Schooling for special needs in NZ?

[tharris]

Hi
My husband, two children (6 & 3) and I have been making plans for sometime to come out to NZ and are finding many of the posted comments really interesting.
We have hit a bit of a stumbling block, Our eldest boy has an Autistic spectrum dissorder and ADHD and currently has 1 to 1 support at a specialist unit Does anyone know anything of how the education system works or what provision exists? We are so confused at the moment as to whether this move is right for him.
We have been in constant touch with the education department who have been helpful but unable to answer all the questions we have. We think it maybe one of those situations where 'you won't know until you try' but we don't want to compromise him in any way.
Please help!!
Loopylinda do you have any suggestions, as I envisage you may have had similar issues with your son?

[loopylinda]

Hi there,
Well we have been here for 8 months. For the first two months it was the Summer holidays and our Son with Aspergers has only managed 1.5 terms in mainstream School here. The understanding of the condition Aspergers syndrome is not really understood here .... they are just tipping the iceberg here and we are going home in January 2008. Our reason is we may as well look around here, our Daughter will stay in her School until 20th December and then we are off to South Island with our kiwi friends here and Australia on the way home!
Our Son did only have 6 hours 1:1 support in a mainstream Junior School in the UK but out here, to get a teachers aide, a child has to have behavioural problems or learning difficulties of which our Son has neither of these. We have been told that our Son will not get any support at all and we have watched our Son (he is now 11) go from being happy (although he missed his friends in UK cause I made sure he had a good social network of friends etc.) to a child who has developed OCD, his dyspraxia has been so out of control he walks crooked (and you won't know what I mean unless you know about this condition anyway) .... basically, I rang our local council last week and we were told had we stayed in UK, our lad was to have one of eight places (that's all that is available in every year) in an Aspergers unit in our old locality .... they tried to contact us in February and we were out here .... how awful is that for timing .... so we are going back, have been promised a home tutor by the council as our Son is not considered mainstream material.
To anybody who has an autistic spectrum child, I would say quite simply "don't do it". When we came out here last September for a holiday, a School here said "oh yes, you get support for whatever is needed" but for example, when I suggested could our Son have a quiet place to go to if the going got too tough in the playground, I was told he had to interact .... bullying, they just don't deal with it in our particular School .... we are going home! Was also told by the UK council last week that another family from the area had tried to do New Zealand with an Aspie kid in tow and they didn't last as long as we have. Good luck with whatever you do.

[loopylinda]

Also, as you say, your Son has 1:1 support in a "specialist unit" .... there are no specialist units here .... Aspergers children are expected to attend mainstream School. I think you will see your Son fade before your eyes if you come out here. I wish we hadn't bothered. The whole experience has cost us £40,000! The reason that the education department have probably been unable to answer your queries is because they don't really understand the condition fully. Think of it like this! Aspergers only became known in the UK as late as 1996 so it did not come to New Zealand until later than 1996 .... less than 15 years ago! I am talking from experience of having a child who is now 11, moved here when he was 10, self harmed when he was 6 so I took him out, moved to another School and he was coping with support from ages 7-10 and then we moved .... we have been told by the Council that no School will take our Son in the UK upon our return as he is down for a specialist unit with mainstream schooling for core subjects with a teacher's aide escort. There is no speech and language here, you will have to get your Son rediagnosed in this country .... is it worth it do you think? My email address is bananawheeler@hotmail.com if you want to write me direct to take this chat further. Cheers!