Reply To: ABA Tutors?

[Anonymous]

From experience ABA Tutors vary widely depending on training and personality, however, fundamental to the philosophy of the pure ABA technique as I understand it is that they are wanting to change the child/adult through drill techniques, ostensibly to help them “cope” better and become as close to ” normal” as they are able to train the child. I know a few ex ABA tutors who had no background in autism previous to being trained ( so therefore a blank page in their understanding of autism) and now work in environments that are more about acceptance ( which is what most autistic adults say they want and wanted when they were children) and they look back on their ABA time with discomfort. In my experience ABA techniques are often about fitting a round peg into a square hole and could potentially damage the child’s well-being . Reviews from adults who have experienced ABA as a child are also mixed . An overview of the formal technique is discussed in this article https://www.spectrumnews.org/features/deep-dive/controversy-autisms-common-therapy/ and an article from the Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/mar/20/autism-does-aba-therapy-open-societys-doors-to-children-or-impose-conformity . Personally I would only employ an ABA tutor in a school if they were open to retraining ! These are my personal views by the way. Hope that helps.