Eight students from the Department of Sociology, University of Macau (UM), and the Macau Child Development Association (MCDA) recently co-organised a forum on the current situation of children with learning and developmental disorders, in an attempt to draw the Macao SAR government’s attention to the acute shortage of resources for these children.
Eliana Calderon, president of MCDA, said at the opening ceremony for the forum that ever since its founding, MCDA has received generous support from society, but the limited resources still could not keep up with the growing number of children with learning and developmental disorders. At the opening ceremony Eliana appealed repeatedly to the Macao SAR government to address this issue to make sure that every child enjoys equal opportunity to education.
During the second part of the forum, a speech and hearing therapist and an occupational therapist shared their experience in treating children with learning and developmental disorders in Macao.
The eight students who co-organised the forum said that the idea of organising the forum was inspired by their teacher Dr. Choi Kai Yan. They said apart from this forum, they also co-organised another activity with MCDA earlier this year, which was a flag-selling activity to raise funds.
More than a hundred primary and secondary school teachers and parents attended the forum. After the forum, a parent said that her child has learning disorders, but because of the limited resources in Macao, her child has not been able to receive effective treatment. She said she hopes the Macao SAR government could address this issue as soon as possible.Should you have any enquiries about the information, please feel free to contact the Information Executives Ms Lei or Ms Fok at（853）8397 4325 or prs.media@um.edu.mo or visit UM webpage www.umac.mo.
