Speak Out OCTOBER 2021 DIGITAL EDITION

FEATURE

Out of sight, but not out of mind How your remote work is meaningful Speech pathologists working remotely are feeling isolated. In the education sector, they're watching waitlists grow, and faced with remote learning and restrictions to onsite visits, the stressors are mounting. SPA Victoria Branch Speak Out Coordinator, Kimberley Knight spoke with psychologist Annie Neeson, and asked for some tips for speech pathologists, public or private, who work remotely with schools.

In what ways might speech pathologist make meaningful contributions to schools, students and their families when our onsite contact is considerably curtailed at the moment? Firstly, I would say this is a great opportunity to collect data on referred students. Ask schools what they have on these students. What programs and structures are in place for students in the classroom, previous tests, language and writing samples, reading and spelling results. Share checklists with teachers and parents. As allied health, we don't always need to be assessing, so don't feel you can't contribute and use the plethora of data already available. Look closely at that data. Analyse it using your knowledge—your speech pathology training. This is your expertise, where you can add value. Teachers don't get the specific, literacy training that speech pathologists do. This is your time to shine, to continue making valuable contributions. We have WebEx, so you can still consult with teachers. Share your thoughts and consider the teacher's skills, the constraints of context, and decide what is reasonable to suggest. Take the teacher from where they are to the next

step. You only need suggest a few, small changes initially. You don't need grand plans. Maybe just think about what could be accomplished remotely and online. There's always new staff. Some are struggling to build rapport remotely. What can they do? This could be a confidence issue; understanding the gap between what they know and what teachers know. If this is the case, then they might build an understanding of the special skills they have to support language and literacy learning through discussions with teachers. Gathering data and asking questions is a good way to start a conversation without feeling like you're stepping on toes. More experienced speech pathologists can nurture confidence in new staff too. New staff should reach out to their colleagues. Any advice around how to manage school expectations? Schools probably understand all too well the constraints around what can and can't be achieved during a remote learning phase. If their expectations are too high, discuss the requirements for face-to-face testing and permit requirements to be onsite. Then work through this.

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Speak Out | October 2021