Yesterday I gave the Bristol Speech and Language Therapy Research Unit Annual Lecture at Southmead Hospital as part of my Benjamin Meaker Visiting Distinguished Professor program.
Title: All Children Should be Seen AND Heard: The Importance of Communication so Children can Thrive
Abstract: Communication is a human right for everyone – including children. Being an effective communicator is essential for children’s belonging, being, and becoming – and their ability to thrive. The United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights describes our right to freedom of opinion and expression and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas. This right is echoed in the Convention on the Rights of the Child. This presentation will draw on extensive large-scale evidence regarding children’s communicative competence and capacity. Data from thousands of children within the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC) and the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) will be supplemented with insights from children’s drawings and insights. The communicative competence of multilingual children and families will be celebrated. This presentation will conclude with a range of solutions for international, interdisciplinary, and cross-sectoral change to enable children to be seen AND heard so they can thrive.
What a fabulous event - with people traveling from London, Worcestershire, Exeter and Cardiff to attend, including Steve Jamieson, CEO from the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT) and Emeritus Professor Sue Roulstone.
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| Steve Jamieson, CEO from the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT) |
