Occupational Therapy Throughout the Decades
We looked at occupational therapy decade by decade and saw some substantial changes in the field along with other general aspects of life! If I have learned one thing about occupational therapy, it's that those in the field and the field itself are extremely adaptive and this was verified once more during these presentations. Starting in the 1940's there was a serious need for occupational therapists. There were more men returning from World War II than there were therapists to rehabilitate them. The eighteen months that it currently took to become a therapist was deemed too long for the number of therapists needed, so the War Emergency Courses of 1943 condensed this program into two weeks! I cannot imagine being a practicing therapist after two weeks, but the need was there and so were occupational therapists!
One thing that really stuck out to me was how far education has come for individuals with disabilities. While racial discrimination and segregation were major issues in history, individuals with disabilities were completely turned away from the school systems until 1975. Due to the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, all children were granted the right to a fair and free education. This was later coined Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 1991. I have spent a good amount of time around children with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities and I am always amazed at how smart they are! Sometimes these individuals are nonverbal, but can still communicate with body language, sign language, or even assistive technology. If you pay them enough attention, they will show you in their own way just how smart they are. The Education for All Handicapped Children Act required Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) for these individuals who needed extra help outside the classroom to maximize their time inside the classroom. It wasn't until the Reauthorization of IDEA in 2004 that schools required special training and skilled special education teachers in schools. The same way they do today, these teachers would work closely with the occupational therapist in their school system and together they would better help students reach their specialized IEP goals.
With the rise of technology that really started in the 1990's, occupational therapists began utilizing the computer as a means of intervention and therapy for fine motor skills. Computer skills were important then and are extremely important today, so this is a type of therapy I could potentially use with my clients if that is something they are interested in! Overall, I learned a lot from these presentations. I loved getting to see everyone's personality and passion for occupational therapy through their individual creativity. I will keep this knowledge about the history of the field close to me as a reminder of how far we have come as a profession!
One thing that really stuck out to me was how far education has come for individuals with disabilities. While racial discrimination and segregation were major issues in history, individuals with disabilities were completely turned away from the school systems until 1975. Due to the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, all children were granted the right to a fair and free education. This was later coined Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 1991. I have spent a good amount of time around children with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities and I am always amazed at how smart they are! Sometimes these individuals are nonverbal, but can still communicate with body language, sign language, or even assistive technology. If you pay them enough attention, they will show you in their own way just how smart they are. The Education for All Handicapped Children Act required Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) for these individuals who needed extra help outside the classroom to maximize their time inside the classroom. It wasn't until the Reauthorization of IDEA in 2004 that schools required special training and skilled special education teachers in schools. The same way they do today, these teachers would work closely with the occupational therapist in their school system and together they would better help students reach their specialized IEP goals.
With the rise of technology that really started in the 1990's, occupational therapists began utilizing the computer as a means of intervention and therapy for fine motor skills. Computer skills were important then and are extremely important today, so this is a type of therapy I could potentially use with my clients if that is something they are interested in! Overall, I learned a lot from these presentations. I loved getting to see everyone's personality and passion for occupational therapy through their individual creativity. I will keep this knowledge about the history of the field close to me as a reminder of how far we have come as a profession!
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