Special Schools that Cater to Children with Autism in Cebu Province

Finding a school in Compostela, Cebu that caters to children with autism spectrum disorder has always been a challenge for my family. We couldn't find any school near our place that cater to kids with special needs. The closest special school based on what I've researched was in Mandaue City like Reach and Prime Center Foundation. Children's Montessori also located in Mandaue have tuition fees as high as 70,000 php per school year excluding books and other expenses. We personally had a bad experience from this school back in 2013 so I wouldn't really recommend them.

 

At first, I admired this school because the teachers seem skilled and respectful. But when we decided to withdraw my son's enrollment a month before school starts, their directress insulted and scolded me and my husband in front of my son. That's when I realized these people were just pretending to care for my son. She even told my husband that my son is already blacklisted from their school. Like I would ever allow my son to study there after how we were treated. I was tempted to report them to DepEd but decided against it. I didn't want to feel any grudge towards them and thanked God of helping us see through this people.

 

In one of my previous articles, I talked about Prime Center Foundation. They're a great school that caters to kids with special needs. Their tuition fee is around 3,500 php per month. The school worked well for my son at first but after a year it was clear that my son needed more exposure to different topics. Now my son attends a school called Green Rose Center for Academe, a start up school in Compostela. It's a regular school but they still accepted my son because they could see that he was teachable. Now my son has learned a lot from this school and I feel satisfied with how lessons are being taught.

How your decision to work or study abroad affects your child with ASD?

I was actually planning to study in either Canada or New Zealand but after some research I found out that it was difficult for kids with autism to get a permanent residency abroad. I know it's really unjust and downright cruel but what can we do? It's their country and they have their policies to follow. Countries like New Zealand, Canada, Australia, etc. will require your kids to be able to communicate well in English before they are allowed to live there permanently. My son whose communication still needs a lot of help will surely be denied.

Life can be really nasty sometimes. These countries state that they don't have enough resources to address the needs of children with ASD. I doubt if this is true but like I said, what can I do? I guess my hopes for him is to improve his communication skills as he gets older and maybe someday he'll be able to study abroad himself. For now, I decided not to pursue studying or working abroad. We still have plans to travel abroad but purely for recreation. I believe it helps to expose your child with travel. It helps them adjust and be aware of the world around him.

Challenges in Pursuing Study Habits for A Child with Autism (ASD)

Everyday is definitely a challenge for me and my husband. We encounter so many ordeals but it's really up to you if you let these challenges get you down or pull you up. One struggle that we usually encounter is during our study sessions. It takes about 3 hours before my son can understand most of the topics I'm discussing. I always make it a point not to frustrate him further if he has a hard time on a particular topic. The last thing I want is for him to hate studying. I want him to learn to enjoy our study habits so in the future he can be independent and learn to study on his own.

My son still has issues with reading. He still can't read long words or sentences but I think he's well on his way to understanding how letters are read bit by bit. I don't push him but allow him to take his time but we do this on a regular basis. I have learned to be patient and offer him encouragement in every opportunity. This way my son develops his self confidence and discover his potential at his own pace.

Some people who are not fully aware of children with autism, find it hard to understand the challenges that parents undergo. Some of our relatives don't understand and talk about stuff that may be hurtful to parents. We experience this with some of our family members. You know it's really hard but my husband and I never lost hope. We have faith in God and always ask for his guidance in every decision we make. I know that someday all our hard work coupled with love and understanding for our son will do him good.

Like I said in my previous article, we never expected for our son to achieve this much ever. For him to finally talk and learn to express himself and participate in school seemed like a dream years ago. But now, with God's help, we see a huge improvement in his behavior and development and we intend to continue our support and faith for him to reach his potential

Special School vs. Regular School - An update on my son with autism

My son is doing better than I've ever imagined. He still has problems with his speech, however, his behavior has improved so much over the years. He's now 8 years old this year. I wanted to share my thoughts on whether you should be sending your child with special needs to a Special School vs. a Regular School. 

We used to send our son to a special school in Mandaue City, Cebu called Prime Center Foundation, however, after 2 years I've noticed my son didn't have much improvement. During the first year though, my son developed his writing skills and motor skills but I was a little disappointed by the lack of topics being taught at the school. The teachers focused more on his writing and focus on other topics besides the alphabet. I knew this because my son also undergoes Occupational Therapy twice a week at the time and his therapists told us that Vaughn's vocabulary was very limited. He didn't know how to identify even the basic things like spoon, fork, door, floor, days of the week, etc. 

Although, I truly appreciate the work that the teachers at Prime Center Foundation have contributed to my son's development but I felt that they were undermining his capacity to learn. I asked for God's help before we made our final decision to transfer him to a different school. The school was also an hour from our place which is another factor that made me decide to try a different approach because I've noticed that my son was exhausted from our trip to and from the school every day. 

I think it was God's plan to help us realize that it was time for Vaughn to study at a different school. The school just near our place called Green Rose Center for Academe is a regular school but the owner and Directress was kind enough to accept my son and up to this time he attends this school. So when do we know whether to transfer to a regular school or not? Observe your child more  and try to assess his ability to absorb information. At first it was such a challenge for Vaughn because he didn't know a lot of things and was not used to answering homework and different topics like Math, Language, Reading, etc. But after a few months at his regular school, Vaughn's development improved. 

Vaughn's school also taught my husband and I to always find time to teach him at home. This way our son will develop study habits. Fast forward to today and to my surprise, Vaughn became a Bronze Awardee at Green Rose Center for Academe. It was more than I've ever hoped for. God knows how much tears I've shed in the past worrying about my son's future. Now, I'm no longer afraid because I know God will be there for my son. So if you have a child with autism never give up. Do your very best to help your child achieve his/her potential and always seek God's help. 

I'm happy to find that I've got 18 page views for today. That's great considering that I just started this blog yesterday. Thanks to those who took the time to read my first post. earlier today I thank God because we received the refund from a special school where we initially wanted to send Vaughn to. unfortunately due to financial constraints we've decided to withdraw Vaughn's enrollment. I can't tell you all the details yet but our experience from that school was unforgettable and I dare say traumatic. I'll need more time to write everything and hope that someday our experience will give awareness to those who share the same situation. So until then, thanks for dropping by! ^_^

meet my son Vaughn

Hi, meet my son with whom I love most in this world... :) I've been blogging since 2009, unfortunately, I didn't keep my original blogs due to time constraints. from now on I plan to keep writing my thoughts on a daily basis. i wanted to share with you the different challenges of having a child with ASD (Autistic Spectrum Disorder). I currently live in the Philippines with my adorable son and husband. Until next time!