Sensory Integration Education

Summary

Single module fee: £1,275

See the Entry Conditions

• 40 UK university academic credits - globally recognised and highly transferable
• 19-week course (fixed start and end dates)
• 70 hours of content + additional study time (including 30 clinical hours and 3 hours clinical mentoring)
• Personal eMentor to support your progress
• Online access to partner Sheffield Hallam University Library and Disabled Student Support
• Student discussions groups
• Optional Live weekly zoom sessions with your eMentor and fellow students
• Optional Live Assessment Q&A Zoom sessions
• Content will be available to you as a resource after assessment (12 months in total)
• Free Microsoft Office 365

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Overview

By the end of this module, you will be a fully qualified SI Practitioner and achieve your Postgraduate Certificate in SI. You can carry out intervention according to ASI® fidelity process elements (Parham et al. 2011) and evaluate Ayres Sensory Integration® intervention principles and practices. You will have at least 30 hours of practical intervention experience, and your learning will be supported by a clinical mentor. You will be able to evaluate information to reach safe, participation-orientated, person-centred decisions relevant to the assessment and management of people with sensory processing and integration challenges.

Assessments

This module has two assessment tasks. To pass, both tasks must be completed and passed.

Assessment Task 1:

100% of the module mark. 4000-word written assignment. This case study will require students to provide an evidenced-based justification for SI intervention in the clinical population of their choice and their intervention for a client from whom they have assessed.

This assessment task is completed offline. Students must complete it by a set hand-in date in the final week of the module.

Assessment Task 2:

Clinical Experience Hours - this assessment requires students to submit a log of 30 clinical hours demonstrating that they have engaged in assessments and interventions relevant to sensory integration theory and practice. You must also have 3 hours of clinical mentoring as part of this task.

This is a Pass/Fail assessment.

Weighting: it has no contributing mark.

This assessment task is completed offline. Students must complete it by a set hand-in date in the final week of the module.

Clinical Hours

You will need to undertake and log 30 hours of clinical experience. You will, therefore, need in person, direct face to face (not virtual) access to at least one client who would benefit from an Ayres Sensory Integration approach to intervention and for whom you can offer key aspects of SI management.

You can also split your clinical hours between working with several different clients and their families/carers. You do not have to work with just one client for all your clinical hours.

As we believe clinical experience is a wide area, we encourage you to explore many different aspects of SI practice. Your logged clinical experience could, for example, include observing a qualified SI practitioner in their practice, administering and interpreting assessment data for clinical decision-making, training and supporting carers or creating appropriate scaled goals for a client.

Alongside your logged clinical experience, you will complete two written assessments, which will contribute to your overall mark for the module. You will be given written guidance regarding the assessments, and we will support you with any queries you may have via your online forum group.

We will provide online opportunities for up to 10 hours of activities appropriate to the clinical experience requirement through the online part of the course. These will be in addition to the taught material, and these online clinical training resources are optional.

You might use these resources as part of your total of 30 hours and log 20 hours of clinical experience from your real clinical setting, or you can log 30 hours from your clinical setting without using the online resources.

We anticipate that it might be easier for some clinicians to log the time in the clinic as part of their everyday work rather than to set aside additional online time, and vice versa.

How will I be able to demonstrate the clinical skills gained in my clinical experience?

In SI Module 3: Clinical Reasoning and Practice in Sensory Integration: Intervention, you will be expected to log 30 hours of ASI clinical experience.

You will demonstrate the clinical skills gained from this experience by completing a case study for assessment task 1 and a clinical hours log for assessment task 2.

What if I work in a setting where this could be difficult?

We understand that working within an Ayres’ Sensory Integration (ASI) frame of reference will look quite different for some clinicians. We expect you to understand what constitutes Fidelity in ASI intervention to be able to justify practical and structural limitations and explain why you might not always be able to meet Fidelity for a particular client or setting.

Ayres’ Sensory Integration can make a big difference to the lives and participation of a wide range of clinical groups, and we are keen to ensure that we support your learning to practise SI in your settings in whatever form that takes.

ASI is often described as the place where science meets art, and we would be looking for evidence of your creative problem-solving and appropriate adaptations to therapy so that it remains true to the principles of Ayres' Sensory Integration within the confines of your clinical context.

We look forward to your exploration of the creative ways in which ASI is expressed across different professions and different settings.

Do I need to have access to specialist equipment or assessment tools?

The clinical experience aspect aims to help you work effectively with your real clients in your real clinical setting within an SI frame of reference.

This can be realised in many ways, and not all ASI interventions will fully comply with the Fidelity measure. You will not be penalised if you do not have access to suspended equipment or other resources, usually found in a dedicated ASI treatment space. We will look to see you applying the SI frame of reference appropriately to the demands and opportunities of your current clinical practice and for evidence of your developing clinical reasoning and intervention expertise.

There is no requirement to have access to a SIPT kit. The SIPT is still considered the gold standard assessment for praxis, and you might choose to interpret SIPT results carried out by a trained SIPT administrator as part of your clinical hours if this tool is appropriate for your client group. You may also wish to conduct a SIPT assessment under appropriate clinical supervision. If you are not using the SIPT, we expect to see you using other relevant standardised assessments and/or clinical observations in your setting for your particular client, supported by your decisions.

Mentoring

Why is mentoring included within SI Module 3: Clinical Reasoning and Practice in Sensory Integration: Intervention Requirements?

In line with professional good practice standards, clinical mentoring is included in SI Module 3: Clinical Reasoning and Practice in Sensory Integration: Intervention to enable you to:

• Support and enhance your SI practice for the benefit of service users;
• Develop skills in reflection to narrow the gap between theory and practice;
• Involve an SI Advanced Practitioner as a Clinical Mentor in your reflections and critical evaluations of practice.

How will I source a Clinical Mentor?

As you will be required to present evidence that you have undertaken three sessions of mentoring and supervision with your Clinical Mentor, two options are available for selecting a mentor. It is up to you which you choose.

Option 1:
If available, approach a clinician who is an SI Advanced Practitioner (qualified up to SI Module 4) in your current workplace.

Option 2:
Select an SI Advanced Practitioner (qualified up to SI Module 4) from the SIE Register of Clinical Mentors. This Register includes Advanced Practitioners with SI expertise in the following areas:

• Paediatrics
• Child and Adolescent Mental Health Adult Mental Health
• Forensics
• Attachment and Trauma
• Older Adults and Learning Disability

Mentoring Fees

If you select a workplace Clinical Mentor, they may agree to support you without remuneration or require a mentoring fee for sessions.

If you select a Clinical Mentor from the SIE Register of Clinical Mentors, their fee will be displayed on the Register, in addition to their clinical expertise, profession, and location.

Please note that the mentoring contract will be between you and the mentor. As these fees are external to the module's cost, you should make payments directly to the Clinical Mentor.

Currently, the fees on the Clinical Register are approximately £50.00 GBP per hour for mentoring sessions. You will need to arrange three mentoring sessions.

Clinical mentoring can be carried out using various methods, such as virtually (e.g., Skype), phone, or face-to-face. At the start of the module, you will be given full details of how to discuss and share clinical information with your Clinical Mentor to ensure client confidentiality and data protection compliance.

Clinical Mentoring FAQ

Can a Clinical Mentor provide more than three sessions per mentee?

There is no restriction on the length or the number of mentoring sessions if additional sessions are requested by the mentee and agreed upon by both parties.

Can Clinical Mentors provide mentoring to someone in their department or place of work?

Yes, they can do this if they and the mentee are satisfied that you will be able to provide objective feedback on their work.

Do Clinical Mentors have to travel to the mentees’ place of work for mentoring?

No, this is not a requirement. Mentees typically arrange mentoring sessions in a convenient venue for both parties. This can be face-to-face or online, via phone, Skype, Facetime, or similar.

Is it the Clinical Mentor’s responsibility to sign off the 30 hours of clinical practice for a mentee?

No, this will be completed by an identified person in the clinical hours setting /s.

Do I need a workplace mentor AND an SIE Clinical Mentor?

No. You will not need an SIE Clinical Mentor if your workplace mentor is approved.

If you have arranged an SIE Clinical Mentor for SI Module 3: Clinical Reasoning and Practice in Sensory Integration: Intervention, you do not need a workplace mentor.

Once I have completed my Postgraduate Certificate in Sensory Integration, is it a requirement to have ongoing clinical supervision with someone who is an Advanced SI Practitioner if I am using Ayres Sensory Integration ® (ASI) in practice? 

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