Pendidikan Khas

I wrote this statement of purpose in 2002. In some ways, this could be seen as part of my ticket of admission to a doctoral program with full funding.

My first memorable experience as a special education teacher, involved me having to chase after an eight-year-old boy with autism at the bowling alley. Besides having no experience working with exceptional children, this was my first day at the HOUSE (a center for children with special needs). When I saw the boy running off from the group and the other three teachers had their hands full with the other children, I had to go after him on my own. I was unsure of myself: not knowing whether to walk slowly or to run full speed, and wondering whether to call out his name or to keep silent. Hoping not to further excite him, I ran quietly after the boy, as he sped across the bowling alley and then into the lanes. I stopped at the lanes and watched helplessly as he got closer to the bowling pins. Then, to my utter relief, he decided to turn around and walked back towards me. I quickly grabbed his hand and proceeded to lecture him while walking back to the group. All the while I kept my eyes on him, mainly to avoid the stares of the other patrons. This experience would be the first of many unforgettable moments that I would have while teaching exceptional children.

I had just completed my degree in biomedical science at Universiti Putra Malaysia, and was taking a break, when the principal of the HOUSE approached me to help out at the center for a few months. Although I did well in biomedical science, I wanted to interact with people rather than work in a medical laboratory. Thus, I was looking forward to this new and different experience. I entered the HOUSE with little understanding of education of children with disabilities. Among the many challenges of being a teacher to children with special needs, my main struggle was trying to teach the children with autism. They did not seem interested and looked like they would rather be left alone. The principal and the other teachers were just as perplexed by these children. All the while when I was teaching, I kept wondering if I was doing it the right way. Then I came across the manual, Behavioral Intervention for Young Children with Autism: A Manual for Parents and Professionals, which helped me realized two things: (1) there is hope for children with autism and (2) the intervention will be very intensive.

Now that I knew that there were effective interventions for persons with autism, I was no longer satisfied with just teaching the children, I wanted to teach effectively. I wanted to be sure of my teaching methods, so I decided to apply for a teaching position at a school for autism ran by a national non-profit organization (SOCIETY). The SOCIETY did not turn out as I had expected. Although the SOCIETY had considerable more resources than HOUSE, the outcome of the students was not much different. As a developing country, Malaysia is still under-developed in the field of special education. Schools for children with disabilities, either public or private, lack properly trained teachers, funds, and expertise to provide best practices. It was my desire to have a deeper understanding of autism that led me to pursue graduate studies in special education at University of Malaya (UM).

Pursuing my master degree at UM, afforded me the opportunity to learn more about autism. The lecturers were not specialized in autism, so I had to find information regarding autism on my own. This included ordering books and journal articles from abroad, searching for information on the Internet, and attending a conference on autism in a neighboring country. As research increases in all areas of autism, including neurobiology of autism, my background in biomedical science is an advantage for me. While I may be able to compensate my lack of head knowledge to some extent, I acknowledge that I am lacking in the area of practical training in best practices.

While studying at UM, I took up a teaching position at the CENTER (a tuition center for children with Down syndrome). Even though my interest had always been autism, I took up this position because I would be working there under the guidance of my advisor in UM. He is an experienced and prominent special educator in Malaysia. To my surprise, even in the midst of the students with Down syndrome, I had a student with a dual diagnosis of Down syndrome and autism. As the head teacher, I was responsible for all aspects of teaching and evaluation of the students.

The complexity of autism makes understanding and overcoming it, a challenge for me. I want to work towards, as a book title says, Unraveling the Mystery of Autism. That is why I would like to pursue doctoral study in special education. As there are many aspects to interventions for autism, I hope to specialize in behavioral intervention, in areas such as positive behavior support, functional behavioral assessment, and applied behavior analysis. I see a need for better teacher preparation program to train special education teachers in my country. It is time to develop curricula that are effective in the local special education environment.

In Malaysia, there is still a lack of governmental support for persons with disabilities. The burden of caring for exceptional persons falls mainly on the parents. I want to work effectively with families of exceptional children, in areas such as parent education programs and developing effective support structures.

Most importantly, there is a need for greater involvement of the government with regards to individuals with disabilities. I realized that it is impossible for individuals with autism and their families to achieve quality of life without the support of the government and community. The advocacy for equal rights and opportunities for individuals with autism would perhaps be my greatest challenge.