Browsing by Subject "aistiherkkyys"

The objective of this research was to find out how parents view daycare centers’ capabilities to recognize and support children with sensory processing disorders. When there are challenges in sensory processing, they are caused by the central nervous system. In the disorder, the brain is not able to parse, analyze, or unify information received from the senses. When the brain isn’t able to process information correctly, the human body won’t function correctly. This makes learning more difficult, as well as tolerating normal daily life and stressful situations. The challenges of sensory processing disorders have mainly been researched from the perspective of occupational therapy. There is hardly any research from educational science or special education’s point of view. This research is based on Jane Ayer’s sensory integration theory and modern research that supports it. This topic was approached from the parents’ perspective. This research was done by using qualitative methods. The data was gathered with a questionnaire and the subjects were chosen through snowball sampling. In total there were 47 subjects. The research was analyzed with the help of content analysis and narrative analysis. According to the findings of the research, daycare centers have low abilities to face children with sensory processing disorders. Understanding the challenges these children experience varied, according to the parents. The parents had experienced stigmatizing, blaming, and belittling of the issues from the daycare centers. In some cases, even the children had been blamed. According to the findings of the research, the symptoms of sensory processing disorders are diverse. Further, the problems of learning and behavior associated with the disorders are severe. One of the biggest difficulties in a daycare environment was that is extremely straining. Allowing the children to have a calm space was viewed as important. According to the research, a lack of information is the main reason why identifying sensory processing disorders is so difficult. Supporting children with these disorders in daycares is insufficient for the same reason. Therapy was seen as a tremendous help and a great asset for the whole family. There is a huge demand for further education and training.