The benefits of horse therapy for special needs children have been documented for centuries, but direct experience and perspective from special needs children and their families involved in horse therapy are missing from the literature. The purpose of this study was to enhance understanding on the health, well-being, and ecological impacts of horse therapy for special needs children, and to demonstrate how horse therapy aligns with public health, by interviewing 8 special needs families who utilize the therapy, 8 adults who underwent horse therapy as children, and 12 ecological experts in local communities. Data were hand-coded and organized based on the phenomenology of the horse, the ethnography of horse and horse therapy culture and environment, and grounded theory to explain how and why horse therapy works. All 16 horse therapy participants with diverse challenges and limitations reported a successful experience with concrete changes in health and/or well-being as a result of horse therapy; all 12 ecological experts endorsed horse therapy centers as beneficial fixtures within the communities, despite obvious challenges, such as funding, in running them. Horse therapy can be used to help and support a wide-range of special needs families; horse therapy centers are beneficial assets to local communities and their public health programs. With respect to the social change implications of this study, the information can be used by community members (e.g., doctors, health professionals, occupational therapists, families) to better understand horse therapy and its benefits for special needs children. In an attempt to improve access and promote horse therapy as a viable public health initiative, a basic blueprint for horse therapy center start-up operations has been provided for local communities.

Darbe atlikta teorinė specialiosios pedagoginės pagalbos paslaugų kokybės sampratos (ir ugdymo paradigmų kaitos įtaką pagalbos kokybei) bei veiksnių, sąlygojančių specialiąją pedagoginę pagalbą analizė. Iškeltos hipotezės, kad teikiamos specialiosios pedagoginės pagalbos lygis atitinka specialiosios pedagoginės pagalbos vartotojų poreikius. Tikėtina, jog specialiosios pedagoginės pagalbos teikėjų ir vartotojų požiūris į pagalbos veiksmingumą skirtingas. Taikyti anketinės apklausos metodai (standartizuota apklausa raštu, pusiau standartizuota apklausa). Tyrimo rezultatai grindžiami statistine tikimybine duomenų analize (aprašomoji statistika, faktorinė analizė). Tyrime dalyvavo 15 mokyklos vadovų, 100 bendrųjų pedagogų, 6 specialieji pedagogai, 120 specialiųjų ugdymosi poreikių turinčių moksleivių. Empirinėje dalyje nagrinėjama specialiųjų pedagogų funkcijų įgyvendinimo galimybių būklė ir poreikis, bendrųjų pedagogų, specialiųjų ugdymosi poreikių turinčių moksleivių požiūrių apie specialiosios pagalbos veiksmingumą. Svarbiausios empirinio tyrimo išvados: 1. Palankiausiai galimybes vykdyti specialiojo pedagogo funkcijas vertina mokyklos vadovai. Nepalankiausiai– specialieji pedagogai. Visi respondentai galimybes įgyvendinti funkcijas vertina palankiai. Palankiausiai vertinamas darbas su specialiųjų poreikių vaikais, administracija, pedagogais, dokumentų tvarkymu. Nepalankiausiai vertinama funkcija – bendravimas, bendradarbiavimas su specialiųjų ugdymosi poreikių turinčių... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Theoretical conception of special educational help services’ quality (and the influence of education paradigms changing to help quality) and the analysis of factors, conditioning special educational help are done in this work. The hypotheses that a level of rendering special educational help satisfies the requirements of special educational help users are raised. It is believed that a view of special educational help users and givers to effectiveness of assistance is different. The methods of questionnaire inquest are used (a standardized poll in writing, a demi- standardized poll). The results of the research are predicated on the analysis of statistical probability data (descriptive statistics, factor analysis). 15 headmasters, 100 teachers, 6 special pedagogues, 120 students having special educational needs participated in the research. A condition and requirement of special pedagogues functions realization possibilities, views of teachers and students having special educational needs about effectiveness of special help. The main conclusions of empiric research: 1. Headmasters rate the possibilities to do special pedagogue functions the most kindly. The most unkindly – special pedagogues. All respondents rate kindly the possibilities to realize the functions. Work with special needs students, administration, pedagogues, documents is rated the most kindly. The most unkindly rated function is communication, collaboration with... [to full text]

Tyrimo tema: Mokytojų specialiosios pedagoginės kompetencijos plėtotės galimybės mokykloje. Tikslas: Atskleisti bendrojo lavinimo mokyklos mokytojų specialiosios pedagoginės kompetencijos plėtotės galimybes mokykloje. Uždaviniai: 1. Apibrėžti specialiosios pedagoginės kompetencijos sampratą. 2. Išryškinti specialiųjų poreikių vaikų neformalaus ugdymo organizavimo ypatumus. 3. Išryškinti pedagogų požiūrį į jų turimus gebėjimus dirbti su specialiųjų poreikių vaikais. 4. Nustatyti šių gebėjimų plėtotės poreikį mokykloje. 5. Apibrėžti galimas specialiosios pedagoginės kompetencijos plėtotės formas mokykloje. Tyrimo metodai : 1. Mokslinės literatūros analizė. 2. Anketavimas. Darbo rezultatai: Bendrojo lavinimo mokyklų mokytojų pasirengimas ir geranoriška pedagogų nuostata padeda užtikrinti sėkmingą specialiųjų poreikių vaikų integraciją. Svarbu mokytojo požiūris į neįgaliuosius, gebėjimai, asmens savybės, profesinis pasirengimas ir meistriškumas, darbo patirtis, veiklos planavimas ir bendradarbiavimas. Siekdama gerinti vaikų užimtumą, ugdyti jų saviraišką, stiprinti ugdymo institucijų ryšį su vietos bendruomene, didinti rizikos vaikų adaptacijos ir reabilitacijos visuomenėje galimybes Švietimo ir mokslo ministerija nuolat didina finansavimą neformaliajam švietimui ir ugdymui, tačiau šiuo metu vis dar išlieka aktualios neformaliojo vaikų švietimo problemos. Išvados: Apibendrinant galime daryti išvadą, kad kiekvienas bendrojo lavinimo mokyklos pedagogas privalo turėti... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Research theme: Opportunities for development of teachers‘ special pedagogical competence at school. Research aim: Disclose the possibilities for development of secondary school teachers‘ special pedagogical competence at school. Research goals: 1. Define the concept of special pedagogical competence 2. Highlight the features of organizing non-formal education for children with special needs. 3. Highlight the teachers‘ approach to their existing skills of work with special needs children 4. Identify the need for development of these skills at school. 5. Define possible forms of development of special pedagogical competence at school. Research methods: 1. Analysis of scientific literature. 2. Questionnairing. Research results: Preparation and good will attitude of secondary school teachers help to ensure successful integration of children with special needs. Important factors are: teachers‘attitude to special needs children, their professional skills, personal qualities, professional preparation and excellence, work experience, planning and cooperation. In order to improve the employment of children and develop their self-expression, also to strengthen the relationship between educational institutions and local community and increase the opportunities for rehabilitation and adaptation of risk children in the society Ministry of Education and Science is constantly increasing funding for non-formal education and training. However, at present... [to full text]

The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of community playgroups on the playfulness of children ages 15 months to 3 years with special needs. In addition to playfulness of the child, the sensitivity and responsiveness of the caregiver were examined. A quasi-experimental, pretest-and-posttest, repeated measures design was used to follow eight children and their caregivers receiving early intervention services and taking part in a community playgroup. The children and their caregivers were measured during a 4-week standard-of-care baseline, before and after an 8-week intervention period, and 4 week post-intervention. The Test of Playfulness (ToP) was utilized to measure playfulness at baseline, before and after intervention, and at follow-up. Qualitative ratings for caregiver-child interaction based on the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development scales measured the sensitivity and responsiveness of the caregiver. A repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) demonstrated that participation in the 8-week playgroup significantly increased child playfulness ( p < .01). Analysis did not detect a change in caregiver sensitivity and responsiveness as a result of intervention. All caregivers who participated in the playgroup were initially highly sensitive responders to their children. Four weeks post-intervention, a strong, positive linear relationship was found between the sensitivity and responsiveness of the caregiver and the playfulness of the child. The effectiveness of the community playgroup has implications for part of comprehensive occupational therapy practice in early intervention.

Indiana School for the Blind has a regular academic program fulfilling the state's requirements, but adjusted to blindness. Only educable children are admissable and when a child is judged to be unable to benefit from the program, he must be rejected for admission or readmission to the school. Many children retained in the school are making minimal gains due to unmet needs for psychotherapy or for a special program designed for retarded or neurologically damaged children. The present study involves three known groups of mentally handicapped blind children, (1) those who have been rejected for even a trial admission at Indiana School for the Blind because they are judged unable to benefit by an academic program, and (2) those granted a trial admission but rejected for readmission as unable to benefit by the program, and (3) those enrolled in the school but not being served adequately by the present program. The numbers of children in these groups will be presented and their characteristics will be described, in order to understand the types of specific programs needed for the education, training, or care of these children and of the assumed population of multi-handicapped blind children of which they are a part.

Darbo aktualumas. Specialiųjų ugdymo(si)/mokymo(si) poreikių vaikų mokymas yra aktualus, nes pastebima tokių poreikių turinčių vaikų daugėjimo tendencija. Edukaciniais tyrimais siekiama tobulinti specialiųjų poreikių vaikų ugdymą bendrojo lavinimo mokyklose. Darbo objektas – individualaus specialiųjų ugdymo(si) poreikių vaikų lietuvių kalbos mokymo(si) valdymas. Darbo tikslas – teoriškai pagrįsti ir empiriškai ištirti specialiųjų ugdymo(si)/mokymo(si) poreikių turinčių vaikų individualaus lietuvių kalbos mokymo(si) valdymą. Tyrime dalyvavo 60 lietuvių kalbos mokytojų ir 110 mokinių, turinčių specialiųjų ugdymo(si) poreikių. Tyrimas buvo atliekamas Šiaulių ir Raseinių miestų bei minėtų rajonų bendrojo lavinimo mokyklose, nes tų mokyklų administracijos buvo suinteresuotos tyrimo rezultatais. Tyrimo instrumentai – standartizuota mišraus tipo anketa. Apklausa vykdyta raštu. Tyrimo metodologija grindžiama humanistine, progresyvistine ugdymo koncepcijomis, integravimo principu. Tyrimo rezultatai:  Lietuvių kalbos mokytojai, ugdydami specialiųjų ugdymo(si)/mokymo(si) poreikių turinčius vaikus, dažniausiai naudoja tipinius mokymo metodus: aiškinimą, pokalbį, savarankišką darbą, taiko pagalbos mokiniui teikimo būdus.  Mokytojai konstatuoja metodinių kompetencijų trūkumą organizuojant lietuvių kalbos mokymą specialiųjų ugdymo(si)/mokymo(si) poreikių vaikams, tačiau akcentuoja, kad gebėjimų skatinti specialiųjų poreikių vaikų saviugdą, potencinių galimybių plėtrą pakanka. ... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Relevance of the thesis: teaching children with special needs is urgent because the tendency of increasing numbers of such children is observed. Educational research is aimed at improving training children with special needs. Object of the thesis: managing individual Lithuanian language teaching/learning with special needs children. Aim of the thesis: to prove theoretically and to make an empiric research of managing Lithuanian language teaching/learning with special needs children. Participants of the research: 60 Lithuanian language teachers and 110 pupils with special needs.The research was carried out in Šiauliai and Raseiniai towns and also in secondary schools of the aforementioned districts, because the administrations of those schools were interested in the results of the research. Tools of the research: a standard mixed type questionnaire in a written form. Methodology of the research is based on humanistic, progressive training concepts, also on the principle of intergration. Results of the research:  Lithuanian language teachers who teach children with special needs usually apply typical methods of teaching: explanation, conversation, independent tasks, other ways of helping a pupil.  Teachers state lack of competence in organising teaching/ learning process with children of special needs. They also stress that they have enough skills to encourage self-help and development of potential possibilities of children with special needs.  Children are able to fulfill... [to full text]

Švietimo pagalba reglamentuojančiuose dokumentuose yra suprantama kaip mokiniams, jų tėvams (globėjams, rūpintojams), mokytojams ir švietimo teikėjams specialistų teikiama pagalba, kuri yra orientuotą į vaiką ir jo poreikius bei gebėjimus atitinkantį ugdymą, kurios tikslas – didinti švietimo veiksmingumą. Siekiant užtikrinti kokybišką specialiųjų poreikių turinčių vaikų mokymą(si), mokykloje turėtų dirbti kompetentingi specialistai, tokie kaip: specialusis pedagogas, logopedas, socialinis pedagogas, psichologas ir kt. Mokykloje turėtų būti sudarytos visos sąlygos, kad mokinys, kuris turi negalę arba specialiųjų poreikių jaustųsi gerai ir saugiai. Bendradarbiaujant pedagogams, tėvams ir specialistams, vaikui turėtų būti pritaikytas ugdymo turinis bei ugdymo aplinka, taip pat aprūpintas pritaikytomis mokymo priemonėmis. Tyrimo objektas – tautinių mažumų lenkų dėstomąja kalba mokyklų švietimo pagalbos sistema. Tyrimo problema – švietimo pagalbos organizavimo ypatumai tautinių mažumų lenkų dėstomąja kalba mokyklose. Tyrimo tikslas – išanalizuoti švietimo pagalbos organizavimą tautinių mažumų lenkų dėstomąja kalba mokyklose. Tyrimo uždaviniai: 1. Mokslinės pedagoginės, psichologinės literatūros bei juridinių dokumentų pagrindu aprašyti švietimo pagalbos sistemą bendrojo ugdymo mokyklose. 2. Išnagrinėti tautinių mažumų lenkų dėstomąja kalba mokyklose dirbančių mokytojų geros švietimo pagalbos sampratą. 3. Nustatyti, kaip tautinių mažumų lenkų dėstomąja kalba mokyklose yra teikiama... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Educational assistance in regulating documents is understood as an assistance rendered by specialists to pupils, their parents (tutors, guardians), teachers and education providers, which is oriented to a child and to an education with regard to his needs and abilities, the purpose of which is to increase the effectiveness. Trying to ensure quality teaching and learning of children with any special needs, the following competent specialists should work at school: special pedagogue, speech therapist, social pedagogue, psychologist etc. All the circumstances should be created to let a disabled pupil or a pupil with special needs feel good and safe. When carrying out collaboration of pedagogues, parents and specialists, a child should get an adjusted educational content and educational milieu, as well as be provided with some adjusted means of educational. Research object: educational assistance system at Polish ethnic minority schools, where the medium of instruction is Polish. Research problem: peculiarities of educational assistance organization at ethnic minority schools, where the medium of instruction is Polish. Research purpose: to analyze the educational assistance organization at ethnic minority schools, where the medium of instruction is Polish. Research tasks: 1. To describe the educational assistance system at general education schools on the grounds of scientific pedagogical, psychological literature and legal documents. 2. To explore the conception of a good... [to full text]

Aim: Preschool teachers are expected to identify special needs children in preschool, but the policy documents and directives for Swedish preschool are vague. The aim of this study is to examine the preschool teachers' perception of what the concept of children in need of special support means, and to make visible which methods they feel that they have access to. The data collection method for this study is interviews. Four preschool teachers and one childcare taker from preschools in two municipalities in Northern Sweden were chosen by two criteria's: long experience from working with special needs children and with the preference to be preschool teachers. To analyze the data we use policy enactment theory (Ball, 2015) and dilemma perspective of Nilholm (2005). Result: The results show that preschool teachers define special needs children in different ways from recontextualizing policy documents. According to the preschool teachers in the study, special needs children differ from the rest of the child group in some way and have behaviors that affect the child group. The participants see other professions as an important help in their work but also that there are many types of support that preschool teachers do not see diagnosis as a criteria for a child to get special support. The analysis shows that a lot of the support is not inclusive and that special needs children often get a deviant identity. Conclusion: The conclusion is that it is hard to define what a special needs child is, and that there are plenty of methods and support that the preschool teachers can apply themselves. Suggestion of further research is also presented.

Integruojant specialiųjų poreikių vaikus į bendrojo lavinimo mokyklą keičiasi mokykla, mokytojų gebėjimai, ugdymo programa, ugdymo proceso organizavimas, vaikų vertinimas. Todėl svarbu atskleisti bendrojo lavinimo mokyklos mokytojų požiūrį į specialiųjų poreikių vaikus bei turimas specialiojo darbo kompetencijas, išanalizuoti specialiųjų poreikių asmenų sutrikimų grupes ir jų laipsnius, palyginti miesto ir rajono mokyklų teikiamą pagalbą specialiųjų poreikių vaikams. Tyrimas atskleidė, kad bendrojo lavinimo mokyklos mokytojas su specialiųjų poreikių vaikais bendrauja kaip su visais vaikais. Specialiųjų poreikių asmenų sutrikimų grupių ir jų laipsnių klasifikacija padeda susiorientuoti sutrikimų įvairovėje. Mokytojai yra kompetetingi dirbti su specifinių pažinimo, kompleksinių, emocijų, elgesio ir raidos sutrikimų turinčiais mokiniais, nes turi patirties. Mažiausiai informacijos mokytojai turi apie regos, klausos, judesio ir padėties, lėtinius somatinius ir neurologinius sutrikimus. Mokytojams trūksta įvairių specialiųjų žinių ir mokymo metodų. Miesto mokyklose ypatingiems vaikams teikiama specialiojo pedagogo, socialinio pedagogo, logopedo pagalba, bet tik keliose mokyklose suteikiama psichologo ir mokytojo padėjėjo pagalba. Beveik visose rajono mokyklose specialiųjų poreikių vaikams nesuteikiama jokia pagalba. Juos ugdo tik mokytojas. Tik keliose rajono mokyklose suteikiama dalinė specialistų pagalba ypatingiems vaikams. / Special needs children integration into comprehensive schools affects a school, teachers‘ skills, curriculum, education management, children‘s assessment. Therefore it is essential to reveal comprehensive school teachers‘ opinion on special needs children as well as on existing competencies of special work, to analyse special needs‘ disorder groups and their degrees, to compare urban and rural school help for children with special needs. The research revealed that comprehensive school teacher treats special needs children the same as other ones. The classification of special needs individuals‘ disorder groups and their degrees helps to orient in the variety of disorders. Teachers are competent to work with pupils having specific cognitive, complex, emotional, behavior and development disorders, because they are experienced. The least information that teachers have is about sight, hearing, movement and position, chronic somatic and neurology disorders. Teachers are lacking various special knowledge and teaching methods. In urban schools there is a special pedagogue‘s , social pedagogue‘s, logopedical help provided for special children, but only a few schools provide psychologist‘s and teaching assisstant‘s help. There is no help provided for special needs children in most of rural schools. They are educated by teachers only. Just in a few rural schools there is a partial help provided by specialists for children in need.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a multifaceted developmental condition that manifests in early childhood, affecting various aspects of neurologic, biological, adaptive, social, linguistic, and cognitive functions. A timely and accurate diagnosis of ASD is crucial for effective intervention, promoting personal and social growth, and fostering independent adulthood. However, obtaining this diagnosis can pose challenges, particularly for people of color, who often encounter disparities in healthcare access compared to their White counterparts. This study aims to investigate the experiences of Filipina mothers raising children with ASD, specifically focusing on their journey to access appropriate autism services. As of 2019, there were 4.2 million Filipinos residing in the United States, making them a significant ethnic group (Budiman, 2022). Research indicates a heightened risk of severe ASD diagnoses among Filipino children (Becerra et al., 2014). Additionally, Filipina-American women have a notably high prevalence of moderate to severe postpartum depression, which can hinder their ability to identify developmental delays in their infants (Huang et al., 2007). Stereotypical assumptions about Filipina mothers as passive and quiet individuals often lead to their silencing within the predominantly White male medical community (Alvarez et al., 2010; Emerson et al., 2015; Kizildag et al., 2022). Given the higher prevalence of autism among minorities compared to White children (Maenner et al., 2023), addressing this issue and improving access to resources for people of color is imperative. This narrative study focuses on understanding how Filipina-American women navigate the complex landscape of autism services for their children. The researcher, a Filipina-American mother of children with ASD, initiates this exploration, seeking to shed light on the experiences of fellow Filipina-American mothers. The study will encompass their experience from the initial recognition of their children's developmental and behavioral symptoms to obtaining essential services. The study will gather qualitative data through surveys and interviews, which will be analyzed using thematic analysis. The research may reveal valuable insights into enhancing early detection of ASD in children of color. Presently, the average age of early ASD detection in the United States stands at five years old (Barbaro et al., 2020). However, existing studies underscore the critical importance of early intervention, ideally before age two, in improving the quality of life for affected individuals and their families (Bailey et al., 2005; Dawson et al., 2010; Harris et al., 2000). Consequently, addressing the experiences of Filipina women in accessing services for their autistic children can contribute to increased resource access and improved outcomes for these families.