[FEAT BC Admin]

This area is for discussions in general topics.

Topic

[Erik Minty]

I'm not a psychologist, but my understanding has always been that you can modify behaviour, but not personality (except perhaps through extreme measures).

Our experience with our child and ABA has been that it is a very powerful technique that teaches him what behaviours will and will not be tolerated. By learning targeted skills, he has gained the ability to communicate with the people around him. He has learned, applied that knowledge, and continues to do so. This has not changed one bit who he is, or invalidated him as a person. He is, and always will be, "autistic".

So I agree with those whose sentiment is that ABA has saved their children, because I have seen this.

And I agree with those whose sentiment is that autistics are every bit as worthy of being allowed to be themselves as anyone else. Because nobody can change that through simple behavioural therapy (perhaps I should add "aversive-free", for those who may think that this is still condoned, as I believe it has largely been discredited).

I love my autistic child, and I wouldn't want to change who he is for the world. And I love what ABA has done for him. From what I've seen, this is how most ABA parents (for lack of a better epithet) feel.

So aren't we all really arguing on the same side here? Or am I missing something completely? I'm not autistic myself so perhaps I speak from ignorance.

[Rachel Russell]

Family Game Night Alert!!

To all the families who are having a family game night-(or who will now!) here is great news!

There is a great new game for sale at Toys R Us that I think many of our kids would adore. It is called Scene-it- Disney Version'. It is a Disney DVD for your TV with a board game component. Players move their pieces around a real game board and answer questions shown in the form of Disney movie clips on the TV (from the DVD) Hurrah! Make sure you get the 'Disney version' as there is another 'Scene it' version that you don't want. They also have a new Disney 'Sorry' game, Disney Charades,Disney trivia (with 'who is it' picture questions) and my personal fav. .. Disney Songs- where the kids just name the movie

There is a also a new set of Disney Sticker books that I haven't seen before- they are near the check-out stand at Toys R Us.

One more GREAT first board game for younger kids (3-5 years) who are not in love with board games. . is called Tonka Search and Rescue. Each child has a toy car with a pop-o-matic dice in the top. The dice has sides with 'stars' or 'blanks'. the child pops the dice in his playing piece, and if it is a star- he gets to move along the road. He has to help out 3 people in trouble (i.e, turtle on his back, child riding a bike without a helmet and a cat in a tree- when they help each person- they get a 'medal'. First person to get all 3 wins. No need to know numbers, matching or labels. Each car playing piece is a different type of car (fire engine, police car etc) Great first game! happy playing!

Rachel

[Jack & Cheryl Malli]

And then the perpetrator himself reveals his identity…

Hello Lucas,

Firstly, I want to say how sorry I am of the abuse you
suffered as a child. In many "treatments" for many
"disorders," unnecessary cruelty was often considered
OK, positive even. (Some of the "cures" for
homosexuality, as you mentioned, were extremely cruel
and humiliating; but then, we also burned whiches at
one time and destroyed the livelihoods of "commies"
too.) In general, medical ethics would not allow such
practices to continue today. So I ask you if you
honestly believe that anyone who advocates ABA today
would also advocate what can only be described as
torture inflicted on children? I don't believe it –
unless they are sadistic or a complete nut.
To be honest, just between you and me, anyone who is
an "apologist" for some of the more sinister practices
of Dr. Lovaas earlier in his career are intellectually
dishonest and chauvinistic.

My point, Lucas, is that I would never presume that
you don't know what ABA is. But I would say that what
you experienced is what ABA WAS. And if anyone is
continuing to use violent aversives today – well, they
ought to be thrown in jail. Applied Behavioural
Analysis, as a behavioural intervention, has allowed
my daughter to experience a quality of life and
happiness which she simply was not experiencing prior
to intervention. I know my child. Before ABA, she
suffered. I could see it in her face and body
language, I could hear it in her screams. It broke my
heart to see my little 4 year old girl in such pain.
And then we started an excellent program with her,
designed by our brilliant ABA consultant. And my
daugher is happier! Yes, easier to parent (our
benefit); and better behaved (the general public's
benefit); but definitely happier than she was before –
and more able to experience the joys and challenges of
life many of us take for granted. Friends, birthday
parties, travel, accomplishments, sports, hobbies!
When she turns 18 perhaps she can answer the question
as to whether or not she would rather have not had the
ABA therapy. I'll let you know.

I will copy your letter to me and this reply and post
it on the FEAT board. Meantime, I strongly request
that you stop sabotaging our petition. What we are
doing is good and positive and will help children.
Please see this and offer your help.

Jack Malli

— Ben McCarty wrote:

> Hello there. I'm glad you posted your e-mail on the
> FEATbc board; I'm reluctant to e-mail them for
> permission to post because I don't believe they will
> be at all fair. That is the case with us, proponents
> of ABA are hardly ever fair with us.
>
> I am one of quite a many Autistics/Aspies that have
> left messages on the petition. My message is as
> follows:
>
> "Psychological or physical pain is perhaps as
> characteristic in human
> relationships as is pleasure. The extensive presence
> of pain in
> everyday life may suggest that it is necessary for
> the establishment
> and maintenance of normal human interactions.
> Despite the
> pervasiveness of pain in daily functioning, and its
> possible necessity
> for maintaining some behaviors, psychology and
> related professions
> have shied away from and often condemned, the use of
> pain for
> therapeutic purposes. We agree with Solomon (1964)
> that such
> objections to the use of pain have a moral rather
> than scientific
> basis. Recent research, as reviewed by Solomon,
> indicated that hte
> scientific premises offered by psychologists for the
> rejection of
> punishment are not tenable. Rather, punishment can
> be a very useful
> tool for effecting behavior change.
>
> There are three ways pain can be used
> therapeutically. first,
> it can
> be used directly as punishment, i.e., it can be
> presented contingent
> upon certain undesirable behaviors, so as to
> suppress them. This is
> perhaps the
> most obvious use of pain. Second, pain can be
> removed or withheld con-
> tingent upon certain behaviors. That is, certain
> behaviors can be estab-
> lished and maintained because they terminate pain,
> or avoid it altogether.
> Escape and avoidance learning exemplify this. The
> third way in which pain
> can be used is the least well known, and perhaps the
> most intriguing. Any
> stimulus which is associated with or discriminative
> of pain reduction ac-
> quires positive reinforcing (rewarding) properties
> (Bijou and Baer, 1961),
> i.e., an organism will work to "obtain" those
> stimuli which have been
> associated with pain reduction. The action of such
> stimuli is analogous to
> that of stimuli whose positive reinforcing
> properties derive from primary
> positive reinforcers….
>
> Apparatus. The research was conducted in a 12 X
> 12-foot experi-
> mental room with an adjoining observation room
> connected by one-way
> minors and sound equipment. The floor of the
> experimental room was
> covered by one-half inch wide metal tapes with
> adhesive backing (Scotch
> Tape). They were laid one-half inch apart so that
> when the child stepped
> on the floor he would be in contact with at least
> two strips, thereby
> closing
> the circuit and receiving an electric shock. A
> six-volt battery was
> wired to
> the strips of tape via a Harvard Inductorium. The
> shock was set at a level
> at which each of three Es standing barefoot on the
> floor agreed that
> it was
> definitely painful and frightening."
>
> This was Lovaas' look into 'theraputic pain' in
> treating Autism. At the same time, he was using such
> methods to 'cure' feminine boys who were 'in danger
> of developing homosexuality'. Electric shocks are no
> longer used on children, they ARE used on adults
> held in institutions that adhere to behaviorist
> science.
>
> I am offended by the ••••• that said:
>
> "Having just read a few of the comments on the
> petition, I am irritated and horrified at the
> stupidity that continues to exist. Quite clearly
> those comments on the petition (against ABA) are
> made by those who do not truly understand what ABA
> is. "
>
> He doesn't make the logical assumption that there is
> a portion of Autistics that have had to put up with
> ABA as children and have come out much worse for it.
> That's the first part where ABA proponents are
> dishonest and unfair; they habitually refuse to
> mention that the majority of those opposed to ABA
> are Autistic. The second dishonesty is that "You are
> nothing like my child who can't talk, self-injures
> and has no self-care or social skills", this assumes
> that it's purely high-functioners and Aspies that
> are speaking out. It's a lie told again and again.
>
> Absolutely none of the three current webmasters of
> http://www.Autistics.org are high-functioning or even
> close: http://www.autistics.org/library/dawson.html
>
> The criticism Autistics have of ABA is the same
> criticism given to every 'intervention' and
> 'treatment'. Only behaviourists have responded so
> aggressively with defamation, personal attacks and
> conclusions drawn without even stopping for a moment
> to question what may be wrong in their field.
>
> The basic premise of every criticism of every
> so-called therapy is: Autistics are not widely and
> non-selectively consulted.
>
> The same kind of response is given: "Most Autistics
> can not and never will be able to speak for
> themselves(without this intervention), so they can
> not be consulted". This is simply and patently not
> true. It's based on an assumption that is more than
> sixty years old now. Behaviourism is making
> attitudes towards Autistics worse; one was asked
> recently if it was possible to make a child Autistic
> with Behavioural techniques to which they said
> 'yes'.
>
> Behaviourists do not study Autism, they study ABA
> and see Autism from the downward social comparison
> which has plagued all disabled people. Autism
> adovocacy and culture is where the disability rights
> movement was a century ago and we have began asking
> why.
>
> I hope you will pass my concerns on to the people
> you know and write back to me.
>
> Lucas McCarty.

[Jack & Cheryl Malli]

Hi Everyone,
I invited whomever wrote those negative comments on our petition to email me and they have. So I just wanted to post here both their messages to me and my responses. I understand that by posting their comments I am incidentally allowing anti-ABA opinions onto the FEAT board. If this is against the rules, please let me know.

Hello Ms. Dawson,

I have not had the time to read all the links you have
included in your post to me – but I do intend to. But
I would like to make a few personal observations and
express a few personal opinions.
Firstly, I know virtually nothing about services in BC
for ADULTS diagnosed with autism. But in priniciple I
agree that any adult – autistic, schizophrenic,
paraplegic, etc. – should be fully honoured and
listened to by those who design programs for their
benefit. As for services for very young children with
autism directing the course of their own intervention
– as stakeholders per se – is ludicrous. I would no
more allow my 7 year old daughter, who is not
autistic, to decide our weekly menu (cake and ice
cream for breakfast every day of the week)as I would
consult with her on the efficacy of going to school
every day. She eats her vegetables and she goes to
school and though she may protest from time to time,
she does so because we, her PARENTS, tell her to do
so! The arguments that other, non-ABA interventions
may be just as good should certainly be open to
debate. And from the debates I have heard so far, I
remain convinced that ABA is the best. But the
anonymous vandal on our petition seems to be making
the point that ABA is unethical because autistics are
not consulted. We are talking about children here!
Doesn't s/he get it!? "Honey, I know these insulin
shots are very unpleasant, so if you really don't want
them anymore well, I will have to honour your dignity.
And watch you go into shock! And die!" And her/his
other point is that ABA is abusive. Again, I claim
ignorance. Many scientific "interventions" were
practiced in the past which would be outlawed today.
Sigmund Freud had women's noses mutilated by a surgeon
to "cure" them of sexual hysteria. But we still to
this day consider the contributions made to
psychotherapy by Dr. Freud – such as the notion of
subconscious impulses directing behaviour, the value
of talk therapy and such. Sensible, mature people do
not throw out the baby with the bath water.
To be very frank, I personally find the emphasis on
Dr. Lovaas to be a little troubling. There seems to
have developed somethhing of a cult of personality
around Lovaas which, in my opinion, actually distracts
from the real discussion we should be having. Good,
professionally applied ABA by any qualified
practitioner helps autistic children. Violent
aversives bordering on abuse are NOT part of any
mainstream ABA program practiced by any practitioner
on any child. And any nut who harms a child ought to
be locked up. Our consultant is brilliant and loving
and we feel blessed to have her in our daughter's
life. Any attempts to undermine my daughter's quality
of life because of misguided and outdated notions of
ABA are, though well-intentioned, helping the
government to pave a road to the hell of isolation,
dependence and pain for the hundreds (thousands?) of
autistic children in this province.
So, Ms. Dawson, tell your friend to stop it!
Thank you,
Jack Malli

— naa canada wrote:

> Hello,
>
> Since I am keeping track of those who are deciding
> our future here in Canada, I keep in touch with the
> online petition (it is described as written by Mr
> Matthews, though I think it is the same as Mr
> Kavchak's paper petition). Since it was brought to
> my attention that sometimes I'm discussed on the
> FEAT BC chat board, I also go there and look now and
> then. It is important when people are making
> decisions about autistics that some of us are
> informed of this.
>
> The vandalism of the petition was brought to my
> attention by one of the people who wrote one of the
> now many entries opposing ABA-based early
> interventions as "medically necessary" for all
> autistics. This information is in public, but since
> "advocates" usually do not read or keep track of
> what autistics have to say, this may have been
> overlooked. I asked this person not to use my name,
> and to own up and apologize. He responded that he
> himself had not used my name, and had made only one
> entry, the one quoting Dr Lovaas' study.
>
> I suggest the point of those intrefering with this
> petition is that autistics have been excluded
> entirely from this discussion. Ostracism sometimes
> results in those ostracized using whatever means
> necessary to have their voice heard. I am a big fan
> of courtesy. But I am unsure of how to respond when
> polite attempts to be heard are met with mockery and
> threats.
>
> This is what happened to me when I approached Mr
> Matthews about his petition. I pointed out that it
> was neither by nor for autistic people, and that we
> have had no say in these issues. But our views are
> assumed, as Mr Kavchak wrote, to be "idiotic", or
> worse. Mr Matthews responded in a way that required
> my lawyer to respond to him. Mr Matthews made an
> extremely serious and utterly unfounded allegation
> against me (this is on the record), which he claimed
> came from many "leaders" in the autism community. So
> I continue to oppose the interference with the
> petition, but I want to point out that reasonable
> concerns were greeted with extreme and unreasonable
> hostility.
>
> Our genuine response to your petition is posted here
> http://www.isn.net/~jypsy/AuSpin/sig.html , and has
> been since the beginnning of October. Our response
> is not a petition, since we do not believe that the
> basic rights of minority groups should be decided
> via popularity contest. This response has been
> featured on the three largest international websites
> concerned with the rights, dignity, and balanced and
> accurate representation of autistics.
>
> While my positions are greeted with ridicule and
> personal insults, as can be verified online, if you
> are genuinely interested in another view, I suggest
> you read what I've written, including my written
> argument in Auton. Another suggestion is to read the
> huge comment board that accumulated in the wake of
> one of my articles. It is maybe the longest running
> civilized exchange between a behaviourist
> (occasionally more than one; we have an autistic
> behaviourist also at times, though an anonymous
> behaviour analyst failed to be respectful) and some
> autistics, including autistics who have kids or who
> work with young, labeled "low-functioning" kids.
>
> This is the ABA article:
> http://www.sentex.net/~nexus23/naa_aba.html It has
> one error in it, in that one of the Rett's girls was
> in Dr Lovaas' control group 1 (in the 1987 study),
> which I didn't find out until after. The Rett's
> study, which I did read, is not honest about this.
> The positions about autistic intelligence and
> implicit learning are original work on my part, and
> this article has been cited here and there
> (including at ICP Beijing this summer).
>
> The ABA article comment board archives are here
> http://www.isn.net/~jypsy/701-725.html , and are in
> reverse order. The current comment board is here,
> http://www.quicktopic.com/27/H/vJvhV4fDnBgw7 The
> boards aren't limited or moderated. I only rarely
> have had to point out when people were being
> offensive. You can post there yourself if you want,
> or anywhere else on my site (all articles or series
> of articles generate a comment board).
>
> The Auton written argument is here,
> http://www.sentex.net/~nexus23/naa_fac.html .
>
> If you want the relevance of Dr Lovaas' work in
> electric shock to my own position, it is in what I
> wrote after the Auton hearing, here
> http://www.sentex.net/~nexus23/naa_wro.html
>
> I am aware that most parents are pleased with their
> ABA programs, just like most parents are pleased
> with their chelation programs and their immune
> globulin treatments and their supplements and
> miracle diets (there is yet a new one) and
> Floortime/DRI and Dr Gutstein's program–RDI–and
> verbal behaviour programs and Pivotal Response
> Training, and SCERTS, and TEACCH, and there is RPM
> now being marketed, and of course many parents swore
> by Secretin, etc. Since it is assumed that all
> autistics are inherently doomed, anything suspected
> of being an "improvement" is considered much better
> than could have been expected without "treatment".
>
> I don't know if you were genuinely or facetiously
> asking your question. Being a big fan of courtesy
> and respect, even in the face of discourtesy and
> disrespect from others, I am opposed on principle to
> what happened with the petition, so I have genuinely
> tried to answer.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Michelle Dawson
> No Autistics Allowed, Canada
> http://www.sentex.net/~nexus23/naa_02.html

[Jack & Cheryl Malli]

Hi Everyone,
I invited whomever wrote those negative comments on our petition to email me and they have. So I just wanted to post here both their messages to me and my responses. I understand that by posting their comments I am incidentally allowing anti-ABA opinions onto the FEAT board. If this is against the rules, please let me know.

Hello Ms. Dawson,

I have not had the time to read all the links you have
included in your post to me – but I do intend to. But
I would like to make a few personal observations and
express a few personal opinions.
Firstly, I know virtually nothing about services in BC
for ADULTS diagnosed with autism. But in priniciple I
agree that any adult – autistic, schizophrenic,
paraplegic, etc. – should be fully honoured and
listened to by those who design programs for their
benefit. As for services for very young children with
autism directing the course of their own intervention
– as stakeholders per se – is ludicrous. I would no
more allow my 7 year old daughter, who is not
autistic, to decide our weekly menu (cake and ice
cream for breakfast every day of the week)as I would
consult with her on the efficacy of going to school
every day. She eats her vegetables and she goes to
school and though she may protest from time to time,
she does so because we, her PARENTS, tell her to do
so! The arguments that other, non-ABA interventions
may be just as good should certainly be open to
debate. And from the debates I have heard so far, I
remain convinced that ABA is the best. But the
anonymous vandal on our petition seems to be making
the point that ABA is unethical because autistics are
not consulted. We are talking about children here!
Doesn't s/he get it!? "Honey, I know these insulin
shots are very unpleasant, so if you really don't want
them anymore well, I will have to honour your dignity.
And watch you go into shock! And die!" And her/his
other point is that ABA is abusive. Again, I claim
ignorance. Many scientific "interventions" were
practiced in the past which would be outlawed today.
Sigmund Freud had women's noses mutilated by a surgeon
to "cure" them of sexual hysteria. But we still to
this day consider the contributions made to
psychotherapy by Dr. Freud – such as the notion of
subconscious impulses directing behaviour, the value
of talk therapy and such. Sensible, mature people do
not throw out the baby with the bath water.
To be very frank, I personally find the emphasis on
Dr. Lovaas to be a little troubling. There seems to
have developed somethhing of a cult of personality
around Lovaas which, in my opinion, actually distracts
from the real discussion we should be having. Good,
professionally applied ABA by any qualified
practitioner helps autistic children. Violent
aversives bordering on abuse are NOT part of any
mainstream ABA program practiced by any practitioner
on any child. And any nut who harms a child ought to
be locked up. Our consultant is brilliant and loving
and we feel blessed to have her in our daughter's
life. Any attempts to undermine my daughter's quality
of life because of misguided and outdated notions of
ABA are, though well-intentioned, helping the
government to pave a road to the hell of isolation,
dependence and pain for the hundreds (thousands?) of
autistic children in this province.
So, Ms. Dawson, tell your friend to stop it!
Thank you,
Jack Malli

— naa canada wrote:

> Hello,
>
> Since I am keeping track of those who are deciding
> our future here in Canada, I keep in touch with the
> online petition (it is described as written by Mr
> Matthews, though I think it is the same as Mr
> Kavchak's paper petition). Since it was brought to
> my attention that sometimes I'm discussed on the
> FEAT BC chat board, I also go there and look now and
> then. It is important when people are making
> decisions about autistics that some of us are
> informed of this.
>
> The vandalism of the petition was brought to my
> attention by one of the people who wrote one of the
> now many entries opposing ABA-based early
> interventions as "medically necessary" for all
> autistics. This information is in public, but since
> "advocates" usually do not read or keep track of
> what autistics have to say, this may have been
> overlooked. I asked this person not to use my name,
> and to own up and apologize. He responded that he
> himself had not used my name, and had made only one
> entry, the one quoting Dr Lovaas' study.
>
> I suggest the point of those intrefering with this
> petition is that autistics have been excluded
> entirely from this discussion. Ostracism sometimes
> results in those ostracized using whatever means
> necessary to have their voice heard. I am a big fan
> of courtesy. But I am unsure of how to respond when
> polite attempts to be heard are met with mockery and
> threats.
>
> This is what happened to me when I approached Mr
> Matthews about his petition. I pointed out that it
> was neither by nor for autistic people, and that we
> have had no say in these issues. But our views are
> assumed, as Mr Kavchak wrote, to be "idiotic", or
> worse. Mr Matthews responded in a way that required
> my lawyer to respond to him. Mr Matthews made an
> extremely serious and utterly unfounded allegation
> against me (this is on the record), which he claimed
> came from many "leaders" in the autism community. So
> I continue to oppose the interference with the
> petition, but I want to point out that reasonable
> concerns were greeted with extreme and unreasonable
> hostility.
>
> Our genuine response to your petition is posted here
> http://www.isn.net/~jypsy/AuSpin/sig.html , and has
> been since the beginnning of October. Our response
> is not a petition, since we do not believe that the
> basic rights of minority groups should be decided
> via popularity contest. This response has been
> featured on the three largest international websites
> concerned with the rights, dignity, and balanced and
> accurate representation of autistics.
>
> While my positions are greeted with ridicule and
> personal insults, as can be verified online, if you
> are genuinely interested in another view, I suggest
> you read what I've written, including my written
> argument in Auton. Another suggestion is to read the
> huge comment board that accumulated in the wake of
> one of my articles. It is maybe the longest running
> civilized exchange between a behaviourist
> (occasionally more than one; we have an autistic
> behaviourist also at times, though an anonymous
> behaviour analyst failed to be respectful) and some
> autistics, including autistics who have kids or who
> work with young, labeled "low-functioning" kids.
>
> This is the ABA article:
> http://www.sentex.net/~nexus23/naa_aba.html It has
> one error in it, in that one of the Rett's girls was
> in Dr Lovaas' control group 1 (in the 1987 study),
> which I didn't find out until after. The Rett's
> study, which I did read, is not honest about this.
> The positions about autistic intelligence and
> implicit learning are original work on my part, and
> this article has been cited here and there
> (including at ICP Beijing this summer).
>
> The ABA article comment board archives are here
> http://www.isn.net/~jypsy/701-725.html , and are in
> reverse order. The current comment board is here,
> http://www.quicktopic.com/27/H/vJvhV4fDnBgw7 The
> boards aren't limited or moderated. I only rarely
> have had to point out when people were being
> offensive. You can post there yourself if you want,
> or anywhere else on my site (all articles or series
> of articles generate a comment board).
>
> The Auton written argument is here,
> http://www.sentex.net/~nexus23/naa_fac.html .
>
> If you want the relevance of Dr Lovaas' work in
> electric shock to my own position, it is in what I
> wrote after the Auton hearing, here
> http://www.sentex.net/~nexus23/naa_wro.html
>
> I am aware that most parents are pleased with their
> ABA programs, just like most parents are pleased
> with their chelation programs and their immune
> globulin treatments and their supplements and
> miracle diets (there is yet a new one) and
> Floortime/DRI and Dr Gutstein's program–RDI–and
> verbal behaviour programs and Pivotal Response
> Training, and SCERTS, and TEACCH, and there is RPM
> now being marketed, and of course many parents swore
> by Secretin, etc. Since it is assumed that all
> autistics are inherently doomed, anything suspected
> of being an "improvement" is considered much better
> than could have been expected without "treatment".
>
> I don't know if you were genuinely or facetiously
> asking your question. Being a big fan of courtesy
> and respect, even in the face of discourtesy and
> disrespect from others, I am opposed on principle to
> what happened with the petition, so I have genuinely
> tried to answer.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Michelle Dawson
> No Autistics Allowed, Canada
> http://www.sentex.net/~nexus23/naa_02.html

[Deleted User]

Having just read a few of the comments on the petition, I am irritated and horrified at the stupidity that continues to exist. Quite clearly those comments on the petition (against ABA) are made by those who do not truly understand what ABA is.

I've worked with autistic children for 4.5 years, I have NEVER once used an aversive. In addition to working with children who are aggressive and who exhibit high rates of stereotypy, I have worked with children who self-injure at a life threatening rate, meaning that they cause tissue damage that could cause permanent damage and at times were so extreme that without constant supervision could have potentially ended their own life. NO aversives were used with either of these children in any of the time that I worked with them.

The focus was and is on proactive programming, meaning replacing problematic behavior with more appropriate ones such as communication systems as well as ways to seek the reinforcement they desired in more appropriate ways.

To the person or people who wrote those assanine comments (and yes you are entitled to your opinon, but it is only your opinion, it is not the view of the masses) you are clearly blessed with a level of functioning that gives you the luxury to sit at a computer and type your thoughts. You are able to string long sentences together, you are able to read research papers, you are able to comprehend written language…. you have a luxury that many of my clients, without ABA, would NEVER have.

For you, ABA may not seem necessary, but for the children that I work for, it is life altering, life saving and miraculous.

In my years of experience, I have NEVER tortured a child, never used electric shock, never hurt them in any way. The children I work with smile when they see me, hug me when they are happy, laugh at my silly play, ask me for more crazy, silly goofy play and sometimes they even tell me that they love me, that I am their best friend, that I am fun.

And I count those requests as miracles that I am blessed to be a part of.

Michelle Karren

[Jack & Cheryl Malli]

Hello,
I am sure many parents here have logged on to and signed the petition at http://www.petitiononline.com/andap1/petition.html

Please note some of the comments from someone who is very anti ABA. particularly "signatures" numbered 1503, 1501 and 1400. As a parent of an autistic child, and a proponent of ABA (because our daughter has experienced very real benefit), I am nonetheless open to listen to other opinions. I am dismayed, however, that this silly person seems intent on spoiling our petition and does not have the courage to disclose his or her name. So, to whomever is responsible for the diatribes, if you you are looking at this message, email me personally and I will tell how ABA has worked – not only to make life easier for my wife and me – but to reduce the stress and indeed terror that our little girl used to suffer whenever confronted by challenges in her environment. Now she has some skills to negotiate situations in which she would have once been powerless and vulnerable. The benefits of ABA are real. And I can assure you that not once have we administered shock treatment. (I am being facetious, of course.)
You can reach me at jackmalli@yahoo.com

[Theresa Jouan]

Hello everyone!

I have been receiving a significant number of emails lately from people who have questions about the upcoming FEAT Basic workshops.
Please excuse my attempt at efficiency (ok, really I am just too lazy to respond to everyone individually) by mass emailing a response.

1) The date is November 13th, 2004 at Douglas College.

2) Yes, it is definitely a great idea for any instructors (junior, lead and senior, parents, SEAs and professionals) to attend. If you are anything like me, you may become rusty on some theoretical concepts as time passes! Consider this your 'refresher' course.
I would also like to stress that if your role is a Senior (or if you are in a position where you are training other individuals) then it is crucial to make sure that you always have a strong grasp on theoretical concepts.

3) Yes, there will be opportunity to apply concepts that we talk about- with other people. You will also walk away with some feedback and perhaps ways to better the quality of therapy that you are currently delivering (there is always room for improvement in this field!).

4) At this time, we are only conducting FEATbc workshops on the Island as well as in Vancouver.

5) I strongly encourage you to get your reservations in to FEAT ASAP! I hope that everyone will be successful attending the workshop!

6) A special thank you to everyone who has emailed feedback on previous workshops. We greatly appreciate the overwhelmingly positive support from the community.

Theresa Tournemille

[Deleted User]

Get Organized!

Great Tips & Tricks on Time Saving Systems and Techniques for Your Child s Lovaas-ABA Program. On Monday, October 25, 2004; 7:00 9:00 pm in the Peter J Peters Room at the West Van Memorial Library (1950 Marine Dr/22nd) Lovaas-ABA Seasoned Senior Therapist, Hockey-Lacrosse-Soccer-Basketball Coach and all round uber-dad Mike Leger will share his one page invention the DPL or Daily Program List that will let you compact even the most complex program book and take Lovaas-ABA on the road in your own back pocket.

Warning: This presentation is in workshop format and all participants are encouraged to bring their own sample to work on so that all leave with a working DPL that suits their own child s programming needs. Pencils, erasers and paper will also be required. Coffee and donuts to be provided.

We will help you slay your giant!

Tamara & Anissa

[Deleted User]

FEAT of BC Intermediate workshop in Victoria almost full:

Please note that the intermediate workshop is filling quickly and there are only a few spots left. If full, there will be no registration at the door as class size limits are strictly followed to allow for personal instruction time.

Please note that attendence at a FEAT basic workshop (or attendence at a recognized consultant's basic workshop) is mandatory.

[Author]

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