Assistant professor
College of Rehabilitation Sciences
Department of Occupational Therapy
R130-771 McDermot Avenue
University of Manitoba
Winnipeg, MB R3E 0T6
Email: clarice.araujo@umanitoba.ca
Clarice Araújo, PhD
Research achievements
Research summary
My research aims to advance equitable pathways to occupational participation for children and youth through collaborative knowledge creation and action. I investigate how occupation-based approaches can be co-developed with children, families, professionals, and communities as active partners in shaping and implementing rehabilitation practice and research across diverse cultural contexts. Central to my work is the belief that meaningful rehabilitation begins by understanding children's everyday participation and how family relationships, parenting, social conditions, and cultural contexts shape those opportunities. I explore how practices can build on the expertise, lived experiences, and ways of knowing within families and communities.
I am interested in children's voices and collaborative approaches that empower children and families to identify meaningful priorities and solutions within their own lives. My work spans neurodevelopmental and musculoskeletal conditions, with a primary emphasis on occupational participation and engagement, access, and the social and contextual factors that shape children's everyday lives.
Research themes
- Occupational participation and engagement throughout childhood
- Children's voices and choices in rehabilitation
- Occupation-based approaches (including the Cognitive Orientation to daily Occupational Performance – CO-OP Approach and Occupational Performance Coaching)
- Family-centred practices and outcomes
- Motor skill learning challenges in children with neurodevelopmental conditions
- Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD)
Keywords
- childhood-onset disabilities
- children
- collaborative knowledge creation
- cultural responsiveness
- equity
- family partnerships
- occupation-based practices
- pediatric rehabilitation
Teaching philosophy
My teaching philosophy is grounded in the principles of critical pedagogy. I view teaching as a transformative process, an opportunity to create conditions where students can integrate their socio-historical and cultural knowledge with scientific understanding in a respectful, ethical, and inclusive learning environment.
I view teaching as a reciprocal process; preparing to teach and engaging with students is a source of constant learning. I believe education is not only intellectual but also relational, encompassing affectivity, joy, technical mastery, and scientific ability in the service of change.
I am deeply committed to fostering students’ critical thinking while recognizing and celebrating diverse cultural backgrounds, lived experiences, languages, identities, and ways of knowing they bring to the classroom. By encouraging dialogue and questioning dominant assumptions, I support learners in developing curiosity, critical thinking, and an awareness of how history, culture, power, and inequity shape health, participation, and rehabilitation.
Biography
Clarice Araújo is an assistant professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy at the University of Manitoba's College of Rehabilitation Sciences. Her professional journey spans clinical practice, higher education, and international research collaborations, with a commitment to advancing equitable, relationship-focused pediatric rehabilitation.
Before joining the University of Manitoba, she worked as an occupational therapist, educator, and faculty member in Brazil, where she contributed to the development and implementation of occupation-based, evidence-informed approaches for children experiencing challenges in occupational performance, participation, and engagement. She has also coordinated international capacity-building initiatives with early childhood educators, health professionals, and community organizations across Brazil and Mozambique, supporting community-based approaches to child development and inclusion.
Throughout her career, Clarice has increasingly embraced collaborative and participatory approaches to research. Her work is grounded in partnerships with children, families, professionals, and people with lived experience to co-produce knowledge that is relevant, accessible, and meaningful for practice. These experiences have strengthened her ability to address systemic barriers, foster inclusive research partnerships, and develop culturally relevant resources for research, education, and clinical practice.
Education
Postdoctoral Fellowship in Rehabilitation Sciences, McGill University | Shriners Hospital for Children-Canada | Research Institute - McGill University Health Centre, Canada, 2023-2026
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Rehabilitation Sciences, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil, 2019
Master of Science (MSc) in Rehabilitation Sciences, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil, 2011
Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Occupational Therapy, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil, 2006
Awards
Post-Doctoral Fellowship in Child Health Research Excellence, 2025. (Research Institute – McGill University Health Centre & Montreal Children’s Hospital Foundation)
Post-Doctoral Fellowship, 2025-2026 (Special Program for International Collaboration, National Council for Scientific and Technological Development/ CNPQ, Brazil)
Contact us
College of Rehabilitation Sciences
P304 - 770 Bannatyne Avenue
University of Manitoba
Winnipeg, MB R3E 0W2 Canada
204-789-3897
204-789-3927