Last Thursday, I was asked to give a presentation at an orphanage located in Tianjin, China. Naomi, the woman in charge of therapy services at the facility, wanted its caregivers to learn more about how children develop language, understand that children can communicate in ways other than speaking, and to realize that older children who are minimally verbal still have wants, needs, and ideas to share.
In developing this presentation, I had to first consider these important factors:
-The ayis, or caregivers, who would be participating in this talk have varying levels of reading and writing abilities.
-In China, cultural views on disability are vastly different from those in western culture. Although there has been a shift in recent years, which can be seen in both the language used to refer to people with disabilities and the revision of Chinese laws protecting people, specifically children, with a range of disabilities, I have observed many families and caregivers who have essentially given up hope for their child’s independence in daily activities and participation in the community. I have observed well-meaning families perform feeding and dressing routines without uttering a word to the child. Unfortunately, this leads to many missed opportunities for a child to communicate.
I had to create an informative yet succinct presentation that would resonate with the ayis. I decided to start with a PowerPoint that was predominantly picture-based, each tied to an idea in my talk. I figured a combination of visual and auditory input would result in the highest level of retention. To further promote learning of the language strategies I was recommending, I decided to have the local therapists I brought with me for translation, role-play each strategy. One therapist acted as the child while the other therapist demonstrated the strategy. I walked them through each step and explained the nuances of each interaction. The ayis seemed most interested in this part of the presentation. When discussing stages of communication, I frequently paused and asked the ayis to reflect on the children they care for.
Do you work with any children who are in this stage of communication? How old is he?
I wanted to draw from their personal experiences in order to highlight examples of children of various ages functioning at the same level of communication.
Following my presentation, I took a brief tour of the facility, which was extraordinary. The largest building on the campus was recently constructed to serve as the future site of a vocational center dedicated to rehab therapy and teaching vocational skills to children who have aged out of the adoption process. China law excludes children over the age of 14 from adoption eligibility. Shepherd’s Field is working to provide these children with temporary housing and training for a vocational skill. I think this is radical.
After the tour, I screened four children with various communication disorders. This was an ideal opportunity to demonstrate the strategies I had covered in the morning presentation. During my screening, caregivers frequently described the child as uninterested in communicating. I was able to quickly remind them of a specific strategy to create opportunities for a child to communicate (adapted from the Hanen program). Even getting down to the child’s level during the screening process was a good model for appropriate interactions.
This is why I moved to China. Experiences like this one reminded me of the varying learning levels of an audience. It challenged me to cater my presentation to the learner. It showed me that my knowledge in this field is valuable and can be shared in a meaningful way.