Üsküdar University Vocational School of Health Services (SHMYO) organized an online event titled "Empowerment and Rights-Based Approach in Children with Special Needs". The event, organized within the scope of "November 20, International Children's Rights Day", addressed the daily life of children with special needs, their communication with their parents and their future in all its scope.
The event was moderated by SHMYO Child Protection and Care Services Program Head Assist. Assist. Ezgi Tesir and Head of Child Development Program Lect. Assist. Müge Çolakoğlu Özer took over.
29 Mayıs University Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences (İİBF) Department of Social Work Dr. Lecturer Bilge Aslan Açan attended the event as a guest. Prof. Dr. Bilge Aslan Açan participated.
Parents leave their own characteristics aside
Pointing out that parents who are looking for different ways of communication to get along with their children should also look for different ways for children with special needs, Dr. Lecturer. Prof. Dr. Bilge Aslan Açan; "Mothers also love their children very much. Even if they are normally an angry person, they put their own characteristics aside and say, 'How do I get along with my child, how should I find a way to get along with him, what would be good for me to do? They try to discover the methods that will be good for that child and try to communicate accordingly. The same needs to happen for people with special needs."
First of all, we do a disservice to our own children...
Stating that parents approach children with special needs with prejudice, Dr. Lecturer. Prof. Dr. Bilge Aslan Açan; "It is possible for a child to establish a secure connection not only with the interaction with the mother, but also with the interaction with other people. When we look at it as parents, when we say, 'This child is disabled, my child will decrease his/her academic success,' we give the following message to the child; 'Tomorrow one day, don't be disabled, don't be different, you will be excluded.' This time the child looks at the world with anxiety. When we look at it like this, we first do a disservice to our own children."
It is in our hands to reveal their talents
Emphasizing that the emergence of the talents of children with special needs is beneficial to society, Açan said; "When we offer a potential that will reveal their talent, we benefit the most from it. Asperger's is a type of autism, but when we look at it, they remember what they read very well because their intellectual abilities, verbal language skills and memory are very strong. They can be very good academics because their transfer skills are very strong. Those with dyslexia have very strong right brains, they are very creative people, but they learn differently. They have difficulty reading what they see on the board, but they have different abilities."
The event, which took place on Zoom, ended after the questions of the participants were answered.