KTXS News Video Analysis

I chose a clip from KTXS News. The news clip was titled: Back-to-school an anxious, stressful time for children with special needs. If I had watched this video with no previous knowledge of students with disabilities, the news clip would have taught me that students with Autism need special attention, routine, have sensory aversions, and that life is challenging. This information is not false, however, it is not true for every child who presents with Autism. The video depicts students with Autism as having lots of struggles. The first thing they mention in the clip is the child’s name, the school he attends, and 3 things that he is not able to do as a result of his disability. There are no doubt struggles for families of children with disabilities,

but there are so many things that children with Autism are able to do, and none of those were mentioned.
I believe the message was intended to be positive and to get parents ready for transitioning their children into the school setting, as it may be difficult for their child if they have disabilities. The video concludes with saying that parents should be positive, have communication, and start routines now, so the children know what to expect once school starts. Though they had good intentions, I felt that the news clip unknowingly displays children who are Autistic in a negative light. A school counselor in the video talks about how difficult life is for families of children with special needs. She states, “We treat those kiddos (referring to students with disabilities) like they’re one of us, like they’re not different.” The way it is stated makes it sound like children with disabilities are completely different from children without. Consequently, by focusing on the child’s disabilities rather than his abilities and by saying that we should treat him like he is not different, she is implying that he is altogether different from other students in his class. Students with disabilities should not be labeled as “different.” The complexity of needs may vary from child to child, but all children in the classroom have needs.