Parents: "Should I place my child in school or in ABA Therapy, which is more beneficial?"
- Emma Barnes, MSFP, BCBA
- Jul 8
- 3 min read
This is a common question that we get every summer as parents are trying to figure out which route would work best for their child. The answer is never as simple as either or, but rather requires parents to acknowledge their child’s deficits, key differences in school and ABA approaches, and what children are able to do (or not do) independently.
Traditionally, school is a place that focuses on learning which includes:
Reading
Working in groups of peers
Writing
Problem Solving
Math
Development of social skills
Following instructions
Childhood independence
Critical thinking and more!
The goal of school is to help children learn academically and socially so that they can navigate the world successfully independently. As of April 2024, Georgia is experiencing a teacher shortage as the number of students increases classroom sizes. A shortage of educators in the classroom are due to high cost of living, low pay, lack of qualified teachers, low retention rates and increased workload for teachers.
While it is true that Autism/Special Needs Classrooms have smaller groups of students, the average classroom size could range from 5-15 autistic individuals. This means that in a special needs classroom of 5-15, each child has different needs and varying degrees of care. For one teacher and a paraprofessional in a classroom, it would be nearly impossible to teach each Autistic student school content to mastery since each child on the spectrum learns differently.
A common misconception that parents have is that teachers and schools provide a one-on-one approach to teaching content. This is not true and with a teacher shortage, group teaching is highly likely. In many scenarios autistic children need one-on-one support (that can be faded out overtime with mastery of skills) to be successful. Teachers simply do not have the time to work with each autistic student one-on-one for hours in a single school day. This is often the reality that parents face after enrolling their child into school. Unfortunately, this also means that many autistic students are going to be left on their own within the confines of their classroom, wandering throughout the classroom on their own freewill. This isn’t the fault of teachers; teachers are doing their best but for many autistic students it's not enough. Significant reform is needed in schools to be able to support autistic children successfully.
Parents: “So what do I do? I want to put my child in school.”
Our approach at BeeKind is for children on the spectrum to be prepared for success. This involves an honest conversation with parents, sometimes children aren’t ready for school when parents want them to be and this is okay. Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), is a neurodevelopmental condition that affects how people interact with others, communicate, learn, and behave. It is normal for children on the spectrum to be behind, this does not make you, the parent, a bad parent. It means that additional support is needed to make sure that your child is successful.
In the state of Georgia children are not required to go to school until the age of 6. This gives parents at least 3-4 years to enroll their child into ABA therapy to learn foundational skills so that children can be successful in school. At BeeKind we consider this to be building your child's foundational skills for success. Preparing children on the spectrum for school usually involves Bee
Kind identifying deficits, decreasing challenging behaviors and teaching skills to be successful in school settings. These skills usually include:
Sharing
Sitting down during activities
Decreasing maladaptive behaviors (tantrums, throwing items, etc)
Teaching how to follow directions
Completing nonpreferred tasks
Cleaning up
Transitioning between activities
Toilet Training
Tolerating preferred activities coming to an end and more!
Teaching these skills in ABA therapy which provides a one-on-one approach to supporting children on the spectrum, builds the foundation for success in other settings. For example, it is difficult to teach a child how to color on a sheet of paper if the child does not have the ability to sit down or follow instructions. The foundational skills of learning how to sit down and following instructions independently are critical and must come before the school demand of coloring. These are skills that can be taught one-on-one ABA therapy.
When deciding on whether or not to enroll chi
ldren in early school programs parents should consider their child’s:
Current skillset
Maladaptive/Challenging behaviors
Ability to complete tasks independently
Communication
Toileting ability
Ultimately the decision to enroll autistic children into school or ABA therapy is a decision that parents will make every summer and BeeKind firmly supports parents in whichever decision is made.
Yorumlar