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From: Bobby Childers
Date: 10/16/01
Time: 9:27:18 PM
Remote Name: 216.234.193.75
Shecoda:
Having just finished my undergraduate degree and now in graduate school, I thoroughly understand the fear and uncertainty you probably feel from time to time.
My student clinicians were young, energetic and willing to learn new and different things. They also wanted to try out their newfound skills and the theories that had been drilled into their heads. I used to be an Emergency Medical Technician Instructor (was an EMT-Paramedic for years), so I could understand how they felt and would react.
Being as I had been on both sides of the street so to speak, I was willing to try anything they might have, and they were willing to listen to me in return. Going through therapy, in my opinion should be a two-way street. The clinician tells/shows the client the various techniques available, and lets the client try them out for a few days. Then the client needs to tell the clinician how the techniques worked or didn’t work for them. If they didn’t work, the client should try to explain why they thought it didn’t work. Maybe they didn’t understand the procedure well enough, or the clinician explained it improperly. Either way, both the clinician and the client can (and should) learn from each other.
In the above type instance, the student clinician is probably better off to have an adult client as they will be more inclined to tell what works and what doesn’t, and will be better able to explain their reasoning. But even children or teens can work the clinician/client relationship the same way, but the clinician will have to be a little more adept or in tune with the client to really hear what is being said and what is not being said.
I am very grateful to my student clinicians and their faculty supervisor as they did teach me a lot about myself and my attitudes towards my stuttering. I just hope that I was able to teach my student clinicians a little about “real life” stuttering in return.
Good luck with your studies, the world needs more SLP’s like yourself and other student clinicians on this ISAD 2001 conference.---Bobby