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8th Grade Lecture about Autism Spectrum Disorder

May 3, 2018

8th Grade Lecture about Autism Spectrum Disorder

What is your preconceived notion or idea when you hear or see the term Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)? You probably will think of children who live in their own world and try to avoid as much contact with others as possible. These perceptions aren’t wrong, but they are incomplete.

On April 16th, a lecture about ASD was given to the 8th grade students during CAS class. The lecturer started her speech by playing a video that shows how the world is like through the eyes of children with ASD. All the students were fascinated by how much information the children were getting every second. The lecturer explained to us that unlike other children, these special kids were receiving much more information from the world than us. They often seem to engage in their own world, however, the truth is that they are unable to comprehend all the information they are receiving from our world.

The lecturer also explained to us that the children with ASD often have problems communicating and interacting with others. Even if they can communicate, they can only understand verbal meanings literally, and are unable to understand others’ facial expressions and gestures.

The lecturer has many years of experience with ASD children. She shared some of the stories she had personally experienced with them. She used these experiences to tell us that these ASD children not only need sympathy from us, but more importantly, empathy. With empathy, we can understand what the world is like for them. ASD is not the only developmental disorder that children have. Disorders such as Tourette’s Syndrome and Dyslexia are also common. The lecturer showed several clips about these disorders. The movie Front of the Class plotted a story about a boy with Tourette’s Syndrome, who could not control his own action, always making ‘noise’ during the class. However, with the help of the school’s principal, the boy was able to gain confidence. The boy became a teacher when he grew up. The lecturer reminded us that people with disorders like this can be helped with modern technology.

People with Dyslexia, who have difficulty reading, can be helped with books that are written in a form they can understand. Although the lecture was short, all the students learned a lot about ASD, Tourette’s Syndrome, and Dyslexia. The lecturer ended her speech by telling us what we, as students, could do for these special kids. We can donate to special institutions, we can interact with the children, and more importantly we can also help to raise people’s awareness about these disorders.

(Written by Anya 8(4) Directed by Ms. Gu Pictures credit Ms. Gao)