All educators know that there are kids in their classes who are undiagnosed in a variety of areas including autism, however, the study discussed in the article;
Study in Korea Puts Autism’s Prevalence at 2.6%, Surprising Experts
from The New York Times is still quite revealing. The article identifies a study that found the prevalence of children with autism to be much higher than the current estimation of CDC's 1 in 110 children. Is it really that surprising? I think the answer is both yes and no. Autism encompasses such a large spectrum that kids are bound to fall under the radar. How many kids found to fall under the radar is what is concerning from this article. As an educator, it is clear that there are a number of reasons that children may be undiagnosed. Some parent's of kids who have mild autism may not want their child to have the label. Other kids with mild autism just simply don't show enough symptoms to raise a red flag in a general education classroom or at home where somebody might not know what to look for. The ultimate problem is what these children are missing without being "labeled" as having autism.
Matthew Halem, MSE Family Autism Support
I so agree with the last sentence of this post. I wish more parents would understand that the "label" sometimes is just a way to help get what you need for your child. We all have something!
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