Special Education
By Faraz Khan
Islamabad
Special education is the practice of educating students in a way that addresses their individual differences and special needs. A few years ago, I got to work with the Government of Punjab in this area. This was a unique opportunity as it provided some insight into a neglected sector within Pakistan’s education landscape.
Article 25A of Pakistan’s Constitution directs the State to provide free and compulsory education to all children (ages five to sixteen). In practice, Pakistan has fallen far behind the curve. UNICEF figures depict an estimated 22 million children as currently out of school in Pakistan. This represents about 44 percent of the total population in this age group.
The situation in the special education sector is even more abysmal. According to official figures from the World Health Organization (WHO), the disability prevalence rate in Pakistan is around 13 percent. This means that almost 28 million Pakistanis suffer from some form of physical or mental disability. Poor children suffering from disabilities are often marginalized by families and communities, with limited assimilation with society at large.
My work took me to visit many of the special education institutions scattered around Lahore. As I interacted with students, I was immediately struck by their zest and affection. Many of the children wanted to befriend me and were eager to demonstrate newly acquired skills that they were learning. Also, I was pleasantly surprised by similar fervor shared by teachers and administrators of the schools caring for these children.
The goal of special education institutions is to provide quality education and learning to all special needs students. In addition, the focus is also on vocational training in order to provide an independent living and exit strategy for these individuals. The students are divided into categories based on their disability including hearing impaired, visually impaired, autism and all other categories. Based on these categories, many students with unique disabilities are often lumped together in the others category.
Special education requires special treatment from all stakeholders. A key obstacle has been inadequate resources allocated to children with special needs. Lack of legislation and policies adopted by the Government has further exacerbated the problem. A glaring deficiency of qualified specialist teachers and low retention rates have led to low quality education.
Individuals can also play an important attitudinal role in raising awareness for marginalized children. Disability as a concept is not understood or respected in our society. The loose use of insensitive and offensive terminology caricaturing these individuals needs to be expunged from common discourse. Mass media has to be enlisted and mobilized in public awareness campaigns, along with donations, to help play a role in elevating the lives and livelihoods of special needs students.
These children have the quest and motivation to learn and work hard. The challenge must be met by not depriving them of fair opportunities so that they feel included and valued as first-class citizens.
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