People are unique, and so are their needs. Many children have special needs as a result of some kind of disability, be it physical or mental. That is where special education comes in. This kind of education aims to cater to those children who need more attention than an average child, using personalized methods that help them succeed. Special education is for those children whose ability to learn is affected by a disability, requiring additional resources to learn effectively.
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Children who require special education services might have hearing, visual or speech impairments, intellectual disabilities, emotional disturbances, traumatic injuries, autism, or developmental delays, among many other possibilities. This article explores the special education needs of children, and how people with special needs can be assisted to reach their true potential.
What does Special Education mean?
Special Education, referred to as SPED, is an education system that has been developed to meet the education needs of children with disabilities. The goal of this kind of education system is to provide equal and fair opportunities to all children. Special education enables a child to gain an effective and meaningful education by overcoming the challenges of their disabilities. It recognizes that education is not something that can be generalized, looking beyond the ‘one size fits all’ approach.
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Special education unlocks every child’s inner potential by tracing effective learning styles and the abilities of the children. Learning is customized to the requirements of each child in this case. Special education offers a broad range of services. Let’s understand how SPED provides a supportive and inclusive environment to special needs children.
- Individualized Education Programs (IEP): Each child is identified as an individual with their requirements. By understanding the educational needs, specialized learning plans are designed for every child, instead of coming up with a generalized curriculum.
- Speech Therapy: This kind of learning is catered to children with speech impairment. Different techniques are used to enhance a child’s communication skills. It focuses on skills such as language fluency and articulation and can help children with intellectual disabilities or developmental delays.
- Occupational Therapy: This helps students develop skills needed for everyday functioning. It focuses on the development of gross motor and fine motor skills, as well as self-regulation, enabling children to be able to take care of themselves in the long run.
- Adaptive Physical Education: Simplifying physical education by providing the right resources helps children with disabilities work on their motor abilities. It promotes physical fitness and helps in developing skills of navigation in their everyday lives.
- Specialized Instructional Techniques: A diverse range of learning styles are explored to find the right fit for every child. Using customized instructional techniques enables a child to be productive in what they are doing.
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Development of SPED:
While special education is seen to be constantly flourishing today, this wasn’t always the case. There was a time when all disabilities were looked down upon. Naturally, people didn’t care about providing aid in their education at the time. Techniques associated with special education only emerged during the Renaissance period. One of the earliest recorded instances of special education was that of the efforts of Pedro Ponce de León, who taught deaf people in Spain in the sixteenth century.
Although special education entered the societal circles then, efforts to teach people with visual impairments were only seen from the late 18th century. This kind of education became accessible to those with mental disabilities much later. Jean-Marc-Gaspard Itard was among the first to give origin to the attempts to educate people with intellectual disabilities. In his famous book, ‘The Wild Boy of Aveyron’, he talks about his efforts to educate a boy who was found in the woods of Aveyron.
By the late 20th century, special education became common in developed countries. Access to it continues to grow to this date. Laws such as the USA’s Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), 1975, make it possible to do so. In India, the establishment of the Rights of Persons with Disability Act, of 2016, replaced the PWD Act of 1995. These acts recognize the rights of disabled individuals and try to provide them with equal opportunities.
Challenges in SPED:
Although great efforts are made to constantly develop the quality of special education, some recurring challenges have been identified as a part of it.
- Parental Support: This differs from case to case, and the problem with parental support can go both ways. In certain situations, there is a lack of support due to the traditional ways of thinking that parents hold. In these cases, parents have problems accepting their children for who they are. This creates greater problems for the child in terms of mental health, as well as the support that they get. On the other hand, some parents try to overcompensate for their child’s disability. This hinders the process of special education and doesn’t allow the child to be independent.
- Discrimination: In many cases, children with disability are surrounded by people who look down upon them. Considering that, equal opportunities might be denied at a personal level. Although there are laws against it, personal bias comes into play and takes away opportunities from these children, even after they grow up and are capable of handling themselves.
- Inadequate Teacher Training: While many teachers and passionate about working with students with disabilities and helping them, they are unable to effectively do so. This is because they do not receive adequate training on how to approach these children. This is also a result of the lack of resources in organizations.
- Diversity in Special Needs: Due to the diverse nature of special needs, personalized teaching plans are developed for each student. This exponentially increases teacher workload, also affecting the quality of education being provided to each child.
- Lack of Resources: Many educational institutes that cater to children with disabilities often lack funds to obtain suitable resources for the education of disabled children. This reduces the quality of special education in many institutions.
Summing Up
Special education aims to provide disabled individuals with equal opportunities. It stresses inclusivity and enables these individuals to improve their quality of life. While it wasn’t always present, special education is seeing growth today. It is also backed up by laws against discrimination and those that advocate for the rights of disabled individuals. Special education provides personalized learning modules modified for each child, accommodating their needs and learning styles.
Special education goes beyond addressing the challenges faced by disabled individuals. It focuses on unlocking the true potential of these people and nurturing their abilities to make them more independent. People are unique, and so are their needs. Many children have special needs as a result of some kind of disability, be it physical or mental. That is where special education comes in. This kind of education aims to cater to those children who need more attention than an average child, using personalized methods that help them succeed. Special education is for those children whose ability to learn is affected by a disability, requiring additional resources to learn effectively.
Children who require special education services might have hearing, visual or speech impairments, intellectual disabilities, emotional disturbances, traumatic injuries, autism, or developmental delays, among many other possibilities. This article explores the special education needs of children, and how people with special needs can be assisted to reach their true potential.
References +- https://www.writinglaw.com/special-education-laws-in-india/#:~:text=Differently%2DAbled%20Children,-Differently%2Dabled%20children&text=A%20landmark%20special%20education%20law,equal%20opportunities%20to%20disabled%20persons.
- https://www.understood.org/en/articles/understanding-special-education
- https://www.teachtasticiep.com/post/the-top-10-challenges-of-special-education-teachers-teach-tastic
- https://online.purdue.edu/blog/education/what-is-special-ed
- https://www.britannica.com/topic/special-education
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