WHITNEY STORY AND THE IMPORTANCE OF SPECIAL SCHOOLS FOR AUTISTIC PEOPLE IN INDONESIA
13 April 2021
Just like most children, Whitney (18) was born fine and normal. At the age of three, Whitney parents noticed something unusual about their daughter.
Whitney oddity was seen when she had difficulty playing with friends her age. She tended to prefer playing and spending time alone.
In addition, she often does not respond when her name is called and often cannot look the other person in the eye.
“At the time I thought there was something wrong with Whitney hearing,” Whitney parent Usli Sarsi said when recalling the incident 15 years ago.
She went to the doctor to have Whitney hearing health checked. However, the results showed that Whitney hearing condition was fine.
Usli began to worry. He has taken various methods from medical to non-medical to treat Whitney.
Usli underwent treatment not only in Indonesia, but also abroad. However, all of that was fruitless.
Eventually, a doctor in Malaysia concluded that Whitney had mild autism syndrome.
“When I first heard it, I couldn't believe it. Whitney's brother was normal. To confirm the opinion of doctors in Malaysia, I also sought treatment elsewhere. However, the answer I encountered remained the same,” Usli said through tears.
Knowing his daughter's condition, Usli and his wife continue to seek information about the disease. Unlike now, 15 years ago, information about autism syndrome was not easy to obtain.
Within a month, Whitney had to undergo therapy for a whole week. This needs to be done for two years.
Usli and his wife had to be willing to travel back and forth between Medan and Malaysia to accompany Whitney through the treatment period.
Entering the age of six, Whitney began attending kindergarten. However, despite attending school, she remained engrossed in herself.
Usli decided to send Whitney to school in Singapore. The school chosen is a special place for children with autism syndrome.
Usli chose the school in Singapore because at that time there was no special school for people with autism in Medan.
Since then, Usli wife decided to move to Singapore to accompany Whitney. Likewise, Whitney brother also moved to Singapore.
Although his three family members live in Singapore, Usli remains in Medan to work. He would go to Singapore once a week to see his family.
“Whitney is now 18 years old. She can already communicate well. If educated properly and lovingly, autistic children can live a normal life,” Usli explained.
He also gave the example of Albert Einstein, a person with autism who successfully became a great world scientist because he discovered the theory of relativity.
Until now, Whitney has a passion for listening to music and traveling. Usli hopes that someday there will be talent in her daughter that can be developed.
Founding White Light
In this world, there is certainly not a single parent who wants their child to be born with autism. Until now, it is not known exactly why a child can get this syndrome.
According to Usli, educating children is not an easy matter. Every parent needs great patience to educate their children. This condition sometimes causes parents to choose to hide autistic children at home.
“I feel the difficulty of educating autistic children. It is impossible for parents to educate autistic children at home. Autistic children need schools,” says Usli.
Learning from their experience, Usli and his wife decided to establish White Light in 2017. The idea of establishing this school came about when they sent Whitney to a school for people with autism in Singapore.
However, until now, Usli feels that the government has not paid attention to people with autism. Some Indonesians are still unable to accept children with autism. As a result, many parents decide to keep their children locked up at home.
This condition is much different from Singapore, which is very concerned about them. In fact, he said, the Singapore government established many special schools for people with autism to ease the burden on parents.
As is known, to send children with autism to school, parents need to spend a lot of money. The same goes for people who are willing to accept the existence of these children.
“On the clothes of people with autism, they will be marked with a pin along with an address and phone number that can be contacted if they get lost,” Usli said.
If they do odd things, such as shouting and acting strangely, the community can understand and not feel disturbed.
In addition, Usli revealed that the presence of people with autism in the community can actually help them socialize and communicate well.
For your information, research suggests that out of 100 births, one child will have autism. There are quite a number of them today.
This, according to Usli, should be utilized by the government in opening up job opportunities. Ideally, one teacher should teach a maximum of three autistic children. Therefore, the government needs to prepare educators to interact with children with autism.
Moreover, with the existence of special schools for people with autism, parents will also find it helpful.