Anything Blog Post 2

What I learnt volunteering for Autism

When you think about Autism what's the first thing that comes to mind? Personally, I knew little about it and simply associated the term with a disability of some sort. Autism is commonly defined as a cognitive disorder that is characterised by difficulties in everyday interactions that are key to fitting into society, such as communicating and forming relationships. With this is mind, I did not know what to expect when I spent time taking care of a few Autistic children during a summer volunteer stint a few years ago. 

Prior to volunteering, there was some rudimentary training; I was told to treat the children with 'special care' as if they were different. This only contributed further to the image of a mentally disabled child. Little did I know how wrong I was. When I finally spent time with the children, I learnt that each had his/her own circle that required patience and time before being able to fully interact with them. It took time for them to accept me, but eventually I noticed a difference in their demeanour; it was as if they had accepted me into their circle of trust.

I developed a bond with many of the children and when one of the children signalled me over to play with him, I was astounded and humbled. It was playtime right after math class for the children when the boy named Ethan brought me to play with numbered blocks with him. I expected to pile the blocks up with him, but instead he ordered them in many different sequences ranging from multiples to ascending and descending orders. After showing him some number patterns of my own, I was awestruck as his became more and more sophisticated as well. Despite being uninterested in interacting with others, Ethan was able to replicate mathematical processes and this gave me new light on what these children were like.

From this experience I've learnt that Autistic children aren't incapable of interactions as many would think, they simple don't have an interest to pursue it. I realised that although Autism is classified as a disorder, it isn't necessarily a disability. Everyone is deficient in some ways and talented in others, just as these children are. When the likes of Einstein and Newton have been rumoured to have suffered from autism themselves, it makes me question how we have come to define Autism. Maybe it's just a relative term after all.