CO-OPERATION
AMONG DISCIPLINESCO-OPERATION
AMONG DISCIPLINES
Chapter Three of this Guide proposes that the aims of education for children with physical handicap are to help them develop their potentials to the full, to be independent in their daily living and to adjust well in society. They encounter different degrees of challenge inmobility,, physical healthsensori-perception,, concentration, intelligencecommunication,emotion andsocial development which would affect their learning abilities. They need special education trained teachers as well as professionals from various disciplines to provide them with support in different aspects so that they can receive a comprehensive and in-depth service.
To provide pupils with a comprehensive service, professionals working in schools for physically handicapped children include teachers, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech therapists, nurses, school social workers and educational psychologists. If there are residential sections attached, there will also be wardens and house- parents. This reflects the multi-facet needs of pupils. Each of the above-mentioned professionals gives unique contributions to the all rounded education of the pupils.
Every school should have the above-mentioned team of professionals. The closer their co-operation, the more complete the service the school can provide. Owing to the uniqueness in mission, tradition, and environment of individual schools, there are differences in the forms and degree of co-operation. Generally speaking, there are the following three modes of co-operation among various disciplines :
6.3.2Professionals from each discipline assess the performance of their pupils within their own areas of service. Based on the results of their specific assessments, they draw up their own programme plans and implement them in their specific areas of service. There is no mechanism for liaison and consultation among the disciplines.
Under this mode of operation, pupils are receiving care from the necessary disciplines and the administration is simpler. However, this independent mode of service delivery by disciplines may cause among them inconsistencies in work concepts, targets, emphasis, etc and may leave contradictions, overlaps and gaps among different parts of service unresolved. This will reduce the effectiveness of resources.
6.3.3Under this mode of operation, professionals from each discipline assess pupils within their own professional domain but, before drawing up the programme plans, they exchange views and mediate through formal meetings or other channels with systematic and broader understanding and communication among disciplines. Then close and in-depth co-operation would be achieved.
Through this mode of operation, there is a constant sharing and synthesis of information through a well orchestrated mechanism among various disciplines. This enhances closer and more in-depth co-operation leading to a complete and well co-ordinated service. Following are some characteristics of this mode of operation :
All aspects of the educational service is designed according to the need of the pupils. All personnel from different disciplines are consistent in their demands on pupils.
(2) Joint effort in designing the work targets and work plans
Professionals identify pupils' needs within their own disciplines. Then they jointly draw up the learning targets and treatment plans, taken into consideration the needs of the pupils in all aspects and implement them according to the targets set.
(3) Total and constant co-operation among disciplines to provide a comprehensive service
Through close co-operation and co-ordination, concerned professionals provide a comprehensive service that has integrated the unique contribution of each discipline. It may be in the form of finely graded co-operation or designation of a discipline to co-ordinate the programme according to the nature of the tasks. Then education and therapy can be integrated in the school setting, thus attaining the target of providing pupils a holistic education.
(4) Maximum understanding and integration of knowledge and skills of all disciplines concerned
With a good understanding and blending of professional knowledge and skills of various disciplines, workers in the schools for physically handicapped children can look into the need of their pupils from different angles. Together with a pupil-centred orientation, there may be a high level of complementary co-operation among different disciplines.
Owing to the unique situation of individual schools, the mode of co-operation among disciplines varies. Nevertheless, for giving pupils a comprehensive and appropriate set of service, team spirit must be cultivated to attain the level of the trans-disciplinary mode of team approach. To develop this level of co-operation, schools should consider the following steps to integrate different areas of service delivery under apupil oriented target and then re-distribute the duties and resources accordingly.
The school can arrange formal meetings and encourage informal exchange of ideas for staff to reflect and discuss the school's vision and mission in relation to their individual professions, share their existing goals and long term targets and establish a joint aim which will serve as future direction of work so that different professions can adjust their targets in providing a co-ordinated range of services.
In the daily operation of the school, different members of staff should have a clear idea of the limitation of the school's resources and the role of each profession. With an understanding that difficulties are inevitable, confrontations among staff should be reduced and mutual understanding can be enhanced. Through acceptance which cultivates a win-win atmosphere, there will be more consultation, communication, consideration and supportive co-operation to improve the whole service offered by the school.
6.4.2 Enhance Cooperation among Professions through Administrative Procedures
The areas of work, roles, and duties of each profession should be clearly defined in the school organisation and made known to all. There should be direct channels of top-down, bottom-up and lateral communication for easy exchange of ideas. In decision making, arrangement should be made so that there are consultation among professions. Rational and objective analysis and co-operation should be encouraged so that different professions, taking all aspects of pupils' needs into consideration, can function well in drawing up and implementing the action plan.
6.4.3 Well Coordinated Staff Development
All professional staff in schools for the physically handicapped are well trained in their own field. Nevertheless, to implement the trans-disciplinary team approach, they need to have a good understanding of the rationale and skills of other professions. School can prepare different levels of trans-disciplinary staff development programmes to enhance cross professional understanding.
A curriculum framework usually contains aims and targets, content and organisation, learning and teaching strategies and assessment. To give pupils a complete education, teachers and the different professions should plan together at different stages of curriculum development and implementation to give pupils a comprehensive curriculum.
When working together in developing the curriculum, different professions should consider the limitations that affect their pupils' physiological and psychological development and reflect on their different needs and abilities, so that the learning targets set are suitable for their pupils. On selection of curriculum content to match with the targets set, professionals from all disciplines can contribute learning elements related to their fields and, through consorted effort in curriculum organisation, integrate the elements. If necessary, there can be co-operative teaching during the stage of curriculum implementation. As for assessment, each discipline should carry out preliminary diagnostic, formative and summative assessments within their own fields to identify their pupils' abilities and limitations to ascertain their needs. Then, through exchange of ideas there will be more effective curriculum design and adaptation.
If schools are not yet ready for total participation of different disciplines in curriculum development, they should still do some tryout in specific areas of learning. With the accumulation of experience, the trans-disciplinary approach can be broadened.
In the school environment, there are general grade staff apart from professionals. Since every segment of the pupils' school life is an opportunity for learning and being appraised, general grade staff should have a reasonable understanding of the schools' mission, pupils' needs and the demand of the professionals on the pupils so that any service provided is consistent with the aims of the school and its expected standard of service.Since pupils are staying in school only for part of the day, their parents' attitude is an influencing factor on school effectiveness. So there should be close linkage between school and family to ensure consistency in handling pupils thus reducing confusion of standards. Besides, learning can then effectively continue from school to home.