Garfield L. Angus, JIS Writer

Donna Koolmees (left), occupational therapist, raps with personnel at The Mico Care Centre after a recent workshop. Deeply engrossed in the conversation are from second left: Stacey-Ann Brady, social worker at the centre; Annette Morgan-James, special educator; Sasha Byfield, administrative assistant; Dorothy Dennis, special educator, and head of The Mico Care Centre, Maxine Anderson. - JIS Photo

Part of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which was adopted in 2006, states that "disability results from the interaction between persons with impairments and attitudinal and environmental barriers that hinders their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others."

For more than five years The Mico Care Centre, located at Ridgemount in Mandeville and operated by The Mico University College, has been actively providing training and fora to equip children as well as parents to help break down the barriers that prevent special children from making meaningful contributions to communities and self.

"My son took the GSAT exams and when the results came out he was not placed in a high school. I was very upset that evening, as I pondered what my next step was going to be. I turned around and saw on the Jamaica Magazine TV programme where they were talking about The Mico Care Centre and the next day I called them and they informed me how to get him enrolled there," said Nichola Bryson, mother of 15-year-old Rohan Bailey, a student at the centre.

Future engineer

Bryson said her decision to place young Bailey at The Mico Care Centre paid off. "The last score that I looked at, in reading he received 16 out of 16, his maths has improved and in computer studies he is doing well. I want him to be an engineer, and I feel confident that that dream will be a reality," she said.

"The teachers there seem to be very gifted in handling slow learning children. I am thankful to them for my son's progress," she added.

The centre runs a day school geared towards improving the numeracy and literacy skills of children who are challenged in their learning. Ainsley Bell, a 14-year-old who is currently attending the Mandeville Primary and Junior High in Manchester, outlined how the centre has helped him.

"My maths and language were not where they should be, but since my mother enrolled me here, I am satisfied that I can get a good education. I come here at 8:00 in the mornings, Mondays to Thursdays and stay until 11, and then I go to my other school. I am extremely tired sometimes, but I want to be a computer engineer, and I can't get there without doing well in my early learning. The teachers here are guiding me well," he said.

According to child specialist, and psychologist at Harvard University, in the United States, Robert Brooks, parents should help their children feel special and appreciated.

Highlight their strengths

He wrote, "Avoid comments that are judgmental and instead, be an empathetic parent. Provide choices for your child; highlight your child's strengths; provide opportunities for children to help. Have realistic expectations. If your child has a learning disability, demystify or help your child to understand the nature of his or her learning disability."

Head of The Mico Care Centre, Maxine Anderson shared with the Jamaica Information Service some of her experiences and the main development focus of the organisation.

"While we endeavour to give our children the best attention possible, we also try to work with the parents, because many of them are quite young and lack experience in rearing a child. So we provide workshops where they are exposed to many of the experts who can impart some of the skills that they need," she said.

"It's extremely challenging to care and develop children who are challenged, so we have done training for teachers also and I am pleased that we have made a difference in the lives of those children who have come here and that of their parents."

Janet Heavens-Newman, a teacher at the Mandeville-based Villa Road Primary and Junior High School, who attended a recent handwriting seminar at the centre, said she has gained much from it and is now able to assist her students who are challenged with their handwriting.

"I have learnt to check the children's speed in writing; I now know how to attack some of the learning disabilities in writing. I am able to do reversal (this is one technique to correct mistakes when writing) much better than before, and I am able to manipulate their handwriting, like using fudge sticks to make the upper case letters," explained a satisfied Heavens-Newman.

Stacy-Ann Brady, social worker, has assessed over 300 children in her two-year stint with the centre to determine their true abilities.

"This I share with the teachers and psychologists so that an informed decision can be made on the best response for the children, and how to assist the parents in caring for them," she said.

Brady shared her wish for special children, "Various children come here; you have the intellectually disabled, the developmentally delayed and all of them don't fit in the same classroom setting. They require different attention, especially in the case of the artistic," she said.

Parents get frustrated

"After they are assessed their parents get very frustrated because there are not many facilities to care for them. It is my hope that we will see more support coming for challenged children, and that they can receive the kind of attention that, even if they don't get the academic qualifications, they will grasp the vocational training and not get left behind," she emphasised.

This feature is a special collaboration between The Gleaner Company and the Jamaica Information Service.