Department of Rehabilitation Sciences

Fern Silverman, BS OT, EdD, OTR/L

(215) 707-4879

Biography

Fern Silverman, BS OT, EdD, OTR/L received her BS in occupational therapy from the University of Pennsylvania and her masters and doctoral degrees in education from the George Washington University and Arcadia University, respectively. She has worked extensively in school-based programs providing OT services to children, and was the recipient of the Recipient of the 2006 Master Clinician award for the state of Pennsylvania, presented by the Pennsylvania Occupational Therapy Association, in 2006. She also received a grant from the PA Department of Education to provide inclusive occupational therapy services in local kindergartens in 2006-7.

Dr. Silverman teaches courses in the MOT program that focus on clinical conditions, theory, applied development, and occupations, particularly as they impact children. She also teaches an on-line course on environmental adaptations. Her research has focused on examining occupational therapy service negotiations in educational settings and reducing barriers to participation for families with children with disabilities. Dr. Silverman's work with local museums has provided a rich setting for service, scholarship, and student involvement in the community. Current interests include school-based OT service decision-making, inclusion, environmental adaptations in community-based settings, and universal design.

Course Involvement

OT 5004: Professional Concepts I
OT 5001: Applied Development Across the LifeSpan
OT 5002: Occupation in the Promotion of Health
OT 5011: Clinical Conditions I
OT 5101: OT Theoretical Perspectives on Children
OT 5161: Applied Research
OT 8121: Environmental Adaptation
OT 1001: Exploring Occupational Therapy

Publications/Presentations

Silverman, F. (2010, June). Linking Occupational Therapy and the ICF to enhance Participation of Families in Interactive Museums. Poster session presentation at the North American Collaborating Center Conference: Enhancing our Understanding of the ICF. NIH, Bethesda, Maryland. (Referred)

Silverman, F. (2010, May). Museums and children with disabilities: A pilot investigation. Poster session presentation at the American Occupational Therapy Association Conference, Orlando, Florida. (Referred)

Silverman, F. (2009, October). The Experience of Children with Disabilities in Museums. Conference session at the Pennsylvania Occupational Therapy Association conference, Pittsburgh, PA. (Referred)

Selected Publications:

Silverman, F. (2010). Teaching qualitative research methods using a simulation exercise. Education Special Interest Section Quarterly, 20 (2), 1-4.

Silverman, F. (2010). Reassessment and Reevaluation. Book chapter in Crist, P., Hinojosa, J, & Kramer, P. (Eds.), Evaluation: Obtaining and Interpreting Data, 3rd Edition. AOTA Press, Bethesda.

Silverman, F. & Bourke-Taylor, H. (2009). Access to occupational therapy in schools: An international perspective. Journal of Occupational Therapy, Schools, & Early Intervention, 2: 3, 193 -204. (Referred)

Silverman, F. & Millspaugh, R. (April, 2006). Physical Proximity of Occupational Therapy and Learning Support Instruction: How Room Sharing Can Promote Collaboration for Professionals and Success for Students. Teaching Exceptional Children Plus, Vol. 2, Issue 4.

Silverman, F. and Kolody-Cost, M. (April 17, 2006). Let's Get Ready. Advance for Occupational Therapy Practitioners, Vol. 22, No. 8.

Silverman, F., and Kolody-Cost, M. (2004). Let's Get Ready: A Developmental Motor Program for OT and Speech. Linguisystems, East Moline, Il.