number of children requiring special services and instructional supports in their schools, increased the needs for teachers who are qualified to work with these students. This is another school that endorsed autism.
