10/29/09 - Western Australia government official visits Institute for guidance

Date: October 29, 2009
Contact: Seth Seymour
423.648.1709
seth.seymour@siskin.org

Western Australia government official to visit Siskin Children’s Institute for guidance

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — A government official from the Disability Services Commission in Western Australia, one of seven states in Australia, will visit Siskin Children’s Institute Friday to learn about the organization’s research on early childhood development and special education.

Denise Luscombe, a pediatric physiotherapist and senior project officer with the Commission in Perth, the capital of Western Australia, is touring the United States and the United Kingdom through October and November to study early childhood intervention services that focus on interactions between the parent and child, goals of the family, strengths and interests of the child and family, and normal everyday activities — a focus that research has shown to have the best outcomes for children. She will use this experience to help determine how early interventionists in Western Australia can convert the theory into practice there.

Western Australia has already adopted strategies influenced by Robin McWilliam, Ph.D., the Institute’s director of research. His strategy focuses on providing early childhood intervention within natural learning environments. Luscombe will receive more information about this strategy during her visit.

During her visit, Luscombe also will discuss how the country is implementing these strategies. She will present “Team Around the Child: The use of recommended practices in early intervention in Western Australia.”

Luscombe said other states in Australia are looking to Western Australia for guidance on implementing Dr. McWilliam’s strategies.

For more information about Dr. McWilliam and the Siskin Center for Child and Family Research, visit www.siskin.org.

About Siskin Children’s Institute
Siskin Children’s Institute makes life better for children with special needs and their families. Founded in 1950, the non-profit organization achieves its mission locally and nationally through four initiatives: education, outreach, health care and research. The Institute provides early childhood education where children with and without disabilities learn together; family support and professional development programs; developmental behavioral pediatric health care; and innovative research in early childhood development and special education. For more information about Siskin Children’s Institute, visit www.siskin.org.

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