If you are a parent with an autistic child, you will know how difficult it can be to find a school that feels right. Not just one that has space, or the right paperwork, but one where your child is understood. Where the teachers recognise their sensitivities. Where they are not lost in the noise of a classroom designed for someone else’s needs.

It starts, as these things often do, with a clip on your feed. A shaky phone camera in a school hallway. A shove, a shout, a face turning away from the lens. You scroll past it, maybe you tell yourself it is an isolated case, kids being kids. But the numbers say otherwise. In Malaysia, bullying is not just happening more often, it is becoming part of the background noise of childhood.

There’s a hidden line in every classroom one most students never quite see, and many teachers don’t realize they’re constantly balancing on. It’s the fine line between being a friend and being an authority. Should teachers be warm and approachable, like a big sibling or trusted mentor? Or should they draw clear boundaries and command respect, like a coach or commanding officer?