Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Best Practices CBR PDF
Best Practices CBR PDF
Best Practices CBR PDF
EDUCATION
& COMMUNITY-BASED
PROGRAMMES
ILO
I. Benko, E. Gajeiro, L. Quanju, W.
Shaoye
UNESCO
P. Almasy, I. Forbes, D. Roger
UNRWA
M. Arjavirta
For information:
UNESCO
Special Education
7 place Fontenoy
75 352 Paris 07SP
France
Fax: 33-1-40 65 94 05
Tel: 33-1-45 68 11 37
Preface
Page
1. AUSTRIA
Integration models for elementary and secondary schools in Austria 1
by Volker Rutte
2. CHINA
Integrated Education Project, Anhui Province 9
by Janet C. Holdsworth
3. GHANA
The Community-based Rehabilitation Programme in Ghana 17
by Lawrence Ofori-Addo
4. GUYANA
Involvement of volunteers, parents and community members 25
with children with special needs
by Brian O'Toole
5. INDIA
Teacher development initiative (TDI)
to meet special needs in the classroom 33
by N. K. Jangira and Anupam Ahuja
6. JAMAICA
Early intervention and education initiatives in rural areas 41
by M. J. Thorburn
Page
7. JORDAN
The role of institutions in Community-based Rehabilitation 47
and in Community-based Special Education by Andrew L. de Carpentier
8. JORDAN
The Resource room at the Amman national school 55
by Hala T. Ibrahim
9. NETHERLANDS
Individual integration of children 61
with Down's Syndrome in ordinary schools by Trijntje de Wit-Gosker
l 0. NORWAY
In harmony we learn 71
by Marna Moe
11. INTERNATIONAL
INITIATIVES for Deaf Education in the Third World 79
by Andrew L. de Carpentier
ANNEX
Addresses of contributors 87
1
AUSTRIA
1. Historical and political context ii) that parents and disabled adults complained about
the relationship between disabled and non-disabled
There is a good, established system of special people, which was characterised by fear, insecurity
education provision in Austria which has beco- and ignorance. If children with special needs were
me increasingly specialised since 1945. T h e r e educated alongside other children, learning and
are specialist schools for children with learning playing together, many of these negative feelings
d i fficulties, for children who are blind and could be overcome.
visually impaired, deaf and hearing impaired,
physically disabled, or behaviourally and emo- iii) the educational principles and goals of a school
tionally disturbed, and for children with com- providing an integrated environment would be
plex disabilities. However, by the early nine- attractive to all parents. The development of qual-
teen eighties, an increasing number of parents ities like consideration, collaboration, and helpful-
were refusing to enrol their children at special ness is often not a priority in mainstream schools
schools. They wanted their children to be and a policy of integration could help improve this.
2
During 1983, several groups of teachers, parents, stu- In this model, a special school class and mainstream
dents and counsellors began to meet to discuss and class cooperate while following their own curricula.
lobby for the integration of children with special edu- The special needs class continues to be part of the spe-
cational needs into mainstream education. They were cial school and the level of cooperation is agreed by
acting independently of each other and were mostly the two teachers involved. The children are usually
unaware of each other's activities. The groups campai- segregated for the teaching of academic subjects, but
gned on the basis of civil rights and there was a group this does not prevent social integration taking place.
in most provinces. Questions about integration were The education authorities tend to favour cooperative
discussed in countless meetings and workshops, the classes over integrated classes because this approach
focus usually being on the social integration of chil- does not require any changes to the Austrian school
dren with special needs. Specific proposals arose from system.
these discussions, taking the form of potential models
for integration, and these were submitted to the Board iii) Small classes
of Education and the Ministry.
This model involves running a special class within a
The education authorities were hesitant. It was unusual mainstream school, with between six and eleven stu-
to receive proposals from community-based groups and dents. The classes were designed for students with lear-
there were many special schools which were opposed ning difficulties who were allowed six years, rather
to educating children with special educational needs than four, to achieve the 'right' level of attainment. The
outside the special school sector. Finally, however, the 'small classes' are not a good model for social integra-
Ministry decided to set up a working group which tion as they are segregated within the mainstream
included representatives from all the interest groups, school. The classes were really a suggestion from the
and a pilot scheme to test four models for integration special education administration and were remodelled
was agreed, and funding was provided by the ministry. after a few years to become either integrated or coope-
It is this pilot scheme which forms the basis of this rative classes.
paper.
iv) Supporting teachers
The composition of an integrated class is usually In the pilot project, the number of pupils in an inte-
agreed by a team of people, including the kindergarten grated class is smaller than a normal class, being redu-
teacher who has been teaching the child or children ced from 30 to 20. Up to 20% of the class will have
under discussion, the receiving school teacher(s), the special educational needs ie. a maximum of four
school principal, the parents and where necessary, the pupils. The class has two teachers, one trained to work
school psychologist, a doctor, social worker, represen- in mainstream schools, the other to work in special
tative of the parents of children who do not have spe- education. Sometimes a consultant teacher is needed
cial educational needs, a community representative (if when the class has a student who has special educatio-
building adaptations are required) and so on. Parents nal needs with which the teacher is not familiar. This is
do not have a vote, but do have a voice and are asked most often the case for visually - or hearing - impaired
to give their views. This often requires counselling the pupils.
parents to inform them about their rights and choices.
Hitherto, this team approach has been successful and The classroom itself must be large enough to accom-
no parents have objected to the decisions taken about modate small group instruction. Books, toys, craft/art
their child's education. and science materials, should all be easily accessible to
every child. An extra room can be helpful. If the school
Once a child has been accepted into an integrated has blind and/or physically disabled pupils, the buil-
class in the mainstream school, it is not just the ding may need to be adapted.
two class teachers who are involved, but all the
s t a ff, including the janitor and the cleaners. In addition to the elementary school curriculum,
Teachers from other classes observe work in the Austria has national curricula for children with mild or
integrated class and occasionally cover for either moderate learning difficulties. These set levels for tea-
of the two teachers in their absence. Sometimes a ching and attainment. Each child has an individual
school will expand its integration programme and learning programme to which parents can make an
increasing numbers of teachers are involved as input. Despite the individualised nature of the learning,
more integrated classes are established. It is the careful attention is paid to shared activity, projects,
principal's responsibility to ensure that each inte- group work and whole-class teaching. Assessment of
grated class is integrated within the school. performance is through a system of marking from one
to five. In most integrated classes, the children are
The parents of children who do not have special educa- given verbal evaluations in addition to their marks.
tional needs are usually in favour of integrated classes. These and general comments are given in a school
They appreciate the benefits to their children of smaller report. Decisions are made jointly at the annual
classes, special education teaching methods, and the parent-teacher conference.
focus on personal and social education. There are cases
where these parents have objected to integrated classes A detailed breakdown of an average day in a fourth
but this tends to be where they have been ill-or grade integrated class appears in Appendix.
mis-informed.
1
AUSTRIA
i) Sometimes the integrated class can become over- It is neither wise nor just to paint too optimistic a pic-
loaded with too diverse a range of special educatio- ture of integration. There were difficulties during the
nal needs. Some school principals believe that pilot scheme, but these were mostly overcome. The
because these classes are smaller and have two tea- most heartening aspect of the work was the enthusiasm
chers, they can assimilate children with vastly dif- and ability of the parents and teachers who took part. A
fering needs. The additional resources provided for spirit developed over the years, a feeling that a new
the pilot project were geared towards a narrower type of school was being created, that we were taking
definition of special need. part in the first genuine process of educational reform.
3. Positive outcomes
by JANET C. HOLDSWORTH
Integrated Education Adviser, Anhui Integrated Education Project
3. Working with families within the classroom. This limit ensures that all the
children in the class can enjoy the normal environment
This project recognises the importance of the family. of a mainstream classroom. The project has led to an
The teachers involved aim to rebuild family confidence improvement in the teaching methods and educational
and hope, and to involve families in the work of the experiences for all the children.
school. The effect of the family on the all-round deve-
lopment of the child is fully recognised and one of the Changing the teaching methods in one particular
goals of the project is to promote partnership between school in a neighbourhood can be very problematic if
teachers and families. This helps to ensure that the the school is governed by a set national curriculum and
demands on the child are consistent and that the skills tests. The freedom allowed in the non-compulsory sec-
s/he learns are transferable and of use in both school tor of education is always greater and, as such, schools
and the home. in this sector are more open to innovation. This factor
has contributed to the success of the reforms in tea-
In the absence of diagnostic tests which are appropriate ching methodology instigated by the project.
culturally, the observation skills of both teachers and
parents are vital if appropriate goals are to be set for The pilot kindergartens have introduced small group
the child and individual learning programmes desi- teaching, imaginative play, exploratory play, some
gned. choice for all the children and individual learning pro-
grammes for children with disabilities. These methods,
Family contact is maintained through home visits by which started in the first class to take children with
teachers and school visits by families. Families are disabilities, have spread to all the classes in each of the
encouraged to become fully involved with their child's two schools. Teachers and families are happy with
individual learning programme, to meet with other these innovations and note the positive benefits, parti-
families and to take part in seminars and meetings as cularly in the areas of linguistic and cognitive develop-
full members of the project. ment. The attention to individual learning rates and
styles has also contributed to an improvement for all
4. The needs of the non-disabled children children.
6. Individual programmes
to direct the child's attention to the two colours. If she ously offered by the Salvation Army kindergartens in
were playing with bricks and placing a red one, the tea- Hong Kong.
cher could suggest putting a yellow one next to it.
Within the group teaching session, it might also be Following the success of the pilot projects, it is now
possible to direct the child in this way. All members of possible for this practical training to occur within
staff in the classroom will be aware of the major Anhui. As such, the pilot kindergartens are now a vital
aspects of the programme and will be involved in using resource for training the new teachers and administra-
the opportunities that arise. Parents are also involved tors. The two training courses (one for administrators
with these programmes, particularly those elements and one for teachers) held this summer have both used
that are concerned with social and life skills. the expertise of staff at the pilot kindergartens. In the
future, it is expected that each new kindergarten will be
The skills of observations and analysis that teachers able to provide similar training opportunities within its
require in order to design individual programmes can own administrative district.
have a profound effect on their understanding of all
children in the class. This has enabled more targeted 2. Small beginnings
teaching to take place in the classroom, leading to an
improved educational experience for all children. The basis of any pilot project is that much can be
learnt from a 'small beginning' and that at the appro-
priate time this can be expanded, extended and/or repli-
cated elsewhere. This concept is also being used within
each kindergarten. No kindergarten needs to transform
PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION the whole school straight away. Changes are made
within one classroom and training is provided for those
particular teachers. Two disabled children are admitted
The implementation of the project has focussed on into this class, which should be the youngest class in
three key areas: training; the concept of "small begin- the kindergarten. From this beginning, it is possible to
nings" which are followed by expansion; and the buil- change the teaching methods throughout the school,
ding of support systems. with the slowest rate of change being one new class a
year. This enables integrated children to progress
1. Training through the school and new children to be admitted
every year. It also ensures that there are the same
From the outset, it was decided not to concentrate the opportunities for discussion and observation within the
training solely on the classroom teacher, an option school that exist between the pilot kindergartens and
considered to be neither reasonable nor cost effective. the new kindergartens.
Change can only be achieved with the active support
and understanding of the administrators at local level. 3. Support systems
During the life of the pilot projects and subsequently
with the expansion programme, the local administra- Support systems are essential if such programmes are
tors have received information and training to enable to be successful. With the pilot project there was no
them to understand fully the nature of the changes need for formalised systems, as the project team was in
taking place and to become key support people for the close contact with the kindergartens. At the second
schools. stage of development, however, a system must be
developed to support the new schools. One existing
The style of training has been important. It is recognised system of support is the local administration, but
that theoretical knowledge is of limited value, particular- without some overall system, schools and teachers
ly in the early stages of a project. For teachers and could feel isolated and discouraged when they encoun-
schools to transform their working practices, and to assu- ter difficulties.
me responsibilities for the education of children with spe-
cial educational needs, they must have the opportunity to At present, a central Resource Centre is being planned
observe other teachers, to talk with them, to see practical and equipped. This Centre will have a broad range of
solutions to classroom organisation and management pro- roles. It will cover the education of children with lear-
blems, and to see individual programmes being planned ning difficulties and of children with other disabilities.
and implemented, These opportunities were only avai- It is envisaged that this Centre will be central to the
lable outside China and much of the success of the pilot future expansion of the integration programme and the
projects should be attributed to the facilities so gener- improvement in special education.
2
CHINA
The Resource Centre will be based in Hefei, the The most important support of all is that which pro-
provincial capital, and will undertake the following fessionals can give each other. It is essential to foster
tasks: professional attitudes which permit the discussion of
problems and the sharing of solutions and new
- provide information for the project team; approaches. The project team is endeavouring to build
- provide training for administrators and teachers; such open and trusting relationships within and bet-
- answer queries and provide information and help for ween schools. It is these attitudes and the opportunities
project schools; for sharing through the newsletter and planned semi-
- produce a regular newsletter to link all project nars and meetings which help development to take
schools and spread good practice between the place. Teachers from all the participating kindergartens
schools; will come together in a seminar planned for the latter
- produce materials eg. booklets for use with families; part of 1993.
- provide information and build links with other related
agencies;
- provide a central point of information for any other
external organisations - eg. other provinces, national THE PROBLEMS
agencies and international organisations;
- actively promote the rights of disabled children and
AND MAJOR ISSUES
influence public opinion.
1. Funding and resources
In summer 1993, the Centre was planning to produce
three publications: While additional funding might be available to support
a single pilot project, the issue of cost per school can-
i) a booklet designed to alleviate family distress not be ignored. If the long-term aim is to transform
using the experiences of families already participa- many or all schools, a sustainable pattern of funding
ting in the project. The booklet will be used by tea- should be agreed, particularly at the first stage of "sca-
chers to facilitate the initial stages of schools and ling up" from the initial pilot project.
family cooperation;
Whereas large sums spent on the initial training (ie.
ii) the first issue of the newsletter; through study visits) can be justified, it is perhaps
unhelpful to provide too many additional resources to
iii) a leaflet about the programme which will be distri- the school. Teachers will generally have to become
buted to relevant local organisations and institu- inventive users of waste materials and utilise existing
tions to aid in the early identification of disabled teaching equipment and this should be demonstrated in
children. the pilot schools.
2. Early identification
In the long term, the presence of appropriate educa- Similarly, the project has worked at kindergarten level,
tional facilities in the area, greater public awareness of and with young children. No attempt has been made to
disability, reductions in stigma and prejudice and bring older disabled children, who have had no educa-
improved child health facilities will change this situa- tion or training, directly into mainstream schools. This
tion. In the short term, the project team must decide would be extremely difficult to achieve even where
how much time and how many resources should be there is considerable experience in the schools.
directed towards improving early identification sys-
tems. The project team must support the kindergartens The project has targeted schools where effecting chan-
in the enrolment procedure so as to ensure that each ge is a little easier and where success is more possible.
kindergarten has the best possible chance of success. It has been designed to give children entering the
mainstream school system the best possible chance by
3. Families allowing them to attend pre-school.
Fear of mental disability and strong prejudice put great 2. Pilot projects
strain on the families involved. As the facilities and
understanding in communities increase, this problem Pilot project schools should not just be involved in the
will ease, but in the meantime, work with the families experimental part of the programme. As well as testing
must be slow and patient. Parents are unused to the a new approach, their long-term role is to help with the
type of daily cooperation which is needed in an inte- training process when the programme expands. If a
gration project and teachers are new to the type of rela- school is unable to undertake this role, then it becomes
tionship they need to build with the parents. harder to extend the project. Time is needed for suffi-
cient experience to be gained before expansion is
Members of many of the families are poorly educated, attempted.
so the design of any materials and the methods used to
reach families must be very flexible. 3. 'Scaling up' or extending the project
4. Initial teacher training The most critical period for any programme is when
extending from one or two pilot schools to a group of
The principles and practice of integration as an schools. For long-term expansion, the geographical
increasingly common approach to educating children location of these schools is important. The training and
with special educational needs, and the introduction support programmes need to be carefully monitored as
of more effective teaching methods in particular, these will form the basis for replication and extension
must, at a certain point, be included in the initial of the work. Cost-effectiveness is also an important
training of teachers. Plans to influence the curricula issue at this stage.
of teacher training providers will need to be addres-
sed at some point.
2
CHINA
4. International cooperation
The Community-based
Rehabilitation Programme
in Ghana
by LAWRENCE OFORI-ADDO
Community-based Rehabilitation Programme,
Department of Social Welfare, Accra, Ghana.
Introduction
This paper examines the origins of the programme, the It is estimated that over one million of the country's 15
preparation that was undertaken and how it has been million people are disabled. It is recognised that the
executed. It also highlights some significant lessons majority of these disabled people, who represent one of
learnt during the project and the constraints affecting the most vulnerable groups in the rural areas, benefit
this kind of work. little from these services, if at all.
18
2. Current socio-economic situation in Ghana Participating in the visit were representatives from
ILO, UNESCO, WHO, UNOV, the programme coor-
The United Nation's Development Programme (UNDP) dinator and consultant, and the Secretary General of
Human Development Report (1992) places Ghana the Swedish Organisation of the Handicapped,
among the poorest countries of the world. Ghana is International Aid Foundation (SHIA).
ranked ll9th out of 160 countries, with 6.7 million of
its 15 million people living below the poverty line. Soon after the visit, and following the circulation of the
Some 5.8 million people have no access to health ser- team's report, the Norwegian Association of the
vices, there are 10.3 million without access to sanita- Disabled (NAD), which was already active in Ghana,
tion and 6.5 million without access to water (1990 expressed interest in supporting the launch of the plan-
figures). ned CBR programme. The government accepted the
international team's recommendations and the stage
In an effort to improve the living conditions of the was set for the implementation of the Community-
poor, the Government initiated a short-term based Rehabilitation Programme in Ghana
"Programme of Action to Mitigate the Social Cost of
Adjustment" (PAMSCAD). This grew out of an In February 1992, an agreement was signed between
Economic Recovery and Structural Adjustment the Government of Ghana and NAD. The agreement
Programme, in 1988, and was assisted by international provided for NAD inputs to the establishment of the
agencies. Despite important achievements, the CBR Programme over a two-year period. A similar
Economic Recovery and the PAMSCAD have had vir- agreement was also signed in June 1992 between SHIA
tually no impact on disabled people, particularly those and the Government, providing for supplementary
living in rural areas. inputs to the programme for the same two-year period
(June 1992 - June 1994).
3. Prior and ongoing assistance
In October 1993 a further agreement was signed bet-
Internationally, there were moves afoot to recognise ween the UNDP and the Ghana Government under the
and help meet the rights and needs of disabled people. Project Title: "Human Resources Development for
The UN General Assembly declared 1981 the Community-based Rehabilitation of People with
"International Year of Disabled Persons" and in 1982 Disabilities". This project has been designed to streng-
adopted a World Programme of Action Concerning then the existing CBRPthrough technical guidance, trai-
Disabled Persons. The purpose of the World ning of personnel, and the establishment of a training
Programme of Action is to "provide effective measures capacity within the CBRP. It will also strengthen the
for prevention of disability, rehabilitation and the resto- technical and training capacity of collaborating NGOs,
ration of the goals of full participation of disabled per- an essential development if the CBRPis to be effective.
sons in social life and development, and of equality".
4. Essential features of the three agreements
This means ensuring that the opportunities available to
disabled people are equal to those available to everyo- i) Working within existing structures
ne else, and that disabled people have an equal share in
the improvement in living conditions resulting from Each of the three agreements stressed the need to use
"social and economic development". the Government's existing structures in the implemen-
tation of the CBRP. These structures are outlined
In 1988, the Government of Sweden gave UNDP extra below:
funding to enable it to support the planning and coordi-
nation of international technical assistance for coun- - the Ministry of Employment and Social Welfare
tries implementing measures recommended in the (MESW) is the lead ministry within the Government
World Programme of Action. for matters pertaining to persons with disabilities in
Ghana. Within the ministry, the Department of Social
At the request of the Government of Ghana, an Welfare is charged with promoting the advancement
inter-agency team, under the UNDP Inter-regional of individuals, including the integration of disabled
Programme for People with Disabilities, visited the persons in society, and safeguarding the rights of the
country in April 1991. The purpose of the team's visit under-privileged
was to advise the Government on the development of a - the Ministry of Education and Ghana Education
Community-based Rehabilitation Programme for Service are responsible for running the education
people with disabilities. system. A Division of Special Education and
3
GHANA
College of Special Education supervise the provision - to promote the human rights of persons with disabili-
of special education and the preparation of special ties.
education school teachers, respectively;
- there are also disabled people's associations, which It has to be emphasised that these aims reflect the
are for self-help, advocacy and to increase public developmental objectives and policies of the
awareness of disability. Together, these associations Government of Ghana. The programme is intended to
have formed an umbrella organisation called the benefit babies, children, young people and adults with
Ghana Federation of the Disabled (FODA), the pur- physical disabilities, visual and hearing impairments
pose of which is to represent the interests of all disa- and learning difficulties. Their families and the local
bled persons. In addition, several NGOs provide ser- communities are also expected to benefit from the pro-
vices for disabled persons, e.g. Ghana Society for the gramme.
Blind, Ghana Society for the Deaf, etc;
Recipients of project inputs will include personnel in
ii) Common strategies social welfare, health and education departments in the
Government structure and personnel from the disabled
All three agreements also have common strategies to people's organisations.
improve the conditions of people with disabilities.
These include: 2. Initial preparations
Two districts were elected from each of the Greater Major areas covered during the session included:
Accra, Eastern, Volta, Ashanti and Brong Ahafo
regions - training in the community for people with disabilities;
- socio-cultural factors in rehabilitation in Ghana;
- the concept of primary health care;
- early interaction and intervention with babies and
children;
- community mobilisation.
Target district in the CBR-Programme After a vigourous 'sensitisation' programme, each dis-
trict managed to select four communities. The district
Soon after the selection of the districts, both the of Offinso actually selected eight communities owing
Department of Social Welfare and Special Education primarily to its large geographical area and the fact that
Division posted staff to the target districts who were most of its communities were prepared to embrace the
attached to the programme. The personnel included 13 programme.
district Social Welfare Officers, one of whom was a
representative of FODA, and 18 specialist teachers The number of participating communities was limited
(peripatetic teachers) to begin the implementation of to four (or eight) to enable the DSWOs to monitor the
the programme at district level. programme effectively.
A three-month basic training course in the CBR was The need for the involvement of specialist teachers for
established in June 1992 for the District Social children with special educational needs in the integra-
Welfare Officers (DSWOs) and the CBR management tion of such children in mainstream schools cannot be
team. The course was delivered in Somanya, one of the over-emphasised. Integration of people with disabilities
target districts. in community life can only be meaningful if opportuni-
ties are created early enough for them.
Three expatriate resource persons, including a
co-author of the WHO manual Training in the In line with this objective, 18 peripatetic teachers, who
Community for People with Disabilities, helped to run were to be posted to the target districts, followed a
the training programme in cooperation with local four-week course, later supplemented by a three-week
resource persons course on CBR-oriented education.
3
GHANA
The local supervisors are expected to identify and In Adorobaa in the Bechem District, the committee has
assess the needs of people with disabilities and assist acquired a piece of land to be used as a playground for
families to support their members who have disabili- children in the community. The local supervisors
ties. A two-week orientation programme was organised intend constructing functional training aids such as
for local supervisors. There were 29 females and 55 parallel
males. The orientation which was organised by the bars, ramps and swings which could be used by
DSWOs and the peripatetic teachers focussed on the children with physical and other disabilities. This could
use of the WHO manual, Training in the Community also enhance interaction between non-disabled children
for People with Disabilities. The two-week orientation and children with disabilities by providing a space
was preceded by practical work in the communities. where they can play together.
The local supervisors have been exposed to the various Some other committees have also embarked on
referral levels in their respective districts, including income-generating activities, particularly in the area of
health, social welfare, education and community deve- farming, to provide income for people with disabilities.
lopment facilities. Each supervisor was given a WHO
Manual and a kit box. 2. Individual level
The peripatetic teachers have similarly organised a As at September 1993, the programme has identified
three-day orientation course in the various target dis- 677 people with various disabilities. Of these, 438
tricts for mainstream school teachers in the selected people needed some kind of service, ranging from
communities. The purpose of the orientation is to move functional training in activities which are part of daily
the teachers towards the acceptance and inclusion of living, to income generation. Seventy persons were
children with special needs in the mainstream schools. children of school age.
Discussions have centred on identification of children
with special needs, classroom management and the Most of these people's needs were met within the com-
involvement of parents and the community in the edu- munity through the CRCs, local supervisors, school
cation of children. teachers and other community structures.
22
For example, in Okwenya, in the Somanya District of In Penyi in the Ketu District of Volta Region, an elder-
the Eastern Region, a child suspected of having cere- ly man who has difficulty in seeing had not had the
bral palsy who has difficulty in walking and speaking, opportunity to move outside his house since he became
has been trained by the family and the local supervi- visually impaired some 14 years previously. He is now
sors to stand and walk some few steps. being assisted by the family to attend some community
activities. The local supervisors have started some
functional and mobility training with the man and his
family to make him less dependent on others for mobi-
lity.
3. National level
2. Collaborative working
MAJOR CONSTRAINTS FOR One other constraint has been the collaboration
THE CBR PROGRAMME between the programme and the Ministry of Health at
the national level. This, however, appears to be prima-
1. The local supervisors rily an organisational problem. With the CBRP
Advisory Committee constituted, and a representative
One of the major constraints on the implementation of of the Ministry serving on it, it is hoped that this pro-
the programme has been the commitment and interest blem will be resolved.
of some local supervisors, particularly in the urban
communities. The local supervisors in these areas are
often unemployed when they are recruited and are
usually motivated at least in part by monetary consid-
erations. However, the supervisors' initial commitment CONCLUSION
to and interest in the programme appeared to decrease
when the renumeration did not meet their expectation.
Although the structures being created in the communi-
The situation in most of the rural communities looks ties seemed a little fragile at the beginning of the pro-
slightly different. Despite relatively low incomes in ject, there is every indication that this problem will be
these areas, the local supervisors appear to be more overcome. Effective monitoring and assessment, and a
committed to the programme, largely, it would seem, strengthening of opportunities at community level will,
owing to traditional bonds, a communal spirit and a ensure that a majority of people with disabilities are
tradition of voluntaryism. Local supervisors in these able to benefit from the services being provided. This
areas make less demands on the CRCs and seem very can only have a knock-on effect for other development
pleased with the various forms of incentives, ranging issues.
from social recognition to the occasional provision of
free food items, free transport etc. from the community.
Involvement of volunteers,
parents and community members
with children with special needs
by BRIAN O'TOOLE
Director, CBR Programme and Geraldine Maison Hall
Rehabilitation Education Officer, GAHEF
The past decade, however, has also seen a change in are delegated to auxiliaries or volunteers, whose work
thought and action concerning innovation. There is an is supported by a rehabilitation therapist. An essential
increasing realisation that change will be impossible if ingredient of CBR is the involvement of the commu-
the people who are supposed to benefit from 'develop- nity in the planning, implementation and evaluation of
ment' do not cooperate with those who wish to promote the programme.
the development process. The authorities view as
essential the active participation of the "subjects" of This new philosophy is immediately persuasive, but
development, at all phases of the development process. can it be translated into practice? Do the parents wel-
One of the major challenges is to guide individuals come the opportunity to assume a training role with
who have traditionally been led by others, to enable their children? Is community development in this area
them to take charge of their own affairs. Special educa- realistic? Are there people in rural villages who would
tion and rehabilitation can no longer be seen as pro- wish to offer their services in such a programme?
ducts to be dispensed; the services must be offered as a Community participation has become fashionable. The
process in which all the participants are actively invol- challenging reality of translating these principles into
ved. practice is not always understood or expected. It is
often unclear what "community involvement" means in
3. Community-Based Rehabilitation practice. What means of expression are available to the
community? How can the community become invol-
Community-Based Rehabilitation (CBR) has been offe- ved? Rehabilitation therapists may have technical
red as one response to this emerging philosophy. The skills, but most do not have training in organisational,
goal of CBR is to demystify the rehabilitation process social and political skills. The coordinators need to
and give responsibility back to the individual, family develop skills in facilitating community development.
and community. Someone from the community, a heal- A recurring problem has been a lack of understanding
th worker, teacher, social worker, or volunteer, is about the process of innovation itself.
recruited and trained. This worker then works with
families to develop an education and training program- A pilot study of CBR was carried out with disabled
me. In this way, simple rehabilitation tasks children in two rural areas of Guyana from 1986 to
4
GUYANA
1988, in an attempt to analyse the process of innova- the most practical infrastructure through which to
tion and understand something of the dynamics of work.
community participation.
In the two regions involved in the pilot study, the wor-
The pilot programme was financed by the University kers in one region were nursery school teachers and the
of Guyana and the Canadian International programme was run in collaboration with the Ministry
Development Agency (CIDA). On the basis of the pilot of Education; in the other region, the workers were
study experience, a more extensive, three-year CBR volunteers from the community. Of the three new
programme is now in operation in five rural areas of regions joining the extended programme, two on the
Guyana. This project involved 300 disabled children coast have used community volunteers, while another
and their families from 1990-92. The programme was region, deep in the interior of the country, will run the
funded by the European Community and Amici di CBR programme in collaboration with the Ministry of
Raoul Follereau (Italy), in collaboration with Action on Health, and will offer the CBR training to existing
Disability and Development, and the National community health workers. There has necessarily been
Rehabilitation Committee of Guyana. Early applica- a very flexible approach to developing the various
tions were submitted for a further three-year extension CBR programmes in Guyana.
of the programme from 1993-96 to try to ensure conti-
nuity. This article therefore draws on experience from In the three regions using volunteers, the training was
the CBR projects in the five regions of Guyana invol- offered as part of the outreach programme of the
ved in the first three-year programme. It is not the pur- Institute of Adult and Continuing Education (PACE) at
pose of this paper to examine the effectiveness of the the University of Guyana. The aim of the CBR program-
CBR intervention in Guyana as a whole, and a more me in these three regions complemented the philosophy
detailed evaluation is available elsewhere (O'Toole, of IACE, ie. to reach out into rural communities and
1989). This paper focusses on the involvement of assist the villagers in becoming more active participants
parents, volunteers and community members in CBR. in their own development process. The three volunteer
training programmes have been significantly more effec-
tive in mobilising community involvement than the nur-
sery school programme. The programme working with
community health workers is only just beginning, and as
such no comparisons can be made as yet.
THE PROJECT
The training programme for the volunteers was widely
advertised in the media and in the community. In each of
1. Preliminary planning the three regions, three to five times more people applied
for the training than there were places. No academic qua-
The planning process for the programmes in each of lifications were required for acceptance on the program-
the rural areas has been similar. Before the project me, and the volunteers did not have to pay for the course.
began, a series of meetings was held with Ministry per- Those selected came from a wide variety of backgrounds,
sonnel, parent groups, rehabilitation professionals and including people who had teaching, nursing, clerical and
service organisations. The project received fairly exten- technical jobs. Typically, about a quarter of each group
sive media coverage with a number of items on the had a family member with a disability and an equal pro-
national television news and programmes on the radio. portion were housewives. For over half the volunteers,
In additions announcements about the programme were the desire to be of service to the community and a general
mades in churches, mosques, and Hindu temples within concern for the well-being of children were the main rea-
a l5 mile radius of each training programme. All the sons for them wishing to be part of the project.
schools and health clinics in the areas were also
contacted. For each programme, over 120 posters were Similar training was given for each of the CBR pro-
displayed in shops and public buildings. grammes. Training inputs were provided by a wide
range of rehabilitation therapists working in Guyana.
2. Utilisation of personnel Each participant received between 120 and 150 hours'
within the community training over a one-year period. To date, 176 disabled
children, with a wide range of disabilities, have been
CBR programmes have now been introduced in five involved in the extended programme. In each case,
regions of Guyana; four are coastal areas and one is the CBR worker identified someone in the child's
inland. In each case, the coordinators have identified home through whom it would be possible to introduce
the training programme. The enthusiasm of the
28
volunteers was such that, on each programme, extra participants that they were part of an international part-
training sessions were requested. nership.
There may never be enough money to train all the wor- Community awareness was enhanced by a CBR
kers needed, and a re-examination of who the workers column in the Sunday newspaper which ran for 16
might be is now necessary. Experience suggests that weeks. A series of puppet shows was presented by the
volunteers from the community, if effectively trained participants to schools, a village meeting and a public
and supported, can play a meaningful role in helping festival. The Canadian International Development
disabled children and their families. More imagination Agency (CIDA) helped to finance two visits by Dr Roy
is needed concerning the recruitment and deployment McConkey, who assisted in the development of video
of volunteers from the community. training materials. The volunteers and the families
played a major role in the development of these
The utilisation of human resources from within the resources and had a genuine sense of ownership of
community has potentially far-reaching consequences. their production. The video programmes were sponso-
A number of the volunteers reported that the CBR red by local companies and have now been shown on
experience had impacted on their lives, increasing their national television. The combination of the newspaper
confidence, self-respect and feelings of personal signi- series, the puppet shows and the series of 10 pro-
ficance because it had made them realise that they grammes on television has assisted in sensitising the
could contribute something of value. It may not be community to the needs of people with disabilities.
unreasonable to suggest that this process has contribu-
ted towards an awakening of human potential, and this 4. Community action: an example
model could have far-reaching implications.
In the original pilot study, a number of parents, volun-
As the various programmes developed, it became clear teers and community leaders had organised themselves
that the volunteer input is only the beginning of the into a group called the Village Health Committee
process and that if the programme relies solely on (VHC). Through its involvement in the project, the VHC
volunteers, the benefits of the programme are became a more dynamic organisation. It became a voice
short-lived. By definition, the involvement of volun- for the hopes and aspirations of the parents of disabled
teers will be of limited duration. The foundations laid children in the area. The VHC adopted the CBR project
by the volunteers need to be built upon, either via the and thereby ensured that the project would continue.
existing infrastructure or through the creation of a new
one. In the village with the VHC, the volunteers and the
VHC planned a joint survey. About 4,500 people were
3. Involving the wider community contacted. Approximately l.5% of the children in the
village were found to be in need of special help becau-
An effective innovation needs a well-informed and se of their disability. As a result of the survey, the VHC
well-prepared community, and time was therefore spent began to develop a Resource Unit in the village to
on developing community awareness. Coverage in the meet the needs of these children.
media at different times during the project has done
much to enhance the status of the programme and has The VHC needed to liaise with a number of communi-
helped to give the volunteers and families the feeling ty groups to create the Unit. The Unit is housed in a
that they are part of an important project. This has been building loaned by the local Hindu community. The
augmented by the announcements concerning the pro- building has, however, been extensively renovated and
ject in places of worship, health centres and schools in equipped with materials obtained by an Expatriate
the region. Women's Group and by the VHC, from local resources.
In recognition of this successful grassroots initiative,
Before each programme begins, the coordinators meet the Ministries of Health and Education agreed to sup-
with professionals from the area, including the Service ply the staff for the Resource Unit. This was a high-
Groups, Ministry personnel, political and community light of the pilot project, with a high level of communi-
leaders, to discuss programme objectives and to deve- ty involvement and a community group eventually
lop a process of active local involvement. Such mee- taking responsibility for the continuation of the project.
tings have helped to present the project as a joint
undertaking, rather than one which is being imposed by The VHC proved to be very effective in the early days
an external body. The support from overseas in the of the project. The parents and community leaders
form of finance and visiting professionals helped to could easily relate to the material needs for paint, zinc,
foster a feeling among cupboards, furniture etc. This was part of their
4
GUYANA
experience and offered an immediate and practical acti- leaders, CBR volunteers and a member of staff from
vity. Moreover, when the Unit first opened, everyone, the Unit. The hope is to create a body which will
parents and professionals alike, was learning about the offer a coherent voice for the clients in the area and
service. Now, five years later, some of the needs are provide a forum through which the needs and hopes
more subtle; there is a particular need for training and of different groups can be openly discussed. Over the
support for the staff, and for clarification of the philo- past year, approaches have been made to funding
sophy and purpose of the Unit. agencies to finance the development of the Village
Resource Unit into a school for the whole region. To
Over the past couple of years, the Resource Unit has date, the major parties in the discussions have been
moved towards delivering a more professional service. the Expatriate Women's Group and the Unit staff. The
Some of the volunteer teaching inputs have declined hope is that the newly-formed CBR Committee will
and there has been an attempt to organise the Unit be able to play a significant role in these discussions
along 'Ministry lines'. There is now a plan to expand and that the funding agency will listen to people from
the Unit into a regional school. This plan has been the community, and not simply those who would
enthusiastically adopted by the Expatriate Women's speak on their behalf.
Group. In the process, there may be a danger that the
service is shaped by the professionals in the Unit and The other pilot programme, which involved the nur-
the Expatriate Women's Group which wants 'to help', sery school teachers, did not stimulate a comparable
rather than by the people in the village and their needs. degree of community involvement. This is a signifi-
As the Unit has developed, so the input of the VHC cant point of comparison between the two different
has declined. types of programme. The volunteers were very invol-
ved in the project and gave more time to the inter-
An attempt has therefore been made to help the com- vention than was originally envisaged; by contrast,
munity reflect on its own needs and a CBR committee the nursery teachers as a group, appeared to be wei-
has recently been formed to serve the village and its ghed down by their various responsibilities and
regions. Its members are parents, community regarded the CBR programme as something in
30
2. Parental involvement Now, five years after the project first began, our neigh-
bourís daughter Nalini still cannot say very many
It is now recognised that many of the social and emo- words, but her neighbours know she exists and the
tional needs of parents can best he met by participation mother feels comforted by progress she perceives in
in an informal voluntary association with other parents the child's mobility and general behaviour. To a casual
of children with special needs. The nature of this part- outsider, the gains may appear insignificant. To Nalini's
nership must emerge from the parents and reflect their family, and to others involved in her care, involvement
needs and interests. in a CBR programme has been a meaningful experien-
ce and has offered a challenge to achieve more in the
Few of the parents in the Guyana CBR programme had future.
met other parents of disabled children before the pro-
gramme began. The great majority who took the oppor-
tunity to meet other parents found this contact very
helpful and they found comfort in the knowledge that
they were not alone. The CBR committees are trying to REFERENCE
facilitate the development of a local network of fami-
lies who could provide mutual support for one another.
Such a network could provide a formidable force in O'Toole, B .J . (1988), Development and evaluation of
working for change in developing countries. a community Based Rehabilitation programme with
pre-school children in Guyana. International Journal of
Effective participation cannot he brought about by Rehabilitation Research, 11 (4), 323-334.
political pressure or insistence from external providers.
People will become involved only if they feel that they
are genuinely being consulted about their needs.
Effective consultation may he the key to change as the
community learns to solve its own problems. The
members on the various CBR committees need to
improve their skills in consultation, develop their
management ability and become more sensitive, as
they listen to others.
5
INDIA
1. Aims and objectives The project is located within the National Council of
Educational Research & Training (NCERT) and is fun-
The project aims to equip teachers to organise their ded jointly by NCERT and UNICEF.
schools and their teaching to meet the educational
needs of all children. Its rationale is that teachers 2. The teacher education resource pack: a starting
should be able to respond to the diversity of educatio- point (phase two)
nal needs in the classroom; it recognises the need for
significant shifts in the teachers' attitudes to teaching i) Content
and learning if this aim is to be met. Changing attitudes
signal a move away from basic skills training towards The draft teacher education resource pack on special
teacher development. Teacher development initiatives needs was ready in early 1990. It is based on the five
will encourage teachers to learn from their own profes- principles of effective learning, namely:
sional experience, to experiment with new approaches
and to develop new materials which will stimulate the - active learning
learning of each child in the classroom. This form of - negotiation of objectives
development must become an integral part of the pro- - demonstration, practice and feedback
fessional life of teachers. - continuous evaluation
- support.
The project has three specific objectives which grew
out of a consideration of the current international pers- The pack contains study material, stimulus sheets for
pective on teacher development and the national organising learning activities and the course leaders'
context in India. The objectives are as follows. guide for organising training programmes (see UNES-
CO, 1990).
1. To assist UNESCO in the development of the tea-
cher education resource pack on special needs in the ii) Learning to use the pack
classroom, as members of the international team.
UNESCO ran a workshop and seminar in Zimbabwe
2. To study the pack's effectiveness in changing tea- for a pair of coordinators from eight countries, prepar-
chers' and pupils' attitudes to teaching and learning ing them to use the resource pack. The coordinators
and to pupil achievement. produced plans for trialling the material in initial and
in-service training in their own countries. The
36
coordinators also discussed the pack's contents and was also developed, in which what is learnt during
some revisions were made as a result. each module of the training is immediately transferred
to the teaching situation. The cumulative transfer desi-
On returning from the course, the Indian coordinators gn is another approach where transfer of what is learnt
presented materials and strategies from the pack to 46 during training is planned after the training has been
teacher educators, as a preparation for working with completed (see Jangira and Ahuja, 1992).
teachers. It was a thrilling experience. The response
from the teacher educators was far more positive when In the course of this exercise UNESCO organized a
using the pack's approach than when using the conven- sub-regional seminar workshop in Delhi for 17 parti-
tional training approach (Jangira and Ahuja, 1992). cipants from nine countries. This provided opportunity
This session gave the coordinators ideas for the design for valuable feedback on the use of the teacher educa-
of the pilot programme with teachers. tion resource pack.
3. The resource pack: pilot programme 4. The action research project (phase three)
with the teachers
This project was planned to study the effectiveness of
In planning the pilot programme, the coordinators wor- the teaching strategies embodied in the version of the
ked with in-service (practising) teachers, asking: UNESCO teacher education resource pack which had
been adapted for use in India. Effectiveness has been
- how do teachers react to the content, process and out- measured by changes in teacher and pupil attitudes to
comes of training and the materials used therein? teaching and learning and to pupil achievement.
- is what is learnt during training translated into the Twenty-two institutions and organisations from all over
teachers' classroom practice? India have joined the project, which is expected to deve-
- if what they learn is transferred to the classroom, how lop the skills of teacher educators in encouraging and
do pupils react to this change? facilitating the implementation of the new materials and
strategies. After a year, the project should become an
This initial course spanned eleven weeks, and compri- integral part of the institutions' programme. It is envisa-
sed four full days, followed by one half-day session a ged that the participating institutions will become chan-
week, for four weeks. In between sessions, the teachers ge agents for the reform of teacher development, trying
implemented the new teaching and learning strategies to ensure that programmes are working towards the
in their classrooms, sharing their experience with col- effective teaching of all children in the classroom.
leagues at subsequent sessions. Teachers shared ideas
in small and whole-group discussion and via reading i) Training the coordinators
each other's journals, focusing particularly on how they
had adapted strategies learnt during training sessions The training for the action research project's coordina-
for use in their own classrooms. The teachers were ini- tors took place over eight days in November-December
tially uncomfortable and reticent with this approach, 1991 at the Regional College of Education, Mysore
but soon became highly motivated. One teacher wrote: (see Jangira et al, 1992). Those taking part in the trai-
"I started thinking more about learners and individuals, ning produced feedback on the course and some speci-
and new ways and means of approaching each child". fic points emerged:
A similar pilot was conducted with trainee teachers in a - the design of this training had improved substantially
District Institute of Education and Training. They were in the light of feedback from the two previous inter-
taught teaching strategies which they tried out during national workshops. The simulation exercise which
their teaching practice. They were very enthusiastic involved introducing new modules was particularly
about learning new strategies and discovering new useful;
materials: "we learnt about the educational needs of - the training was conducted in English which presen-
children and realised that each child has his or her own ted difficulties for some participants. Special strate-
special needs to be met in the classroom."During this gies were designed to help overcome this, including
pilot, the coordinators discovered that some of the ins- cartoon-drawing, poster-making, use of conceptual
tructions on the stimulus sheets needed modification. diagrams etc;
Most importantly, they uncovered more ideas for the - a 'jigsaw' format for group work was developed, to
design of the training and enriched the material itself. ensure that groups and individuals were able to share
A training video was developed, called Learning ideas within time-limited. sessions;
Together - A Cooperative, Learning-based Approach. - practice in giving and receiving feedback within
The 'simultaneous training transfer design' simulated collaborative teaching situations
5
INDIA
was organised, to ensure that participants were confi- A number of tools have been developed and piloted
dent in presenting and transacting new training mate- with teachers and pupils, including:
rial. This work enabled them to run similar sessions
in their own institutions; - Pupil Perceptions of Learning/Teaching (Inventory)
- collaborative learning, teaching and problem-solving - Teacher Attitudes towards Teaching and Learning
were effectively demonstrated; (Scale).
- instructions to course leaders were made fuller, to help
them organise and run their work more effectively; The adapted resource pack material was sent recently
- as part of the course, each institution prepared its own to all the participating institutions with a small finan-
action research proposal for implementation. A sche- cial grant of Rs.3500 ($140) to help meet their
dule of activities was produced and a midyear review expenses.
planned. A further workshop to share findings was
scheduled for early 1993. iii) The future
A report was written about the course at Mysore, which The TDI project is exciting. It has not only generated a
was discussed by the participants and the international desire to meet special educational needs in the ordinary
team working on the dissemination and implementation classroom, but it has also made a significant contribu-
of the teacher education resource pack. tion to the organisation and development of the provi-
sion of effective schools for all. It is an exemplar of a
ii) Progress child- and learner-centred approach to teaching and
learning, one of the goals of the National Policy on
The pack has been adapted for use in large schools. Education in India. TDI provides a direction for tea-
The adapted version of the pack included materials and cher education reform with built-in mechanisms for
information on designing and carrying out action what is learnt in training to be transferred to the work-
research in school. This has been piloted in a large place, influencing directly the learning of the 'end
school, with teachers working collaboratively to learn user': the child. The content, process, materials and
teaching strategies from the pack, implementing them research output thus far have enriched the experience
in the classroom and evaluating their work, without of the coordinators and the participants. It will continue
external input. to do so for many more teacher educators and teachers
as they join the initiative.
A newsletter has been launched entitled Effective
Schools for All, which aims to promote interaction bet-
ween the participating institutions.
38
6. The coordinators (the authors) had commitments to a of teachers over a longer period of time. The impact
number of other programmes and were therefore not will then be more significant. This model can be stu-
able to give hands-on support to colleagues par- died in Jangira and Ahuja, 1992.
ticipating in the multi-site action research project. A
meeting was organised for participants to share 5. Practising feedback in simulated situations gives
experiences and provide mutual support, but this trainers and teachers confidence in using this
was not as useful or effective as on-site support. approach in their daily professional practice.
7. The furniture in most of the classrooms was unsui- 6. The ability of the education system to meet chil-
table for the varied learning experiences the teachers dren's special educational needs relies on teacher
wished to provide. It was usually heavy or fixed, education and curriculum development. It is essen-
which meant that it was difficult to adapt the lear- tial to concentrate on teacher development if change
ning environment. is to be effected.
8. The project had one significant flaw: it expectedtoo 7. Read and reflect not only on the materials, but on
much, too soon, in the reform of teacher education. the work of the teachers and pupils with whom you
Time is crucial. The schools' infrastructure is exten- are working to transform teaching and learning. Be
sive with over four million teachers in more than responsive and supportive. Every problem is an
half a million schools. Teacher development is opportunity and a challenge to find new ideas and
the key to the success of the National Policy on approaches to improve education for all children.
Education; the project reflects the urgency of the
need to reach as many teachers as possible, as 8. Patience, perseverance and commitment are the keys
quickly as possible. to the success of any innovation.
3. Advice to others
REFERENCES
Jangira, N.K., Education of the Disabled: Implications
for Teacher Education, NCTE Bulletin, Vol. l, No. l,
March, 1991, NCERT, 1991.
Early intervention
and education initiatives
in rural areas.
by M.J. THORBURN
i) identification of disability The CRWs have all received 12 weeks' training. They
spend three and a half days a week in the community
ii) assessment of disability; and one and a half days undertaking clinic-and
office-based activities. The CRWs' main tasks are to
iii) assessment of 'handicap' identify clients in the community, assess disability and
(special needs or problems); handicap using specific screening questions, attend cli-
nics when their clients have appointments and to take
iv) diagnosis of the cause of disability and responsibility for implementing the individual pro-
any medical treatment if necessary; grammes in the clients' homes.
Home-based early intervention and CBR depend on 1. There should be strong motivation from a voluntary
parent participation, but it can be difficult to mobilise group to start and maintain a project.
parents in times of economic stress, a situation Jamaica
is currently experiencing. Generating parent support 2. It is important to have a defined set of clients in a
takes considerable time, patience and caring. Although defined geographical area. If no clients, or just a
3D offers parent training, only about 50% of the few, have been identified, a survey of the area may
parents attend. be necessary to determine needs, unless it is possible
to obtain referrals from key informants.
Not enough attention has been paid to community
involvement in 3D Projects. As a result, the local fun- 3. A planning/management committee is needed, prefe-
ding base is small, although it is now beginning to rably multi-disciplinary, whose members have good
grow, albeit slowly. Fundraising is a competitive busi- knowledge of and contacts with existing services.
ness and group income-generating initiatives have
generally been unsuccessful. The organisation still 4. A project coordinator is essential - a trained and
relies heavily on funds from agencies overseas. experienced human service professional (health,
education, social work, psychology, therapy, etc.)
iii) Future directions with dedication, competence, organisational and pro-
blem-solving skills. This person must provide conti-
Of these problems, staffing and community involve- nuity, supervision, coordination, advice and adminis-
ment are the most difficult and persistent; sustaining tration.
the financial base of the programme is the most perva-
sive. As the programme expands to meet growing 5. Field workers should be motivated, stable, patient,
demand, costs increase and management of the organi- emphathetic, And a ratio of one worker to 15 clients
sation becomes more difficult, requiring better-trained would be satisfactory for full-time workers, less if
managers. they are part-time.
CONCLUSION
While parents' associations may not be essential in
government-supported projects, 3D Projects would
never have started or maintained its momentum without
them. Parental involvement and participation is essential
to the success of early intervention. Certainly it seems
more likely that the programme will meet the real needs
of the clients, if parents are actively involved in setting
priorities, running and monitoring the project. This is
essential if parents are to free themselves of the negative
attitudes and dependency which usually occur when they
have a disabled child. It can result in a positive lifetime
commitment to their children.
7
JORDAN
and the institutions can help in fostering a sense of vii) Specialist human resources
self-worth amongst their members and local commu-
nities. Community programmes are usually under-resourced
and have no money, especially when they are first esta-
iv) Training blished. They often cannot locate specialists to help
deliver their programmes and even if the specialists are
The institutions, including special schools, have the available, they are often too expensive. Larger institu-
resources to train teachers and rehabilitation workers. tions may be in a position either to train more people
General management training and more specialist trai- and/or to second specialists to work as part of a com-
ning in particular areas of special need, are always in munity programme.
demand, and the institutions could make their training
resources available to those outside the professions viii) Disabled people as a resource
who needed them.
It is strange that so few disabled people themselves are
v) Identity invited to become actively involved in the provision of
services for their peers. The support necessary to
Institutions such as schools often provide children and enable them to do this is rarely available. But they are
young people with a sense of identity, and this is usual- among those best placed to work with disabled people,
ly even more the case for disabled children and young as they have expertise based on experience. It makes
people. Their school is an unrivalled source of friend- sense to show confidence in and give responsibility to
ship and support, and makes them feel part of some- those who have been trained and educated to reach
thing important. This happens frequently in the educa- their full potential. Thus, disabled people should be
tion of deaf children and the schools, especially if they involved not just as beneficiaries but as benefactors,
are boarding schools, become transmitters of Deaf cul- helpers and supporters. They should be employed in
ture, reinforcing the identity of deaf people as a group. appropriate jobs, participating fully in the provision of
This sense of belonging enhances their self-confidence, services to disabled people.
and thus their ability to function within both the deaf
and the wider community. The role of the institutions 3. Advantages of the link between institutions
in developing 'identity' is an interesting one. The stron- and other CBR services
gest resistance to integration comes from the deaf com-
munities precisely because they feel it will undermine Involvement in a CBR programme can benefit institu-
their identity and culture. It remains to be seen how the tions by counteracting some of the problems they
institutions might resolve this tension. encounter. Some examples of these are given below.
The institutions provide a role model in several ways. In Institutions can easily become 'asylums' where 'diffe-
working with disabled children and young people who rent' people are isolated from the mainstream of life.
are often marginalised by society, schools show that An open-door policy towards the local community and
these children are valued and worth educating. Schools involvement in community-based programmes can help
also give disabled young people the means to succeed to counter this tendency.
and that success can help them to assume central roles in
society, rather than staying on the fringes. This encou- ii) Control
rages others to believe in the value of educating and trai-
ning disabled young people. However, more The very nature of institutions leads them to exercise a
locally-based initiatives may lack money and resources. measure of control over their 'clients' lives, which can
It should be incumbent upon the institutions to encoura- inhibit their development and stop them reaching their
ge these initiatives and to help the organisers attain a full potential. A commitment to CBR work with its
realistic level of resourcing for their project, while ensu- attendant principles of democratisation and empower-
ring that any feelings of inadequacy are minimised. A ment can help institutions to be more aware of the
child-and community-centred approach is the key to potential dangers of 'institutionalising' lives.
CBR work, and the institutions should support this.
iii) Rigidity
They are confident about their policies and strategies to became involved in a wide range of activities that had
the exclusion of new ideas and are concerned primarily little or nothing to do with deaf education because the
with continuity. Working in CBR encourages flexible community with which it had chosen to work had dif-
thinking and can foster an openness to new ideas. ferent priorities. The Institute chose to work with the
Institutions involved in CBR are more likely to change community on its priorities but slowly introduced the
and experiment, an approach which will ultimately be idea of developing services for the Deaf. The Institute's
of benefit to their clients. work included:
2. Training
centre-based in-service training and to help plan les- 4. Deaf people as partners
sons and activities.
There is a strong and active deaf community in and
3. Financial considerations around the Institute in Salt, Jordan. Of the staff, 20%
are deaf. They are qualified (many having graduated
The Holy Land Institute has 130 students from kinder- from the Institute) and have a greater understanding
garten through preparatory school to vocational trai- of the deaf children's needs than their hearing col-
ning. The cost per head for each student is approxima- leagues. They include vocational training instructors,
tely US$ 150 a month. The Institute is currently also office assistants and classroom assistants. As yet, the
educating about 75 deaf children in units established in Institute does not have deaf qualified teachers, which
CBR centres in five refugee camps. This programme is a longer-term aim. The deaf people on the staff are
employs two full-time staff (with transport) and is pro- the 'carriers' of the local Deaf culture. As successful
vided with some special equipment. The other staff are young deaf people, they are role models encouraging
volunteers. The cost per student is approximately US$ the deaf students and their parents and families and
10 a month. It is envisaged that some of these deaf by showing that deaf people can succeed.
children will shortly be moving to local mainstream
schools where they will be integrated on an individual
basis or placed in 'units' within a school, to enjoy an
education like any other child.
3. Partnership
by HALA T. IBRAHIM
The Resource Room at the Amman National School in In the school year 1989-90, the school accepted an
Amman, Jordan, is one school's answer to meeting the offer of help from a special education teacher who
special educational needs of its students with learning came to work in the school and subsequently set up the
difficulties. The Resource Room is a separate class, but Resource Room. The Resource Room was initially res-
the students who attend are members of an ordinary ponsible for five students. The following year, the tea-
class, and are withdrawn only when necessary. This cher left, and two other teachers were taken on to work
paper outlines the underlying philosophy of the with seven students in the Resource Room. At present,
Resource Room, its role within the school and how it the school employs three teachers to work there with
functions on a day-to-day basis. eleven students who have learning difficulties. There
are currently six children in the school with hearing or
visual impairments. They are fully integrated into ordi-
nary classes anal receive no support from the Resource
Room.
BACKGROUND The school set up the Resource Room on its own ini-
tiative and does not receive any financial support from
1. The school the government or any other organisation. When it first
opened, parents of students attending the Resource
The Amman National School is a small, private school Room paid the same fees as the other parents.
which opened in 1985. It has approximately 600 stu- However, the cost of running the Resource Room is
dents; 100 in the kindergarten and 500 from grades one high, and could not be maintained without additional
to ten. Each grade has two classes with 25-29 students income. Consequently, it was necessary to increase
in each class. The school continues to expand. fees for the students with learning difficulties. Despite
the increased fees, the Resource Room is still heavily
Since the school opened, it has operated a principle of subsidised by the school.
open access, so students are not selected on the basis of
ability. The school's principal believes strongly that a 3. Rationale
school should reflect, and be representative of, society.
This policy means that the students in the school are of The school believes in the integration of students with
mixed ability. The school tried to find teaching meth- special educational needs but has been unable to meet
ods which would help staff meet the needs of all the the needs of some of these students in the ordinary
students, but some of the students were still unable to class. There are two factors which contribute to this.
cope with the standard curriculum for their grade.
56
1. All schools must, by law, teach the National ensure that these students are with the ordinary class as
Curriculum. There is no flexibility in how this is much as possible, and they are withdrawn only when
delivered. It is very full, and teachers find it difficult necessary.
to complete the programmes of study with their stu-
dents. 2. The teachers
term), the student is set specific objectives in each sub- 4. How the Resource Room is arranged
ject area. When the objective is achieved, it is recor-
ded, and new objectives are added. Each student has a The Resource Room is divided into discrete areas
separate file which includes details of his/her indivi- where different aspects of the programme are taught.
dual learning programme. There are individual desks near the blackboard, and a
large table for group work. The younger students sit at
For assessment purposes, the Resource Room students the two smaller tables. There is a carpeted area for rea-
have the same report cards as the other students. They ding and playing educational games. There is also a
are assessed according to their own achievements and 'solitary corner' for those who need to work alone at
efforts and not in relation to their peers. However, there times and for 'time out' sessions if they are needed.
are grades which have to be registered officially with the
government. For these, the students are given a 'pass' 5. The Resource Room and how
with a note indicating that they are a special student. it relates to the rest of the school
Thus, a student will move up a grade each year, even
though s/he is not completing the National Curriculum. At the start of every school year, all the teachers in the
This is one of the first concessions the government has school receive information about the students with spe-
made to students with special educational needs. cial educational needs, whether they have health pro-
blems, visual or hearing impairment or learning diffi-
There are five key principles upon which teaching in culties. The teachers in the Resource Room know their
the Resource Room is based. students well, and are a good source of information for
the other teachers who may need to know about a stu-
1. What is being taught is 'task analysed' in order to dent's behaviour, personal development or academic
ensure that there is gradual movement from simple ability. The Resource Room staff have an important
to more complex tasks. role in explaining to the other teachers what can be
expected of the students with learning difficulties.
2. The same applies to the teaching of concepts, which
are taught first with tangible, concrete examples, The relationship of Resource Room teachers with the
gradually moving on to the abstract. first to fourth grade class teachers has generally been
better than that with the subject teachers from fifth to
3. All areas of learning are integrated and applied to tenth grade. With the latter, more monitoring and fol-
the skills of daily living. This is achieved through low-up is needed, particularly over issues like how
setting a project in which each student participates at much homework is given, encouraging participation in
his/her own level. One or two periods a week are class and the need to prepare separate tests for the spe-
allocated to work on the project, which may last cial needs students. Many of the class and subject tea-
from two to eight weeks. chers are cooperative, although new teachers need sup-
port. Those teachers who took a UNESCO course on
4. The student is returned to the ordinary class whene- special needs in the classroom have been especially
ver possible. For example, one student attended the willing to work with their Resource Room colleagues.
Resource Room only for mathematics tuition. They now have some understanding of the children's
During her third year, she was integrated back into needs and are therefore happier to try new approaches.
her ordinary class for mathematics, receiving assis- This highlights the importance of training for mains-
tance from the Resource Room teacher when she tream teachers in special educational needs.
needed it. Now, the only extra support she receives
is from a tutor who visits her at home twice a week. 6. Parental involvement
5. All students are helped to learn non-academic skills The decision to withdraw a student to the Resource
through project work, which is mostly crafts-based Room is taken only with the full agreement of the
and might include carpet-making, embroidery or parents. Once a student has joined the Resource Room,
painting. The student decides, with the help of the the initial assessments have been made, and learning
teacher, which skills s/he is interested in developing and behavioural objectives have been set, the parents
through the individual project work. The student is visit the school to meet the teachers. The teachers
allowed to spend time on the project when other explain to the parents what their child will be learning
assigned work has been completed satisfactorily. and what progress they should expect. Parental support
for the child is also discussed to help
58
parents provide follow-up assistance at home. If If a teacher leaves the Resource Room, it is inevitably
parents have any specific problems in dealing with difficult to recruit a replacement. There is no govern-
their child, guidance is offered. After this meeting, the ment training for teachers of children with learning dif-
parents are treated in the same way as parents of chil- ficulties, and therefore new staff have to be trained in
dren not attending the Resource Room. That is, they school, on the job. This is a slow process and affects
attend parent-teacher conferences and are asked to the the progress of work in the Resource Room.
school only when a specific problem arises.
iii) Students with emotional and
behavioural difficulties
Teachers who are new to the school often object to Again, because students span the whole age and ability
having a student with special educational needs in their range, one teacher may have to teach a group of stu-
class. Often this is because they do not understand the dents who are from different grades and working at
needs of these students and simply do not know what different levels. The older students do not like to be in
to do. The philosophy of the school, together with the the same class as the younger students. Additional
help of experienced teachers, can bring about changes space would solve this and one or two of the other pro-
in attitude, but this often takes some considerable time. blems.
The school takes seriously responsibility to change atti-
tudes and put into practice its theories on integration v) Instructional materials
throughout the school.
Educational games and craft materials are provided by
The Resource Room teachers object to the fact that the school. However, instructional programmes and
the other teachers view their work with a small num- materials are designed and made by the teachers. Very
ber of students in the Resource Room as being easier little is available in Arabic, so the teachers use foreign
than teaching a full class. The other teachers do not resources which have to be translated and adapted.
realise how demanding and time-consuming the work This is very time-consuming.
is. To help combat this 'image' problem, the Resource
Room staff gave a presentation at a staff meeting vi) Demand for places
where they talked about their work and what it
involves. As only a handful of schools have attempted to work
positively with Heir students who have special educa-
tional needs, there are many parents who would like
their children to attend the Resource Room at the
8
JORDAN
Individual integration of
children with Down's Syndrome
in ordinary schools
by TRIJNTJE DE WIT-GOSKER
Introduction
The Vereniging voor een ge Integreerde op voeding van 1. Historical and political context
Mongoloïde Kinderen (Association for the Integration
of Mongoloid Children) grew from an initial meeting of In the years immediately preceding the forming of the
a small group of parents of children with Down's VIM, the education of a child with Down's Syndrome
Syndrome. Some of the children were attending mains - in the Netherlands was clearly mapped through an esta-
tream nursery schools and the parents wanted to chal - blished system of special care and education. The nor-
lenge a system which prevented their children from mal route was from a special day-care centre, to a spe-
transfering to a mainstream primary school, the requi - cial school, and then on to a place in a sheltered work-
rement being that they enrol instead at a special shop or a day-care centre for adults. Very occasionally,
school. children with Down's Syndrome were given a place at
a mainstream nursery school, but the system prevented
In June 1986, these parents and supportive local pri - any child with Down's Syndrome from attending a
mary school teachers formed the Vereniging voor een mainstream primary school.
ge Integreerde op voeding van Mongoloide Kinderen
(the VIM) to lobby for the support and integration of Some parents of children with Down's Syndrome were
children with Down's Syndrome into mainstream edu - not satisfied with the existing provision which segrega-
cation. Six years later, in June 1992, the VIM had ted their children. They wanted their children to be
grown to a membership of 340 families and 194 pri - integrated into mainstream day-care and schooling,
mary schools. with the possibility of proper employment and a full
life as part of the community when they reached adul-
The VIM argues for better state support for integrated thood.
education, lobbying the Dutch Ministry of Education
for extra resources. It organises training for teachers However, in August 1985, an Education Act was pas-
and parents, and has an advocacy role in promoting sed which merged existing nursery schools and prima-
the views of its members to educationalists, policy ry schools to create new primary schools for 4-12 year
makers and the general public. olds. This was seen as a breakthrough
62
for parents of children with Down's Syndrome whose to the formation of the VIM, which runs the project:
children were already attending nursery school. "Individual Integration of Children with Down's
Transfer at the end of nursery school was no longer Syndrome in Ordinary Schools."
necessary, as the nursery now formed part of the pri-
mary school. Consequently, the onus was now on the 2. Organisation and Finance
school to explain why a child with Down's Syndrome
should be dismissed rather than continue his or her The VIM is a national association based in Utrecht,
education in the same school. where it was founded. It works for its membership and
is therefore active wherever it has members. It works
A core group of parents invited teachers at their local in partnership with the Seminarium voor
primary schools to discuss the implications of their Orthopedagogiek, a training college for special educa-
children attending mainstream primary schools, inclu- tion, which is also based in Utrecht and runs study
ding the need for in-service training for the staff and days and courses throughout the Netherlands.
extra school-based resources. This meeting led
MEDIA
MINISTRY
OF EDUCATION
SCHOOL BOARD
TEACHERS IN
PRIMARY SCHOOL
PARENTS PEERS
THE CHILD
TEACHER WITH
DOWN'S STAFF
TRAINERS
SYNDROME
FURTHER
FAMILY NEIGHBOURS
WORKERS IN DAY
CARE CENTERS
SCHOOL
COUNCELLORS
OTHER
POLICY MAKERS
MEDIA
The integration project looks like this, operating within society and interacting dynamically with it.
9
NETHERLANDS
The VIM's project for placing children with Down's - the Ministry of Public Health and Culture and the
Syndrome in mainstream schools is supported Federation of Parents' Organisations (both for finan-
financially by the Dutch Ministry for Education cial support)
through the provision of support teachers for every - teams of teachers from schools for children with lear-
school which enrols a pupil with Down's Syndrome. ning difficulties (to work with teachers from mains-
Funding for the administrative costs of the VIM is tream schools)
more difficult to obtain. The VIM is the first joint asso- - specialists from the schools' advisory services (eg.
ciation for parents and teachers in the Netherlands and educational psychologists) to provide school-based
it would appear that the normal sources of assistance to primary schools.
funding for parents' organisations and teachers' organi-
sations are not available. The VIM currently survives
on the voluntary input of parents and teachers, occasio-
nal gifts and project funding.
INTEGRATION PROJECT
For example, the Ministry of Education has also
taken financial responsibility for one particular VIM 1. The VIM's view of integration
project, the "Support Schools Project", which began
in 1989. This funding has greatly enhanced the devel- Parents of children with Down's Syndrome are not
opment of the project at regional level. Four primary denying that their children have a disability when they
schools in any one region are allocated four extra argue for integration. They recognise that much has
hours of staff time in a week, to support other already been achieved through the special education
primary schools in their region which have a pupil system but feel that it is time to take the next step and
with Down's Syndrome. This project is coordinated to explore what people with disabilities can achieve in
by the Seminarium voor Orthopedagogiek which our society.
also receives four hours of staff time per week for the
running of the project. The VIM is concerned with the integration of people
with Down's Syndrome, not with the condition itself. It
Meanwhile, the VIM continues to explore potential is not interested in promoting claims about the 'excep-
sources of funding with the government and various tional' qualities of children with Down's Syndrome, nor
agencies such as the Federation of Parents' does it aim directly to counter negative views of them.
Organisations. The VIM is not looking for new labels but for integra-
tion. It has chosen to use the original term Mongol' or
3. The partners 'mongoloid' rather than adopt the current official term
'Down's Syndrome'. Both labels continue to imply that
The integration project initiated by the VIM currently the problem lies within the child. Changing from a
involves the following groups in active roles: nineteenth-century anthropological label to a
twentieth-century medical label only suggests that
- parents of children with Down's Syndrome - teams of people with this disability should shun the old-fashio-
teachers in primary schools with one or more pupils ned psychologist and that they now need to see a doc-
with Down's Syndrome tor. They do not need a doctor. What they need is a
- teams of workers in mainstream day-care centres with good teacher.
a child with Downs's Syndrome
- the Seminarium voor Orthopedagogiek (Institute for The VIM takes the view that the mongoloid child must
follow-up training for Special Education) learn to live with his or her disability within an open
- the Ministry of Education society. The VIM believes that teaching the child to
- Dutch Federation of Parents' Organisations (specific use the term Mongol' to describe his or her disability
aspects of the project only). could lead to the word losing its negative connotations,
as the people it is meant to describe would be using it
The integration project looks like this, operating within in a natural, positive way.
society and interacting dynamically with it. (See dia-
gram) The VIM believes that families with disabled children
should be able to make their own choices. Such fami-
A major task for the immediate future is to involve lies will want their children to live in a stimulating
more organisations in the project and the VIM is wor- environment where they can learn about life as well as
king hard to achieve this. The VIM is especially keen school subjects. Integration can give people with lear-
to involve: ning difficulties the opportunity to develop their
64
- In 1991 the Seminarium voor Orthopedagogiek publi- - The Seminarium voor Orthopedagogiek broadened its
shed a handbook for teachers and parents called "De programme of teacher training to include teachers
VIM-GIDS, deel A". It describes and analyses possi- working with pupils with learning difficulties in an
bilities for integration in school. ordinary primary school, thereby including disabili-
- The Seminarium voor Orthopedagogiek started ties other than Down's Syndrome.
courses for parents, teaching them how to select a
school and maintain good contact with the teachers. The future
- The VIM set up a system of "support parents", whose
task is to talk to other parents about integration. - The Seminarium voor Orthopedagogiek and the VIM are
- The media contributed substantially in influencing working hard to have the "De VIM-GIDS, deel B" published
public opinion in favour of integration. In 1991 five soon. It will be the second part of the handbook. It contains
different television programmes about the integration many ideas for the teacher and his/her class: how to organise,
of children with Down's Syndrome were broadcast how to set up an individual learning programme, how to
respond to behavioural difficulties, how to use particular tea-
1992-93: ching methods, how to find practical solutions to practical
Integrating the project into problems, how to support the emotional development, motor
the professional education system development etc. of children with Down's Syndrome.
- As mentioned above, funding for the VIM support
- The dialogue with colleagues of schools for children schools will come to an end in 1993. It is not yet
with severe learning difficulties is now under way. clear who will take over this support-system. It
Teachers from primary schools are visiting special depends on the results of the project and the response
schools, while teachers in special education are from the Ministry of Education.
taking more of an interest in what is developing in - The VIM will start a new project, focusing on the
the mainstream schools. transition from primary to secondary school, and
- The counselling by the support schools will come to again, this project will have its roots in needs identi-
an end in 1993. The VIM is in discussion with the fied by parents and teachers.
school counsellors' service, hoping that these profes- - Ultimately, the VIM will become superfluous, becau-
sionals will be able to take over the role of the sup- se other organisations will be able to take over these
port schools post-1993. and other projects. It is hoped that
66
ii) Materials
2. Mistakes and risks and even change this as a result of teaching a child
with Down's Syndrome.
i) The VIM wished to establish a high standard
quarterly magazine, VIMfo, which looked at integra- v) Teachers in special education are themselves starting
tion issues. VIM soon realised how difficult it is to projects for integration, eg. creating more and more
run such a magazine without enough opportunities for their pupils to undertake work
financial support and with only a very small group experience.
of voluntary workers. Recently the VIM decided
to change the format from magazine to a short vi) Experts in special education are working hard to
newsletter. develop adapted teaching programmes for language,
elementary arithmetic and orientation in time and
ii) The VIM was not able to gain sufficient financial space. Thus, special education expertise is extending
support to run the project with paid workers, to provide sound support for cognitive work in
because as an association of both parents mainstream schools.
and teachers, it does not fit easily into the system
of governmental subsidies in the Netherlands. vii) Parents are becoming more assertive.
At the moment, the VIM is negotiating for closer
cooperation with the Federation of Parents' 4. Advice to those who are interested
Organisations in order to have better access to in adopting the VIM model.
public financial resources, though the price may
be the risk of losing the VIM's basic identity as i) The need for allies and supporters is paramount.
an organisation for parents, as well as for teachers. Work together with partners in the field of educa-
tion, with individuals as well as organisations and
iii) The VIM has not been able to promote its ideas policy-makers.
clearly enough to the new generation of parents,:
who appear to think that integration is now well ii) Create a good balance between parents and teachers
established and easy to achieve in every school. in mainstream education. Together they are strong
They expect too much from the VIM, treating enough to influence policy, the community and their
it as an institution, and so they tend to make less own school board. Together they are strong enough
contribution themselves. There is a continuous to go on with integration, even when there is a nega-
risk of 'contributors' becoming only 'customers'. tive response from colleagues in special education or
from school counsellors.
3. Positive factors
iii) Let all information about achieving individual inte-
i) The VIM opened doors in the world of officials gration be accessible to all those involved, to parents
and professionals which would have remained as well as teachers. Give teachers the opportunity to
closed if it had immediately started to lobby for invite "their" parents to teacher
facilities for all children with learning difficulties.
The Federation of Parents' Organisations is now
creating new educational opportunities for all
such children.
training and give parents the opportunity to invite parents looking for a primary school for their child.
"their" teachers to parents' meetings. Only in Dutch.
iv) Be patient with people (and organisations) who say iv) De VIM-GIDS, deel B (1993) contains a long list
that they are prepared to promote integration, of course material items, ie. a list of everything that
even if you know that their interest in integration a Down's Syndrome pupil could learn at primary
is for political reasons rather than as a result of a school. It also contains a number of items about the
genuine belief and commitment. They will learn. materials presented or gathered at the training confe-
rences for teachers. Only in Dutch.
v) Initially avoid contact with organisations which
oppose your views and strategy for achieving 2. Addresses
integration. It is hard to achieve real dialogue in
these circumstances. It takes too much time and VIM
energy to convince unwilling people. It is more Vereniging voor een ge Integreerde opvoeding van
effective to prioritise working towards good Mongoloide Kinderen (Association for the Integration
practice, which will then be the best means of of Mongoloid Children) Meester Koolenweg 3 8042
persuading others. GB Zwolle The Netherlands Tel: (00 31) 38 - 226916
vi) Use the media as much as possible. It is important Seminarians voor Orthopedagogiek
that a community keeps talking about the subject (Institute for Special Education)
of integration over and over again. Archimedeslaan 16
PB 14007
3508 SB Utrecht
The Netherlands
Tel: (00 31) 30 - 547378
APPENDIX Fax: (00 31) 30 - 540349
In harmony we learn
by MARNA MOE
pupils in the class. This has been achieved in some les- situation. Special attention is given to activities which
sons, but there is a need for better cooperation between can also be enjoyed in leisure time with friends and
teachers from the Unit and the mainstream part of the family.
school. Integration is socially beneficial to the whole
school, including staff, and is not just for the benefit of 2. Integrated teaching and learning
the children in the Unit. It fosters an atmosphere of
teamwork amongst the students and, ideally, between The teaching programme is organised to help Vettre
staff. achieve its aims. A pupil may experience any or all of
the following learning situations:
As the integration project began to develop, the aims ii) a whole class in which the learning programmes are
became clearer. The integration scheme at Vettre aims more individualised, with students following indivi-
to offer each and every student a suitable and relevant dual work programmes alone or in small groups;
education. The school aims to ensure that children and
young people with disabilities are not hidden away, but iii) groups sharing common activities where the main
are seen taking part in life. Vettre wishes these children task of the mainstream students is to assist the stu-
to be integrated in other schools too, and to be accep- dents with special educational needs to participate in
ted by society, establishing principles of 'normalisa- the activity;
tion'. The school aims to develop responsibility
and tolerance, establishing models to help students iv) groups where each student works at his/her own
interact and focussing on social behaviour. level, either within small units or in a whole-class
situation.
The curriculum is organised to enable pupils to achieve
and to feel a sense of achievement. All the activities The groups will either be located in separate rooms
are geared to developing self-confidence and encoura- connecting with the rest of the class or in the Unit for
ge each pupil to contribute in a group the students with special educational needs.
10
NORWAY
From initial observations, it was decided to modify the For those involved in the Vettre project, it was vital
outside area, purchase play equipment and to introduce that the students with special educational needs transfe-
a number of specific games to the children. The stu- red to the local comprehensive school with their peers.
dents who were being left out of the other children's The right to a place there is implied within Norwegian
games were given extra adult contact. Involving the legislation and the position for children with special
children with special educational needs in the outside educational needs should not differ from that of their
activities took longer than expected. It was the main- peers. The local resolution, passed by the School
stream students who sought contact with the adults Board, which clarified the need to find a model to
rather than the special needs students, which inhibited develop harmony between mainstream students and
the process of integration at play time. those with special educational needs, did not mention
specifically an extension of the principle to the secon-
Two activities were eventually accepted by the children dary sector. However, it would be a pedagogic and
and some special events were also organised. The two municipal defeat not to complete the process and inclu-
regular activities were ball games and tobogganing. An de comprehensive education. Besides, Vettre does not
'Activity Day on the Ice' performance was organised have the room to continue the integration programme
with children in sledges, toboggans, skates and wheel- for students old enough to transfer and therefore deli-
chairs. The Asker Sled Dog Club helped arrange a day very for older students has to be based at the compre-
for the children playing on their dog sledges, with hensive school.
mainstream students helping the drivers and the stu-
dents with special educational needs riding in the The staff involved in the Vettre project identified a new
sledges. On these occasions and for organised trips, the aim: within three years they aimed to develop harmo-
teachers have extra helpers to ensure that the students nic models between children with special educational
with special needs are able to participate. needs and mainstream students in the comprehensive
school. It was a challenge to which everyone in the
There are fewer conflicts now when the children are project was committed.
outside and the children with special educational needs
have extended their field of experience. Being with the 2. Finding the right approach
mainstream students pushes them through what their
teachers previously considered to be fixed barriers. The starting point was a set of conclusions drawn from
the Vettre project, which led to the following observa-
tions:
- the school represents only one aspect of the munici- - the school's priority for the social education of its
pal undertaking to provide the young person with pupils, which should encourage them "to get involved
special educational needs with a full service within with and take responsibility for others".
his or her local community; - the chief education offi-
cer for schools and social services should establish an These factors mostly concern the pedagogical philos-
inter-disciplinary working group to attend to the ophy of the receiving school and the willingness to
needs of these young people; adopt new teaching styles which are appropriate to the
- as they learn and socialise together at school, both incoming students with special educational needs.
mainstream and integrated students will become more In-service training for the teachers can help enor-
confident about associating with each other; mously and minimises the feelings of insecurity that
- it is particularly important to teach comprehensive can arise when people are asked to change their way of
school students about the whole of society and all its working.
members, and to give them a better understanding of
work with young people with special educational The subject-focused curriculum of the secondary
needs; - guidance and help from special school tea- school does not easily accommodate the individual
chers is essential in encouraging mainstream teachers learning programmes required by students with special
to take the initiative; educational needs. Shared learning activities are more
- specialist care service providers, including the medi- difficult to organise and opportunities for learning
cal professions, need to understand better the benefits together in subject-based lessons are much more limi-
of integration for all young people. ted than in primary schools.
It was decided that, in the comprehensive school, Information-sharing between parents, teachers and stu-
groups of two or three mainstream students would dents is essential to the success of a project. Any infor-
work with one, or perhaps two, students with special mation recorded or exchanged about a student is
educational needs. A special needs teacher should be agreed with that student wherever possible. If the stu-
available to the integrated students, as well as their dent is unable to express a view then his/her parents
own class teacher. Also, the student with special edu- are consulted.
cational needs and the mainstream student both need to
learn about alternative means of communication, such Cooperation between mainstream students and students
as Sign Language, the Bliss Symbol System etc. with special educational needs is a key target in an
integration project and can occur in two ways. The first
The above points are all equally important. Most is called 'visualising' where the integrated student is
concern the pedagogic arrangements for integration in present in a group and the situation has not been 'orga-
a comprehensive school. However, the organisational nised'. The cooperation occurs by chance and is mani-
arrangements, such as adapting/decorating buildings, fest in mimicking, greeting, smiles, informal chatter
after-hours use of school premises etc. can affect peda- etc. It takes place throughout the day and happens
gogical decisions. naturally. The second form of cooperation occurs
through specially organised activities where the stu-
3. Planning for success dents are actively following a planned process. This
type of cooperation is generally only successful with
The success or failure of the project was also small student groups, either in a room separate from
dependent on: the main class or outside school altogether on riding,
swimming or other trips. These observations matched
- the flexibility of the school's systems; those made at the primary school; age appears not to
- the school's way of organising its education provi- make a difference.
sion;
- the school's way of approaching subject learning, and
its curricula;
- the relationship with parents and the local communi-
ty;
- the extent to which staff on the integration project are
involved in the school's development planning;
- the school staff's attitude to the new challenges and
tasks introduced by the project;
10
NORWAY
Experience has taught the project staff that there are for social care, the ability to use alternative ways of
some principles and observations which are central to making contact and communicating.
the development of integration models:
This teaching is organised through the involvement of
- students with special educational needs must be real mainstream students in real and practical initiatives
members of their mainstream class; with specific aims for the students in the Special Unit.
- admittance to a mainstream class will be dependent The project is already in a position to deliver the legis-
on the nature of a student's special educational needs; lative requirement to provide all students with 'practi-
- for some of the integrated students, it is better to cal, social and cultural' experience, across all subject
arrange joint activities in small groups comprising areas.
two or three mainstream students and the integrated
student; The models for 'harmony' between all groups of stu-
- membership of the above groups should rotate every dents and their teachers and parents have been develo-
three or four weeks so that as many mainstream stu- ped through painstaking, thorough work and the
dents as possible work with the students with special patience of many. Close cooperation has been essential
educational needs; at every stage and on every level.
- the students with special educational needs should be
taught in the class or group rooms for at least some
of the time;
- the class teachers should have close contact with the
integrated student(s); EVALUATION:
- the special education teacher should endeavour to be
a resource for the whole class;
LESSONS LEARNT
- the mainstream students must be guided in their inter-
actions with the students with special educational 1. Project evaluation
needs to foster a positive learning and social environ-
ment. They should also be shown how to assist the There has been continuous review and evaluation
integrated students; throughout the project. As mistakes were made,
- integration is positive for mainstream students, who methods were adjusted and new approaches tried. A
generally discover that students with special educa- support team of highly-skilled professionals has provi-
tional needs are like other young people, and for inte- ded strong guidance and advice on the project.
grated students who feel pleasure and satisfaction at Management support has also been crucial.
being part of the mainstream class.
If a project such as this is to contribute to future plan-
None of these concepts differs from pedagogical prin- ning and development, it is important that:
ciples being followed throughout the Norwegian school
system. The integrated teaching approach provides stu- a) the experiences of the participants are documented
dents with both individual teaching and the opportunity and shared so that they can help other schools with
to participate in shared activities. This is a right for students with special educational needs;
every child of school age and is enshrined in b) that the evaluation process is as objective and rigo-
Norwegian law. Striving to realise this right is exciting rous as possible and the report as truthful as pos-
and challenging. At Vettre, where the variety of special sible. Positive and negative experiences should be
educational needs among the students was especially included and those questions to which answers were
great, the pedagogical challenge offered good opportu- not found should be left unanswered.
nities to develop new approaches
to teaching and learning. 2. Conditions for a successful project
- "This congress endeavoured to be meaningful to the ii) that the interest of the developed countries, inclu-
countries of the Third World; ding the professionals directly involved with the
- It recognises that it has not really addressed the education of deaf people, is often quite
immediate problems of the developing countries;
80
superficial. The aid programmes are inadequate and 3. The developed countries
are often inefficiently administered and inappropria-
tely targeted; i) The developed countries generally display a pro-
found lack of awareness of what is happening in
iii) that the developed countries often assume that developing countries and of their needs and the pro-
developing countries are unable to solve their own blems they encounter. This is primarily because too
problems, lack expertise and have nothing to contri- few of the professionals from those developing
bute to discussion; countries are integrated into the professional circuit.
Furthermore, those professionals fail even to achieve
iv) that there are resources in developing countries recognition at regional and national level in their
which, properly utilised, could contribute much to own countries.
the development of education for deaf people.
Professional expertise in developing countries is too ii) Deaf people themselves, despite any knowledge and
often over-looked, not just by the developed coun- expertise they may possess and what they could
tries, but also by the developing countries them- offer to both the deaf and wider communities, are
selves. consistently poorly treated and mis-represented.
Their needs are great, interest from the authorities is
often poor, and deaf people are rarely given the
2. The developing countries opportunity to contribute to their own educational
provision or, indeed, to any of the services that they
Within the developing countries, there are a number of require. In developing countries, the picture is far
misunderstandings and misconceptions relating to the worse.
current range of activity, the standards of provision and
the availability of professional expertise in deaf educa- 4. The need for INITIATIVES
tion.
Professionals living and working within the developing
i) Many government authorities are still unaware of countries felt that the time had come for them to begin
what is involved in providing education for deaf to take a clear and conspicuous role in the development
children and can be under the misapprehension that of policies and strategies to solve their specific pro-
professionals from developing countries, including blems in providing services to deaf people. They had
their own, are less well qualified and skilled than the necessary qualifications and expertise; most impor-
those from developed countries. There is a need to tantly they were in the best position to observe and
challenge definitions of success which rely on analyse existing provision in their own countries and
models more appropriate to developed countries. had the confidence to try to solve some of the pro-
blems they had identified. The developed countries
ii) Owing to the size of many developing countries and have been invited to provide support in the form of
poor transport and communications infrastructures, advice, technical expertise and financial aid, within the
people working in an area like deaf education are development programmes established by the develo-
often unaware of the achievements of colleagues in ping countries themselves.
neighbouring countries. This professional isolation
does not aid development, nor does it promote INITIATIVES seeks to facilitate developments in deaf
confidence within a professional group. education, bringing together professional people in
practical partnerships. Policy-making, initiating and
iii) Many people, including the professional workers, implementing projects and long-term planning are the
have a charity-oriented approach, rather than one responsibility of the INITIATIVES 'Partners' working
which is about self-help and development. This has in developing countries, with the developed countries
fostered the attitude that anything coming from helping as outlined above.
'without' is better; that all good things are given,
rather than achieved through hard work and by
taking a fresh approach to problem-solving and
development.
11
INTERNATIONAL
The number of Partners is limited by the level of finan- Membership of an accepted international network can
ce available, but it is envisaged that eventually the help Partners achieve greater recognition as pro-
Partner for a specific country will be selected (possibly fessionals at both local and national level. This has
on a rotation basis) from among the Associate Partners obvious benefits for career development and is a clear
in that country. example of how 'mainstreaming' into international acti-
vities can occur.
INITIATIVES, despite its administrative structures, is a
movement, not an organisation. It is a fluid network of iii) Dissemination of information
people concerned with deaf education and has great
potential for development. The work of INITIATIVES and its partners is dissemi-
nated via talks, exhibitions, written articles and visits
3. Finance by the Trustees to a wide variety of organisations and
conferences.
INITIATIVES does not receive core funding from
government or other sources. The Trustees and the iv) Resources
Secretary raise funds to support the network's activi-
ties, assisted by Partners who are in a position to help. INITIATIVES acts as a resources centre for informa-
Most of the money raised is used to finance informa- tion about work for and with deaf people in developing
tion packs and attendance at workshops for the countries. Inevitably, many of the requests for informa-
Partners, who are not expected to contribute financially tion come from Great Britain, where the Secretariat is
to the network. based, but requests do come from many other develo-
ped and developing countries.
The main areas of expenditure are:
v) Sharing and exchange
i) running expenses, including preparation and distribu-
tion of the information packs; A vital part of INITIATIVES' work is in facilitating the
sharing of information, knowledge, expertise and
ii) the regular workshops which receive funding from a concerns between Partners in the developing countries.
wide range of funding agencies, including a small This happens in the following ways.
number of European NGOs, grant-making trusts and
foundations and charities, most of which are based a) Exchanges of experiences and expertise between the
in the UK; Partners: Partners share on an individual basis and via
a Newsletter. They also come together for the work-
iii) a limited number of donations of equipment and shops which are held every two or three years.
materials to Partners to assist them in their work.
b) Small-scale projects often involving a transfer of
There is an ongoing programme of fundraising events expertise across member countries. For example:
which includes street and church collections, talks and
lectures and the sale of stamps, postcards and so on. - a deaf earmould technician from Jordan conducted a
training course in New Delhi, India;
- an Indian ENT/hearing aid specialist conducted a trai-
ning programme for parents of deaf children in Meru,
Kenya.
11
INTERNATIONAL
2. Partners
4. Finance
APPENDIX:
All the Partners (as well as the Trustees) are professional people providing services for deaf children and young
people, parents of deaf children, and representatives of deaf organisations. They are both hearing and deaf. There
are teachers, audiologists, ENT surgeons, teacher trainers, lecturers, administrators, heads of organisations of the
Deaf, parents of deaf children, Sign Language interpreters, etc.
President (1991)
Prof. George W. Brobby, Ghana
Addresses of contributors