Individual differences in human beings provide a
strong basis for the emergence of special education. The differences are used
for classifying children into special schools, classes, or ability groupings
this is called inter individual differences. Intra individual differences are
used to plan for, organize and implement instructional programme for a
particular child in order to ameliorate his limitations. These differences are
classed as:
(a)
Exceptional: The
exceptional child is that child who deviates from the average or normal or set
standard in classroom or outdoor activities like sports, sensory activities
like seeing and hearing – positive or negative
(b)
Handicapped: A
handicapped person is the person who has lost part of his body and cannot
function when the need of the use of that part of the body arises e.g when a person losses two eyes
and could no longer read print for life.
(c)
Disabled: A
disabled person is that person who loses part of the body and can still
function when the need of the use of that part of the body arises e.g. on eye,
leg, hand.
(d)
Physically
challenged is a physical disability or impairment, especially one that limits
mobility – has a problem with their body that makes it difficult to use the
part.
NATIONAL POLICY ON SPECIAL EDUCATION (OBJECTIVES)
1.
To give concrete
meaning to the idea of equalizing educational opportunities for all children,
their physical, mental, emotional disabilities notwithstanding.
2.
To provide
adequate education for all handicapped children and adults in order that they
may fully play their roles in the development of the nation.
3.
To provide
opportunities for exceptionally gifted children to develop at their own pace in
the interest of the nation’s economic and technological development.
GOVERNMENT INVOLVEMENT, PLANS OR EFFORTS
TO ACHIEVE THE OBJECTIVES
1.
The federal
ministry of education is to set up a committee to coordinate special education
activities.
2.
A census of all
handicapped children will be taken
3.
Provision for
training of teachers will be made
4.
Introduction of
elements of special education into all teachers training curriculum.
5.
Encourage integration
of handicapped children into regular schools (inclusion)
6.
Establish special
programme for the gifted.
7.
Education of the
handicapped and gifted to be free at all levels.
8.
Establish
vocational training schools and employment for all handicapped individuals.
9.
Encourage early
identification and intervention
10.
Establish a
national council on special education
Government
has been able to meet with some of these plans but failure to meet up with
others has proved to be set back in achieving the objective.
ADMINISTRATIVE STRUCTURES AND RESOURCES
FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION IN NIGERIA
A. Administrative structures (various
schools and programmes)
1. Regular school programme in a school
compound
- Class placement with non-handicapped
children
- Resource
room placement for exceptional children with special teachers
- Itinerant
teacher programme – traveling teacher visit regular school to help exceptional
children.
2. Special
school programme for exceptional children only
3. Non-educational
setting- some handicapped who cannot go to the above programmes are taught by
special teachers at home or hospital bound setting.
CRITERIA FOR
PLACEMENT IN PROGRAMMES
There are four main criteria:-
1. Level
of impairment – Mildly handicapped children are integrated. Severely impaired
children (the blind, deaf, mentally retarded) are placed in special schools.
2. Level
of intelligence- Average gifted children are main- streamed while main gifted
children are placed in the special school for the gifted.
3. Availability
of required resources e.g special teachers, curriculum, equipment for
exceptional children are located.
4. Type
of handicap- Blind children are sent to school for the blind, deaf children to
school for the deaf. Mentally retarded are sent to school for the mentally
retarded, so are the learning disabled.
RESOURCES FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION IN
NIGERIA
There are four groups:-
(1) Human resources: These refer to
professionals in special education and in related fields. They manage the other
resources for the benefit of exceptional children.
(2) Physical facilities: These are
institutions/ centres for providing services for exceptional children e.g
resource rooms, special schools, regular schools, rehabilitation centres,
assessment and guidance centres, clinic, Braille press, physiotherapy centres
etc
(3) Equipment: are machines/ aids used in the
education of exceptional children e.g Braille machine, audiometres (for testing
hearing ) over-head projectors for teaching deaf children, hearing aid, wheel chairs assessment equipments for
the learning disabled, daily living skill materials for the mentally retarded,
equipments for the physically disabled etc.
(4) Special Materials: These include regular
materials that are adapted for their use e.g. Braille paper, adapted ruler for
he blind, assessment test materials for the disabled, identification materials,
teaching materials for different types of handicapped children.
THE EXCEPTIONAL CHILD: CATEGORIES AND
IDENTIFICATION GIFTED AND TALENTED AND SOLID LEARNER AND LEARNING
DISABILITIES
1. The
usually impaired – difficulties with vision – use eye glasses or blind or
defect.
2. The
hearing impaired – difficulties with hearing, ask repeat watch lips etc
3. The
mentally retarded characteristics- small head, big head, poor memory in degrees
very slow learner, below average intelligence
4. Behaviour
disordered – emotionally disturbed isolated and withdrawn maladjusted deviant –
fight, steel etc.
5. Physical
and health impaired – crippled, deformed, epilepsy,
6. Gifted
and talented and show learners (exceptional children)
7. The
learning disabled
8. The
speech disordered.
Impairment means- malformation/ abnormalities or
illness related.
GIFTED AND
TALENTED AND SLOW LEARNERS/ CHILDREN
(Intellectual
Performance)
The average child, the above and below average
children present problems often beating the professional competence of the
teacher. How does the teacher cope with this mix ability problem of children
without favouring some and disadvantaging others. Gifted and talented child is
one who performs consistently above average in classroom work and in some
specific non-academic fields such as games, arts, music, fast in learning,
curious, easily frustrated if not encourage. A slow learner is one how is
sufficiently below average in intelligence and in learning subjects. He can
progress if the teacher gives him a closer attention.
THE LEARNING
DISABLED CHILD
This is the child who finds learning very difficult.
This child gives you concern because he will not improve no matter the effort
you put into his learning. He finds it difficult in speech, writing, reading
and calculation. This is the area referred to as learning disabilities.
Learning disability is different from mental retardation.
How to
identify learning disabilities
1.
He is confused
and unable to understand simple language used in the classroom.
2.
has difficulties
in following simple oral instruction
3.
does participates in classroom discussion
4.
make errors like
a small child
5.
make incomplete
sentences
6.
unable to retell
stories
7.
unable to read
simple books
8.
writes words and
letters backwards
9.
finds it
difficult in using his hands and eyes together
SPEECH AND LANGUAGE DISORDERS – (Down syndrome and autistic children: Our
indigenous languages are different from foreign languages(English, French etc)
in articulation and pronunciation. Young children are familiar in their mother
tongue before coming to school to learn English. This leads to language
disorders.
How to identify speech and language
disorder
1.
Mispronunciation
of vowels and consonants
2.
As an adult or
adolescent talks like a baby
3.
nasalized speech
4.
pronunciation and
repetition of sounds (stammers)
5.
Ditch level too
high or too low (voice)
6.
permanent loss of
voice
7.
omission of some
sounds
8.
speaks too fast
EDUCATING CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS IN
THE CLASSROOM
What is Special need?
Special need is a need that is
unique or peculiar to certain category of people. The need is special in the
sense that other people do not need it.
Children with special needs are
those who have either above or below average intellectual ability or who have
various impairments both of which warrants special education assistance for
them to function, effectively without which they will be disadvantaged in class
or activity.
They are not like other children
because:
1.
They have higher/lower
intelligence
2.
they have
impaired sensory organs.
Take for instance: a child with hearing impairment
requires mobility and orientation and Braille instructions as his special needs
for movement and learning.
Components
of special needs include:
1.
Modification of
school practices
2.
special education
assistance
3.
modification of
school environment
4.
favourable
attitudes of school towards the children
5.
special
teacher
6.
special materials
and equipment
WAYS OF EDUCATING CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL
NEEDS
The same principles, procedures and techniques of
teaching non-handicapped children are used for exceptional and impaired
children. However, there are certain areas that need more emphasis.
1.
Arrangement of
the school to facilitate greater learning of the children
2.
consideration of
the children while teaching in the class
3.
individualized
attention
4.
making children
feel they are part and parcel of the class
5.
tolerating their
limitations.
6.
use their
experiences and interest while teaching to make learning more interesting and
relevant
7.
extensive use of
learning materials
8.
assistance of the
special teacher where available in teaching special skills e.g Braille
9.
proper
understanding of the children to better appreciate their instructional needs.
10.
using the regular
school curriculum and ensuring they participate in it.
ROLES OF REGULAR TEACHERS IN EDUCATING
CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS
1.
Accept the child
as he or she is rather than as you want him to be.
2.
Co-operate with
the special teacher for greater effectiveness in teaching the child.
3.
Be friendly and
accessible to the child
4.
Motivate the
child to perform higher than the limits of his/ her ability
5.
Provide for a
rich social exchange between the child and his/her peers.
6.
Provide additional
assistance if the child needs it.
7.
Involve the child
in all school curriculum activities
8.
Give the child
opportunity for leadership in the class
9.
Encourage other
children to help the child in the class
10.
Prepare needed
materials for the child.
MAINSTREAMING, INTEGRATION AND INCLUSION
Mainstreaming
means the provision of the same educational process or operation to the
handicapped without separation from the normal non-handicapped person. This
term has been used interchangeably with the word “integration” of the handicapped
into regular education process. Mainstreaming involves individualized
child-centre programme within the regular process of education – the Childs
needs, human and material resources, structural learning environment, special
classes etc.
INCLUSION: UNESCO, 2005 defined
inclusion as: A process of addressing and responding to the
diversity of needs of all learners through increasing participation in
learning, cultures and communities and reducing exclusion within and from
education. It involves changes and modifications in content, approaches, structures
and strategies, with a common vision which covers all children of the
appropriate age range and a conviction that it is that it is the
responsibilities of the regular system to educate all children.
Education for children with special
needs in the past was in segregatory setting based on the defect or the “within
– child model” which see disability as being within the individual.
Campbell and Oliver, 1996; Mittler
2000 states that by this model, the society and its institutions are
oppressive, discriminatory and disabling
and that attention needed to be focused on the removal of obstacles to the
participation of people with disability in the life of the society and in
changing institutions, regulations and attitudes that created and maintained
exclusion.
The
United Nations General Assembly’s declaration in 1975 that “No society can deny
a person the right to participant in the life of the community to earn a proper
wage and to live a full life as others first because he is disabled in some
way”. But experience and studies have shown that many countries discriminate
and exclude children with disability in regular schools. No one is saying that
accommodating children with special needs in regular schools is not without
hard work, sacrifice or limitations. Granted there are barrier factors but such
factors can be overcome. For it is said that where there is a will there is a
way. The advantages of inclusion far outweigh the limitations. Policy makers,
head teachers, teachers and even parents should work collaboratively adopting
fully inclusive approach to make education for all a reality.
AFRICAN THINKERS COMMUNITY OF INQUIRY
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION (NCE PROGRAMME)
2ND SEMESTER EXAMINATION
SPECIAL EDUCATION
EXAM QUESTIONS
(Choose any five to answer three only)
1. Define
with an example the following terms
(a) Exceptional
child (b) handicapped child (c)
disabled child
(d) physically challenged person
2. What
administrative structures resources are needed for special education?
3. How
special is special education
4. List
the (8) eight special need areas
4b. Who are
the down syndrome and autistic children
5. What
is your view about mainstreaming and inclusive education?
AFRICAN THINKERS COMMUNITY OF INQUIRY
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION (NCE PROGRAMME)
2ND SEMESTER EXAMINATION
SPECIAL EDUCATION
EXAM QUESTIONS
(Choose any five to answer three only)
1. Define
with an example the following terms
(a) Exceptional
child (b) handicapped child (c)
disabled child
(d) physically challenged person
2. What
administrative structures resources are needed for special education?
3. How
special is special education
4. List
the (8) eight special need areas
4b. Who are
the down syndrome and autistic children
5. What
is your view about mainstreaming and inclusive education?