Therapeutic education for autistic children

Abstract

Child autism constitutes a psyquiatric illness which appears in the early stages of life and affects the personality and cognitive aspects of the child in varying on unequal degrees. Its ethiology is controversial and, therefore, so is the subject of what would be the best therapeutical treatment. Education is presented as an option, with its obvious limitations since we are referring to a syndrome in the field of child psychiatry, and importance is placed on the value of a structured and protective atmosphere as well as the importance of maximum coherence in the treatment received at home with the family and in school. The method must be extremely flexible in order to allow adaptation to every child, given that autism is based on very different biological and character traits which imply great care and respect for the individuality of every child. Each one of these children presents serious of adaptation to family and school life, and must therefore be the object of differential education.