Exploring avenues in disability education
Disability education is one of the fastest growing areas in the educational sector. With newer perspectives such as inclusive education in place, the need for qualified special educators is on the rise.
Inclusive education is including children with disabilities in regular schools. This means, the teachers should be equipped to handle a class which has children with disabilities, M.N.G. Mani, Secretary General of the International Council for Educati
on of People with Visual Impairment, and a special educator for more than 25 years, said in an earlier interview with .
“A course in special education trains one in multisensory teaching techniques – using all the sensory faculties for conveying the idea to the students,” he added.
The Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda Educational and Research Institute offers more than 11 programmes recognised by the Rehabilitation Council of India in special education including graduation, post-graduation and diploma courses. It also offers a Ph.D programme in special education and rehabilitation. The M.Ed in special education has various specialisations such as visual impairment, hearing impairment and mental retardation.
Specific diploma programmes in computer applications for the disabled, sign language, and community-based rehabilitation are available. Students who have completed their Plus Two can apply for these diploma courses.
According to the officials of the University, though a lot of progress is taking place in disability education in India, awareness regarding disability education is dismal among the public as well as the policy makers. The special educators are not paid on a par with those in the regular education system. The compensation received by special educators is comparatively less, this creates a dearth of qualified personnel in the field of special educators.
The department of Special Education at the Avinashilingam University also offers a five-year integrated programme in Special Education and Rehabilitation, which includes B.Sc, B.Ed and M.Ed degrees. According to Premavathy Vijayan, professor and head of the department, a research project on “Early Intervention for Children at Risk of Disabilities” has been sanctioned for the University by the University Grants Commission.
The Government’s education for all project (Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan) has also made it mandatory for all teachers to undergo training in special education with an aim to sensitise to the requirements of children with disabilities in the classroom. More than 75,000 children with disabilities have been enrolled under the SSA project in Tamil Nadu, Mr. Mani said.
ANASUYA MENON
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