In 10 years from now...

Given that autism has become a wide world problem, and  the fact  that a number of autistic children is growing each year, my dearest dream is that in 10 years from now I will be working in my native town of Odessa, Ukraine as an ABA teacher for all those kids who will need my help. Here, I would like to say some words why I have chosen Odessa as the place where I feel I will be able to realize my long life dream and to elaborate a special program of how to work with autistic children on the base of Odessa State University. I hope that with the help of both commercial and noncommercial organizations, located  world round, low -income families with autistic kids, living in Odessa,  will  get, at least, some financial help because to get access and to treat autistic kids in Ukraine ( and Odessa is not an exception, either) is extremely expensive financially. 

Odessa (which is also called city of chestnuts) is a port town, located on the Black Sea coast,  used to be one of the richest, expensive  and the most developed cities not only  in Ukraine but also all over the former USSR. But by now, the level of life of Odessa citizens has worsened many times, and the number of autistic kids has grown, too. To add, Odessa is a city with a multicultural population; you can find a great variety of cultures here ( used to be mostly Jewish, then Russians, Ukrainians, Muslims, Catholics, Orthodox, etc.), and all of them peacefully shared the same problems, both in troubles and happiness. That's why my dream in the nearest future is to come to this warm, very beautiful and friendly city and to create my own school for autistic kids, where I, based on my American experience, will work with autistic kids from the families with different levels of life, all cultures and nationalities, despite their financial situation. I would also like to hire and train the teachers who would like to work with autistic kids because the number of such professionals in my native town is very few. 

Because I was  born and grew up in Odessa, I dare say I know pretty well the mentality of the local population, their traditions, as well as pros and cons of most of the cultures living in this port city. I believe, that in 10 years my school will be considered one of the best schools in the town, where teachers use a variety of progressive and developed methodic based on the experience of other famous schools working with autistic children, and, certainly, a rich library with a plentiful stock of methodical literature and visual aids,  which will help teachers in their work with autistic kids and to be of a good service to my students to become more sociable and adaptive to social life.

As a special education teacher, I know that autistic kids possess several skills and talents which are directly related to their diagnosis. Among them there are such which will help such children to adapt into social life, both for the sake of both the society and kids themselves.  For example, “some autistic kids are good at being able to concentrate for a long period of time when motivated, some of them are good at painting or to music, and some of them are able to replicate or to manufacture the simplest things” (Strength and abilities in autism) . Mainly these abilities will help autistic kids to make, at least, a little money and, what is even more important, to feel needed and accordingly to enhance their self- confidence. 
Among many of my plans within the next 10 years is to use dolphin-assisted therapy for children with autism. I have read a lot that dolphin-assisted therapy is very much beneficial for children with autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, physical disabilities, and other psychological disorders.  Dolphin-assisted therapy will be especially helpful and popular for the kids living in Odessa because swimming with dolphins is rather popular in this city, though, unfortunately,  this therapy is not yet used as a treatment for autistic kids in this city. 

In 10 years, I see myself as a highly experienced teacher who knows most of the peculiarities of my profession such as the ability to  perfectly estimate children’s individual qualities, and accordingly choose an individual method working with them, the way of how to collaborate with my students’ families , taking into account their culture, age, type of the family, and their financial situation. And, as it may sound indecent, in 10 years, I would like to be known as a teacher #1 who works with autistic kids, whose school is considered as the best in Ukraine, and which in cooperation with Odessa State University is elaborating a new special PhD program for those teachers who would like to get a degree in ABA and working with special  kids.   


References

Strengths and abilities in autism 2020.

Autistic people may display a range of strengths and abilities that can be causally related to their diagnosis, including:

·         Learning to read at a very early age (known as hyperlexia).

·         Memorizing and learning information quickly.

·         Thinking and learning in a visual way.

·         Logical thinking ability.

·         May excel (if able) in academic areas such as science, engineering and mathematics as they are technical and logical subjects that do not heavily rely on social interaction.

·         Having an extraordinarily good memory (being able to remember facts for a long period of time).

·         Being precise and detail orientated.

·         Exceptional honesty and reliability.

·         Being dependable regarding schedules and routines.

·         Having an excellent sense of direction.

·         Be very punctual.

·         Strong adherence to rules.

·         Able to concentrate for long periods of time when motivated.

·         A drive for perfection and order.

·         A capability for alternate problem solving.

·         A rare freshness and sense of wonderment.