Support worker

Supporting special children is important work

Growing up in the Hawke's Bay on the smell of an oily rag back in the `50s had a lifelong impact on education support worker, Wawata (Dala).

It showed her that people can counter hardship and limited resources by working together and supporting one another. And, years later as an adult, Dala uses the skills, values and attitudes from her strong community in her work with children with special education needs.

"I feel a strong empathy for these children, partly because I feel familiar with life on the margins. But I also know what's possible when people band together to provide the right support and help," says Dala of Kahungunu descent.

"To me, this is important work. I do it because I want to, I want to be here for these children - I learn a lot from them and have a lot to give," she says.

As a young woman in the 70s, Dala travelled to Invercargill for her "big OE" and has been there ever since. She and her husband have three adult children and two grandchildren, with a third on the way.

Dala has a bachelor's degree in early childhood teaching and has worked as an education support worker in the special education field for more than ten years.

She works in a range of early childhood education services, such as kōhanga reo, kindergartens and childcare centres, working alongside educators to develop and implement children's education programmes.

The time she spends with each child providing one-on-one support depends on what each child needs to take part in the lessons within their early childhood education service.

"I work hard to build relationships with the staff, children, families and whānau that help children with special education needs become part of the regular community - it's all part of helping them learn and achieve their potential," she says.

Dala sees 12 children (with a wide range of special education needs) as part of her 22-hour-a-week contract with the Ministry of Education, Special Education (GSE).

One child with whom she works is three-and-a-half-year-old Anthony (not his real name). He is a child with autism who has a specially-tailored education programme with a range of activities and strategies that help him learn and develop.

For example, Dala ensures Anthony is safe inside and outside the centre by checking fences and gates are secure and keeping a close eye on Anthony, who sometimes wanders off when something catches his interest.

She takes special care to allow Anthony to express himself, play and explore in his own unique way. She's also careful not to dominate his physical space to allow him access to other children.

Dala encourages Anthony to be part of group social activities and to understand some of the rules and expectations around play and peer interaction.

She reads to Anthony (and his peers) often and keeps notes on his progress, sharing them with Anthony's lead worker, who in turn keeps Anthony's parents, educators and wider support team updated.

Anthony, like most children, loves music. He loves its rhythm and tone, and music calms him. A lot of music is played at Anthony's centre. Music is used as the basis for games about sharing, turn taking and group participation.

Working with Dala - the process

Dala works directly with children in early childhood education services. She works with children who have been identified as having `high' or `very high' special education needs.

Dala is part of a child's early intervention team that might comprise an early intervention teacher (a lead worker), a kaitakawaenga (a Māori cultural adviser), a speech-language therapist and so on. The people in a child's early intervention team depend on a child's specific needs.

Usually a child is referred to the Ministry of Education, Special Education (GSE) by their health or early childhood education service (ie, their doctor, Plunket nurse, or kindy or playcentre staff - someone who has known the child from when they were a baby). Sometimes, parents contact the Ministry themselves.

Once a referral is made, Dala's colleague - usually the team's lead worker - convenes a meeting to work out the type of support the child might need to learn and develop.

Goals, strategies, exercises and tools are worked out by the early intervention team, parents and early childhood education service staff. Everyone is encouraged to contribute their observations and assessments of the child's needs and help tailor an education programme for the child. In the programme are strategies and exercises for Dala, the child's early childhood educators, their parents, the speech-language therapist and so on.

Dala carries out her strategies and exercises, then records her day-to-day observations in writing. She provides her written observations to the child's lead worker and educators, taking care to note how the child is progressing and developing in response to the team's strategies. Dala's notes are also referred to during meetings and discussions about the child's education programme, and are often used to apply for the Ongoing and Reviewable Resourcing Schemes (ORRS) when it's time for the child to go to school.

Over time, everyone works together to monitor, review and adapt the education programme for as long as the child needs and as long as the child is eligible for GSE's services.

Working with GSE support workers - a point to note

It's important to note that Ministry of Education, Special Education (GSE) support workers work in both early childhood education and school - not just early childhood education like Dala. They don't all work in the same way either. For example, some support workers who work in schools focus on either behaviour or communication.

All support workers adapt what they do to suit the needs of individual children and young people, the needs of families, whānau, educators and specialists, and to suit the context in which children and young people live and learn. They may also adapt the way they work as new research evidence emerges and as their knowledge and experience grows.