SPECIAL education experts are calling on Government and the private sector to put more money towards therapy for students with special needs.

One of them, Brian Heap, head of the Phillip Sherlock Centre at the University of the West Indies, Mona, went further by asking that one of the Jamaica 50 projects in celebration of the country’s 50th anniversary of Independence be dedicated to the cause.

“Can one of our legacy projects for Jamaica 50 be a permanent art, music, play, drama, dance, speech and therapy unit?” he asked, rousing applause from fellow therapists and special educators.

“It may come under the responsibilities of the Ministry of Education. I don’t know, maybe something separate and apart. It may be something that the private sector would support,” he added.

Art, music, play, drama, dance and speech therapy are disciplines, he argued, which are crucial for the development of our nation’s children, particularly those with disabilities such as autism.

Heap, who has worked with special students for nearly 30 years, was speaking at the recent opening of an art exhibition called ‘True Expressions: Our Story’ at Genesis Academy — an institution located off South Camp Road in Kingston that caters to students with autism and other special needs.

‘True Expressions: Our Story’ was opened to the public between April 24 and 27.

“We need this unit so that trained and qualified people will be able to have the possibility of growing this [therapy] unit to serve the needs of all [special needs] children we have across the island,” said Heap.

His views were echoed by Donna Lowe, principal of Genesis Academy.

She said that the aforementioned therapy sessions are needed to help students, especially those with disabilities, develop the ability to make their own choices and learn about themselves and the world around them.

“When a child has a difficulty making choices and interacting with the world around them, it is easy to assume that they do not need to assert themselves… We know this is so not true,” she said.

She added that the two-year art therapy programme at Genesis Academy and the STEP Centre, which comes to an end this school year, has demonstrated the positive impact of art therapy on the performance of autistic students.

“We have seen how art therapy has helped our non-verbal students. Introducing art therapy to our children has confirmed our belief that each child has an emotional life of their own. It is our responsibility as educators and therapists to nurture not only their physical needs, but also to provide opportunities for them to take part in positive, confidence-building experiences,” said Lowe.

Captions from the folder of Autism art expo:

Donna Lowe cap:

Brian Heap.jpg

HEAP… can one of our legacy projects for Jamaica 50 be a permanent art, music, play, drama, dance, speech and therapy unit?

(Photos: Joseph Wellington)