I like Alfonso Cuaron, and I believe the intentions behind this video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDdcDlQVYtM) are sound. All the same, this video, and some of the horrible comments about it (for example, "No autistic person is insulted by this. Autistic people do not watch youtube videos because none of them can read well enough to learn of the video’s existence") make me very, very sad. Educate yourselves people. Please.
Autism does not always mean the individual will be condemned to some dark and dreary institutionalized existence. It does not mean the afflicted individual is incapable of love or does not have feelings. Autism is not some horrible devestating demon requiring an ominous voice-over decrying how it tears apart families, steals hope, and ruins lives.
Autism is simply a catch-all name for any number of conditions in which the human brain works a little differently, most notably regarding social interaction. That’s it. The connections between thoughts and actions are not classified as "normal," their methods of communicating may not be "normal," but who decides what is "normal" anyway?
At least the video ends on a hopeful note, but even then it loses focus — it becomes about the people surrounding the autistic individual, making them out to be the victims, to some extent neglecting the real victims — those who actually have autism. In fact — especially on the Asperger’s end of the spectrum — not all afflicted victims see themselves as "afflicted" or as "victims" at all. They may require some additional support and interventions to help them learn to socialize, but that may be all that is needed to fit in with society and live productive, happy lives.
Every case is different. Autism is a "spectrum" disorder, meaning there are many different places where an individual can fall on that spectrum — from the severe cases where lifelong support is needed to cases so mild you would not even know the individual suffers autism at all.
Here’s a quick link if anyone wants some real facts and not some overly-dramatized video drivel: http://www.webmd.com/parenting/guide/mental-health-autism.
oh…and I know for a fact that they DO watch YouTube videos!
T.J. McIntyre: A Southern Fried Weirdo 
Excellent post, TJ.
Also, if there’s one thing I’ve learned from YouTube, it is that every last video on there, no matter the subject matter, seems to draw ridiculous comments from rude, stupid jerks. What the hell’s wrong with those people?
Excellent post, TJ.
Also, if there’s one thing I’ve learned from YouTube, it is that every last video on there, no matter the subject matter, seems to draw ridiculous comments from rude, stupid jerks. What the hell’s wrong with those people?
I don’t know what’s wrong with them. One thing is for sure: I wish I had as much free time as some of these trolls seem to have. Maybe they’re all just angry because they don’t have lives outside their computer screens?
Excellent post, TJ.
Also, if there’s one thing I’ve learned from YouTube, it is that every last video on there, no matter the subject matter, seems to draw ridiculous comments from rude, stupid jerks. What the hell’s wrong with those people?
I don’t know what’s wrong with them. One thing is for sure: I wish I had as much free time as some of these trolls seem to have. Maybe they’re all just angry because they don’t have lives outside their computer screens?
Excellent post, TJ.
Also, if there’s one thing I’ve learned from YouTube, it is that every last video on there, no matter the subject matter, seems to draw ridiculous comments from rude, stupid jerks. What the hell’s wrong with those people?
I don’t know what’s wrong with them. One thing is for sure: I wish I had as much free time as some of these trolls seem to have. Maybe they’re all just angry because they don’t have lives outside their computer screens?
I don’t know what’s wrong with them. One thing is for sure: I wish I had as much free time as some of these trolls seem to have. Maybe they’re all just angry because they don’t have lives outside their computer screens?
Excellent post, TJ.
Also, if there’s one thing I’ve learned from YouTube, it is that every last video on there, no matter the subject matter, seems to draw ridiculous comments from rude, stupid jerks. What the hell’s wrong with those people?
How silly. I’ve seen YouTube videos made by people with autism. And the people I know who live with someone with ASD are sometimes challenged and exhausted by the process, but they’re full of love for their family member with ASD, and can feel the love that the person with ASD has for them, too.
How silly. I’ve seen YouTube videos made by people with autism. And the people I know who live with someone with ASD are sometimes challenged and exhausted by the process, but they’re full of love for their family member with ASD, and can feel the love that the person with ASD has for them, too.
My son was diagnosed with ASD. He would spend hours watching animated LEGO videos if we let him.
From my outsider’s perspective, ASD strikes me as another way of being. The problem is that to function successfully in this world, you have to learn the neurotypical way of being, and depending on where you are on the spectrum, that can be hard.
But my (very few) interactions with people on the spectrum have always been very cool because I had the feeling of being with, and talking to, someone with such a radically different perspective.
“From my outsider’s perspective, ASD strikes me as another way of being.”
—That’s how I see it, too.
But I have some inside perspective, my son’s a lot like me: http://southernweirdo.livejournal.com/46008.html
*nods*
I’ve always thought there was much, much more variation on how people were, what felt right to them, how they were comfortable communicating, etc., than society would like us to believe. As Aspergers has become more widely known, it’s allowed so many people to do/feel exactly how your mom and you felt when you learned about it.
How silly. I’ve seen YouTube videos made by people with autism. And the people I know who live with someone with ASD are sometimes challenged and exhausted by the process, but they’re full of love for their family member with ASD, and can feel the love that the person with ASD has for them, too.
My son was diagnosed with ASD. He would spend hours watching animated LEGO videos if we let him.
From my outsider’s perspective, ASD strikes me as another way of being. The problem is that to function successfully in this world, you have to learn the neurotypical way of being, and depending on where you are on the spectrum, that can be hard.
But my (very few) interactions with people on the spectrum have always been very cool because I had the feeling of being with, and talking to, someone with such a radically different perspective.
“From my outsider’s perspective, ASD strikes me as another way of being.”
—That’s how I see it, too.
But I have some inside perspective, my son’s a lot like me: http://southernweirdo.livejournal.com/46008.html
*nods*
I’ve always thought there was much, much more variation on how people were, what felt right to them, how they were comfortable communicating, etc., than society would like us to believe. As Aspergers has become more widely known, it’s allowed so many people to do/feel exactly how your mom and you felt when you learned about it.
How silly. I’ve seen YouTube videos made by people with autism. And the people I know who live with someone with ASD are sometimes challenged and exhausted by the process, but they’re full of love for their family member with ASD, and can feel the love that the person with ASD has for them, too.
My son was diagnosed with ASD. He would spend hours watching animated LEGO videos if we let him.
From my outsider’s perspective, ASD strikes me as another way of being. The problem is that to function successfully in this world, you have to learn the neurotypical way of being, and depending on where you are on the spectrum, that can be hard.
But my (very few) interactions with people on the spectrum have always been very cool because I had the feeling of being with, and talking to, someone with such a radically different perspective.
“From my outsider’s perspective, ASD strikes me as another way of being.”
—That’s how I see it, too.
But I have some inside perspective, my son’s a lot like me: http://southernweirdo.livejournal.com/46008.html
*nods*
I’ve always thought there was much, much more variation on how people were, what felt right to them, how they were comfortable communicating, etc., than society would like us to believe. As Aspergers has become more widely known, it’s allowed so many people to do/feel exactly how your mom and you felt when you learned about it.
*nods*
I’ve always thought there was much, much more variation on how people were, what felt right to them, how they were comfortable communicating, etc., than society would like us to believe. As Aspergers has become more widely known, it’s allowed so many people to do/feel exactly how your mom and you felt when you learned about it.
“From my outsider’s perspective, ASD strikes me as another way of being.”
—That’s how I see it, too.
But I have some inside perspective, my son’s a lot like me: http://southernweirdo.livejournal.com/46008.html
From my outsider’s perspective, ASD strikes me as another way of being. The problem is that to function successfully in this world, you have to learn the neurotypical way of being, and depending on where you are on the spectrum, that can be hard.
But my (very few) interactions with people on the spectrum have always been very cool because I had the feeling of being with, and talking to, someone with such a radically different perspective.
My son was diagnosed with ASD. He would spend hours watching animated LEGO videos if we let him.
How silly. I’ve seen YouTube videos made by people with autism. And the people I know who live with someone with ASD are sometimes challenged and exhausted by the process, but they’re full of love for their family member with ASD, and can feel the love that the person with ASD has for them, too.
Amen!
Amen!
I knew you’d understand.
Amen!
I knew you’d understand.
Amen!
I knew you’d understand.
I knew you’d understand.
Amen!
Thanks
Great post, T.J. My son has autism, and I’m constantly struggling against the preconceived notions about that label. It’s extremely insulting when someone “assumes” he has a low IQ, when in fact he’s a very bright, inquisitive boy. Thanks for getting the word out there.
Thanks
Great post, T.J. My son has autism, and I’m constantly struggling against the preconceived notions about that label. It’s extremely insulting when someone “assumes” he has a low IQ, when in fact he’s a very bright, inquisitive boy. Thanks for getting the word out there.
Re: Thanks
You’re welcome 🙂
Re: Thanks
Statistically 62% of those diagnosed with autism in a 2000 CDC study have an IQ under 70, 13% are equal to or greater than 90. 13% of those with autism have an average or greater than average IQ. If one were to assume that a person with autism has a low IQ they would not be wrong because statistically 77% of them are sub-par.
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss5601a1.htm
Re: Thanks
Thanks for the link. It has some great information!
True, the vast majority of those who have autism score low on IQ tests, but this doesn’t tell the whole story.
IQ tests alone are not a complete measure of intelligence. For example, a numeric study like this has no way of taking into account the amount of children with autism who have the head knowledge but not the discipline or self-control required to take a standardized test.
While standardized tests are the best measurement tools we have at the moment, they are far from perfect.
Scoring low on tests doesn’t mean that much, really. I was an education major, and I can tell you from my experience working in inner-city high schools that IQ tests mean very little. Many of those kids scored well below average on basic skills tests. Was it because they didn’t have the knowledge? Sure, sometimes. However, I know for a fact that many of those low-performing kids simply didn’t have the motivation to try. It had nothing to do with their intelligence and everything to do with their disillusionment with a system they felt had failed them. I’d see them sitting there during testing, staring at the ceiling as the clock ticked their time away, not even attempting to work out the problems. For those kids, scoring low on their tests had nothing to do with their intelligence, nothing at all. It had everything to do with motivation.
Trust me, knowing some of those kids like I did, some of the low performers were honestly some of the smartest kids in the room. A lot of them just could not see the point in trying. I know many of them felt trapped because of familial and economic constraints. They couldn’t see a futre for themselve, and therefore refused to focus their time and attention on something they felt meaningless. Looking back, growing up in a rural enviornment after the local steel mill shut down, it was a pretty similar situation. There was a lot of the same hopelessness in some of those families.
To say “If one were to assume that a person with autism has a low IQ ould not be wrong” is way off the mark. When it comes to autism, as with any other difference between persons, it is always dangerous and a sign of ignorance if you “assume” anything. If you were to “assume” this about my son, you would be wrong.
Thanks
Great post, T.J. My son has autism, and I’m constantly struggling against the preconceived notions about that label. It’s extremely insulting when someone “assumes” he has a low IQ, when in fact he’s a very bright, inquisitive boy. Thanks for getting the word out there.
Re: Thanks
You’re welcome 🙂
Re: Thanks
Statistically 62% of those diagnosed with autism in a 2000 CDC study have an IQ under 70, 13% are equal to or greater than 90. 13% of those with autism have an average or greater than average IQ. If one were to assume that a person with autism has a low IQ they would not be wrong because statistically 77% of them are sub-par.
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss5601a1.htm
Re: Thanks
Thanks for the link. It has some great information!
True, the vast majority of those who have autism score low on IQ tests, but this doesn’t tell the whole story.
IQ tests alone are not a complete measure of intelligence. For example, a numeric study like this has no way of taking into account the amount of children with autism who have the head knowledge but not the discipline or self-control required to take a standardized test.
While standardized tests are the best measurement tools we have at the moment, they are far from perfect.
Scoring low on tests doesn’t mean that much, really. I was an education major, and I can tell you from my experience working in inner-city high schools that IQ tests mean very little. Many of those kids scored well below average on basic skills tests. Was it because they didn’t have the knowledge? Sure, sometimes. However, I know for a fact that many of those low-performing kids simply didn’t have the motivation to try. It had nothing to do with their intelligence and everything to do with their disillusionment with a system they felt had failed them. I’d see them sitting there during testing, staring at the ceiling as the clock ticked their time away, not even attempting to work out the problems. For those kids, scoring low on their tests had nothing to do with their intelligence, nothing at all. It had everything to do with motivation.
Trust me, knowing some of those kids like I did, some of the low performers were honestly some of the smartest kids in the room. A lot of them just could not see the point in trying. I know many of them felt trapped because of familial and economic constraints. They couldn’t see a futre for themselve, and therefore refused to focus their time and attention on something they felt meaningless. Looking back, growing up in a rural enviornment after the local steel mill shut down, it was a pretty similar situation. There was a lot of the same hopelessness in some of those families.
To say “If one were to assume that a person with autism has a low IQ ould not be wrong” is way off the mark. When it comes to autism, as with any other difference between persons, it is always dangerous and a sign of ignorance if you “assume” anything. If you were to “assume” this about my son, you would be wrong.
Thanks
Great post, T.J. My son has autism, and I’m constantly struggling against the preconceived notions about that label. It’s extremely insulting when someone “assumes” he has a low IQ, when in fact he’s a very bright, inquisitive boy. Thanks for getting the word out there.
Re: Thanks
You’re welcome 🙂
Re: Thanks
You’re welcome 🙂
Re: Thanks
Statistically 62% of those diagnosed with autism in a 2000 CDC study have an IQ under 70, 13% are equal to or greater than 90. 13% of those with autism have an average or greater than average IQ. If one were to assume that a person with autism has a low IQ they would not be wrong because statistically 77% of them are sub-par.
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss5601a1.htm
Re: Thanks
Thanks for the link. It has some great information!
True, the vast majority of those who have autism score low on IQ tests, but this doesn’t tell the whole story.
IQ tests alone are not a complete measure of intelligence. For example, a numeric study like this has no way of taking into account the amount of children with autism who have the head knowledge but not the discipline or self-control required to take a standardized test.
While standardized tests are the best measurement tools we have at the moment, they are far from perfect.
Scoring low on tests doesn’t mean that much, really. I was an education major, and I can tell you from my experience working in inner-city high schools that IQ tests mean very little. Many of those kids scored well below average on basic skills tests. Was it because they didn’t have the knowledge? Sure, sometimes. However, I know for a fact that many of those low-performing kids simply didn’t have the motivation to try. It had nothing to do with their intelligence and everything to do with their disillusionment with a system they felt had failed them. I’d see them sitting there during testing, staring at the ceiling as the clock ticked their time away, not even attempting to work out the problems. For those kids, scoring low on their tests had nothing to do with their intelligence, nothing at all. It had everything to do with motivation.
Trust me, knowing some of those kids like I did, some of the low performers were honestly some of the smartest kids in the room. A lot of them just could not see the point in trying. I know many of them felt trapped because of familial and economic constraints. They couldn’t see a futre for themselve, and therefore refused to focus their time and attention on something they felt meaningless. Looking back, growing up in a rural enviornment after the local steel mill shut down, it was a pretty similar situation. There was a lot of the same hopelessness in some of those families.
To say “If one were to assume that a person with autism has a low IQ ould not be wrong” is way off the mark. When it comes to autism, as with any other difference between persons, it is always dangerous and a sign of ignorance if you “assume” anything. If you were to “assume” this about my son, you would be wrong.
Re: Thanks
Statistically 62% of those diagnosed with autism in a 2000 CDC study have an IQ under 70, 13% are equal to or greater than 90. 13% of those with autism have an average or greater than average IQ. If one were to assume that a person with autism has a low IQ they would not be wrong because statistically 77% of them are sub-par.
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss5601a1.htm
Thanks
Great post, T.J. My son has autism, and I’m constantly struggling against the preconceived notions about that label. It’s extremely insulting when someone “assumes” he has a low IQ, when in fact he’s a very bright, inquisitive boy. Thanks for getting the word out there.
I don’t know what’s wrong with them. One thing is for sure: I wish I had as much free time as some of these trolls seem to have. Maybe they’re all just angry because they don’t have lives outside their computer screens?
My son was diagnosed with ASD. He would spend hours watching animated LEGO videos if we let him.
Re: Thanks
You’re welcome 🙂
I knew you’d understand.
From my outsider’s perspective, ASD strikes me as another way of being. The problem is that to function successfully in this world, you have to learn the neurotypical way of being, and depending on where you are on the spectrum, that can be hard.
But my (very few) interactions with people on the spectrum have always been very cool because I had the feeling of being with, and talking to, someone with such a radically different perspective.
“From my outsider’s perspective, ASD strikes me as another way of being.”
—That’s how I see it, too.
But I have some inside perspective, my son’s a lot like me: http://southernweirdo.livejournal.com/46008.html
*nods*
I’ve always thought there was much, much more variation on how people were, what felt right to them, how they were comfortable communicating, etc., than society would like us to believe. As Aspergers has become more widely known, it’s allowed so many people to do/feel exactly how your mom and you felt when you learned about it.
I agree. I didn’t appreciate or feel empowered by the video. The anthropomorphism of autism as a demon leaping out of the darkness to attack and devour children and their families, as a creature that needs to be beaten back by family and friends, just doesn’t work. For one thing, autism isn’t anything like that, even metaphorically, and for another, it hints that autism can be cured if everyone just loves the autists in their lives enough.
I appreciate the sentiment behind the video, but it doesn’t work.
I agree. I didn’t appreciate or feel empowered by the video. The anthropomorphism of autism as a demon leaping out of the darkness to attack and devour children and their families, as a creature that needs to be beaten back by family and friends, just doesn’t work. For one thing, autism isn’t anything like that, even metaphorically, and for another, it hints that autism can be cured if everyone just loves the autists in their lives enough.
I appreciate the sentiment behind the video, but it doesn’t work.
We’re on the same page, and judging from some of the reactions I’ve read on the net so far, we’re not alone.They’ve been getting a lot of flack for this video.
At least it has prompted people to talk about autism. That’s a potentially positive end-result from this disgrace of a video.
I agree. I didn’t appreciate or feel empowered by the video. The anthropomorphism of autism as a demon leaping out of the darkness to attack and devour children and their families, as a creature that needs to be beaten back by family and friends, just doesn’t work. For one thing, autism isn’t anything like that, even metaphorically, and for another, it hints that autism can be cured if everyone just loves the autists in their lives enough.
I appreciate the sentiment behind the video, but it doesn’t work.
We’re on the same page, and judging from some of the reactions I’ve read on the net so far, we’re not alone.They’ve been getting a lot of flack for this video.
At least it has prompted people to talk about autism. That’s a potentially positive end-result from this disgrace of a video.
I agree. I didn’t appreciate or feel empowered by the video. The anthropomorphism of autism as a demon leaping out of the darkness to attack and devour children and their families, as a creature that needs to be beaten back by family and friends, just doesn’t work. For one thing, autism isn’t anything like that, even metaphorically, and for another, it hints that autism can be cured if everyone just loves the autists in their lives enough.
I appreciate the sentiment behind the video, but it doesn’t work.
We’re on the same page, and judging from some of the reactions I’ve read on the net so far, we’re not alone.They’ve been getting a lot of flack for this video.
At least it has prompted people to talk about autism. That’s a potentially positive end-result from this disgrace of a video.
We’re on the same page, and judging from some of the reactions I’ve read on the net so far, we’re not alone.They’ve been getting a lot of flack for this video.
At least it has prompted people to talk about autism. That’s a potentially positive end-result from this disgrace of a video.
I agree. I didn’t appreciate or feel empowered by the video. The anthropomorphism of autism as a demon leaping out of the darkness to attack and devour children and their families, as a creature that needs to be beaten back by family and friends, just doesn’t work. For one thing, autism isn’t anything like that, even metaphorically, and for another, it hints that autism can be cured if everyone just loves the autists in their lives enough.
I appreciate the sentiment behind the video, but it doesn’t work.
Maybe someone should direct their attention to the likes of Wendy Lawson http://www.mugsy.org/wendy/
One of the best descriptions of the difference between neurotypical and ASD brains I’ve heard came from Professor Tony Attwood: The human brain is capable of making a perfect picture in ten pieces, someone with an ASD makes the same picture with 50 – 70 fragments.
Maybe someone should direct their attention to the likes of Wendy Lawson http://www.mugsy.org/wendy/
One of the best descriptions of the difference between neurotypical and ASD brains I’ve heard came from Professor Tony Attwood: The human brain is capable of making a perfect picture in ten pieces, someone with an ASD makes the same picture with 50 – 70 fragments.
Thank you for the link! I really enjoyed reading her story. Very inspiring.
This is the kind of thing that Autistism advocates really need to highlight — the success stories, the stories of hope.
Hope is the currency I prefer to deal in *g*
Maybe someone should direct their attention to the likes of Wendy Lawson http://www.mugsy.org/wendy/
One of the best descriptions of the difference between neurotypical and ASD brains I’ve heard came from Professor Tony Attwood: The human brain is capable of making a perfect picture in ten pieces, someone with an ASD makes the same picture with 50 – 70 fragments.
Thank you for the link! I really enjoyed reading her story. Very inspiring.
This is the kind of thing that Autistism advocates really need to highlight — the success stories, the stories of hope.
Hope is the currency I prefer to deal in *g*
Maybe someone should direct their attention to the likes of Wendy Lawson http://www.mugsy.org/wendy/
One of the best descriptions of the difference between neurotypical and ASD brains I’ve heard came from Professor Tony Attwood: The human brain is capable of making a perfect picture in ten pieces, someone with an ASD makes the same picture with 50 – 70 fragments.
Thank you for the link! I really enjoyed reading her story. Very inspiring.
This is the kind of thing that Autistism advocates really need to highlight — the success stories, the stories of hope.
Hope is the currency I prefer to deal in *g*
Hope is the currency I prefer to deal in *g*
Thank you for the link! I really enjoyed reading her story. Very inspiring.
This is the kind of thing that Autistism advocates really need to highlight — the success stories, the stories of hope.
Maybe someone should direct their attention to the likes of Wendy Lawson http://www.mugsy.org/wendy/
One of the best descriptions of the difference between neurotypical and ASD brains I’ve heard came from Professor Tony Attwood: The human brain is capable of making a perfect picture in ten pieces, someone with an ASD makes the same picture with 50 – 70 fragments.
We’re on the same page, and judging from some of the reactions I’ve read on the net so far, we’re not alone.They’ve been getting a lot of flack for this video.
At least it has prompted people to talk about autism. That’s a potentially positive end-result from this disgrace of a video.
Thank you for the link! I really enjoyed reading her story. Very inspiring.
This is the kind of thing that Autistism advocates really need to highlight — the success stories, the stories of hope.
Hope is the currency I prefer to deal in *g*
Re: Thanks
Statistically 62% of those diagnosed with autism in a 2000 CDC study have an IQ under 70, 13% are equal to or greater than 90. 13% of those with autism have an average or greater than average IQ. If one were to assume that a person with autism has a low IQ they would not be wrong because statistically 77% of them are sub-par.
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss5601a1.htm
Re: Thanks
Thanks for the link. It has some great information!
True, the vast majority of those who have autism score low on IQ tests, but this doesn’t tell the whole story.
IQ tests alone are not a complete measure of intelligence. For example, a numeric study like this has no way of taking into account the amount of children with autism who have the head knowledge but not the discipline or self-control required to take a standardized test.
While standardized tests are the best measurement tools we have at the moment, they are far from perfect.
Scoring low on tests doesn’t mean that much, really. I was an education major, and I can tell you from my experience working in inner-city high schools that IQ tests mean very little. Many of those kids scored well below average on basic skills tests. Was it because they didn’t have the knowledge? Sure, sometimes. However, I know for a fact that many of those low-performing kids simply didn’t have the motivation to try. It had nothing to do with their intelligence and everything to do with their disillusionment with a system they felt had failed them. I’d see them sitting there during testing, staring at the ceiling as the clock ticked their time away, not even attempting to work out the problems. For those kids, scoring low on their tests had nothing to do with their intelligence, nothing at all. It had everything to do with motivation.
Trust me, knowing some of those kids like I did, some of the low performers were honestly some of the smartest kids in the room. A lot of them just could not see the point in trying. I know many of them felt trapped because of familial and economic constraints. They couldn’t see a futre for themselve, and therefore refused to focus their time and attention on something they felt meaningless. Looking back, growing up in a rural enviornment after the local steel mill shut down, it was a pretty similar situation. There was a lot of the same hopelessness in some of those families.
To say “If one were to assume that a person with autism has a low IQ ould not be wrong” is way off the mark. When it comes to autism, as with any other difference between persons, it is always dangerous and a sign of ignorance if you “assume” anything. If you were to “assume” this about my son, you would be wrong.
Re: Thanks
Thanks for the link. It has some great information!
True, the vast majority of those who have autism score low on IQ tests, but this doesn’t tell the whole story.
IQ tests alone are not a complete measure of intelligence. For example, a numeric study like this has no way of taking into account the amount of children with autism who have the head knowledge but not the discipline or self-control required to take a standardized test.
While standardized tests are the best measurement tools we have at the moment, they are far from perfect.
Scoring low on tests doesn’t mean that much, really. I was an education major, and I can tell you from my experience working in inner-city high schools that IQ tests mean very little. Many of those kids scored well below average on basic skills tests. Was it because they didn’t have the knowledge? Sure, sometimes. However, I know for a fact that many of those low-performing kids simply didn’t have the motivation to try. It had nothing to do with their intelligence and everything to do with their disillusionment with a system they felt had failed them. I’d see them sitting there during testing, staring at the ceiling as the clock ticked their time away, not even attempting to work out the problems. For those kids, scoring low on their tests had nothing to do with their intelligence, nothing at all. It had everything to do with motivation.
Trust me, knowing some of those kids like I did, some of the low performers were honestly some of the smartest kids in the room. A lot of them just could not see the point in trying. I know many of them felt trapped because of familial and economic constraints. They couldn’t see a futre for themselve, and therefore refused to focus their time and attention on something they felt meaningless. Looking back, growing up in a rural enviornment after the local steel mill shut down, it was a pretty similar situation. There was a lot of the same hopelessness in some of those families.
To say “If one were to assume that a person with autism has a low IQ ould not be wrong” is way off the mark. When it comes to autism, as with any other difference between persons, it is always dangerous and a sign of ignorance if you “assume” anything. If you were to “assume” this about my son, you would be wrong.