Overcoming My Difficulty in Teaching an Austistic Child Aged Four Years Old at Kalam Kudus Kindergarten Kopo Permai Bandung.
ABSTRACT
Tugas Akhir ini berisi pembahasan masalah yang saya hadapi selama
saya menjadi asisten wali kelas di TKK Kalam Kudus Kopo Permai Bandung.
Dalam Tugas Akhir ini, saya membahas tentang kesulitan saya dalam
menangani seorang anak autis di TKK Kalam Kudus Bandung. Ada
beberapa penyebab munculnya masalah tersebut seperti anak tersebut sulit
untuk berkonsenterasi dengan banyak hal disekelilingnya dan saya tidak
siap untuk mengajar anak ini; karena saya tidak mempunyai persiapan
khusus untuk mengajar anak ini. Beberapa penyebab tersebut memunculkan
dampak lain bagi saya. Dampak tersebut antara lain saya menjadi lelah
dalam menghadapi anak ini dan ia menjadi marah ketika kondisi kelas
menjadi riuh dan sangat tidak kondusif.
Saya memiliki tiga solusi untuk menyelesaikan masalah ini. Pertama,
saya akan memakai visual aids untuk mengajar anak autis ini. Kedua, saya
akan mencoba membangun hubungan dengan orang tua anak autis ini.
Ketiga, saya akan menggunakan sistem reward untuk anak ini, agar lebih
memotivasi anak ini dalam pembelajarannya di sekolah.
Hasil penelitian menunjukkan masalah ini dapat diselesaikan dengan
tiga solusi. Saya memilih untuk menggabungkan ketiga solusi tersebut
karena setiap solusi memiliki kelemahan dan kelebihannya sendiri. Saya
berharap akan mendapatkan hasil yang maksimal dalam menangani anak
autis ini.
i
Maranatha Christian University
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABSTRACT .................................................................................................... i
DECLARATION OF ORIGINALITY ................................................................ ii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................. iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS................................................................................ iv
CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION ......................................................................1
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.
Background of the Study
Identification of the Problem
Objectives and Benefits of the Study
Description of the Institution
Method of the Study
Limitation of the Study
Organization of the Term Paper
CHAPTER II. PROBLEM ANALYSIS ............................................................7
CHAPTER III. POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS ...................................................10
CHAPTER IV. CONCLUSION .....................................................................16
BIBLIOGRAPHY
APPENDICES:
A. FLOWCHART
B. INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT
C. SCHOOL HISTORY
iv
Maranatha Christian University
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. Background of the Study
Teaching is one of the exciting things for me. I always get
excited when I have an opportunity to teach someone, especially
children. In teaching I can share my knowledge and have some fun
at the same time. During my internship, I decided to be a teacher
assistant and taught the children in Kalam Kudus Kindergarten. In
that period, I faced something that I never thought before. I had to
deal with a four-year-old autistic child. I felt interested to know more
about this child. According to a book entitled Children with Autism,
it is said that “Autism is physical disorder of the brain that causes a
lifelong development disability” (5). Smith explains autistic children
have several characteristics, such as having very little or no eye
contact, prefering to be alone, and also having difficulty in
1
Maranatha Christian University
understanding group interactions (par.1). Based on my experience
at my internship, I found that when the homeroom teacher said
something to her, she often had no eye contact to the teacher; as if
she did not listen to what the teacher said. Another condition, when
the students made group work and tried to make an exercise, this
autistic child did not do her exercise but she played toys alone at
the corner of the class. Based on that theory and also the
experience that I got, I am sure this child has the characteristics of
autism. Besides, I also got a confirmation about this child’s
condition from the homeroom teacher, Miss Nita. She told me that
this child had an autistic syndrome since she was in Nursery class.
According to this fact, I am more convinced that she is an autistic
child.
Becoming a teacher assistant at a class with the autistic child
made me interested to learn more about autism. Handling an
autistic child is not an easy job to do. As a teacher assistant I need
to teach the lesson and handle the child. It is even more
challenging when this child did not give any response or she was
just often silent without showing any focus in her eyes. I found out
that she also played something by herself, such as playing with her
chair in the class when the others were doing their tasks. I really
wanted to know more about this child, especially how to teach this
child well.
2
Maranatha Christian University
In this term paper, I am interested in analyzing this problem
to find the solutions of the problem. Based on my internship
experience, I think teaching an autistic child is quite challenging. I
am going to analyze this problem systematically to find the best
solution in teaching the autistic child. Therefore, I do some research
to find the best solutions for this problem.
B. Identification of the Problem
There are some questions that I use in analyzing this problem:
1. Why did I have difficulty in teaching an autistic child at Kalam
Kudus Kindergarten?
2. How did this problem influence the teaching and learning
process?
3. How could I overcome this problem?
C. Objectives and Benefits of the Study
The objectives of the study are to identify the causes of the
problem in teaching an autistic child at Kalam Kudus Kindergarten,
to find out how this problem influences the teaching process and to
find the best solution to teach the autistic child. In addition, there
are several benefits of the study. First, the institution, especially the
teachers at Kalam Kudus Kindergarten will know how to handle the
autistic students in the classroom when they study in the regular
3
Maranatha Christian University
school. Another benefit is for the readers who face the same
problem as I do, so that they will know the solutions to solve the
problem. Moreover, for me I can find solutions in teaching the
autistic child if I become a teacher in the future.
D. Description of the Institution
Based on the data from Sekolah Kristen Kalam Kudus official
website, Kalam Kudus Bandung is a school which has integrity in
love and discipline in teaching the students. Kalam Kudus
Kindergarten Kopo Permai is established in 1989. It is located in
Kopo Permai F-14 number 2-4 Bandung.
This school is under the Foundation of Kalam Kudus formerly
led by Ps. Andrew Wusan. Along the time, kindergarten curriculum
is constantly evolving. Since 2011, Kalam Kudus kindergarten
applied i-learning system designed specifically by Kalam Kudus
Indonesia Foundation to develop children’s existing potentials.
Children will have the freedom to have experiments and also able to
enjoy and express their curiosity. There are many facilities in this
school such as five general classrooms, one computer lab, one
small and big auditorium, outdoor and indoor children playgrounds.
Kalam Kudus Kindergarten has ten teachers including one
headmaster and one secretary.
4
Maranatha Christian University
Not only have great teachers but this school also have great staff
like cleaning service and baby sitter for the children at school.
E. Methods of the Study
The methods applied for the study are library and field
research. The data for library research was taken from books and
articles on the Internet. Furthermore, the date or field research are
taken from my observation. The observation data are written in my
internship journal. I wrote the journal based on my teaching
experience during my internship at Kalam Kudus Kindergarten from
January 20 until 21 February 2014. Last, I also add some interviews
with the teacher to get some more information. The data is used to
analyze the causes, the effects and to find the best solutions.
F. Limitation of the Study
In this term paper, the subject of the research is I as a
teacher assistant at Kalam Kudus Kindergarten. The study focuses
on how I teach one autistic girl, aged 4 years old, in TK-A Kalam
Kudus Kindergarten.
5
Maranatha Christian University
G. Organization of Term Paper
The term paper is divided into four chapters. Chapter One is
the Introduction, which contains of the Background of the Study,
Identification of the Problem, Objectives and Benefits of the Study,
Description of The Institution, Methods of the Study, Limitation of
the Study, and Organization of the Term Paper. Chapter Two is the
Problem Analysis, which contains the analysis of the causes of the
problem and also the effects of the problem. Chapter Three is the
Potential Solution which describes three solutions, with the positive
and negative effects of the solutions.
Chapter Four is the conclusion, in which I will give the best
solutions and the conclusion of the previous chapters. The last part
of this term paper is a Bibliography and Appendices.
6
Maranatha Christian University
CHAPTER IV
CONCLUSION
In this chapter I would like to explain about the best solutions for the
problem that I found when I did my internship at Kalam Kudus
Kindergarten Bandung. The problem that I had is difficulty in teaching an
autistic child in Kindergarten A class. I find two causes of the problem.
First, the child was easily disturbed by many things around her. The next
cause is I, as a teacher, am not ready to teach this autistic child. The
problem also has two effects, which are I was tired enough to face this
child in class and the child became angry when the class was too noisy.
To solve this problem, I have three potential solutions. The first potential
solution is I will teach using the visual aids. The second potential solution
is I will try to build a relationship with the autistic child’s parents. Then the
third potential solution is I will give a reward for this child.
The best solution to teach this autistic child is the combination of
the three potential solutions. I will try to build a relationship with the
16
Maranatha Christian University
autistic child’s parents first then when I know her better, I can decide the
best visual aids that I will use in the classroom, and finally the reward
system will help her to learn and achieve more in learning. I choose to
combine all of my potential solutions because I think every potential
solution have strengths and weaknesses.
Last but not least, I hope the other teachers in the regular school
can use the potential solutions to teach the autistic child in their
classroom. Besides, for the autistic student, I hope the child can feel
better when the teacher apply these potential solutions. Finally, for the
school, I hope through this Term Paper Kalam Kudus Kindergarten will
know how to handle autistic children in the best way.
17
Maranatha Christian University
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Printed Sources
Powers, Michael D. Children with Autism. New York: Woodbine
House, 1989.
Electronic Sources
Australia. Dept. of Health. Educational Placement of Children With
Autism. By Robertson. 27 September 2003.15 January 2014.
.
Chaloux, Stacey. “Kind of Visual Aids Are Used to Teach Autistic
Children?”. Global Post . 2 January 2014. 17 February 2014.
.
Christensen, Julie. “What Are Common Issues in the Classroom for
Children Who Have Autism?”. Global Post. 9 January 2014. 19
February 2014.
Maranatha Christian University
.
Dominica, Sharon. “Teaching a child with Autism”. Sharons Creative
Corner. 2014. .
Dr. Dyer, Hilary. “Visual Aids” ASD Visual Aids. 26 June 2009. 16 March
2014. .
Dr. Wilmott Cardinal Glennon, Bob. “Experts keep learning more about
autism”. STLtoday.com. 03 April 2014. 13 May 2014.
.
Federation of Ontario. “Parents Teacher Relationships.” Professional
Relations Services.1 February 2014. 25 January 2014.
Notbohm, Ellen. Ten Things Your Student with Autism Wishes You Knew.
United States: Ashland University. Autism Speaks 2005. 15 January
2014.
.
Maranatha Christian University
Kheiriddin, Tasha. “Life on the Autism Spectrum”. National Post. 2 April
2014. 22 April 2014.
.
LaFortune, Alison. “Positive Strategies for Disciplining Children With
Autism“ Global Post. 3 January 2014. 9 February 2014.
.
Lester, Barbara R. “11 Reward Strategies for Autism Spectrum Children.”
asdspecialist.com. 18 June 2011. 10 March 2014.
Page, Ronda. “Rewards, Discipline, and Children with Autism or Special
Needs” yahoo.com. 16 March 2013. 24 March 2014.
.
Randall, Meg. “Building Relationships with the Parents of Autistic Children”
childrenandmom.com. 5 January 2014. 10 March 2014.
.
Smith, Larry. “Characteristics Found on the Autism Spectrum” Rocky Point
Academy. 2009. 15 January 2014.
.
University of Alabama School of Medicine Successfully Using Visual Aids
in Your Presentation. By Walsh, Julie B. 2005. 16 February 2014.
Maranatha Christian University
.
Weimer, Maryellen. “Teaching with Confidence” Faculty Focus April 18,
2012. 18 February 2014.
.
Interview
Nitta. Personal interview. 15 April 2014.
Maranatha Christian University
Tugas Akhir ini berisi pembahasan masalah yang saya hadapi selama
saya menjadi asisten wali kelas di TKK Kalam Kudus Kopo Permai Bandung.
Dalam Tugas Akhir ini, saya membahas tentang kesulitan saya dalam
menangani seorang anak autis di TKK Kalam Kudus Bandung. Ada
beberapa penyebab munculnya masalah tersebut seperti anak tersebut sulit
untuk berkonsenterasi dengan banyak hal disekelilingnya dan saya tidak
siap untuk mengajar anak ini; karena saya tidak mempunyai persiapan
khusus untuk mengajar anak ini. Beberapa penyebab tersebut memunculkan
dampak lain bagi saya. Dampak tersebut antara lain saya menjadi lelah
dalam menghadapi anak ini dan ia menjadi marah ketika kondisi kelas
menjadi riuh dan sangat tidak kondusif.
Saya memiliki tiga solusi untuk menyelesaikan masalah ini. Pertama,
saya akan memakai visual aids untuk mengajar anak autis ini. Kedua, saya
akan mencoba membangun hubungan dengan orang tua anak autis ini.
Ketiga, saya akan menggunakan sistem reward untuk anak ini, agar lebih
memotivasi anak ini dalam pembelajarannya di sekolah.
Hasil penelitian menunjukkan masalah ini dapat diselesaikan dengan
tiga solusi. Saya memilih untuk menggabungkan ketiga solusi tersebut
karena setiap solusi memiliki kelemahan dan kelebihannya sendiri. Saya
berharap akan mendapatkan hasil yang maksimal dalam menangani anak
autis ini.
i
Maranatha Christian University
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABSTRACT .................................................................................................... i
DECLARATION OF ORIGINALITY ................................................................ ii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................. iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS................................................................................ iv
CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION ......................................................................1
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.
Background of the Study
Identification of the Problem
Objectives and Benefits of the Study
Description of the Institution
Method of the Study
Limitation of the Study
Organization of the Term Paper
CHAPTER II. PROBLEM ANALYSIS ............................................................7
CHAPTER III. POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS ...................................................10
CHAPTER IV. CONCLUSION .....................................................................16
BIBLIOGRAPHY
APPENDICES:
A. FLOWCHART
B. INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT
C. SCHOOL HISTORY
iv
Maranatha Christian University
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. Background of the Study
Teaching is one of the exciting things for me. I always get
excited when I have an opportunity to teach someone, especially
children. In teaching I can share my knowledge and have some fun
at the same time. During my internship, I decided to be a teacher
assistant and taught the children in Kalam Kudus Kindergarten. In
that period, I faced something that I never thought before. I had to
deal with a four-year-old autistic child. I felt interested to know more
about this child. According to a book entitled Children with Autism,
it is said that “Autism is physical disorder of the brain that causes a
lifelong development disability” (5). Smith explains autistic children
have several characteristics, such as having very little or no eye
contact, prefering to be alone, and also having difficulty in
1
Maranatha Christian University
understanding group interactions (par.1). Based on my experience
at my internship, I found that when the homeroom teacher said
something to her, she often had no eye contact to the teacher; as if
she did not listen to what the teacher said. Another condition, when
the students made group work and tried to make an exercise, this
autistic child did not do her exercise but she played toys alone at
the corner of the class. Based on that theory and also the
experience that I got, I am sure this child has the characteristics of
autism. Besides, I also got a confirmation about this child’s
condition from the homeroom teacher, Miss Nita. She told me that
this child had an autistic syndrome since she was in Nursery class.
According to this fact, I am more convinced that she is an autistic
child.
Becoming a teacher assistant at a class with the autistic child
made me interested to learn more about autism. Handling an
autistic child is not an easy job to do. As a teacher assistant I need
to teach the lesson and handle the child. It is even more
challenging when this child did not give any response or she was
just often silent without showing any focus in her eyes. I found out
that she also played something by herself, such as playing with her
chair in the class when the others were doing their tasks. I really
wanted to know more about this child, especially how to teach this
child well.
2
Maranatha Christian University
In this term paper, I am interested in analyzing this problem
to find the solutions of the problem. Based on my internship
experience, I think teaching an autistic child is quite challenging. I
am going to analyze this problem systematically to find the best
solution in teaching the autistic child. Therefore, I do some research
to find the best solutions for this problem.
B. Identification of the Problem
There are some questions that I use in analyzing this problem:
1. Why did I have difficulty in teaching an autistic child at Kalam
Kudus Kindergarten?
2. How did this problem influence the teaching and learning
process?
3. How could I overcome this problem?
C. Objectives and Benefits of the Study
The objectives of the study are to identify the causes of the
problem in teaching an autistic child at Kalam Kudus Kindergarten,
to find out how this problem influences the teaching process and to
find the best solution to teach the autistic child. In addition, there
are several benefits of the study. First, the institution, especially the
teachers at Kalam Kudus Kindergarten will know how to handle the
autistic students in the classroom when they study in the regular
3
Maranatha Christian University
school. Another benefit is for the readers who face the same
problem as I do, so that they will know the solutions to solve the
problem. Moreover, for me I can find solutions in teaching the
autistic child if I become a teacher in the future.
D. Description of the Institution
Based on the data from Sekolah Kristen Kalam Kudus official
website, Kalam Kudus Bandung is a school which has integrity in
love and discipline in teaching the students. Kalam Kudus
Kindergarten Kopo Permai is established in 1989. It is located in
Kopo Permai F-14 number 2-4 Bandung.
This school is under the Foundation of Kalam Kudus formerly
led by Ps. Andrew Wusan. Along the time, kindergarten curriculum
is constantly evolving. Since 2011, Kalam Kudus kindergarten
applied i-learning system designed specifically by Kalam Kudus
Indonesia Foundation to develop children’s existing potentials.
Children will have the freedom to have experiments and also able to
enjoy and express their curiosity. There are many facilities in this
school such as five general classrooms, one computer lab, one
small and big auditorium, outdoor and indoor children playgrounds.
Kalam Kudus Kindergarten has ten teachers including one
headmaster and one secretary.
4
Maranatha Christian University
Not only have great teachers but this school also have great staff
like cleaning service and baby sitter for the children at school.
E. Methods of the Study
The methods applied for the study are library and field
research. The data for library research was taken from books and
articles on the Internet. Furthermore, the date or field research are
taken from my observation. The observation data are written in my
internship journal. I wrote the journal based on my teaching
experience during my internship at Kalam Kudus Kindergarten from
January 20 until 21 February 2014. Last, I also add some interviews
with the teacher to get some more information. The data is used to
analyze the causes, the effects and to find the best solutions.
F. Limitation of the Study
In this term paper, the subject of the research is I as a
teacher assistant at Kalam Kudus Kindergarten. The study focuses
on how I teach one autistic girl, aged 4 years old, in TK-A Kalam
Kudus Kindergarten.
5
Maranatha Christian University
G. Organization of Term Paper
The term paper is divided into four chapters. Chapter One is
the Introduction, which contains of the Background of the Study,
Identification of the Problem, Objectives and Benefits of the Study,
Description of The Institution, Methods of the Study, Limitation of
the Study, and Organization of the Term Paper. Chapter Two is the
Problem Analysis, which contains the analysis of the causes of the
problem and also the effects of the problem. Chapter Three is the
Potential Solution which describes three solutions, with the positive
and negative effects of the solutions.
Chapter Four is the conclusion, in which I will give the best
solutions and the conclusion of the previous chapters. The last part
of this term paper is a Bibliography and Appendices.
6
Maranatha Christian University
CHAPTER IV
CONCLUSION
In this chapter I would like to explain about the best solutions for the
problem that I found when I did my internship at Kalam Kudus
Kindergarten Bandung. The problem that I had is difficulty in teaching an
autistic child in Kindergarten A class. I find two causes of the problem.
First, the child was easily disturbed by many things around her. The next
cause is I, as a teacher, am not ready to teach this autistic child. The
problem also has two effects, which are I was tired enough to face this
child in class and the child became angry when the class was too noisy.
To solve this problem, I have three potential solutions. The first potential
solution is I will teach using the visual aids. The second potential solution
is I will try to build a relationship with the autistic child’s parents. Then the
third potential solution is I will give a reward for this child.
The best solution to teach this autistic child is the combination of
the three potential solutions. I will try to build a relationship with the
16
Maranatha Christian University
autistic child’s parents first then when I know her better, I can decide the
best visual aids that I will use in the classroom, and finally the reward
system will help her to learn and achieve more in learning. I choose to
combine all of my potential solutions because I think every potential
solution have strengths and weaknesses.
Last but not least, I hope the other teachers in the regular school
can use the potential solutions to teach the autistic child in their
classroom. Besides, for the autistic student, I hope the child can feel
better when the teacher apply these potential solutions. Finally, for the
school, I hope through this Term Paper Kalam Kudus Kindergarten will
know how to handle autistic children in the best way.
17
Maranatha Christian University
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Printed Sources
Powers, Michael D. Children with Autism. New York: Woodbine
House, 1989.
Electronic Sources
Australia. Dept. of Health. Educational Placement of Children With
Autism. By Robertson. 27 September 2003.15 January 2014.
.
Chaloux, Stacey. “Kind of Visual Aids Are Used to Teach Autistic
Children?”. Global Post . 2 January 2014. 17 February 2014.
.
Christensen, Julie. “What Are Common Issues in the Classroom for
Children Who Have Autism?”. Global Post. 9 January 2014. 19
February 2014.
Maranatha Christian University
.
Dominica, Sharon. “Teaching a child with Autism”. Sharons Creative
Corner. 2014. .
Dr. Dyer, Hilary. “Visual Aids” ASD Visual Aids. 26 June 2009. 16 March
2014. .
Dr. Wilmott Cardinal Glennon, Bob. “Experts keep learning more about
autism”. STLtoday.com. 03 April 2014. 13 May 2014.
.
Federation of Ontario. “Parents Teacher Relationships.” Professional
Relations Services.1 February 2014. 25 January 2014.
Notbohm, Ellen. Ten Things Your Student with Autism Wishes You Knew.
United States: Ashland University. Autism Speaks 2005. 15 January
2014.
.
Maranatha Christian University
Kheiriddin, Tasha. “Life on the Autism Spectrum”. National Post. 2 April
2014. 22 April 2014.
.
LaFortune, Alison. “Positive Strategies for Disciplining Children With
Autism“ Global Post. 3 January 2014. 9 February 2014.
.
Lester, Barbara R. “11 Reward Strategies for Autism Spectrum Children.”
asdspecialist.com. 18 June 2011. 10 March 2014.
Page, Ronda. “Rewards, Discipline, and Children with Autism or Special
Needs” yahoo.com. 16 March 2013. 24 March 2014.
.
Randall, Meg. “Building Relationships with the Parents of Autistic Children”
childrenandmom.com. 5 January 2014. 10 March 2014.
.
Smith, Larry. “Characteristics Found on the Autism Spectrum” Rocky Point
Academy. 2009. 15 January 2014.
.
University of Alabama School of Medicine Successfully Using Visual Aids
in Your Presentation. By Walsh, Julie B. 2005. 16 February 2014.
Maranatha Christian University
.
Weimer, Maryellen. “Teaching with Confidence” Faculty Focus April 18,
2012. 18 February 2014.
.
Interview
Nitta. Personal interview. 15 April 2014.
Maranatha Christian University