January 16, 2008
About me
It was once my dream to pursue further studies in the area of special education in the United States. As a special education teacher in Malaysia, with limited knowledge (even though I did receive a M.Ed in Special Education from Universiti Malaya) and limited experience, I wanted to be good at what I do. I was frustrated when I encounter behaviors that I couldn’t control. Many a times, I did not know what is the next thing I should teach or how to teach it. There was a lot of trial and error learning. I got better at some things and remain clueless in others. Most importantly I got to know and love the students. And I learned to read them pretty well and this helped prevent some challenging behaviors from escalating. But I failed to teach the kids many functional skills that they would need in life.
I am now in my fifth year in the Ph.D. program in Special Education in the United States. I have taken 60 credit hours in special education and related courses and am working under the tutelage of good professors in this field. Many a times, I sat in lectures, and as I learned new things, I reflected on my special education practices with my students and realized that I should have done things differently. Other times, I realized that I did do what is considered best practices, maybe in a rather primitive form, but nevertheless it was reassuring that I did not do everything wrong.
Documenting some of my struggles, reflecting on them and hypothesizing possible strategies that I could have used, I hope will help me be a better practitioner of special education.
Comments(22)
Dear Ms Alisa Goh,
I would like to ask you a few question pertaining to Autism. I’m a Malaysian currently working in on of a Special Need School in Singapore.
I would be glad if you could reply me.
Thank You very much.
Best Regards,
Anu
Sure, I’ll try my best to help.
Hi Ailsa,
I am a Malaysian, currently working with the MOE. I don’t have any experience with the special education and children. But… i see our country’s needs. I am a M.Sc in IT and now wanted to pursue further studies in the area of special education (autism). Please advise. Thanks.
Hi Ailsa,
I am a Malaysian, with no experience whatsover in education (I’m an IT graduate who’s been working with computers for the past 8 years). I’d like to know if you can advise on the options I have if I want to teach children with special needs (i.e. autism). Will you be able to give some pointers? Could you reply me by mail?
Cheers
Ellen
Dear Ailsa, I chanced upon your great blog while I was searching for data on Special Ed in Malaysia. I did my M. Ed (Special Ed) at UM too and am now attached to a non-profit Special Ed centre. Would love to be able to “pick your brains” occasionally on various issues, given your exposure to US and world practices. If agreeable to you, please send an email so I need not “post” all my queries, some of which may require privacy. All the best! Angeline
Hello everyone,
I have a nephew kid who is about 7yrs old currenly. He is having some difficulties in school learning, that even his primary school princples and teacher has given up on him, leaving him to the last roll of the classroom seats, as told by his worried mother.
the principle has also asked the parents to seek help as the boy shows no interest at all in school learning. He just simple refused to learn or read school things.
I would like to ask if there is any school or center which can help the kids who needs special care and attention in his learning. the parents are really worried now and we do hope to get some help soon. The kids is still very young and we do hope to help him the best we can.
Thanks in advance for your help.
Thanks and best regards,
ELAINE LIM
Puchong
Hi everyone,
Thanks for leaving your comments here.
I do reply to all comments and inquiries but I normally do it via email.
So go ahead leave your questions. That will force me to apply what I have learned and we can learn from each other through this process.
Ailsa
Good luck teacher alisa!
Greeting From India Mam ,
Its indeed a pleasure to know that someone like you is so passionate about special education as a subject. Mam I’m a real difficult time as a special educator in India, I’m also a special educator with limited knowleged, the knowledge can be gained only by training and interaction with different children. Mam I’m interested in any work related in this feild, If known of any vacany please let me know. I’m very dedicated to my work. Mam I’m also preparing my Statement of purpose, I need your advise. I’m a special educator dealing with Multiple Disabilities: Neurological and Physical.
Do Advise me ..Thanking You..With Grateful Heart..God Bless.
Maria Theknath.
Hi Ailsa,
Kamala here – if you remember me. We were with Mr.Sandi in 2000 I am in Paris now. Hope to keep in touch with you.Will update through email.
love
Kamala
Dear Ailsa,
I’m from Seremban, Malaysia, and was browsing the websites on information on Special Education and came across your blog – through much luck!
Your posts are very inspiring. I have plans to study in this field. I’ve just completed an education degree and am considering taking up Special Needs education for my Masters studies, or even as another degree.
As you have so much experience in this field, what would you advice generally – where to study it, what to major in, etc.
Would love to hear from you soon. Thanks so much for taking time to read.
Dear Alisa,
Hi, i’m a Malaysian student who’s currently doing my degree in Education in Australia. In this semester, i’ve taken up a unit ‘Teaching students with learning difficulties’ and i did learned a lot about identifying and supporting students with special needs. In Australia, loads of effort were put in to provide these students with the necessities to succeed in their education. That leaves me thinking about Malaysian education system. I googled inclusion education in Malaysia, but i could only find very little info.
There were special schools, but these are mostly catered to students with disabilities such as down syndrome, cognitively challenged, visual and hearing impaired. But there’s not much said about the efforts made in accommodating to the needs of students with learning difficulties such as those in the Autism Spectrum Disorder, especially Asperger’s Syndrome. The symptoms were mentioned, but there were very little said about how teachers are handling these students in schools etc etc.
It was good that i stumbled upon your insightful blog. I was wondering if you could tell me more about the state of inclusion education in Malaysia?
Thanks.
Hi Anidha and Mun Ting,
I’m so sorry for not responding earlier. I’m so caught up with my research work that I haven’t checked my pending comments for months. I will catch up with you via email.
Ailsa
Hi Ailsa,
I have a passion for people with special needs and currently I am volunteering in church’s social club for young adults with learning difficulties. I saw a need in this area in Malaysia and i would really want to serve in this area. I will be pursuing ‘Diploma in Learning Disorders Management and Child Psychology’ from Linguistic Council next year. I would like to ask, after I have completed the course, are there any centres in Malaysia that i can render my service? Moreover, it is only a Diploma course, will any centre accept that? Hope you can advice, thank you.
Dear Ailsa,
I have been working in sales line for the past 9 yrs. It has come to a dead end now and am seriously considering special education esp for ASD.
I would like to gain experience in spec edu and am considering doing master’s program in spec education.sad to say that min requirement is 2 yrs teaching experience.
As i have financial commitment, i would like to know what’s the salary range for special education teacher working in ngo setting.
your reply is very much appreciated.
Hi Ze,
I would suggest you ask the course provider (Linguistic Council) those questions. They can probably tell you where their graduates are working now. Or if the course is new, they should be able to suggest several centers that will accept their Diploma.
It’s great that you have taken the step to volunteer at your church’s social club. I believe that’s a very good first step for anyone who might be interested in special education. Keep me informed on your progress in the diploma course.
Hi Chance,
When I applied for my M.Ed in Special Ed at University of Malaya, I only had about 6 months of teaching experience. I sent in my application regardless, and I was accepted. If you’re considering a career change to special education, you may want to consider doing some volunteer work at an NGO that serves individuals with disabilities. This way, you get some experience and it will give your application a boost.
As for the salary range for special education teachers working in NGO settings….just think of the lowest salary you are willing to accept to work as a teacher, and the range will probably be way below that. That’s just my experience from working at 3 NGO settings. But things could have changed since I left Malaysia.
When I attended a day seminar on Autism organized by PR4A many years ago, I noticed there were several applied behavior analysis (ABA) consultants during the conference. These consultants basically work one-on-one with children with autism usually following a program based on ABA and are paid by the parents. That’s another option to look into but you will require some intensive training to work as an ABA consultant.
Thank you for your reply
I will keep you update on my progress. I am really excited about the course as well as worried as I have not been taking exams and doing assignments for quite some time now. Really need all the encouragment i could get.. tks for such a wonderful blog 
Hi Ailsa,
I’m currently doing my doctoral degree in educational psychology (Special Ed) in Australia. My main concern is about parents (in Malaysia) involvement in educating their slow learner child. Could u please give your opinion regarding the matters. Thanks!
Talking about special education in Malaysia, I would say we are trying to ‘evolve’. The very definition of Special Education carries about a deep relationship involving teacher, student, parents and curriculum. But, the saddest part is that we have lost the communications that suppose to take place in the name of Special Education. What I am trying to say is that, with the ‘whatever little professional knowledge’ acquired by most of the ’so-called special education teachers’, we are still lagging in many aspects, especially the teacher – students relationship. While many have acquired the knowledge, techniques and understanding of bombastic concepts beyond the reach of many, the core issue remains the same. We have special education teachers for special children; do we have special teachers who can, not just to impart the knowledge but to do that with greater understanding about the person within? Do we have teachers who can love the person within unconditionally and appreciate the person, not just tolerating him or her? If we have one, then I would say our Special Education system is working and evolving for the better.
I am not a trained special education teacher. I am working at an NGO. Over the years (15 years) I have observed many scenarios where trained teachers/therapist and helpers work with special children dealing with every aspect of the child’s life during the school hours. No doubt they all have their goals to achieve and they are going for it, but at the expense of the child. These are but a few examples which I can show here.
Let’s ponders the scenarios below:
When a child eats slowly, they push the child to eat fast leaving the child wondering why he/she must eat faster.
When a child moves slowly (either with or without assistance) again the child is pushed to move fast, leaving the child wondering why he/she must move faster.
When a child moves faster (either with or without assistance) again the child is asked to move slowly, leaving the child wondering why he/she must move slower.
When a child writes slowly/improperly, voice rises with some labeling and kills the child’s enthusiasm and self-esteem.
When a child talks non-stop, he/she is abruptly stopped with reprimanding words, leaving the child in a state of blank.
When a child shows behavior problems, teacher’s behaviors become worst and voice raised to the highest pitch. Out of fear the child wonders what happened.
When a child ‘piss’ in the pant, anger and powerful words with threatening gestures is hurled, and again the child thinks, what happened?
When a child, can’t eat (food not tasty?, Not to the liking of the child?) teacher sit beside forcing the child to finish the food. This is one of the most strangest scenario I have ever seen in this special setup!!.
Are there solutions for all these? I don’t know. Perhaps your people out there can answer this?
They are here perfectly encased within the terminology of our understandings. They don’t understand things easily. They are just what they are suppose to be with their disabilities be it physical, mental or emotion. It is us who believe that we can leave some positive impact and make some changes in them, who must change to embrace them with a broader vision to give them the understandings and knowledge of what is right or wrong. But, when we succumb to our inability to understand them, we have no one else to blame but ourselves.
Personally, I feel a child in a special education setup should be exposed to the ways and processes of acquiring and achieving the goals in a systematic gradual flow. We should not rush to go against time and apply more stress on these children. Each varies in his/her cognitive and also physical abilities. The process taken towards achieving a goal is not less important than the goal itself. The way leads to the destination. One is what we do to reach the goal; another is when the goal is achieved. But, in most cases, my observation brings about pathetic conditions where the child attains the goal without understanding the process. (What happened here? IEP a flop? Or the teacher is the problem?) Leave the child out from this success-failure thing.
Let us take a broader look as why this situation can take place in a special education environment. Teachers/therapists are paid by their establishments, thus they have to work to produce results within the time frame they have. So, most of the times, the teacher does the work for the child and the child may just imitate and repeat the tasks, perhaps consciously perhaps unconsciously. Or, most of the time the teacher may not have a clue on how to teach the child or may have the clue but not the technology to transfer the knowledge to the child. At the end of the time set to achieve the goal, according to the teacher’s report a child may have achieved or partially achieved the goals set, without having a proper mechanism to double check the authenticity of this achievement. Sometimes I feel teachers aren’t to be blamed if the establishment set the eyes on goals/achievement alone. The process counts, but most of the time IEPs can become a mess rather than a process.
Special Education teachers are not rare breeds to be proud of. They just acquire knowledge like any other teachers, of course with different approach in learning and imparting the knowledge. A Special Education teacher with foremost love for the person within the physical frame minus the deformities or shortcomings, the intellectual capacity or the behaviors, is truly a RARE BREED. RARE BREED indeed!!. I pray we have more teachers like this among us. They can help not just the special children but also us…the so-called trained/untrained special educators…who may be in dire need of learning the arts of appreciation and acceptance.
For those who have done the best to bring out the best in these children for the best of the community and the best of our beloved nation, I wish you all the best and may the Good Lord showers you all with the best of the universe. God bless.
hi my name is janell..im currently doing my diploma in pharmacy..but im really interested in special education especially for autistic kids..
i’d like to pursue it but am a bit sceptical somehow..ive browsed thru the net to c if thr are any colleges in malaysia tht is providing such a course but im a afraid thrs not much..i just would like to inquire…thn ill weigh my options and c how it goes…can u please reply me via email?
Dear Ms Alisa Goh,
My name is Samuel Oluwafemi Oluwawunmi,i work with individuals with Autism and other Learning disabilities in Nigeria.
I came across one of your write ups online when looking for a statement of purpose as sample to use for admission for a short course in special need into the International Summer school in Oslo.But unfortunately i wasn’t giving the scholarship.
Well,i want you to be my mentor .I need your advice on how to go about pursuing my career dream,i.e to be a professional Special needs Teacher.
Expecting to hear from you.
Best regards