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By presenting to High Schools in the community we can introduce the students to field of occupational therapy and hopefully spark an interest in those who may have an interest in choosing the field as a profession. .
High School Presentation Reflections
Oquirrh Mountain Middle School
On March 11, 2014 Jana and I presented to a group of twenty 7th-9th grade students for their Career Day. Before going to the Middle School I thought that the presentation would be a piece of cake. I was doing pretty well until one of the students asked me a question that I wasn’t prepared for. He asked me what the difference was between an Occupational Therapist and a Psychiatrist. My mind went blank and I struggled to come up with an answer. As I tried to explain, it became clear that I was not doing so well. Wendy, who was still there after her presentation to a different class, offered a wonderful explanation to the young man. I felt like an idiot, especially since I have a degree in psychology. I redeemed myself somewhat when I was able to answer the next student’s question—what’s the difference between PT and OT.
I really enjoyed the time I was able to spend teaching the students dressing techniques for someone who had lost function on one side of the body. Once I finished with my demonstration we had two students come up to the front and compete to see who could get dressed first with only using one hand. One of the students told me that his father had been working with an Occupational Therapist and he figured since he had observed those sessions he would be able to beat the other student no problem. I think he was really surprised when the other student finished before he did.
I think for the most part it went really well. I learned that I need to be prepared for any question. I know that in the future clients will have questions about the OT profession or other issues and I will need to be prepared answer or to direct them to another source to get those answers. I’m not sure that the psychiatry question will be asked of me again, but I will be ready!!
West Jordan High School Presentation
For the High school presentation Jana, Missy, and I went to West Jordan High School. We presented to a group of thirty two 10th graders. The instructor for this class was Steve Stevens.
We began our presentation with asking the students what they thought occupational therapy was. We received the common answer that it was to help people find jobs. We then explained what occupational therapy is and how we help people get back to doing the things that have meaning to them after an accident, surgery, or illness. The students asked a lot of questions and we each took turns answering which was really fun. We set out the different AE devices and had the students come up and write down what they thought the devices were used for. Some of them guessed correctly, others didn’t have a clue. It was really neat to observe their reactions to the different uses of the devices.
I really enjoyed doing this assignment this year. Last year our presentation wasn’t received as well, probably because we presented to Middle School students. The students this year were engaged throughout the presentation and came up when we were done and asked questions about the OTA program and what was required to enroll. Some of the students wanted to take pictures with us which made me feel like we made a connection. I am really glad that I was able to have this experience.