CEREBRAL PALSY

Education of Children with Cerebral Palsy

Education of Children with Cerebral Palsy

Thesis Statement

“The teaching strategies are the important aspect for the education of children with Cerebral Palsy”.

Introduction

The term cerebral palsy is not so much a diagnosis as it is a description of conditions that affect movement and muscle coordination. Specific areas of the brain, such as the cerebrum and connections between the cortex and cerebellum, are affected, usually during fetal development, the perinatal period, or infancy. CP affects each person differently. Some individuals with CP have normal cognition and are able to function well in their everyday lives with minimal support. Others have severe to profound cognitive and physical disabilities and will require total care for their entire lives. Still others with profound physical disabilities may not have any cognitive delays. Much depends on the exact cause of the injury, the size of the injury, and the area of the brain where the injury occurred. Any part of the body that functions in movement and/or muscle coordination can be affected.

Four types of CP have been described: athetoid, ataxic, spastic, and mixed. The most common type is spastic diplegia, which involves muscle spasticity in the lower extremities causing difficulty in movement. Individuals may or may not be able to walk. However, spasticity is not always limited to the lower extremities. Other individuals may have spastic quadriplegia, which involves all four extremities, or monoplegia, which affects a single spastic extremity. Those individuals with athetoid CP have random movements of all extremities and have very little control over their gross motor abilities. Their movement patterns are uncoordinated and frequently involuntary. Individuals with ataxic CP experience low muscle tone and typically have problems with balance, coordination, and depth perception. Individuals with mixed CP experience problems consistent with more than one type of CP.

The long-term effect of CP on the family is directly related to type of CP and the degree of involvement for the person with CP. Many families feel guilty about what may or may not have happened to lead to their child's disability. Other parents will suffer chronic sorrow whenever their child is not able to perform a developmental task on time or when a younger, typically developing friend or sibling advances beyond the abilities of the child with CP.

Children with mild CP develop much the same as their typically developing peers. They achieve many of the same milestones with some delays related to movement and muscle coordination. Early intervention services are imperative to make sure these children achieve these early milestones and do not suffer further developmental delays. These children often do very well in school and function. These children require frequent medical appointments to assess their growth and development, but few interventions are needed.

An interdisciplinary health care team is essential in assisting families with all of the transitions facing the individual with CP throughout life. Most individuals with CP will reach adulthood, so it is important to work with a health care team that understands the medical and social needs of ...