Conductive Education - what's it all about?

I was fortunate to be shown around a very special school last week, Ingfield Manor School, and its school for parents, The Dame Vera Lynn Trust School for Parents, in Billingshurst, West Sussex.

Ingfield Manor is a non-maintained special school run by the charity SCOPE for children and young people with neurological motor impairment and associated learning difficulties. The school uses the Conductive Education approach in its teaching. All pupils at the school have a Statement of Special Educational Needs or Education, Health and Care Plan.

My thanks go to Sarah Ffoulkes Roberts, Head of Early Years, for showing me round and answering my many questions. The dedication and vibrancy of school staff is evident in the learning that goes on.

What is Conductive Education?

Conductive Education is a system of learning developed in 1945 by Professor András Peto, in Budapest, Hungary. The approach is designed to teach those with neurological motor disorders, such as cerebral palsy or spina bifida, to improve their motor skills and increase their independence in everyday living skills. The approach consists of exercises broken down into basic movements.

The key principles of Conductive Education are:

• Holistic intervention
  The consequences of brain injury affect the entire development of the child. Practitioners of Conductive Education, known as Conductors, look at the whole functioning of the child. Each area of functioning, including the development of personal, motor, cognitive, social and academic skills, is seen as dependent and inter-dependent.
• Targeting the whole personality
  A person’s characteristics, behaviour and thought are inter-related and constantly changing. Children are encouraged to see themselves as active and self-reliant learners, rather than passive and expecting the environment to be changed to meet their needs.
• Active participation and intention
  Conductive Education is seen as a learning approach rather than medical intervention. It is felt that being motivated and actively involved in learning creates independent learners and that this approach is more effective than being a passive recipient of mechanical exercises.
• Continuity and consistency
  This is necessary to reinforce new skills. Also important is to practice skills in different daily tasks. Conductive Education uses all parts of the day as a learning opportunity.
• Interdisciplinary model
  Rather than a multidisciplinary approach, where professionals provide support and share knowledge in their own area of specialism, Conductive Education involves an interdisciplinary approach where professionals are responsible for the planning and delivery of the whole process.

What is a Conductor?

Conductors are trained to carry out the principles of Conductive Education. They link speech, thought and movement to engage the child in active learning. They will have had four years of intensive training, either at the Peto Institute in Budapest or at another college recognised by the Institute. The training involves chid development, pedagogic practice, theory and psychology, musculoskeletal anatomy, neurology, human movement and an understanding of the symptoms of physical disabilities, mainly cerebral palsy.

Some Conductors will also have qualified teacher status. These are known as Teacher-Conductors.

What is the difference between Conductive Education and a non-Conductive approach?

Conductive Education is seen as a holistic child-centred approach to education. It is not a therapy. It focuses on every aspect of the child’s development and children are taught to see themselves as active participants. The learning continues in every aspect of the child’s daily living. This contrasts with a non-Conductive approach where the child is usually removed from the class, perhaps weekly or less often, to receive a type of therapeutic input in isolation.

Who can benefit from Conductive Education?

Conductive Education can start from as early as four months. The programme can help at any age but it is felt to be most beneficial in the first six to eight years of a child’s life, as this is the period of greatest brain development.

Why is conductive education frequently misunderstood?

Conductive Education does not hold itself out to provide a cure.

There has been little research on the holistic effectiveness of Conductive Education. What little research there is has focused on progress in motor skills in comparison to traditional physiotherapy. The findings have been inconclusive. The strength of Conductive Education around the world is, in part, due to families experiencing positive benefits for their children.

If you want your local authority to provide Conductive Education for your child, you will need to ensure that it is included in your child’s Statement of Special Educational Needs or Education, Health and Care Plan. If the local authority does not agree, you may need to appeal to the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal and may need to consider legal advice.