laurenmiller2515

Hi there,

We are a family of four looking to move to Germany. We are waiting for various financial reasons, however we really need to find out as much as we can about special needs education. Our 10 year old daughter has autism. Although she is high functioning, she struggles to cope and since the age of 7 has been in special needs school. We have been told that as she heads into secondary school she will need to go into a special needs school because she will struggle with lots of people and lots of change during the day.

We have done a lot of research on German special needs education but only seem to be able to find cases of people wanting their children to be integrated into 'standard' education. My main question is, are there autistic schools that cater for high functioning and academically able like our daughter? Will her current diagosis and educational plan hold any weight if we were to move? Is there anyone out there that has moved with a special needs child, and if so, what has been your experience? And overall, is it the right thing to do? Although the move would be a wrench for her, we genuinely feel that the space, environment and peace we are looking for would be genuinely be beneficial for her. She has visited the Rhineland and the black forest, loved it and is very accepting of moving...but if there is no chance we can accommodate her educational needs, we may need to reconsider.

Thanks in advance everyone!

Thairetired2016

I used google and I found below link which has several relevant topics. Perhaps it gives you a lead to more info.
I have a relative who is a qualified special needs teacher in Germany. Going by what she told me the government is not putting a lot of money into special needs. It varies from region to region. You could look at Montessori schools or perhaps Waldorf Schule. You will not find these schools in every town but mainly in bigger towns. Google should help you. These are not typical special needs schools but these focus on the individual child and talents/development. Both are private facilities.
I don't know what the reason is for moving to Germany unless you are German. But do not expect her to be paradise. Austerity is the magic word.
Perhaps as a trial pick a town in the Schwarzwald, get in touch with education dept. and put your question forward. See what reply you get and go from there.

https://www.quora.com/Is-Germany-a-g...ool-for-autism

dmu

Hi, and welcome to the forum!
As said, you don't say why you're looking to move to Germany, unless you're German, or at least speak German, or have a job lined up. In fact there are other factors to take into account, apart from your daughter's education, and no one knows what will happen after Brexit...
The general consensus on the France forum is that 10 is a bad age for ANY child, let alone one with special needs, to up-sticks and move to a secondary school in a non-English-speaking country. Even if you find a school which suits, she won't be able to integrate easily into German life without speaking the language and it will be difficult for her to make friends outside of school. She may accept the idea of moving to that beautiful area, but does she realise that she'll be leaving all her friends and the rest of the family behind?
If the Mods don't mind my citing it, google Toytown Germany and ask there.
HTH

Jake.White

Hi Lauren,

I can't comment on special needs schools in Germany, but having lived and worked there for a number of years in the past I'd agree with both of the above on the language concensus. In a general sense, Germany is obviously a highly advanced and pleasantly civilised country and many people there speak excellent English. However, outside of tourist areas and for everyday life if you don't speak German you wont find it easy and your daughter will probably struggle even more. As with the above commenters, I'd ask what your reasons are for going in the first place..Is it for reasons of employment..?

On a more general note regarding uprooting your kids and taking them off to a foreign country : we took our kids out of school here in England and went off to Italy to live the dream when they were aged 8 and 5 years old respectively. We were back in England within 6 months..! I've heard it said by many that kids are highly adaptable and can much more easily fit in to a new way of life than adults can but based on my own experiences I don't believe a word of it. My kids hated every minute of our time away and just wanted to be back with their friends in England and in the environment they knew and loved so we had to give it all up and come back.

I'd think very carefully about it all if I was you..

scot47

Germany is a great place to live and work IF YOU SPEAK, READ AND WRITE GERMAN.

I write as one who lived and worked in West Berlin and as a frequent visitor since then.
My time was made easier thanks to the efforts of my teachers gf German in the early 1960s. Do teens still emerge from school with an ability to communicate in "Grunddeutsch" ? Or even "Ladendeursch".

I wish the OP good luck in her search.

scot47

Does the silence indicate the OP has given up ?