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Last Updated: Feb 6, 2017 - 2:32:04 PM |
From Left: Mr. Mario Carey, President of REACH; Rt. Hon. Perry G. Christie, Prime Minister of The Commonwealth of The Bahamas; Mr. John Dinkelman, U.S. Chargé d'Affaires; Hon. Melanie Griffin, Minister of Social Services; Dr. Valerie Karr, Adelphi University Special Education Specialist and Mr. Alfred Sears, Chairman, Council of The College of The Bahamas.
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Nassau, Bahamas -
Developing further capacity for inclusive education in The Bahamas was one of the matters explored during a three-day conference on autism hosted recently by the United States Embassy and The College of The Bahamas.
Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder that affects one in 88 children born in the United States. While there are individuals with the autism spectrum disorder in The Bahamas, accurate figures on the extent of the malady have not yet been compiled.
As the conference facilitator, Dr. Valerie Karr, Adelphi University Special Education Specialist, shared her insights with a diverse range of participants which included teachers, educational specialists, administrators and College faculty and students. Dr. Karr has worked in numerous special education settings and now teaches fellow educators at Adelphi’s Manhattan Center.
Rt. Hon. Perry G. Christie, Prime Minister of The Commonwealth of The Bahamas speaks to conference delegates.
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She pointed to the strides that have been made in breaking social stigma and overcoming cultural barriers including the passage of the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
“Autism is one of those rare issues that can and must bring people together. We all know someone with autism. It’s bigger than any one of us. It gives us a rare sense of common purpose in the world,” Dr. Karr said.
Some advocates who promote inclusion and early detection believe that globally, the field of special education has become highly adaptive to the needs of students.
Dr. Valerie Karr, Adelphi University Special Education Specialist.
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On a national level, Prime Minister Perry Christie – whose son is autistic – would like to see more advances in the area of educational support and developing expertise in accommodating children with special needs. When he officially opened the conference, he looked to The College of The Bahamas to provide that leadership, particularly in producing more speech therapists.
“Look at the extent to which we have the expertise in The Bahamas, make a determination that you will have a sister relationship with Adelphi University or [another university] and say we are going to start a course in The Bahamas for speech therapists. It may be that they have to go to Adelphi or the other university that you’re twinning with for the final part of it, but that you are going to make a direct intervention in our country’s affairs that will be more than welcome. They just don’t exist here in the numbers they should,” Prime Minister Christie said.
Advocacy, inclusion and early detection in autism awareness have become more than simply watchwords for Mr. John Dinkelman, U.S. Chargé d' Affaires. The father of two children with the neurodevelopmental disorder, Mr. Dinkelman believes in their utility. The embassy’s programmes in recent years have specifically addressed empowering persons with special needs.
“Over the past four years, a key area of focus of the United States Embassy in Nassau has been that of the plight of marginalized groups and persons with special needs, helping them to improve their social and legal standing within their communities,” Mr. Dinkelman explained.
As an institution, whose mission is to support and drive national development, The College of The Bahamas has been solidifying opportunities for information sharing, discourse and debate. The autism conference materialized under the recently cemented American Corner initiative; a dedicated space in the Harry C. Moore Library and Information Centre that allows Americans and Bahamians to come together to bridge differences, to highlight commonalities and to develop new community-building ideas.
President of The College of The Bahamas Dr. Betsy Vogel-Boze commended the partnerships that provide more opportunities for shared knowledge.
“This conference will, no doubt, deepen and enrich the national conversation and strengthen the capabilities of those on front lines of providing care and support for individuals with autism. The College is honored to have this opportunity to partner with the US Embassy and contribute to the ongoing efforts to educate and empower all those who want to see children diagnosed with autism live the best lives they possibly can,” she said.
The College has been developing academic programmes that address the real needs of society. For instance, very shortly the first cohort of the Master of Science in Reading programme – the second graduate degree offered independently – will complete its studies. The programme, which specializes in Inclusive Education or teaching individuals with special needs, prepares educators to function as adept reading specialists for all abilities.
At the conference, government officials from the Ministries of Health, Education and Social Services participated in roundtable discussions; workshops and discussions on curriculum design, teaching strategies and best practices.
© Copyright 2013 by thebahamasweekly.com
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