Accessible education for children with special needs

Education is one of the most crucial basic rights for all children. Children with special needs also have an equal right to educate themselves. Education may impact their everyday lifestyle. It may also improve personal development and increase people's independence in their daily lives.

Education is most challenging for children with special needs. There are a number of disabled children who have physical and psychological problems. Some children with special needs get the chance to enroll in school. Severely disabled children have difficulty attending school. 

According to Bangladesh Education Statistics Report 2018, there were approximately 46,000 children with disabilities enrolled in government primary schools.

There are numerous challenges faced by students with special needs. There are listed below: 

1. Students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or cerebral palsy (CP) may write or read slower than other normal students. For that reason, they and their parents feel dissatisfied with their school performance. They need more time and extra care to cope with this situation.

2. Student with special needs feels distracted in a disorganised classroom. They are not attentive to the teachers. So, the classroom should be well decorated. This can help to increase their performance.

3. Some students with special needs face difficulty making friendships. Normal students do not want to make friends with students from special schools. They try to isolate and give different types of stigma. In this situation, their teacher may socialise with new peers and learn from one another's unique strengths and knowledge. This type of peer monitoring may help students develop social skills, independence, and problem-solving skills.

4. Inaccessible classrooms may hamper the education of students with special needs. The maximum classroom has stairs to enter the classroom. In this situation, we need to talk with the authorities about building a ramp. Additionally, accessible doors need to be ensured for wheelchair-user students. 

5. Some teachers lack knowledge about the learning procedures of students with special needs. They need extra care, modification, and an individual education plan (IEP) as a course module. So, teachers should be trained to handle these challenging issues. 

Education facilities and participation is one of the basic rights for children with special needs. To fulfill this basic right, the government focuses on accessibility in education. Accessibility means removing barriers that hamper a child's education. Disabled children need to make their environment accessible. 

According to the National Education Policy 2010, the government follows the following strategies for physically challenged students:

1. The lavatory facilities and the scope of smooth movement will be adequately designed and created with special attention in order to fulfill the special needs of the physically challenged.

2. Special and preferential attention will be given to their needs.

3. At least one trainer will be recruited in each of the PTIs to meet the special teaching methods and needs of various types of challenged learners.

If proper education is achieved, then other rights such as job accessibility, participation at the economic and national level, or any other right granted by the government are likely to be easily obtained.

The writer is an occupational therapist at the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the National Institute of Neurosciences and Hospitals (NINS & H).

Email: rabeya1988@gmail.com