Educational Therapy in China

Abstract

Zhang and Miao’s 2022 research delves into special education governance, inclusive education (incorporating learning in regular classrooms), teacher dynamics, curriculum adjustments, the conventional ‘three basic disability types’, and the emergent category of Special Education Needs (SEN) in China. Their recent study broadens the focus from specific disability types to a broader spectrum of SEN, expedites policy formulation for China’s special education (especially, the inclusive education) advancement, and identifies curriculum reform as pivotal in bridging general and special education systems. However, there is no mention of educational therapy in the Chinese literature on SEN, but much has been already written and published on rehabilitation therapy (e.g., Fisher & Shang, 2013; Li, 2015; Qiu et al., 2017) in treating individuals with special needs or disabilities.

Officially, China does not have educational therapists for students with special needs, though it does have rehabilitation therapists to serve the rehabilitation needs of patients with chronic diseases and disabilities, postoperative dysfunction, and cognitive impairment (Sun et al., 2022), and these mainly senior or aging patients (Guo et al., 2022). Both educational therapy and rehabilitation therapy are two different professional domains of treatment. Educational therapy focuses on addressing academic challenges such as learning disabilities or attention deficits. It involves tailored strategies to enhance learning skills and academic performance. Rehabilitation therapy, on the other hand, aims to improve functional abilities, such as motor skills or speech, for individuals with physical or developmental disabilities. While both therapies aim to support individuals with special needs, they differ in their focus and methods of intervention.