Key Elements of Conductive Education

Conductive Education is a holistic approach. Conductive Education is a pedagogy and therapy which combines educational, pedagogical and medical principles to each person with movement disability to reach their potential to live a self-determined life.

Conductive Education as a system has the following significant elements:

  • Group, Facilitation
  • Daily Routine
  • Rhythmic Intention
  • Conductive Observation
  • Task Series
  • Conductor

A person as a unified whole
The approach is based on the assumption that the individual’s personality is constantly evolving and changing and is seen as a unified whole.

Continuity and consistency
Continuity is considered necessary to reinforce a new skill. An opportunity to use the same skill for many different tasks is also considered essential. The system has to provide possibilities for children to practice emerging skills not only in specific learning situations but in the many inter-connecting, in-between situations of which life consists, eating, drinking, toileting, etc. In order to achieve this, Conductive Education turns any given part of a person’s day into a learning situation.

Tools of Conductive Education

Conductor
The Conductor is the professional who is responsible for the training programme, based on Petös philosophy and relevant practice. S/he is responsible for the planning and implementation of the whole learning process.

Petö approach
Pető asserted that restoring the interrupted learning process is not possible without the active participation of the individual and that consequently passive exercises or patterns cannot change or improve the functional stage of the individual, by helping him/her do it themself. Conductive Education is based on the motivation of a person.

In Pető’s system, the individual is not a recipient of treatment, s/he is an active participant in the learning process.

  • Petö furniture piece: One wooden walking ladder.
    Walking ladder
  • Petö Furniture: Wall ladder, slattered table. One chair, two stools.
    Slatted tables
  • Petö Furniture. Wall ladder
    Wall ladders
Key ring with 6 keys resembling the elements of conductive education. Attached to the ring are three lables: 1) ECA Logo 2) Text: Keys of Conductive Education 3) Wheel chair crossed out with an arrow pointing to a Petö chair.