Date

2-7-2024

Department

Rawlings School of Divinity

Degree

Doctor of Ministry (DMin)

Chair

Dwight Rice

Keywords

autism, counseling, biblical, image of God, students, iceberg

Disciplines

Counseling

Abstract

Christian school students with Autism Spectrum Disorder are in need of greater spiritual care from their teachers. Autism Spectrum Disorder is a concept which is becoming increasingly present in the world of education. With this growing presence, autism is becoming an issue in Christian education, as it seems that Christian educators struggle to understand it and to care for their students with autism spiritually. Further, little to no research has been done regarding autism and this area. The purpose of this study was to train Christian special educators in biblical counseling techniques and perspectives in order that they might better be able to care spiritually for their students with autism. A training session on autism and biblical counseling was conducted, followed by a period of time which was designed to observe participants practicing this training. Regular interviews were conducted, which were designed to demonstrate the effects of the training. Regular journal entries were kept by the educators detailing their interactions with autistic students, and surveys were taken to shed light on the effectiveness of the training. Classroom observations also took place during this time. Discussed in this project will be the effects of biblical counseling on special educators’ interactions with their students with autism. The results of this research were recorded using pseudonyms for participants and others involved. The consensus of the research was that if special education teachers are trained in biblical counseling techniques, they are able to care for their students with autism in a greater way spiritually.

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