The Heritage school and many other prominent schools in Kolkata contribute for the disabled kids

Parmeet was not allowed to study computer applications as a subject in school because he was visually disabled. Following pleas from his parents, the school installed a specialised software to help students like him learn the subject.
By: Partha
 
 
How many schools think on these lines????
How many schools think on these lines????
June 8, 2010 - PRLog -- Sudha, a child with disability, was admitted to the Montessori section of a south Calcutta school. But as she grew older, the principal asked her parents to shift her to a different school.

How willing are city schools to admit children with disabilities? Are the schools equipped to provide children with disabilities the atmosphere to learn and grow? Do they encourage inter-mingling between children with disabilities and other students?

To find out answers to such questions, a group working with Child Relief and You (CRY), an NGO, conducted a study in more than 30 prominent schools in the city two years ago, revealing the abysmal status of inclusiveness in most institutions.

By inclusiveness, the group meant the readiness of a school to provide integrated and holistic education to children with disabilities.

The study showed that half the government schools and 36 per cent of private schools were not aware of the three per cent reservation for disabled children in government and government-aided schools provided under the Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995.

Despite policies and schemes such as the Integrated Education for Disabled Children Scheme, launched in 1974, to admit children with disabilities in regular schools, most schools do not admit children with disabilities.

“The percentage of disabled kids in government schools is only 0.16 whereas in private schools it is 0.31,” said Diya Deb, the co-ordinator of CRY.

And things haven’t changed much in the past two years, said the CRY volunteers who have been in touch with the schools surveyed.

Most of the schools, even those that have taken in one or two disabled students over the past few years, do not have the infrastructure in place to teach children with disabilities in regular classes.

“We do not have Braille books, so we cannot admit children with visual disability. We do not have ramps or special toilets, so our hands are tied when it comes to admitting children with physical disabilities,” said Malini Bhagat, the principal of Mahadevi Birla Girls’ Higher Secondary School.

Many schools don’t have provision for special educators trained in teaching kids with disabilities. “Our teachers are not trained to meet the needs of the disabled children,” added Bhagat.

The situation is, however, better in the new-age schools that have come up in the past few years.

Schools such as South City International School, Calcutta International School, The Heritage School, Apeejay School and even Birla High School have added the necessary infrastructure and even hired special educators.

South City International School opened up its gates to students with disabilities last year and 40 out of its 460 students have learning disabilities or autism or Down syndrome.

“Children with special needs respond better if they are in an inclusive environment and those without also become more tolerant towards them and learn to accept them,” said John Bagul, the principal of the school.

The school has a special educator and a counsellor. They also have an occupational therapist as a guest faculty.

The Heritage School has 70 children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Asperger syndrome. Calcutta International School has children with Asperger syndrome and mild dyslexia.

Akshar, a school that has been inclusive since 1990, caters to children with learning difficulties such as Down syndrome, slow learning, ADHD, autism and Asperger syndrome and also physical disabilities.

“In every class, 20 per cent of the children have special needs. We deliberately do not increase the number because inclusion requires attention and we also look at social integration that can happen with a smaller number. If it is a 50-50 ratio, children without disabilities might not come,” said Neena Singh, the executive director of Akshar.

They usually don’t come for admission is what the authorities of most regular schools say to explain why so few children with disabilities can be found in their classrooms.

But that is not surprising, feels Deb. “Lack of infrastructure is one of the main reasons why parents don’t take children with disabilities to the regular schools. The fear of mental block against them is also a deterrent,” said Shampa Sengupta, director, Sruti Disability Rights Centre.

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Source:Partha
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