DEVELOPING THE ROLE OF OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY IN INCLUSIVE EDUCATION IN PAKISTAN

Background: The vast majority of children with special needs and disabilities in Pakistan are not attending school at all and there are very few special schools. Inclusive Education is extremely limited. The project team is... [ view full abstract ]

Background:
The vast majority of children with special needs and disabilities in Pakistan are not attending school at all and there are very few special schools. Inclusive Education is extremely limited. The project team is made up of staff from Brunel University London, Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS) Karachi, and The AMI School (Karachi).

Method:
This ongoing collaborative Action Research Project aims to develop the role of OT in supporting schools to become more inclusive, focusing at child, classroom, school and community levels. Pakistani OTs and teachers conduct Action Research activities weekly, producing strategies, materials and inclusive lesson plans, and writing reflective logs. Baseline data were collected through online questionnaires, focus groups and situational analysis.

Results:
This poster presents the overall design and first phase of this 3-year project (February to June 2015). It demonstrates how the Action Research Cycles were implemented with photographic evidence.

Conclusion:
The project is in the first of three years. The intended final outcomes are increased professional capacity for inclusive education, the production of a resource guide and dissemination workshops.

Application to Practice:
Action Research enables OTs to develop their practice in a hands-on manner. It directly impacts on practice through both method and outcomes.



Financial support by The British Council Knowledge Economy Program is gratefully acknowledged.
Ethical approval by Brunel University and Dow University of Health Sciences has been obtained.