Severe and Multiple Disabilities - Interventions

By Jeanette, Lynn, Jennifer and Shea

Medical

Examinations are done as early as possible for the child who is severely or multiply disabled to determine the causes and/or nature of the disability. 

Therapy

Physical, Occupational and Speech and Language Therapists will be involved with the child to help them develop their body coordination, hand skills, physical skills, fine and gross motor skills, muscle relaxation and speech and language.   Equipment and adaptive devices assist individuals of all ages to improve the quality of life and enrich education.

Educational

Children with Severe and Multiple Disabilities – also referred to as multiple exceptionalities will vary in severity and characteristics. These students require extensive ongoing support in more than one major life activity (Communication, mobility, independence, learning) to help them participate in integrated Community settings. An Individual Education Plan (IEP) would be carefully developed to show modification leading to educational, vocational, and psychosocial development. The greater the severity or impact on an individual the more detailed and precise the goals and objectives need to be.

Team Approaches

In order to effectively address the individual needs of the students with severe and multiple disabilities, educational programs need to incorporate a variety of components. These include, language development, social skills development, functional development, functional skills development (i.e. Self-help skills), and vocational skills development. A team of appropriate therapists (such as speech and language, physical, behavioural, occupational and recreational therapists) need to work closely with family members and teachers.

Curricula

In order to be effective, the educational curricula needs to incorporate a variety of components to meet the considerable needs of individuals with severe/multiple disabilities. Educational needs include language development, visual and auditory training, mobility training, and self-care skills. The psychosocial needs of these students include adaptive behaviour, group activities, life skills and socialization experiences.

Communication

Language is a major goal of effective communication and all aspects of development which includes physical, sensory, social and neurological.

Augmentive communication both receives and transmits messages in Aided approaches and Unaided approaches. (Winzer, 2008, p.508)

Unaided approaches rely on gestural communication which includes sign language, natural gestures, morse code, tactile sign, signal communication, tadoma, and amerind.

Aided approaches are operated by the individual to communicate their needs. With advancing technology children are able to Ipads, Gotalk, and vocaids to assist them in their communication needs.  PIC’s (Pictorial Ideographic Communication) is another form of communication for children with severe multiple disabilities.  These consist of pictures and or symbols that represent objects and actions.

Functional Skills

The goal in teaching students with severe or multiple disabilities is functionality.

Functional Skills – Those that will help a child get along in their current and future environments.

Self Help Skills – The ability to care for one’s self to help them achieve independence and self-sufficiency.

Waterloo Region District Board Program Design

One of the system directions is the support for placements of choice within the board for

students with special needs. The WRDSB affirms its belief that “every person can learn, has
unique abilities and needs, and is deserving of respect” in its Special Education Plan. According
to Section 2 of the WRDSB’s Special Education Plan “the board strives to provide educational
opportunities that encourage all students to develop their individual potential in the most
enabling setting”. The WRDSB adheres to the Ministry of Education’s Categories of
Exceptionalities and Definitions (1999). The Special Education Plan affirms that the school
board provides a broad range of services, programs and educational settings, from inclusionary
to congregated placements. Placement in a regular class setting remains “the placement of first
choice”. Participants talked with pride about the board’s support for the range of placements
within the WRDSB. Congregated class settings were seen as “an added opportunity” for
students and provided “intensive support”. (Waterloo Region District School Board, 2010, p. 23)

The student’s development is integrated and organized across the various developmental domains and goals are put in place. (Winzer,2008, p. 489)

Students in WRDBS have goals in each category and modifications are made to the goals in each school term. The categories are as follows:
1.      Cognitive/Academics
2.      Communication
3.      Integration
4.      Life Skills Independence
5.      Sensory, Physical, Motor Development
6.      Socialization Behaviour.
                                                                                      (Waterloo Region District School Board)
 

REFERENCES

Winzer, M. (2008) Children with Exceptionalities in Canadian Classrooms (Eighth Edition).

           Toronto, Canada: Pearson Prentice Hall, pp. 501-512                       
 

Waterloo Region District School Board. (2010, 09 08). Operational Review of Special Education Service Planning and Delivery. Retrieved 05 23, 2013, from Waterloo Region District School Board: http://www.wrdsb.ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/WRDSB-Spec-Ed-Review-Final-Report-Sept-20-10.pdf

Waterloo Region District School Board. (n.d.). Waterloo Region District School Board. Retrieved 05 23, 2013, from Waterloo Region District School Board IEP Writer: https://iep.wrdsb.on.ca/

Additional sites:

http://islasdisabilitiesnotebook.wordpress.com/multiple-disabilities/

http://specialneedshandbook.wikispaces.com/Multiple+Disabilities

http://faculty.frostburg.edu/mbradley/EC/severeandmultipledisabilities.html

http://www.nsnet.org/start/severe.pdf