China's autism oasis By Nick Compton
In a classroom for four-year-olds at Elim Autism school in Qingdao city, eastern Shandong province, the teacher draws her students' attention. Standing in the center of a horseshoe of tables, she addresses the eight students sitting at individual desks, their mothers sitting directly behind. "Kan laoshi," (look at me) she begins.
Some of the students shift their attention to her, but most remain fixated on the table in front of them, or stare off into empty air. She has them clap their hands and stand up; then she directs them to sit down and settle themselves. She begins her instruction.
The task is simple. She has wooden blocks with thread
interwoven through. She shows the students how to hold the blocks with one hand and maneuver the thread with the other. Most of the children have to be coerced by their mothers to initiate the activity. Some cry and shout; one repeatedly bangs the desk, refusing to take up the task.
Despite their reluctance, these children are luckier than they know. Elim is China's premiere rehabilitation center for autistic children aged three to six. Founded in 2000 by Fang Jing, mother to a now young-adult autistic son, the school is one of only a handful in China that specialize in curriculum using science-based intervention techniques. Of the more than 1 million Chinese families that are touched by autism, only the very lucky, or very rich, have the resources to score a seat in this school, an almost holy grail of autism treatment centers.
As the diagnoses rate of autism in China has skyrocketed since the disorder was officially recognized by the government in 2006, so too has the popularity of Elim. Its waiting list is 2,000 names long and, at 30 accepted per month, can require years of patience.
Families from every province of China can apply online to secure entrance, and the school attracts students from even the remotest corners of the country. Once they're fortunate enough to score a slot, parents pay 4,000 yuan per month (US$645), with a minimum required stay of three months, to enroll their kids in a demanding schedule of nine classes per day, Monday-to-Friday, that span from intensive one-on-one communications skills to physical therapy: zipping head-first down plywood ramps on small roll carts. With 330 students, the school is one of the largest single-housed autism early intervention centers in China.
All the cutting-edge technology comes at a cost, though. Despite the school's efforts to subsidize low-income families, the stiff price tag and the requirement that families arrange their own housing during their stays means that an overwhelming majority of students are from wealthy or upper middle class families.
Inside Elim There is no mistaking Elim in its suburban Qingdao neighborhood of tire shops, scrap metal, and pay-by-the-hour hotels. It's an hour's car-drive away from the city center and coastal boardwalk that snakes past Bavarian style lodges and beer halls - a legacy of German colonization.
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China's autism oasis