Occupational Therapists, Teachers, and Parents in the School System

Greater interaction between the teacher and the therapist leads to enhanced effectiveness of occupational therapy!

This news regarding the global impact of education is quite interesting and critical issue for me.

 

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28 กันยายน 2549 14:09 น.

 

       ไทยจัดใหญ่ประชุมวันครูโลก พร้อมจัดนิทรรศการเทิดพระเกียรติพระบาทสมเด็จพระเจ้าอยู่หัว “ธ คือครูของแผ่นดิน” ผู้แทนยูเนสโก เผย เด็กประถมกว่า 100 ล้านคน ยังไม่ได้เรียนหนังสือ ส่วนใหญ่เป็นแรงงานหญิงที่ถูกหลอก และอีก 800 ล้านคน ยังอ่านหนังสือไม่ออก เขียนไม่ได้ ระบุประเทศส่วนใหญ่กำลังประสบปัญหาด้านคุณภาพศึกษา

"Primary school children" must have been well educated before becoming adulthood.

Thus, I would like to bring one special area of Occupational Therapy. I would acknowledge Sandra Sahagian Whalen-a paediatric occupational therapist in Ontario, Canada. She wrote a well summary of the literature entitiled 'How occupational therapy makes a difference in the school system: A summary of the literature.'  Some information here is quoted in sharing knowledge for Thai population through G2K.

This information is published in the May/June 2002 issue of Occupational Therapy Nom magazine-Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists. More information please visit www.otworks.ca  and www-fhs.mcmaster.ca/canchild

What is occupational therapy?

Occupational therapy is a heath care profession concerned with a person's ability to perform daily occupations, including self-care, productive and leisure activities. They are trained to assess and treat occupational performance problems in the environments where these occupations are being done. Occupational performance is a determinant of health, well-being and helps give meaning to life (p. 15).

Primary school teachers and students must consult occupational therapists with any problematic school performance including reading, writing, mathematics, manipulation of tools, performance in physical education, independence with self-care tasks and social integration on gross and find motor abilities, visual-motor integration, and visual-perceptual skills.

Occupational therapists enable a more positive view of the student and provide a basis for developing new and more effective teaching and/or parenting strategies. For instance, therapists provide medical, physical and developmental information in educationally relevant terms (p.16).

Particularly, there is evidence to support the effectiveness of occupational therapy in the school environment. Students with specific conditions or special needs benefit from the early intervention and collabolative consulation among teachers, parents and therapists. This intervention is important to reduce many factors as follows:

1. the secondary behavioural, emotional, physical and psychiatric problems that are influencing the students' academic capacity;

2. the future costs to the health care and social service system.