EDUCATION OF HANDICAPPED
The Argument The NPERC is generally in agreement with the directives of the NPE as far as the education of the handicapped is concerned, except in the following respects:
- Special 'schools have been isolated from the supervisory infrastructure available for other educational institutions.
Under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Integrated Education for the Disabled Children (IEDC) an attempt is being made to provide educational opportunities for the disabled children in common schools thereby mobilising the education system for the education of the handicapped. Special schools are for severely handicapped children who cannot be integrated with normal children. Their educational requirements cannot be taken care of in the general schools as they would need individualised attention of a special kind which the school teachers would not be able to give. Their needs are more for daily living skills and rehabilitation which is the responsibility of the Ministry of Welfare. The supervisory infrastructure for general educational institutions is not equipped to supervise special schools because of their special requirements and needs. The National Institutes for the Handicapped under the Ministry of Welfare ;are doing research and development, teacher training, etc. for the education and rehabilitation of the handicapped. Hence special schools should continue to be the responsibility of the Ministry of Welfare. They are, however, being used as resource centres under IEDC.
SUMMARY - The perspective of NPE is to provide a wide range of facilities for the education of the handicapped by involving various agencies. The thrust is to provide education of the handicapped along with the normal children.
- Special schools require special back-up support which can be provided only by the Ministry of Welfare and hence they should continue to be under that Ministry
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Recommendations No.86 to 101 The recommendations made by the NPERC are very useful and relate to strategies of implementing programmes for the education of the handicapped. They do not have policy implications. The recommendations concern several Ministries/Departments who should keep these in mind while implementing various programmes for the education, training and rehabilitation of the handicapped.
The recommendation regarding use of Media for creating awareness about the problems of the handicapped is unexceptional. Media support should be used for this purpose on a decentralised basis in the regional languages. It has been suggested that every family with a handicapped child should be provided support through incentives and training. While this may be a desirable goal, it would be difficult for the Central Government to provide financial support to every family with a handicapped child. Parents groups and community education groups can be formed at the school level for facilitating the education of the handicapped children and other support that may be required by the families of such children.
The need for a flexible approach to education of the disabled is accepted. Education of the handicapped is already being provided through a variety of means like special schools, special classes in general schools, and integrated education with normal children. The National Council of Educational Research and Training, the National Institutes of the Handicapped under the Ministry of Welfare and voluntary organisations specialising in education of the handicapped are developing and using a variety of educational packages. The National Institutes of the Handicapped are making efforts to produce material on a wide range of subjects to meet the needs of different disabilities. It has been suggested a special curriculum for moderately mentally handicapped children be developed with emphasis on social adaptation and vocational training. This is a welcome suggestion and the NCERT would be requested to do so in consultation with experts.
Vocational training to the handicapped is being provided by the Ministry of Labour through special ITIs, by the Ministry of Welfare through the National Institutes of the Handicapped as well as through non-formal training programmes mostly run by voluntary
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organisations. These are, however, not adequate and there is a need to organise More diversified vocational training programmes which are specifically job linked to cover as large a number of handicapped persons as possible. It has been suggested that for the mentally retarded adults jobs in sheltered workshops, farms and industries should be provided on sub-contract basis after they have been suitably trained. While this may be desirable, it will be difficult to implement on a large scale. A few experimental centres could be established in collaboration with various developmental departments including Welfare, Labour, Rural Development, Agriculture and Industries.
Under the scheme of Integrated Education for Disabled Children, assistance is being provided to States/UTs for organising inservice training programmes for general teachers to sensitise them to the educational needs of the handicapped. The NCERT has already included education of the handicapped in their preservice teacher training programmes. The State Governments/UT administrations should also do so. Special Education Departments have also been established in a few Universities/Colleges of Education. The recommendation that each DIET should have one resource faculty to provide teacher training inputs in the context of education of the handicapped is desirable, but can be implemented in a phased manner depending upon the availability of trained personnel. The NCERT is already conducting multicategory teacher training programmes which would equip the teachers to deal with educational requirements of all handicaps. They can also take up the training of resource persons for DIETs. This effort would, however,need to be supplemented by the States through their teacing training colleges.
A Science and Technology Mission for the benefit of the handicapped is being implemented by the Ministry of Welfare under which various projects are funded for developing aids for the handi- capped, research for producing technological aids and new materials etc. The IITs are also involved in this work. IIT, Delhi has earmarked 2 M.Tech fellowships in the area of rehabilitation in the Centre for Biomedical Engineering. Modalities for offering these fellowships are being processed. IIT, Madras has decided to earmark, from 1992-93 onwards, 2 scholarships, 1 for MS and 1 for PhD programmes in the Biomedical Engineering Division of the Department of Applied Mechanics. The IITs at Kanpur and Kharagpur have not earmarked separate fellowships for rehabilitation engineering, but they have
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faculty members with interest in the area of area of rehabilitation techniques and the necessary R&D facilities to work in the area of rehabilitation.
The IIT, Bombay is already involved in the development of materials for the Jaipur foot and a programme to develop aids for spastics is also going on. The Institute has slated that it would encourage M.Tech projects in the area of rehabilitation.
The comments of the Ministry of Welfare on the recommendations of the NPERC are enclosed.
SUMMARY - Recommendations made relate to strategies of implementation and not policy.
- Suggestions are useful and different implementing agencies should keep them in mind.
- Efforts to develop and disseminate appropriate teaching and learning materials for all disabilities should be intensified.
- Education of the handicapped needs to be include in preservice and inservice teacher training programmes.
- More and diversified vocational training programmes for the disabled should be provided by the concerned implementing agencies.
- Efforts under the S&T Mission to promote research for developing new materials and devices for the handicapped shoud be continued.
Developments since NPE 1986 The ongoing Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Integrated Education for the Disabled Children (IEDC) was thoroughly reviewed and revised in 1987-88. Besides rationalising some of the existing provisions, new incentives for children and assistance for preparation of instructional materials for various kinds of disabled children were also introduced. It was also suggested that instead of selecting a fee isolated schools for implementation of the Scheme, whole blocks should be selected for operation of the scheme. The objective of the scheme is to provide educational opportunities for the disabled
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children suffering from locomotor or other mild handicaps,in common schools Other disabled children who are placed in special schools should also be encouraged for integration in the common schools , once they acquire the communication and daily living skills at a functional level.
The scheme provides for 100% financial assistance to State Governments/UT Administrations/Voluntary Organisations for creating necessary facilities for the disabled children in the common schools. Admissible items of expenditure include various facilities for the disabled children like books and stationery allowance, transport allowance, uniform allowance, readers' allowance for the blind children, escort allowance for the severely orthopaedically handicapped children, equipment allowance and, wherever necessary, hostel charges. Besides, the scheme also provides for meeting the cost of salary and incentive for special teachers, setting up of resource rooms in schools, training of teachers and administrators, removal of architectural barriers in schools, development and production of instructional material, etc.
At present the scheme is being implemented in over 6000 schools in 22 States/UTs, namely Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Nagaland, Orissa, Karnataka, Kerala, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Tamil Nadu, Manipur, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Punjab, Goa, Andaman & Nicobar Island, Daman & Diu and Delhi with a coverage of about 28,000 children. This figure includes only those children who receive special assistance under the scheme and it does not include those with very mild disabilities. According to NCERT, for every one disabled child receiving benefits under the scheme, 5 other disabled children receive indirect benefit through trained teachers and special teaching learning aids.
In addition, the Project Integrated Education for the Disabled (PIED), designed to strengthen implementation of IEDC, is being implemented since 1987 in selected areas and is jointly funded by UNICEF and the Government of India. The PIED is being implemented on an experimental basis in one block each in the States of Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Nagaland, Orissa, Rajasthan
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and Tamil Nadu as well as the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and Baroda. The project envisages coverage of children with all disabilities including the mentally and physically handicapped. The broad outlines of the project are:
(i) Composite area approach to planning and management of educational facilities for children with disabilities;
(ii) Utilisation of the general education infrastructure through training and support from multi- category trained resource teachers;
(iii) Utilisation of available structures from other sectors like health, welfare and women and child development to support rehabilitation aspects-
(iv) Provision of special teaching learning aids and equipment based on functional assessment;
(v) Mobilisation of parents and community support; and
(vi) Continuous monitoring of progress of the children in the project area.
The NCERT is the implementing agency for this project. According to information furnished by NCERT (August 1991) about 12,914 disabled children are receiving services under this project.
The National Council of Educational Research and Training established Special Education Units at the headquarters and in the Regional Colleges of Education in 1986 for the development of instructional material for teachers, prototype teaching learning aids to facilitate education of disabled children in general schools, training of staff for the IED Cells in States/UTs and faculties of University Departments and Colleges of Education and DIETs. It has developed 14 books for teachers and teacher educators on different areas of disability, 10 video programmes and tape slides on creative arts for disabled children.
SUMMARY - Presently being implemented in 22 States/UTs
- Coverage approximately 28,000 disabled children in over 6000 schools.
- PIED being implemented on an experimental basis in one block each in 8 States and 2 Municipal Corporations with a coverage of about 12,914.
- NCERT providing support to the programme through training of faculty and teachers and development of teaching learning material.
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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WELFARE
R.S. Pandey 3.3.91 Joint Secretary Dated, New Delhi 11001, the
Dear Smt. Mehra,
Kindly refer to your d.o . No. 1-1/91 -IE dated 15th February 1991. Out comments are as follows:
i) We entirely agree with the comments and recommendations of Acharya Ramamurti Committee REport.
ii) In order to process the report and to work out a definite target and financial implications thereof, which has not been mentioned in the Review Report, a Committee having representatives from the Departments of Welfare, Education, Ministry of Labour, Department of Expenditure, Planning Commission, National Institutes on Disability, may be constituted.
iii) Although National Policy of Education had recommended setting up of 400 special schools and this was the responsibility of the Department of Education no progress could be made in this regard since 1986. The Department of Education's plan and budget for education of the handiicapped should include other items also such as special schools, special classes in normal schools, non-formal methods of education etc., besides the existing programme of integrated education.
iv) Specialised institutes such as polytechnics should have provision for providing vocational training to the handicapped for which some of these polytechnics may have to be specially equipped. Since education of the handicapped is entirely linked with various other programmes such as creation of awareness, provision of aids and appliances, development of manpower such as teachers' training etc . , a Standing Committee consisting of the representatives of Departments of Welfare, Education, Ministry of Labour,should be constituted to coordinate and monitor the programmes of education of the handicapped from time to time. Similar Committees be set
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up at the level of States.It has been notices that facilities for provision of aids and appliances under the integrated education scheme is not even known to people worlking for the handicapped in the States and Districts. This Standing Committee may also review various researches undertaken by various agencies from time to time and try to integrate their results in the educational programmes for the handicapped.
Yours sincerely,
(R.S. Pandey)
Smt. Renuka Mehra, Deputy Educational Adviser, Department of Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Shastri Bhavan, NEW DELHI-110001
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