Mrs. Siham Fakhereddine, Head of SMART at BBS:
“We all resorted to distance learning in response to the pandemic that Lebanon and the world is facing. Every child in the SMART program has their own individualized educational plan (IEP) which includes all the goals, skills, strategies, and corrective programs relative to the child. During this difficult time, we try as much as possible to continue working along the lines of the IEP. Through online sessions, we are continuing the corrective and therapeutic programs with the learners, however, with the challenges we faced, we resorted to training parents to support educators at home. When a child has behavioral challenges it is difficult for him/her to study through screen-time for a long period of time. As a result, we trained parents on the program by sending them the relevant resources and material while explaining, in details, how to implement the specialized program. The parents also observed the special educator in an online session with the learner, which prepared them to start implementing the programs themselves. The first two sessions given by the parents were recorded for feedback from the special educator on how to maximize positive results.
Working with children with special needs in these circumstances is very important, but what is essential is for us, special educators, to also work with the parents, who need our support and motivation as they take on the role of home schooling”.
