ROLE OF UNESCO IN EDUCATION OF DISABLED

INTRODUCTIONPeople with disabilities face particular

challenges in education and training. Many are denied access to basic literacy and numeracy skills: it is estimated that 98% of children with physical or mental impairments in developing countries do not attend school. In all countries, disabled people may encounter discrimination and barriers to full participation in skills training and employment programmes.

UNESCO formally came into existence on November, 1946.

UNESCO supports various international Human Rights Treaties and Conventions that uphold the right to education of all persons.

UNESCO promotes inclusive education policies, programmes and practices to ensure equal education opportunities for persons with disabilities.

UNESCO aims to support the full social inclusion of people with disabilities by promoting increased opportunities for them to participate in and complete training courses. Disability is often linked to poverty.

UNESCO (United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization)

UNESCO (United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization)ensure that special needs education forms part of

every discussion dealing with education for all.enhance teacher education in this field by getting

support from teacher unions and associations.stimulate the academic community to do more

research into inclusive education and disseminate the findings and the reports.

use its funds over the five-year period, 1996--2001, to create an expanded programme for inclusive schools and community support projects, thus enabling the launch of pilot projects.

UNESCO works with governments to achieve these goals:-Opening up access of existing TVET

programmes to special needs groups.

Cont…Adapting curricula, facilities and

pedagogical material.Providing a safe learning environment.Training trainers to best educate

homogeneous groups of students.Making communities aware of the

important role people with disabilities can play in society and at work.

UNESCO in IndiaIn 1949, UNESCO was requested by the

Government of India to facilitate access to Braille .

The first special education programme for handicapped children and youth was launched by UNESCO in 1965.

 It was to be financed primarily by voluntary contributions. 

CURRENT TRENDSThe majority of disabled children do not go to school.Disabled children are often seen as ‘uneducable’ and ‘not

worth wasting resources on’.Disability ‘mainstreaming’ is still the dominant view in educationSpecial schools and specialists are often considered to be

essential – rather than developing capacity in communities. ‘Special units’ are seen as a way forward – yet they are

problematic.Most agencies focus on schooling - not enough attention paid

to alternative forms of educationThe term ‘inclusive education’ is used to mean different things

in different places.Teacher education rarely keeps up with changes in policy and

practice.

FUTURE PROGRAMMESchool fees have been abolished in many countries.UNESCO is promoting child-friendly (inclusive)

schools.Inclusive education is now a right – in over 100

countries (those who have signed the new UN Convention).

The inclusion of disabled children is often a catalyst for change and can challenge EFA to be more inclusive.

People are passionate about sharing their experience of making IE a reality.

SSA and its focus on children with special needs (CWSN) The SSA(into which DPEP was incorporated) lists 8

priority areas of intervention for inclusive education:

1) Survey for identification of CSWN 2) Assessment of CWSN 3) Providing assistive devices 4) Networking with NGOs/Government schemes 5) Barrier free access 6) Training of teachers on IE 7) Appointment of resource teachers 8) Curricula adaptation/textbooks/appropriate TLM

Home Based Education (HBE) HBE has a central place in SSA, and is

defined as: The education of children with severe

intellectual/physical disabilities, who can be educated in the combination of home-based and alternate educational settings to enable them to achieve independent living skills.

SSA further extends the range of options from special and mainstream/ ‘regular’ schools to Education Guarantee Scheme/Alternative and Innovative Education (EGS/AIE)

NGOs have played a central role in the development of educational provisions for children with disabilities