Inclusive society critical for all children
Mawunyo Tshigbe has lived with cerebral palsy since infancy and for most part of her 16 years, she is confined in a basket. Mawunyo does not have much of an exposure as a result of her condition but she has dreams. “I want to go to school” says Mawunyo and that is her desire. Mawunyo is now enrolled in a public school at Abutia Teti in the Volta Region.
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She is one of the few children living with a disability and has been given a fair chance to take her rightful place as an equal participant in the society. If this opportunity is supported, she will be able to contribute to enrich the life of her society.
Government’s commitment
Government’s effort at providing education for children living with disabilities dates back to the late 30s. Currently, Ghana has specialised state schools and centres for persons with various disabilities at both primary and tertiary levels.
Ghana is introducing inclusive education to ensure that schools are not only child-friendly, but safe and have protective spaces for learning and growth where every child succeeds.
In spite of these efforts, 20 per cent of children aged six-14 are still out of school. Various reasons account for children who are left out. They include, wrong perceptions, stigma, isolation, gender, health and nutrition status, language, geographic location, culture, religion, and the economic status of the child.
Inclusive Education
Inclusive Education (IE) means increasing access and the participation of all students in schools, including those with special needs. An approach that seeks to address the learning needs of all children, youth and adults with a specific focus on those who are vulnerable, marginalised and often excluded within the regular mainstream school system.
Since 2012, UNICEF has been supporting the Special Education Unit of the Ghana Education Service to incorporate an Inclusive Education Monitoring Tool (IEMT) that seeks to address adaptation of IE policies and practices in schools and ensures that students are provided with the appropriate support they need.
However, there are still challenges in its implementation but the benefits, if the challenges are surmounted, accrue to all. Principally, all children, including children with disabilities, realise their right to education. Perceptions among their peers and society as a whole are changed with cultures, policies and practices transformed in school to accommodate the differing needs of individual students. Again, the assumptions children with disabilities have about their abilities are also reshaped.
Conclusion
As the world mark International Day of Persons with Disabilities on December 3, we celebrate and recognise all people with disabilities who have braved the odds to make meaningful contributions to their society.
We would like to advocate for an inclusive society, a society that makes space and removes all barriers to the opportunities for persons with disabilities to participate.
While we advocate for an inclusive society, we need to understand and respond to the needs of each category of exclusion, the overall need is to develop strategies to remove barriers to learning and participation for all children, including those with disabilities.
An inclusive society requires a change of perception, recognition that children with disabilities hold the same rights as everyone and that they can also contribute meaningfully to society.
Mawunyo will become a role model for other families with children with disabilities if collectively her community supports her efforts. Everyone can learn if given the chance and the necessary support.
There are only differently abled, so let’s celebrate our differences.
• The writer is the Director, Special Education Division, Ghana Education Service
