ACT conducted an Informative Facebook Live Session on Management of Children with Special Needs

An informative Facebook Live Session on ‘Management of Children with Special Needs: A Step towards Sustainability’ was conducted by Asian College of Teachers (ACT) on 25th March 2022. The guest speaker was Dr Amrita Panda, rehabilitation psychologist, founder and managing director, DeepRanjini Foundation that deals with specially-abled children. The FB live session garnered great views and witnessed some interesting queries from the viewers that were later answered by Dr Panda.

The session began on the notes of the personalised methods which are key to successful management of children with SEN and how understanding the correct methods comes handy whether you are teaching or parenting SEN children. It then continued on with a general definition and awareness about autism spectrum disorder. Dr Panda, Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Cognitive Psychology & Rehabilitation and Masters of Arts in Experimental Psychology, with 15+ years research experience; an expert in clinical practice and teaching, catering to autism, parental learning, counselling, adolescence and sexual education including trauma care etc., shared her thoughts on the nature of the spectrum and also discussed the areas that are diagnosing factors and revealed that in a country like India, individuals with ASD are still considered lunatic. But in reality, they just have a different set of characteristic/s which is different from the typically ‘normal’ ones. However, she expressed hope as the situation is gradually getting better over time as more people are realising that it’s a condition and not a disease, as a person is born with it and it’s not contracted from anyone or anything. Professionals are now honing their skills relating to this growing field which is beneficial for a country like India. Though the field is financially less rewarding, which restrained professionals till now, it is emotionally gratifying. More and more individuals are entering this field which is very promising for our nation in the coming days. In a ‘Neurotypical dominated society’ autistic children need to learn independence to face their daily challenges. The session ended with a brief explanation about her journey in India and abroad.