Hannah and Ali
have made a lot of financial sacrifices for their family, especially for Aaron.
The Shakurs decide that it is best for Aaron to be admitted into the public
school system. They have both agreed that they want him to receive the
specialized help he needs, but he should get used to being able to adapt on his
own and socialize with others his age. After doing some research on the area,
they realize that their best choice of school district would be moving out of
the city and into the suburbs surrounding Chicago. Kayla and Amir, yet again,
have to make a sacrifice for their younger brother, leaving their school
friends behind and having to start over--Even though this is not the worst
thing for them. Over time, they were starting to become more ridiculed for
having a brother with special needs by others in school who knew them. This was
a way for the family to have a fresher start and hopefully better life for them
all.
The new school
district has a very successful program for students with special needs. They
have learned much about it from touring the school as well as listening to
reviews from families they have met over the last several years who have
children with special needs as well. The Shakurs are very excited for the
chance for Aaron to start receiving a normal education.
They move out of
their home in the city and move out into the suburbs where they have found a
small house to rent for $1500 a month. Ali transferred fire departments and is
back to his full physical abilities. He works full time there making about
$3,500 a month. With the money they receive from selling their house, they have
a safe cushion for the time being. They now live about an hour from Ali’s
family but they take the time to come visit on the weekends still so that
Hannah and Ali can have time to themselves away from their children.
Moving is very
disorienting for young children. Kayla and Amir were not prepared for moving
all of their things and packing it away as well as helping Aaron to move. It
was a lot of work and took a lot of energy from them. Being in the new house
was not easy for either of them. For Aaron, being in the new house during the
day he would throw uncontrollable tantrums and would act like what Ali had come
to acknowledge as “Tasmanian devil spasms” since he would destroy everything in
his path, such as: throwing, hitting, crushing, stomping, biting, screaming,
jumping, etc. At night Aaron would often wake up screaming from night terrors
and it would take an hour or so to soothe him so that he could sleep again. He
would sometimes cry for Susan, his former therapist, since he had not seen her
in several weeks. For the several years that she had worked with him, he had
grown a very strong attachment to her familiarity.
Ali and Hannah
were dealing with Aaron and his disoriented issues, but it began causing
tension between Ali and Hannah. Ali would accuse Hannah of babying him and
Hannah would accuse ALl that he is ignoring the children completely. Ali
believes that since he works all day he should not have to come home and be a
babysitter, and that is what Hannah feels like she is doing all the time. Ultimately,
the stresses of moving have gotten to the Shakur’s for the moment.
Hannah and Ali
spoke with the school about creating a new program for Aaron but until they can
see his performance. Days pass and they cannot clearly assess what he will need
to succeed in school. Aaron has full control of his motor functions and bodily
functions now and has no issues identifying the things he needs or wants by
pointing or short, broken phrases. He has learned some numbers from practicing
how many of things to ask for that he wants, but cannot identify colors,
shapes, or letters like other children his age. He still cannot count past 8.
Once beginning
school, Kayla and Amir are not doing well. Their grades are slipping from what
they were the previous year. The kid’s current school counselor is attributing
their poor grades and socialization due to all the changes in their life from
the move, from attending school with their younger brother, and their cultural
background. Kayla and Amir refute the fact that they are related to Aaron to
avoid being bullied again. They sometimes join in the ridicule so that others
will not make fun of them.
Aaron does not settle in well with the
school for the first few weeks. He does not like the new environment or the
large number of people he is always around. He often will cry for his mother,
Hannah, who has stayed at home with him for these last few years and is no
longer available to him throughout the day. He has started to become aggressive
to other students in the room and will scratch, growl/hiss, and hit at his
fellow students. They have noticed that Aaron will react like this when he gets
on the bus and until the first couple hours of school.
Questions:
1. What are some services that
could benefit Amir, Kayla, and Aaron could become involved in to help their
transitions and how would they differ and affect the family as a whole?
2. What are beneficial ways that Ali and
Hannah could deal with Aaron? What is recommended for helping autistic
children with low IQ levels and the ways he is acting?
3. What type(s) of care is
normal/popular for autistic or disabled children in Middle Eastern culture?
Decision Point: Do Ali and Hannah seek help for their spiraling marriage and seek help in dealing with the issues of their children as well? How could they do that cost effectively since they currently have a tight budget?
Citations:
Heller, P. K. (2012). Moving and Young
Children. Retrieved June 25, 2014, from
http://psychcentral.com/lib/moving-and-young-children/00012138
Intellectual Disability. (2014).
Retrieved June 25, 2014, from
http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Intellectual_disability
3. One highlighted concept in this cultural is that families are ashamed to acknowledge that their child has a disability. Many children with mental disability are kept at home without receiving any type of specialized services. Families typically seek to place their children in day centers or residential facilities because they don’t realize the potential that these children have, and therefore schools don’t accept children with a physical or mental handicap. Although most families cannot afford this option because when they seek placement for their children in either day centers or residential facilities, they may be faced with fees that they cannot afford given their poor financial conditions. Even after placing a child in a center, integrating the child later into society can be problematic. With this, few businesses will take on adolescents or young adults with special needs even though a specific job may be well within their capacity. This culture has an overall negative stigmatizing negative view about individuals with disabilities that is consistent throughout the community. This stigmatizing effect further contributes to social exclusion of children with mental disability. Another traditional common belief that mental disability is related to God’s will that the parent should have a child with a disability. This makes things even tougher on the parents because they feel that the disability of their child is a reflected on them and is caused by them. Persons with mental disability have been considered burdensome and shameful, because they are incapable of contributing to traditional social obligations and roles (Middle East, 2011).
ReplyDeleteDecision Point: Do Ali and Hannah seek help for their spiraling marriage and seek help in dealing with the issues of their children as well? How could they do that cost effectively since they currently have a tight budget?
Family is the most important support system that a child has. A child is always surrounded by their family and the behaviors of family members can heavily impact the child. The biggest contributing factor in marital relations affecting children’s emotional development is whether the child hears the parents fighting. This is referred to as “background anger” in the child’s environment and if the child is exposed to it, even though it is not directed at the child, problems with emotional security and regulation are likely to result from it. Because of this, Ali and Hannah should do their best to seek out help if both are willing and see that this is an issue that needs to be addressed. I would recommend that Ali and Hannah get involved with a church. By doing so, they could consult the pastor to see if he/she would assist in marital counseling. That way, Ali and Hannah wouldn’t have to worry about paying a counselor. If Ali and Hannah didn’t like this option, they could agree to sit down together and discuss the ways that they are parenting Aaron and research new ideas that are beneficial for children with Autism. They should write out all the other stressors in their life and see if there are any strategies to lessen the severity of the stressors (Murphy, 2014).
Applied Behavior Analysis. (2014). Autism Speaks. Retrieved from http://www.autismspeaks.org/what-autism/treatment/applied-behavior-analysis-aba
Mentally disabled children in the Middle East and their integration into society (2011). Middle East Health Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.middleeasthealthmag.com/cgi-bin/index.cgi?http://www.middleeasthealthmag.com/jul2011/feature5.htm
Murphy, A. (2014). Parental Influence on the Emotional Development of Children. Developmental Psychology at Vanderbilt. Retrieved from https://my.vanderbilt.edu/developmentalpsychologyblog/2014/05/parental-influence-on-the-emotional-development-of-children/
1. The most effective way to assist with the transition of schools would be to have the children to go on a tour of the school with the parents. A lot of time, transitions are difficult because there is a fear of the unknown. Children don’t know what to expect and therefore they are fearful of what is to come. Having them tour the school and having them meet some of the peers before they have to be integrated into the classrooms, it would be beneficial to see how the school is set up, how to find their way around, and to meet people so that there are familiar faces. Especially for Aaron, having Autism, he needs consistency in his schedule or else he will begin to act out. He needs to have a routine set so that he knows at all times what he is supposed to be doing and what will be coming next. This will hopefully eliminate most of the fears and negative behaviors associated with a new school. This would also be a bonding experience that the whole family could share and at home, Hannah and Ali could sit down with their children and discuss what they are worried about and how they can prevent those fears from occurring.
ReplyDelete2. One easy, cost effective way that Hannah and Ali could handle Aaron’s behaviors is through a method called applied behavior analysis. This is a researched, effective method for children with a wide range of behaviors. It focuses on how learning takes place. Positive reinforcement is one of the major principles. When a behavior is followed by some sort of reward, the behavior is more likely to be repeated. This would hopefully change Aaron’s actions when he realizes that he receives more positive attention when he portrays positive behaviors. One major problem that is usually seen with parents is that even when their child is acting out they give them attention. Even though it is mostly negative attention, children with disabilities will typically seek any type of attention that they can. But by reinforcing the positive behaviors and not focusing in on the negative behaviors will hopefully teach Aaron that he is praised and rewarded and receives positive attention when he behaves. I think it is also easy for individuals in our culture to tell children what they can’t do and to always use the word “no”. Instead of saying “No running Aaron” which is suppressive, “walk please Aaron” could be used. This creates an overall more positive environment for the whole family (ABA, 2014).
This form of behavior therapy could be beneficial because it is very widely known. The parents could inform the school and ask to have this behavior plan implemented into Aaron’s IEP. That way, there would be consistency of how to handle Aaron’s behaviors at school and at home therefore enforcing the positive behavior changes. ABA has been endorsed by a number of state and federal agencies, including the U.S. Surgeon General and the New York State Department of Health. Over the last decade, the nation has seen a particularly dramatic increase in the use of ABA to help persons with autism live happy and productive lives. In particular, ABA principles and techniques can foster basic skills such as looking, listening and imitating, as well as complex skills such as reading, conversing and understanding another person’s perspective. (ABA, 2014)
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ReplyDeletesorry they are out of order!
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