Laura Baxter

Gap period: Aug to Nov 2006

Hi,
I'm Laura. I am 23 and work as an Assistant Psychologist in the UK.

I wanted to take a break from work to gain experience living and working in a different culture. So far, I have settled into my project at the centre for autism, and taken a number of trips to Agra and the Himalayas. Over the next few months, I will be travelling to Jaipur and taking a Tiger Safari as well as continuing to gain experience in the field of autism!

Laura Baxter   Weekend Trip   Project in Agra   Arrival in Delhi

It seems like ages since I sent my first email, although it was only 2 weeks ago! I've done so much since I've been here, and there's not time to tell you all everything, so I'll try and give a brief summary! The weekend before last was my first proper one here... I met up with two other 'GapGuru' volunteers Hannah and Habibah. On the Sunday the three of us hired a car (and driver!) and went to Agra for the day - home of the Taj Mahal. We had an amazing day, seeing all the sights (and forts!!), before heading to the Taj in the afternoon. It sounds cheesy, but there really are no words to explain how amazing the Taj is - the first glimpse you get through the main gate is just completely overwhelming. I've taken loads of photos to show you all when I get back.

So, I guess I should really tell you all something about the project I came here to do rather than my social life?! The work itself is really varied...from 9.30-12.30 I am working on something called the 'mother-child programme'. This involves working with parents of children with autism, teaching them how to work with their children in order to get the best from them. It's so interesting to see how these approaches have been adapted for the Indian culture, and how the parents use them.

From 12.30-1.30 I usually observe an 'intervention', which is either a one-to-one session between one of the therapists and a child, or a counselling session with parents. This is really interesting, and some of the sessions have focused on similar issues to those I came across back home, for example how to help the parents manage behaviors at home, which do not seem to be present at school or vice versa.

From 1.30-2.30 I either have lunch with the teachers from the school, or with the people who work in the office. The teachers mainly speak in Hindi, which is obviously quite hard for me to follow, although I'm starting to understand some things!! Then from 2.30-5.30 I'm in the office or the library, doing some admin based work, or reading. I also attend some of the lectures which are run for the trainee teachers, which are really interesting.