Seminar on ‘Inclusive Practices for the Full Inclusion Classroom’ for Special Educators for intellectually challenged in SEVAI community college.

Participatory Rapid Appraisal exercise  by Special Educators

One day seminar on ‘Inclusive Practices for the Full Inclusion Classroom’ for Special Educators for intellectually challenged was conducted on the 16^th July, at SEVAI community college.57 special Educators participated in this seminar on ‘Inclusive Practices for the Full Inclusion Classroom’. In his seminar inaugural address, Dr.K.Govindaraju, SEVAI Community college senior principal said “Inclusive Practices for the Full Inclusion Classroom places children with intellectual challenges in general education classrooms are meant to be the norm, not the exception and the  strategy education is a tool, plan, method used for accomplishing a task of a special Educator. Positive Behavior Support can encourage the students to exhibit desired behaviors through a positive, proactive environment. A great deal of energy goes into controlling and eliminating problem behaviors. A special educator approach can create an environment that minimizes if not eliminates the need for punishment or negative consequences, which tend to compromise a teacher's future success with difficult students. Special education is a technique used in teaching mentally challenged and autistic children. Every task which is to be taught is broken in to simpler and easy steps. This is called as task analysis. Once this is done, child is motivated and then goes to next step. In many of the cases, in the absence of speech and language it becomes very difficult for the sp. Educator to have two way communications. Drinking water can be taken as an example. This is divided in to about 10 or 12 steps. First holding the empty glass, then holding it vertical, then with small quantity of water in it, then filling the glass half, then trying to take the glass up to lips and so on. The last step could be actually swallowing water. Each step is monitored and recorded. It is impossible to say how much time a particular child will take for reaching next step. In autistic children with mental disability, the job becomes more difficult for the faculties working with him. Apart from special educator, you need psychological intervention too. The environment around an autistic child has to be specially structured and cannot be altered frequently”.

Dr.K.Govindaraju further added “Two mentally challenged children are not alike. Mental retardation is a relative thing and is directly related to the degree of damage to the brain. There are five categories are Border line, Mild, Moderate, Severe and Profound. For a Border line child, it is difficult to understand concepts like time concept, money concept, weight or height concept, color concept and concept of cooperation. But he is ok in ADL i.e. activities for daily living. But if we take the case of a child at the other end of the spectrum i.e. Profound, he cannot perform ADL. He may not perceive pain, he cannot communicate toilet needs, may not be able to drink or even eat. More than 50% mentally challenged, lack speech and language, about 30% have physical disability also. Thus every child has different problem and thus his need also differs. The pattern through which normal children get school education is termed as common pattern of curriculum, while in case of mentally challenged it is individualistic. Every mentally challenged student has separate curriculum. Since needs of every mentally disabled child differs, his syllabus has to be different and it is thus need based”. Dr.R.Deivakumar, Coordinator of SSA, Trichy in his key note address mentioned that further added a Border line student will be taught academics which will include things like learning ABCD and number count etc. But in case of severely retarded student priority will be toilet training and speech. Mother plays an important role since she is a best person to ascertain the true needs of her ward. She is the person who follows the class room techniques at home also and thus can maintain continuity. The special educators had undertaken a PRA exercise in Life skills teaching for the intellectually challenged children.-Govin