The Foreign Service Journal, June 2012

62 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / J U N E 2 0 1 2 S CHOOLS S UPPLEMENT dependents going abroad. Research continues to prove that telepractice is an equally effective model when compared with tradition- al face-to-face therapy. ASHA’s posi- tion is: “Telepractice is an appropriate model of service delivery for the pro- fessions of speech-language pathology (and audiology). Telepractice may be used to overcome barriers of access to services caused by distance, unavail- ability of specialists and/or subspecial- ists, and impaired mobility.” Coming into Its Own Companies and individuals have developed online programs that deliv- er services to students and other clients that include occupational ther- apy, physical therapy, speech therapy and aural rehabilitation, as well as reg- ular and special education. There are differences in the way they operate, but what these companies and indi- viduals share is that they offer access to therapy and educational services over the Internet with a live person, in real time that focuses on the individ- ual’s particular needs, regardless of where he or she physically resides. Just like the special education teacher or speech therapist in a school, online providers target specif- ic deficits that impair an individual’s ability to succeed in social or academ- ic situations. For example, an occupa- tional therapist may assist a child with handwriting, directly increasing that child’s ability to progress successfully in any school. Online teachers teach via a virtual classroom, providing remedial academic instruction online. Through networking, I have met educational consultants who provide special education services, both in person and online. They work with schools to assist in the development of curriculum modifications that a child might need to succeed in the regular education classroom of, say, an inter- national school. Many early intervention programs and schools that find themselves unable to fill special education va cancies are now turning to teleprac- tice. Dr. Jana Cason of Spalding Telepractice is tearing down the barriers between full access and no access for children with special educational needs.