AUTISM CONSULT AND TREATMENT

David Hung, Ph.D., has more than 34 years of experience in ABA (Applied Behavior Analysis) and pioneered the concept of discrete trial training for autism, the most severe affliction of childhood diseases. He is known to be hands-on, goal-oriented and result-producing. He has personally worked with more than 130 autistic children and their families, and produced much improvement in most.

Our agency provides IEP analysis and development, staff and parent training, on-site evaluation, individual treatment sessions, and legal advocacy. Dr. Hung also consults and treats the milder form of autism - Asperger Syndrome - with obvious success..

Dr. Hung's FOCUSING THERAPY for ADD/ADHD, Dyslexic and the Under-achiever

School achievement is the REAL bottomline concern for parents, regardless of diagnostic labels. For example, parents would not worry if their ADHD or dyslexic child gets good grades or behaves properly at school. In FOCUSING THERAPY, Dr. Hung emphasizes academic improvement at school, and approaches underachievement and behavior problems as skill deficits.

A systematic analysis of the child’s life pattern and skillful selection and training of appropriate skills are keys. Depending on the child, Focusing Therapy might 'focus' on the development of time management skills, study habit, study techniques,attention to details, learning stamina, and last-but-not-least, motivation. It will also restructure his/her social and learning environment for lasting improvements. No drugs, just quick, measurable improvement in school grades and attitudes.

This program, conducted personally by Dr. Hung, combines both counseling and training on an individual basis. It provides:

1. Individualized, clearly defined procedures for the student that will make studying enjoyable and enable him/her to achieve a positive attitude towards school;

2. Time management and motivational training, developed jointly with the student and the parents;

3. Coordination with school to effect a consistent training structure and provide an appropriate curriculum;

4. Focusing training and behavior management to improve study habit, compliance to teachers and parents; and

5. Study skills on note taking, extraction and retention of information, and organization and planning.

The program typically consists of weekly meetings of two hours each, spanning over 5 to 10 weeks, for a total of 10 to 20 hours, depending on the severity of the deficits. Since it is individualized, the scheduling is flexible. Major observable imporvements often occur after 5 to 10 weeks of training.

INDIVIDUAL TUTORING

We have one of the most effective tutoring programs. The tutoring program claims a 100% success rate in passing the CBEST exam for teachers and the GED exam for adult students. It also produces average improvement of 180 points on the SAT test. For school subjects, countless students have raised their school grades through our program.

1. It's individualized. We don't like following a manual or textbook page by page. Instead, we only select materials and concentrate on areas in which the student needs the most help.

2. Unlike many agencies, we have well-qualified tutors who know and enjoy the subject areas they teach and can tell you the rationale behind each answer. Further, all tutors have college degrees from prestigious universities. They are carefully evaluated in terms of qualifications, personality, and test scores, and they are trained to work on the subjects you need tutored.

3. We analyze the academic requirements of the student's school and his/her test-taking skills so as to teach and prepare for upcoming tests and exams.

4. We carefully analyze progress. Each session results in a written session summary specifying what was taught, how well the student learned, what homework we gave and what will be done for the next session.

5. Our goal is to eventually help the student prepare ahead of the class - once this stage is reached, getting good grades is easy!

Tutoring hours are flexible, usually scheduled at your convenience. And we operate seven days a week. The fees are $30 per hour. If you take four hours a week, the rate becomes $28/hour; if six hours a week, $27/hour, payable monthly. Also, if two students take the same class together, then each gets an additional 30% discount; if three in a class, a 40% discount.

PSYCHO-EDUCATIONAL EVALUATION

While many evaluations end up in just assigning a diagnostic label to the child (ADD, ADHD, dyslexia, LD, etc.), we adopt a practical, solution oriented approach. I have long recognized that when a child is not learning or behaving properly at school or home, the cause could usually be traced to a few concrete factors: 1. inappropriate school curriculum - types of learning materials and textbooks used, 2. the specific teaching emphasis - how often homework and tests are given, the kind of homework and tests, 3. the school structure - how large the class, where the child sits, 4. deficient achievement level - his reading and math skills might be inadequate to allow him to absorb new information, 5. specific focusing problems or mental processing deficits, and last but not least, 6. lack of motivation, good study habit and skills.

Thus, our evaluation serves to ascertain which of the above factors are at play, and more importantly, seek solutions to improve on these factors. It consists of one intake session, plus intellectual functioning tests and achievement evaluation in reading, writing and math, and personality testing, and a conference. During intake (approximately one hour), we analyze the referred problem, the student's lifestyle, and study habits. We review records including IEP if there is one, and we discuss student and parent concerns and objectives. The testing typically lasts from 4-1/2 to 5-1/2 hours. Usually within two weeks of testing, we will arrange for a conference with you. The conference lasts about one hour, during which we will discuss our findings and make specific recommendations on how to define and achieve your objectives.

INDIVIDUAL CREDIT COURSES

AGS, a school accredited by the National Private Schools Association Group (NPSAG), offers a variety of individual high school courses to the student who may want to repeat a course, gain additional credits, or needs a flexible class schedule because of vacation or employment.

Because each course is self-paced and is taught individually, it represents an ideal learning situation. Each course is divided into units. The student receives immediate explanations of questions and feedback on performance and advances a unit upon successfully passing tests or projects. Thus, the student progresses at his/her own pace.

Classes meet for a minimum of 50 hours per semester during the regular school year. (We also have a more intensive 20hour summer course.) Scheduling is flexible to meet the student's needs.

There is a registration/administration fee of $65 per course per semester, and the tuition is $1,100. If two students take the same class together, then each gets a 30% discount (pay $770); if three in a class, a 40% discount (pay $660). There will be extra tuition fees if the class hours exceed 50. However, we will not extend the hours without your approval.

We offer a full range of courses, including the following: