Inclusive ECCD: - Consultative Group on Early Childhood Care and ...

to diagnose the child’s status and provide specialised
services. With the shift away from intensive one-onone
therapies to an inclusive approach, the role of
the professional needs to be re-defined. While professionals
could be available to work with parents in
the development of inclusive programmes, the question
is, “How can professionals and parents work together
to determine what is in the best interest of the
child?”
A review of current approaches to the provision of
services for children with special needs (UNESCO
1997) reveals that in the reality of programming,
there is no uniform view of how parents should be
involved in programmes for children with special
needs. Within the set of case studies included in the
UNESCO review the degree of partnership between
professionals and parents can be placed on a continuum.
At one end of the continuum is the attitude
that it is the professional’s role to decide what the
child needs and to provide appropriate services; parents
are not a part of the process. The next position
along the continuum is the view that parents are important
in terms of getting the services delivered.
Parents are taught what to do; the professionals are
in control of defining what needs to be done. Further
along the continuum parents are included in the discussion
about what should happen for the child. At
the next point on the continuum parents are the decision-makers
and determine the services the child
receives. Finally, at the other end of the continuum,
largely in the Majority World where communitybased
programmes are being created, the responsibility
is put almost completely on the parents (and
community) to develop and deliver services.
The bottom line is that partnerships need to be
created between professionals and parents, regardless
of the extent of professional expertise available
in the community and/or country. However, it is not
easy to create these partnerships. There are a number
of variables that influence the nature of the relationship.
The following are specific issues that need
to be addressed in creating parent/professional partnerships.
The relationship that parents and professionals
have with the child. For the parents the child
represents a day-to-day reality and a life-long commitment.
The reality of having a child with special
needs is always present for the family. Thus, their concerns
go well beyond the delivery of a specific service.
Professionals, on the other hand, are working with a
set of rules and procedures, viewing each child as one
among many being provided for within a defined service.
The professional simply wants to get his/her job
done. Thus the rhythm is very different for parents
and professionals, and entails very different levels of
commitment to meeting the child’s needs.
How the professional views his/her role. Many
professionals see themselves as the ones who have the
answers. They diagnose the situation and know what
should be done. If parents are truly to be partners in
making decisions about their child’s well-being, then
the professional has to become a mediator, facilitating
and allowing a constructive dialogue between all the
concerned persons.
The balance of power between parents and
professionals. Professionals have power because of
their knowledge and skills in addressing the needs of
the child. They also have power because of their position
within the system, which gives them the authority
to allocate (or deny) services. While parents have
the ultimate authority to make decisions on behalf of
the child, if parents do not have the knowledge and
self-confidence to take on this role, then professionals
typically maintain control.
The socio-economic groups represented by
professionals and parents. Many professionals
are from a different socio-cultural level (or ethnic)
group than the parents. This can mean that the two
groups are operating from a fundamentally different
approach to life and have different beliefs and attitudes
about childrearing. The greater the use of people
from the culture in the professional role, the
greater the congruence between the world view of
professionals and parents, and the greater the likelihood
of finding common ground.
The kind of information and training provided
for families In order for the family to make appropriate
decisions they need accurate information, in
terms they can understand. In addition, parents may
need to be trained how to ask the right questions and
how to become negotiators in their discussions with
the various professionals they meet. Information and
training help shift the balance of power from the professional
to the parent.
■ Focus on the child’s early interactions with
people in the environment.
This principle is derived from an understanding of
the value of interaction and communication. Interactive
experiences are important in helping children
develop to their fullest potential. The challenge is to
build such experiences into family support services.
A project that was developed in response to an understanding
of the value and nature of early interactive
experiences was developed in Denmark, based
on work of an anthropologist working in Uganda in
the 1970s. In her work Infant Care and the Growth of
Love, Mary Ainsworth (1967) concludes that infant
care and the growth of love results:
– when there is frequent and sustained physical contact
between the mother and child—especially during the
first six months of the child’s life;
– from the mother’s ability to soothe the infant effectively
through physical contact;
– when mothers are sensitive to the infant’s signals and are
responsive to her/his demands;
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