SINGAPORE: True to The Workers’ Party’s commitment to helping advance the less fortunate and less advantaged, MP Jamus Lim (Sengkang GRC) made the case for providing additional resources for individuals on the autism spectrum, even if they only make up a small segment of society.
In a Facebook post on Wednesday (May 3), Assoc Prof Lim wrote that during recent house visits at Compassvale and Anchorvale, he met two families with members on the autism spectrum.
He explained that as an academic, he has met many brilliant scholars on the spectrum, so he hesitates to characterize autism as a “disorder.”
“For me, the main difference in such individuals is that they are wired to think and learn differently, which often means that a school system that isn’t sufficiently resourced will tend to struggle to adequately cater to their distinct learning styles,” he added.
One resident told Assoc Prof Lim and his team that she was told by a teacher at Pathlight, a special school in Singapore for high-functioning children with autism, that because of its teacher-student ratio, it’s “impossible to offer the quality of teaching and support they would like, leaving some parents to resort to private solutions.”
Another resident shared that his son had been admitted to IMH (Institute of Mental Health) but because of the shortage of nursing staff, cruder forms of patient management have been applied instead of a more gentle approach that a larger staff would have made possible.
“Perhaps more importantly, when these individuals aren’t allowed to blossom to their full potential, we may lose their unique contributions to our society. After all, some on the spectrum may eventually develop into the sort of talented intellectuals and leaders that we need and want,” he added.
And while additional resources for a small segment of Singapore’s society would be more expensive and less efficient, it |comes down to “a case of how best to optimize the use of limited inputs in the country (a so-called ‘positive’ problem, one that economists love), to one of what we wish to prioritize as a society, and why (a ‘normative’ question, which may come down to philosophy and values).”
Assoc Prof Lim added that wealthier nations are responsible for caring for the less fortunate in society, although this comes at the cost of efficiency, independence, or merit.
“After all, we don’t ask of a beautiful painting or piece of music whether it was produced in the least time possible; we simply accept that there is a certain amount of magic in the process of creating art that we should not only tolerate, but celebrate.”
This aligns with a recent post from the MP, who wrote on Apr 23 about greater access for people with disabilities, “Some things should never be reduced to dollars and cents, especially in wealthier countries that can afford it.”
/TISG
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