Sam Mallender
Social Science BA(Hons)
Social Science student Sam Mallender worked with an autistic child as part of the Community Participation and Development module.
My placement was in a private household working with a four year-old autistic girl. She was non-verbal and I ran one-to-one sessions with her, encouraging her to talk.
I went to her parents' house for two hours a week between October and May, which added up to the 50 hours required to complete the module. It was fantastic to see the progress she made from being completely non-verbal to acknowledging me by the time we finished. I had not done anything like that before. I really loved it and have learnt a lot from the experience.
I'm still in contact with the family. I had been thinking of entering teaching when I complete my degree but because of the experience on my placement I am now considering specialising in special needs teaching.
