Our local health department recently moved premises and it was a complete utter disaster. The move was not planned well at all, half of us didn't even know it had happened. I have a feeling there was a committee complete with clip boards involved, in which nobody could make their <insert favourite swear word here> minds up who did what and what went where. I don't even know why I am surprised. Having said that, I think things are settling down somewhat and people are becoming familiar with the new buildings.
📢 My big shout out is for the department for autism. 📢
Through all the disorganisation and mess, they have absolutely nailed their autistic unit which includes a cafe for autistic people! This is the first time I have seen such a thing here in Italy and while it can be a bit backwards in some areas, this is a huge thing for Italians in terms of their awareness of autistic people and the way in which they are trying to incorporate their lives in something important. I think a cafe is a brilliant way to bring awareness. I haven't been in there yet, it was closed on my last visit (too early, I think...) but I shall investigate as soon as I can.
Italy is a little closed to the openness of neurodivergence and other disabilities. There's still the element of embarrassment and tendency to keep things secret; much like the UK was 20 years ago. I think seeing things like this is a positive sign towards creating an open, equitable and inclusive society in which we celebrate our diversity. No two humans are the same, and just because someone doesn't have autism or another disability, doesn't mean we should not talk about or celebrate those who do. I work with many parents who are ashamed of their child's diagnosis. They are more concerned about what their friends will think so they pretend it isn't a thing and often choose secrecy when it comes to their child's diagnosis. It's disappointing.
I have always been outspoken for my children's needs. There is a difference, though and I will explain why.
In the UK resources are tight. This means that for thousands of families, they have to fight to get help, support and/or seen by the right specialists. We become dragons. We are fiercely protective of our children and will go above and beyond for the right to be treated fairly and justly by the institutions such as the NHS and DLA/Government support. (excuse me for getting the latter wrong, I left the UK some years ago and I'm aware the names have changed a great deal). This means that we will always talk about our child's disabilities because without doing that, nobody will listen. We're a strong old bunch and we don't give in easily. We often have to fight for support at school with IEP's and getting the SEND teams in schools to listen let alone act on the needs of our child.
I've been on the receiving end of a school who refused to allow my autistic son access to the autistic unit when he started school in 2009. This resulted in prolific gossip by teachers throughout other schools in the town, talking about just that; a school who was renowned for it's autistic unit, to be neglecting my son's needs. I knew because the mother of my friend was a teacher and they had been talking about it in her school. Now these are my own experiences and you may be reading this and thinking that I am wrong but that might be because your own experience is vastly different from mine. I think for the most part, many of us have had to fight and that's just the nature of the situation, which is very sad.
We fight for speech and language therapy, diagnosis, medication, school support, class support, IEP's, staff training (which has to be ongoing and consistent!), for empathy and true understanding; behaviours are not inherently bad, one has to look for the root cause. The bottom line is that in the UK, we have to fight to get help.
In Italy, it can be quite different. There is help. The schools often refer students to medical professionals and from experience, it is a lengthly process but it gets done. In state schools there is legislation which protects the rights of students and families with disabilities. It's written on school documentation. You can see it
here, if you're interested. It recognises learning disabilities and guarantees the right to study within the school environment. (also home education is legal but that's a whole other blog post)
My school provides an open and professional approach to helping students and parents find that daunting. Often we have students that are clearly in need of support but parents have kept their diagnosis secret. One incident was a tragedy; I often write IEP's together with my teenage students because I want them to understand how their IEP works and how their own contributions can actually benefit their own path towards improving their overall educational experience. After all, it is about them. Why aren't students involved more? My aim is to change this.
Anyway back to the tragedy. I had a student whose parents lied on the registration forms when they applied for him to start at the school, the part where it says "does your child have any special educational learning needs" they wrote "no". Then on observation in class it was clear that there was a problem so I contacted the parents. They admitted that he did indeed have a diagnosis of a combination of needs both social communication and learning. I asked if they agreed to me writing the IEP together with their son and they agreed and thanked me for offering to do so. I met with the student and we talked about the IEP and his needs and I was quite open and pragmatic about the whole process, however, it turned out he had absolutely no idea he had been diagnosed with anything. I was horrified and absolutely furious with the parents. The poor boy cried. Had I known he did not know, I would have handled the situation very differently. The bottom line was the parents lied to me, the school, lied to their son, and put me in a situation which essentially traumatised him. I feel terrible about it. Having said that, he has since come to see me for help so I think he knows that between he and I, we can work this out. But I cannot forgive the parents for lying on the registration forms. This is what shame and embarrassment does; eventually it'll bite you in the butt. We have to be open, there is no other way. I did not confront the parents about it but I did speak to my superiors about it because I felt that there needs to be a change in the registration process in which the school encourages parents to be open about any diagnoses. It will benefit their children.
It's difficult to break down barriers in cultures where it's more important to people what others think than what's important for their children. Change is slow but there is still a path to take and the cafe for autistic people is doing just that. Small steps nonetheless.
I just want to say that I love Italy. It's a beautiful, vibrant country, rich in history and is evolving in many ways. I hope that these small steps make the positive changes towards a more inclusive and open society.
✌🇮🇹 💚🤍❤️
FYI: Today's blog was written with the help of the following playlist: Click here to see it. A nice little trip down memory lane.
