Dr. Janet Sable, Dr. Lou Powell, and Ms. Linda Aldrich, Department of Recreation Management and Policy, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire.
Role of the Therapeutic Recreation Specialist in Schools
Attempts to provide children with disabilities with an appropriate education often means training in self-help skills, prevocational tasks, transitional skills, leisure skills, community living, and other domains of adaptive behavior. The Therapeutic Recreation Specialist's (TRS) activities should be in harmony with these broader program domains with a focus on increasing the child's overall leisure and social independence and appropriateness of behavior. The "need" and opportunity for increased independence should work hand in hand with the need for concurrent changes in recreation and leisure behavior. Ideally, all staff should be working towards common objectives, each reinforcing one another's inter-related program components. As a member of the team, the TRS's role includes:
Identifying the specific
leisure needs of each child necessary to meet his/her present and future
environmental
demands.
Examining the child's recreation needs relative to ongoing educational and vocational programming.
Developing an awareness of leisure, leisure resources, leisure skills, and social interaction skills.
Incorporating others (staff, student and student's family members) into the child's programming, both in evaluation and treatment.
Providing consultation and training to teachers, extracurricular activity leaders and other related service personnel as needed.
Conducting referrals
to teachers and other related service personnel as needed.
Job Skills and Responsibilities of TRS in Schools
The following job skills and responsibilities were identified as essential for Therapeutic Recreation Specialists working within inclusionary school systems:
Conduct comprehensive,
developmental assessment of skills and needs relative to student's leisure
functioning
together with team members and family.
Provide training,
consultation services, and assistance to extracurricular activity leaders,
teachers and
teacher
aids to facilitate inclusion of children with
disabilities into leisure and recreation experiences in
the classroom
and on-going after school programs.
Identify and evaluate
community recreation and leisure programs which hold the greatest potential
for
the realization
of recreation, leisure and social (community transition) needs and objectives
in the
student's IEP.
Provide leisure education
for individual students and their parents/caregivers relative to a) leisure
and
recreation needs,
and b) approaches to meeting those needs at home and in the community.
Provide consultation
and assistance to teachers, parents and students in the identification
of assistive
technology and adapted
equipment essential to successful leisure participation and competence.
Cooperate and collaborate
with a multidisciplinary educational team to assist students in meeting
educational
objectives focusing upon social, recreation and
leisure needs.
Evaluate the total recreation and leisure service component and process within the educational program.
In addition to knowledge areas in therapeutic recreation, the Therapeutic Recreation Specialist will require specific knowledge such as:
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