Autism Education: A Journey of Unconditional Love

Publication date: 4/2/2025

On the occasion of World Autism Awareness Day (April 2), Nghe An Newspaper had an interview with expert Le Thi Phuong Hoa - with nearly 15 years of experience in the field of special education. With her love for autistic children, she is known as a pioneer, an up-to-date person in methods, and also a reputable translator with many valuable documents in this special education field.

Expert Le Thi Phuong Hoa. Photo: NVCC

PV: With 15 years of experience in the field of special education, can you introduce your journey and wishes when taking this path?

Ms. Le Thi Phuong Hoa : During my 6 years of studying in Ukraine as a student, I had the opportunity to take care of Vietnamese children who came to study ballet and I realized that I was truly suited to the job of caring for children and bringing joy to them, especially disadvantaged children.

After returning home and having a child, I chose to study applied psychology online at the University of Derby in the UK to better understand my child. I found the subject “Autism, ADHD and Developmental Disorders” extremely interesting. It was so interesting that I became obsessed and decided that I would only work with special children, deciding to apply to work at the only foreign special education center in Ho Chi Minh City at that time. However, I felt that using rewards and punishments according to the behavioral analysis approach that I had learned at that time seemed disrespectful to special children, and did not bring sustainable results.

In order for children to progress, special education teachers need to be extremely patient and loving. Photo: Diep Thanh

At that time, even though I was over 40, I continued to study related programs and update new knowledge in this field. When I happened to watch a video about how people imitate the behaviors of autistic children as a way to connect with them, of the Son Rise program - a program that I later learned had helped many autistic children fully recover, I found the light. And I decided to open a social enterprise with the desire to serve the special children community with an approach of acceptance, understanding and love. Since then, I have always felt extremely grateful that I am on a wonderful path, completely in line with my strengths and aspirations, and have trained a professional, dedicated team, constantly learning, updating and happy to share and help.

The American Advocacy Group defines autism advocates as “people who are dedicated to supporting and empowering people with autism and their families. They have a deep understanding of the challenges people with autism face and work tirelessly to ensure that the rights and needs of people with autism are met.” I want to be seen as a true autism advocate.

PV: In your opinion, how has awareness of autism changed in recent years?

Ms. Le Thi Phuong Hoa : When I first started working with autistic children in 2010, general awareness of this syndrome was still very limited, both in the world and in Vietnam. At that time, people often viewed autism as simply a behavioral disorder, and the main approach was to find ways to suppress unwanted behaviors.

An exchange program for children with autism in the province. Photo: Minh Quan

Over time, however, experts began to ask: Why do children behave this way? They realized that many of the unique behaviors of children with autism stem from sensory processing disorders – because of the unusual way they receive input, children respond in different ways. This led to a new approach: Instead of focusing on behavior, people focused on helping children regulate their feelings.

As research continues, experts have discovered other factors, such as environmental toxins, the mother’s health status during pregnancy, etc. These factors can affect the child’s neurological development. Therefore, one of the important things in intervention for autistic children is to create a safe and secure living environment.

Each new theory has provided deeper insights, and over time, autism education has become a holistic process. In fact, many autistic children have recovered when their core issues are addressed holistically.

For me, to educate special children, the first important thing is to educate parents' inner self. When parents have peace and understanding, children can develop best. In addition, biomedical treatments also play an important role, helping to solve problems within the body, supporting autistic children on their journey to comprehensive development.

A teacher teaches letters to a pre-primary class at a specialized education center in Vinh City. Photo: Diep Thanh

PV: According to incomplete statistics from the Ministry of Health, the number of children diagnosed with autism in our country is increasing rapidly every year. So what is the cause of this situation?

Ms. Le Thi Phuong Hoa : Researchers have had many approaches to explain the causes of autism, including two main directions: genetic factors and environmental factors. However, reality shows that autism is not completely determined by one of these two factors but rather the interaction between them.

Many modern studies suggest that autism is related to epigenetic mechanisms, which is the way the environment affects gene expression. This means that genes do not exist in a fixed way but can be “turned on” or “turned off” under the influence of the environment. Therefore, even though two children can live in the same environment, due to different genes, the level of influence is not the same.

In today’s society, environmental pollution, stress, toxic chemicals… can all affect genes, causing adverse changes and possibly becoming the cause of autism. According to the documents I have studied and researched, when the total accumulation of these agents in the body reaches a certain threshold – exceeding the body’s ability to self-regulate, autism syndrome can erupt, like an inevitable “boiling point”.

Screening for children with autism. Photo: Minh Quan

PV: It can be affirmed that in the journey of accompanying autistic children, family plays an extremely important role, right, madam?

Ms. Le Thi Phuong Hoa : That's right. Family plays a key role in the journey of supporting autistic children, because no center can accompany children 24/7. Above all, parents and relatives are the closest people, capable of pulling children from their own world to the surrounding world, helping them gradually integrate into life.

In fact, the unconditional love of the Son Rise method has brought positive changes to many families. When parents spend hours a day playing with their children with love, changing their diet, adjusting their lifestyle and taking care of their mental health, children can improve significantly. There have been cases of complete recovery after 3-5 years of applying this method.

I once supported the case of a boy who had not spoken since the age of 2. After many ineffective methods, his family, after approaching the Son Rise method, decided to spend 1 year at home completely to play with their child, exercise their senses and accompany their child. Currently, the child is in grade 3, healthy, intelligent and talkative. This is a clear testament to the power of perseverance and love of the family. This is just 1 of hundreds of examples of improvements from the loving method.

A training course to raise awareness of autism spectrum disorder for commune policy officers and preschool teachers. Photo: Minh Quan

PV: How have intervention programs at specialized medical facilities contributed to supporting children with autism? What can society do to create a better environment for people with autism?

Ms. Le Thi Phuong Hoa : When a child is diagnosed with autism, most parents are confused and worried. At this time, specialized facilities play a very important role, helping to orient and support children in a systematic way. However, educating special children is a challenging job, requiring patience and true dedication. This is not a job that can be done just for money, because teachers often have to face difficulties such as being beaten, bitten, having their hair pulled by students, even cleaning up after grown children...

It is important that teachers understand correctly and have the right approach. If teachers love children but are always stressed, it means that their support method is not really right. Calmness and joy in work will help them persevere with children. Besides, no matter how hard teachers try, if parents do not understand their role and are not happy, the progress of children will be affected. In this job, children's joy is our joy, but parents' sadness also makes us worry many times more.

If we truly love, parents and teachers will see every behavior of the child as a way of communication and accept it with joy and happiness. If we truly love, no matter how different the child is, we will still love unconditionally.

On the social side, the most important thing is to stop stigmatizing and understand that autistic children's behaviors are their way of protecting themselves. Instead of scolding or forcing them to change, we need to start with acceptance and unconditional love. Only when children feel respected can they learn to adapt to society in a way that suits them. This does not mean that we do not teach children life skills or support treatment for accompanying problems such as sensory disorders and anxiety. But if we only try to force children to change without respecting their differences, we are inadvertently depriving them of the right to be themselves, pushing them into despair in the future.

Teachers and support staff participate in a painting activity with autistic children. Photo: CSCC

Many parents have shared: I am not afraid of my child being autistic, I am just afraid of other people's looks. To create a better environment for autistic children, we need to foster love, build a friendly environment, not cause insecurity, where children can connect with nature and feel safe.

PV: In many years of working with autistic children, what makes you most concerned and want to change?

Ms. Le Thi Phuong Hoa : What I want most is to eliminate the idea that "autism is a lifelong disorder." I have read and witnessed many cases where the limitation does not lie in the child, but in the perception of the people around them.

After 15 years of working in this field, I am nurturing an autism prevention project, aiming to provide early knowledge to parents-to-be. We need to equip ourselves with information from before conception, throughout pregnancy and the first years of a child's life. If we are well prepared in terms of nutrition, psychology and living environment, we can completely reduce the risk of developmental disorders in children, helping them have a healthier and more balanced start.

PV: Thank you for the conversation!

Ms. Le Thi Phuong Hoa graduated from Kiev Polytechnic University - Ukraine (1984-1990); Derby University - UK, majoring in Applied Psychology (2006-2012); Florida Tech University - USA, majoring in Applied Behavior Analysis (2012-2015); BcaBA Behavior Analysis Certificate 2016 and many other professional certificates. With the social enterprise named "Jù's Circus", she shares and updates knowledge about autism on many platforms. At the same time, she also participates in translating many documents related to special education, typically the book "Journey to overcome autism" by author Patricia S. Lemer - a book considered an encyclopedia in autistic children's education.

Diep Thanh (Performed)

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Source: https://baonghean.vn/giao-duc-tre-tu-ky-hanh-trinh-yeu-thuong-vo-dieu-kien-10294249.html