19TH AFID CONFERENCE KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

 

 

Prof Tai-Hwa Emily Lu, Taiwan

 

Professor. Department of Special Education & Director, Special Education Center of National Taiwan Normal University

http://www.ntnu.edu.tw/spc/eng/staff.htm

 

Changes from the Past AFMR to the New AFID – Towards Holistic Development in the Universal Design Environment

 

Asian Federation for the Mentally Retarded (AFMR) was founded in 1973 at Manila, Philippines.  Its name altered to Asian Federation on Mental Retardation in 1999, and became Asian Federation on Intellectual Disabilities (AFID) in 2007.  The above name change indicates people’s attitudes toward disabilities have been gradually shifted from segregation, to integration, to inclusion in Asian countries and all over the world.  Through rotation of holding the biannual conference in 15 full member countries/regions, AFID has gathered all members and non-members from around the world to exchange intellectual/ technological resources and to see personally the development of intellectual disabilities in every member country as well.

 

After reviewing all conferences’ themes, we see the evolution from noticing and caring persons with intellectual disabilities in 1970s and early 80s, to advocating rights and policies for them in 1990s, and into the new eras of inclusion and full participation by treating them as every other person after 2000.  In 2007 Taipei’s conference, the theme “Universal Design Environment” further highlights the importance that the whole world environment has to be suitable for all people but not just to be barrier-free for the disabled.  Also, it must be planned in advance not only physically but also socially and educationally.

 

This presentation will explore the communalities and differences of philosophy, education and welfare policies on intellectual disabilities among AFID member countries and then make some feasible suggestions for future development.  In addition, it will cover how to integrate the related interdisciplinary teams and plan all designs beforehand to make full participation and inclusion possible for achieving this conference goal --”towards holistic development”.

 

We must believe, and set it as an ultimate goal, that we will have an inclusive society with universal design environment, where every individual can acquire holistic development, in each of the AFID member countries/ regions.

 

 

 

Prof Richard Rose, United Kingdom

 

Professor of Special and Inclusive Education, Centre for Special Needs Education and Research, University of Northampton, UK

http://www2.northampton.ac.uk/portal/page/portal/education/home1/staff/richardrose

 

Developing social and educational inclusion for students with intellectual disabilities through holistic planning of services within local communities

 

International collaboration for the promotion of more equitable and inclusive education systems has had a positive impact upon schools in many countries (Mitchell 2005).  A commitment to ensuring that learners with intellectual disabilities and other special educational needs has been high on the agenda and this has led to innovation in both policies and practice in schools.  Indeed, it may be argued that schools are amongst the most inclusive institutions in our societies and that in some cases other service providers are struggling to match the progress made in education.  It is clear that schools alone cannot ensure that young people with special educational needs and disabilities take their rightful place in the communities in which they live and that a more cohesive and holistic approach to services is required.  This paper presents findings from research conducted in England which examined the impact of extending the services provided by schools to families and the local community (Rose 2008, Rose et al 2008).  Particular consideration is given to both the support provided to families and the approaches adopted by schools to engage community services in the life of schools and students.  A coordinated response from schools, social and health services and the voluntary sector has been adopted in some parts of England and has yielded positive results for students with intellectual disabilities and their families.  The results of the research reported suggests that where provision takes account not only of the needs of students, but also their families and the communities in which they live, this leads to increased opportunities for inclusion both within and beyond school.

  

 

 

Prof Libby Cohen, United States of America/Singapore

 

Professor Emerita’ of Special Education, University of Southern Maine.  Visiting Professor at the Special Education Unit at National Institute of Education, Singapore

http://www.nie.edu.sg/nieweb/dept/loading.do?id=Academic&cid=10584078&ppid=10616888

 

Holistic Development and Inclusive Education

 

There are powerful possibilities for the future – especially for learners with special needs.  As educators, parents, caregivers, therapists and advocates, we strive to make learning, family, and community activities appropriate, accessible, and inclusive for all individuals.  As 21st century citizens, our students will have available to them means of learning that we can’t even imagine, today.

 

The Salamanca Statement (UNESCO, 1994), endorsed by representatives of 92 governments and 25 international organizations from the World Conference on Special Needs Education, called for inclusion to be the norm for the education of all children with disabilities.  In addition, the Conference adopted a new Framework for Action, the guiding principle is that schools should accommodate all children.

 

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, in his 2004 inaugural speech, addressed the need to build a nation without leaving anyone behind.  He explicitly stated, “We will look after the less educated and the elderly who have helped build Singapore.  And we must also have a place in our hearts and our lives for the disabled, who are our brothers and sisters too….. “Ours must be an open and inclusive Singapore” (Lee, 2004).

 

Imagine a future in which holistic development forms the framework of an inclusive approach to education.  In this future, learning is engaging, available, accessible, and inclusive.  This imagined future is possible and probable because of a rare convergence – desire for an inclusive society, discoveries in neuroscience, new conceptualizations of teaching and learning, and innovative technologies.  Making learning inclusive strengthens educational outcomes for all students.

 

The keynote will elaborate on the influence of theory and research and offer practical examples for moving toward an inclusive society.

   

  

 

Prof Trevor R Parmenter, Australia

 

Professor of Developmental Disability, Director - Centre for Disability Studies, Royal Rehabilitation Centre Sydney, Australia

http://www.cdds.med.usyd.edu.au/html/Staff/trev.html

 

The Place of a Person with an Intellectual Disability in Modern Society.

Challenges at the Person and Community Levels

 

Conferences of AFID, since its inception in Manila in 1973, have addressed a range of philosophical, social, educational and human rights issues relevant to meeting the needs of people with an intellectual disability in the Asian Region.  As we move into the 21st Century many of the promises raised in previous conferences have yet to be fully realised.  For instance, many children with an intellectual disability do not have access to public education.  There is limited access to employment options; specialist health services; support for people to have independent or semi independent lives in the community; and respite for families, especially older families.  This paper will explore the current status of people with an intellectual disability in modern society, together with those forces that are impacting positively and negatively upon their lives.  This analysis will be conducted in the context of the World Health Organisation (2001) International Classification of Function, Disability and Health (ICF) and the recent United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with a Disability (2007).  Areas to be addressed include education, employment, accommodation, health, transitions through the life span, family issues and the impact of environmental factors.  These topics will be evaluated in terms of the level of their impact upon the quality of life of people with an intellectual disability and their families.  The presentation will conclude with recommendations for future development in this region of the world.  These will be informed by the earlier analysis, together with suggestions for a greater emphasis upon the development of research capacity within higher education in the Asian region.

 

 

 

Associate Professor Nicholas Lennox, Australia

 

Director Queensland, Centre for Intellectual and Developmental Disability, The University of Queensland, Community Services Building, Mater Hospitals, Australia.

http://www.uq.edu.au/uqresearchers/researcher/lennoxng.html

 

Health care and people with intellectual disabilities: Unmet needs, underlying causes and potential strategies

 

The presentation will review the health of people with intellectual disability, examine the underlying causes and explore what strategies may be useful to improve the current high levels of unmet health needs in this population.  Literature gathered during work on the first WHO World Report on Disability and Rehabilitation will be used to highlight the situation and the future challenges.  This document was written with the explicit aim of addressing the issues in low and medium income countries; however the limited quantity and quality of the evidence made this goal difficult to achieve.  Inspite of this limitation it was clear that the underlying social determinants of health and access to services remain central to any future initiatives in all countries and ideally need to be addressed by any initiatives.

 

An example of a strategy to improve the health of people with intellectual disability developed in Australia will be discussed.  The introduction of the primary-care-based health assessment emerged from the following elements: the endorsement of the IASSID Health Guidelines and gold standard research evidence which found the Comprehensive Health Assessment Program (CHAP) improved the delivery of primary healthcare; and the formation of the Australian Association Developmental Disability Medicine to allow medical practitioners to speak with a unified voice and collaborative political strategies.  All of these elements and strategies will be presented, as will other potential strategies which emerged from the WHO report process.