04-02-03 - Statement on HR 1350
Improving Education Results for Children With Disabilities Act of 2003
Submitted to the Subcommittee on Education Reform
April 2, 2003
Contact:
Leslie Jackson
301-652-6611 x2023
The American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) believes that children with disabilities should be provided a quality public education that promotes life-long learning and academic and nonacademic success. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a very important, yet complicated, component of the American public education system. AOTA thanks the Subcommittee on Education Reform for its continuing efforts to improve educational results for the more than 6 million children with disabilities served under IDEA. However, AOTA is concerned that the timetable under which H.R. 1350 is being considered may not adequately provide the opportunity for all of the citizens the Committee and Subcommittee reached during the hearings and communication over the past two years to examine the bill's language and provide feedback. AOTA urges the Subcommittee and full Committee on Education and the Workforce to consider carefully and thoroughly how H.R. 1350 balances valid policy concerns and children's rights to a free appropriate public education.
H.R. 1350 as introduced contains a number of provisions that AOTA believes will improve the education of students with disabilities. These include the alignment of IDEA with the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), emphasis on quality personnel, and an allowance for early identification of and intervention for children's learning and behavioral needs outside the framework of IDEA.
There are also some provisions that we believe need to be clarified as to the bill's intent. We are particularly concerned about assuring that encouragement to use scientifically valid practices would place additional burdens of research and justification on either schools or parents. AOTA supports assuring that children receive appropriate and effective related services enabling them to benefit from special education-accessing and progressing in the general curriculum.
AOTA recognizes that H.R. 1350 is a work in progress. We believe it is critical for all parties concerned with education, including parents, advocates, educational experts, general and special education teachers, administrators, and related services personnel to have a meaningful opportunity to read, evaluate and respond to the bill as it moves from Subcommittee to full Committee. AOTA looks forward to having the opportunity to participate in that process to achieve a bill that moves special education forward into the 21st Century.
What is Occupational Therapy?
Occupational therapy is concerned about individuals' ability to engage in their everyday activities, or occupations. Occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants provide critical services to and for children in a variety of educational and community settings, with a variety of educational and learning needs, including children with behavioral or psychosocial needs. Occupational therapy practitioners use purposeful activities to help individuals bridge the gap between their capacity to learn and full and successful participation in work, play, and leisure activities.
Occupational therapists look at the individual's strengths and needs with respect to daily life function in school, home and community life, focusing on how underlying sensorimotor, cognitive, psychosocial, and psychological performance components interact with the demands and expectations of the environment. Occupational therapy for the school-aged child is intended to help them succeed in school. Intervention strategies may focus on improving the child's information-processing ability, academic skill development, and ability to function in the school environment. For adolescents, occupational therapy intervention focus is on preparation for occupational choice, improvement of social and work skills, and learning how to create or alter the environment to maximize their productivity.
How Occupational Therapy Helps Address Children's Needs
AOTA believes that OT is an underutilized service that can help meet and address children's learning and behavioral needs. Children are being challenged by increasingly higher standards of educational performance and achievement. They may feel pressure from parents, peers and others to behave in certain ways or to conform to certain expectations that may be in conflict with one another. Depending on the student's age, the presence of any learning difficulties may have debilitating effects on his or her sense of accomplishment or social competence. Difficulties with completing class assignments or getting along with others may lead to frustration and self-isolation from peers. Occupational therapy intervention for these students can emphasize learning new skills and behaviors within community and education-related settings.
AOTA believes that many children who could benefit from occupational therapy do not receive services. This limited access affects both IDEA-eligible students as well as students in general education. Sometimes this limitation is due to large therapy caseloads, a lack of understanding about how occupational therapy can help or because of perceptions that therapists only address "motor" issues. Occupational therapy training is comprehensive and covers physical, psychological, social and pedagogical aspects of human occupation. Occupational therapy's understanding of human performance ("doing") can be invaluable in helping parents and school staff understand the relationship between the physical and psychosocial and how it can impede or support children's progress.
Occupational therapy intervention includes consultation with parents and families, teachers, and other professionals, and is directed toward achieving desired outcomes that are developed in collaboration with the family and other professionals. Intervention strategies are designed to support desired educational outcomes, and may be provided individually or in small groups. The therapist may also work with the family and teachers to determine how to modify the home or classroom settings, routines and schedules to provide structured learning opportunities and experiences to promote positive behavior.
AOTA represents 35,000 occupational therapists, occupational therapy assistants and students who work to assist individuals to perform everyday activities, or "occupations," including the use of assistive technology. Occupational therapy is a health and rehabilitation service covered by private health insurance, Medicare, Medicaid, workers' compensation, vocational programs, behavioral health programs, early intervention programs, and education programs.
9/13/04
