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Profile: Teacher leads "children of the stars" toward bright future

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E-mail Xinhua, August 15, 2023

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XINING, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- When An An (pseudonym) was almost four, his mother noticed a problem: He walked unsteadily, didn't respond to his name, and his attention would only last a few seconds when he was focusing on a single object.

"At that time, we didn't know that he was autistic, but thought that he spoke late and were hoping to work on his speaking ability," An An's mother said. After three months of rehabilitation training at the Xingguang ("Starlight") Special Children's Services Center, he said the word "mom" for the first time in his life. When his mother heard him utter the word in a video, she burst into tears.

"From despair to hope, it is an instant thing," she said.

Chen Zhifang is the director of and a teacher at the center in the city of Xining, the capital of northwest China's Qinghai Province. She said that although the children at the center are withdrawn and sometimes a little different, they twinkle like stars in her eyes and are all unique.

Chen, 51, has a son who was diagnosed with autism. Like many parents of children with autism, she has faced difficulties and works hard to help them.

Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by varying degrees of impairment in communication skills and social interactions. Children with autism are sometimes called "children of the stars" in China as they are often perceived as lonely and can have unconventional emotional reactions, language abilities or social skills.

A report on autism education showed that in 2019, there were more than 10 million people with an autism spectrum disorder in China, among whom about 2 million were children aged under 12.

SEEKING SERVICES

Chen was 30 when she first noticed that her son's development was unusual.

It was in 2002. Her son Xiao Qiang (pseudonym) was over a year old and had not said a word. She thought he was simply introverted, but the situation did not change for some time.

She sought medical treatment and prayed for him, but it was to no avail. "I tried all the methods I'd seen on TV and the internet. Nothing worked," she recalled. One day, she saw a TV program about a family with an autistic child. She realized that the child on TV behaved in exactly the same way as Xiao Qiang, and she summoned up the courage to reach out to the program's staff.

Through conversations, she learned that Xiao Qiang was possibly not introverted, but could have autism and need rehabilitation training and intervention treatment.

In 2004, Xiao Qiang was diagnosed with autism. A year later, Chen quit her job and accompanied her son to the city of Lanzhou, the capital of northwest China's Gansu Province, to seek rehabilitation training, as there were no such services available in Qinghai.

Luckily, Xiao Qiang made rapid progress over a year of training, and was soon able to speak complete sentences.

He even participated in a performance with other children with autism.

As they sang and danced on the stage, their parents cried, Chen said. "It was the first time I felt happy since I started worrying about him," she said. "A group of people were singing and my son was one of them, not a bystander."

The moment prompted Chen to establish an autism services center back in her hometown of Xining.

"By doing so, children with autism in Xining would be able to access rehabilitation training on their doorstep, and parents would be able to see their children when they come home every day," she said.

In 2015, the Xingguang Special Children's Services Center was established. The non-profit organization provides early rehabilitation training and intervention for children with autism, intellectual disabilities and language disorders.

Currently, the center provides services for 132 children and has 38 teachers. Each of those children aged from two to six receives a monthly government subsidy of 2,000 yuan (about 278.68 U.S. dollars), while each of those aged from seven to 17 receives 800 yuan. The site of the center is provided by the Xining disabled persons' federation, all free of charge.

OFFERING HOPE

Chen holds a junior college degree in preschool education, and she traveled to Beijing and east China's Qingdao City to learn how to educate children with autism.

"What kids with autism need most is not sympathy or compassion, but education," she said, adding that rehabilitation training is intended to help them integrate into society like any other children.

Chen said her organization provides tailored courses for different children, based on their abilities and aptitude. If their sports abilities are weak, the center will arrange physical exercise for them. If their practical abilities are poor, it will organize various activities such as painting and paper folding.

After a solid foundation is laid at an early stage, children in senior classes mainly learn social etiquette and social rules through exercises and field teaching, which will prepare them for ordinary schools and normal life in the future, she said.

During a recent class, tables and chairs were placed along the sides of the classroom with an aisle running down the middle as a teacher and students simulated the experience of taking a bus.

"We can take empty seats. If the seats are occupied, we should stand quietly next to them," the teacher said. "If we feel under the weather, we should ask 'can someone offer me a seat?' Don't pull, tug or hit anything."

Sometimes teaching can be dangerous.

Once in a language class, a child was unable to pronounce a word correctly. The child gradually became anxious and kicked Chen in the chest. "At times like this, we must pretend nothing has happened, so as not to reinforce any violent tendencies," she said. "Over time, children learn to express their emotions with words and through other actions."

She has thought about giving up countless times, she said. "I'm just a child's mother. Is it worth it?"

"But every time I see a child learn an action, such as picking up beans with chopsticks, or speak a few monosyllabic words, I feel that all the hard work is worth it."

Many of the children receiving rehabilitation training at the center can eat, go to the toilet, go shopping and take the bus home independently.

Some children have returned to ordinary schools. They sometimes video call teachers at the center to see how they are doing.

An An has adjusted well. The now nine-year-old boy is in the third grade at an elementary school.

Xiao Qiang has also adjusted well. The now 22-year-old does auxiliary work, such as making briefcases. He is paid -- sometimes more than 100 yuan -- each time he completes work.

Chen hopes that through her efforts, more people will pay attention to this special group and more autistic children will be able to integrate into society. Enditem