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Making Inclusive Education A Reality
Inclusive education is primarily about restructuring
school culture, policy and practice so that it responds to the diversity of
students in the locality. It sees individual differences not as problems to be fixed, but as opportunities
to enrich learning and embrace change
“A society that has no
vision for the education of children and youth
and is not prepared for
the same, is doomed to die.”
....Mahatma Gandhi
Education
is the right of every child for that is what equips him to meet the challenges
of life. Children with disabilities need this all the more, to supplement their
different talents so that they can prepare themselves for a happy, productive
and useful life. Apart from formal education, per se, children with
disabilities have also to contend with several issues connected with their
disability, such as attitude of the society, lack of employment opportunities and
health concerns. These issues have been topics of deliberation at various fora
within the country and across the world including the United Nations. It is
widely recognized that much more needs to be done to integrate children and
adults with disabilities in the mainstream.
The Reality
India
has the second largest education system in the world, with more than 200
million school aged children. 6 to 14 years of these approximately 20 million (10
per cent) do not have access to regular education (as per NSSO 2002 &
Census 2001). While the national average of enrolment in schools is over 90 per
cent, less than five per cent of children with disabilities are enrolled in schools.
Moreover, about 40 per cent of these children are not able to complete the first five years of basic education, while another 20 percent
leave school prior to the completion of three years of free and compulsory
schooling as mandated by our Constitution.
The
Constitution of India enshrined that elementary education is a fundamental right
of every child. The
same has been reiterated in several international instruments like the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948 and the Biwako Millennium Framework
for action towards an inclusive, barrier-free and right-based society. The
National Policy on education states - “In our national perception, education is
essentially for all… Education has an
acculturating role. It refines sensitivities
and perceptions that contribute to national cohesion, a scientific temper and independence of mind and spirit”. The country also has a national policy for
persons with disabilities framed by the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment. The policy reflects their concern and recognizes that persons
with disabilities are a valuable human resource and seeks to create an
environment which provides them equal opportunities, protects their rights and
ensures full participation in social and community activities. This in itself includes
children with disabilities.
