La ce fel de progres ma pot astepta ?

Progresul pe care copilul dvs il poate face depinde de doua lucruri : capacitatea sa de invatare si caliatea programelor de intervetie( terapiile specifice).Cat de mult poate invata copilul atunci cand are chiar si cel mai bun program este ceva ce nimeni nu poate sa prezica cu exactitate , desi cercetarile indica ca o varsta de dezvoltare ridicata( Lovaas, 1987)si o abordare timpurie(Fenske 1985)constituie predictori a unui eventual progres mai ridicat .Cercetari mai recente sugereaza ca progresul copilului in primele cateva luni- o masura a abilitatii sale de invatare - este in legatura stransa cu succesul pe termen lung , mai mult decat gradul sau initial de disabilitate. Peste totate acestea trebuie totusi sa intelegem ca este inca un subiect destul de putin cunoscut si ca nu exista indiicatori cu adevarat precisi intr-un copil care sa prezica cum va fi el ca adult ( de notat ca unii copii beneficiaza si de alte interventii , cum ar fi diete , medicamente care pot creste capacitatea lor de invatare ) 

Calitatea programului este ceva ce dvs puteti influenta si controla . De exemplu numarul de ore pe saptamana este o masura evidenta : dat fiind faptul Program quality is something you can influence. The number of hours per week is one obvious measure: since your child has a lengthy curriculum to get through, it is to his benefit to do it as quickly as possible. (This is one thing that many school administrators really do not understand; they believe that they can save money by doing fewer hours of programming each week, or fewer weeks each year. Yet the research suggests exactly the opposite: an intensive program is likely to be over sooner, while a lower intensity program may go on for years and years, costing much more in the long run.) Not only do more hours mean more learning, but if your child is not yet able to initiate appropriate activity, every hour spent learning is one fewer hour spent practicing undesirable activities. In the battle for your child's future, every hour falls on one side of the ledger or the other; you want to tip the balance towards productive, quality time.

Instructional quality is just as important. Some people say: "Any idiot can do ABA." This is true, but to do it well and actually help children takes a lot of training, attention to detail, and plain hard work. Children with autism are not often the best customers for good intentions; simply sitting down and trying to teach on instinct may lead to a wide array of unwanted behaviors, but little useful learning. The principle of providing positive reinforcement seems simple, but it's rarely enough just to give a child a piece of candy every time he gives a right answer; there are many, many details and strategies which a good ABA teacher must master to really move your child through the curriculum as quickly as possible.

You can and should expect your child to learn to his maximum potential, even though there is no way to be sure exactly what that potential is. You should, however, expect that if your child is learning some skills but then fails to progress in other areas, that the program, not your child, may be at fault. Educators and parents alike are often too quick to blame the child for failing to learn. This is the great shame of the IDEA law, that any progress (or lack of it) may arbitrarily be considered "appropriate" for your child. The research proves that some children do recover completely, and most others can make very substantial progress. While no one can tell you if that is possible for your child, he does deserve the same quality of instruction and the same chance at a normal life as the many children who have recovered completely.

Expect also that progress is like the stock market - you really have to play it for the long term. Three steps forward and two back is more the rule than the exception. Daily or weekly plateaus, spurts, and regression can be emotionally exhausting, but a high quality program should lead to measurable progress from month to month.

Does behaviorally-based teaching provide all the answers for all children? Certainly not; many children have cognitive deficits that cannot be completely remedied by any amount of teaching and practice. While those children (and adults) may gain a great deal, they will still need help learning strategies to work around their limitations, as well as a good deal of understanding and accommodation from the rest of us!