Disability Programme
Disadvantaged Groups Section,
Social Development Division, ESCAP
UNITED NATIONS Building, Rajdamnern Nok Avenue
Bangkok 10200, THAILAND
Fax: 66 - 2-288 1030
E-mail: dgs.unescap@un.org
Please mark "Education response")
INTRODUCTION
The
implementation of the Agenda for Action for
the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons
is central to fulfilment of the Decade goal
of full participation and equality of persons
with disabilities. Education is one of the 12
areas of the Decade Agenda for Action. There
are 7 education targets for implementation of
the Decade Agenda for Action.
Access
to education for children and youth with disabilities
is a vital means of empowerment and self-help.
Although children and youth with disabilities
have the same citizenship entitlements as their
non-disabled peers, very few have equal education
opportunities in ESCAP developing and least
developed countries and areas.
There
is a critical need to promote awareness of the
basic right of children and youth with disabilities
to education, and to address significant gaps
between entitlements and aspirations on the
one hand, and policy and practice on the other.
This
questionnaire is in two parts. Part
I covers educational services from primary
level upwards. Part
II focuses on pre-primary, including early
childhood, intervention, care and education.
Annexes
1 to 5 contain background information that may
be useful to you and your colleagues in completing
this questionnaire. The same annexes are also
attached to Part II as it is envisaged that
Part II may be completed by a different team
of respondents.
The
responses that you and your colleagues provide
to this questionnaire will be an important contribution
to an assessment of the status of education
for children and youth with disabilities in
the ESCAP region, and the identification of
measures required to strengthen their participation
in education.
Thank
you for working with us to help give children
and youth with disabilities a better chance
in life.
CONTACT
DETAILS
Contact details
of officer who can be contacted for clarification
of items in Part I
Ms. / Mr. (Circle one)
Officer’s family name:
Officer’s first name:
Title / position:
Full name of Ministry / Department/ Organization:
Contact Address:
City:
Country:
E-mail:
Tel no.: (country code ) - (city code ) -
(tel. no. )
Fax no.: (country code ) - (city code ) -
(tel. no. )
COUNTRY / TERRITORY NAME:
________________________________________________
A. MANDATES
1. Has your country/territory
ratified the Convention on the Rights of the
Child? YES / NO
2. In relation
to the education
targets for the implementation of the Agenda
for Action for the Asian and Pacific Decade
of Disabled Persons (see annexes 2 and 3), what
are your national education targets for children
and youth with disabilities?
3. With respect
to children and youth with disabilities, what
is the action taken so far to fulfil the above-mentioned?
(a) national
education targets:
(b) regional
education targets for implementation of the
Agenda for Action for the Asian and Pacific
Decade of Disabled Persons:
4. In your country
/ territory, is there separate legislation for
the education of children and youth with disabilities?
NO / YES
If yes, please give the full title
of that legislation and the date it was adopted.
5. What is the
policy position on the education of children
and youth with disabilities?
B.
PROGRAMME
AND FUNDING RESPONSIBILITY
1. Concerning the
education of children and youth with disabilities,
which Ministries / Departments are responsible
for plans, programmes, projects, and for their
funding arrangements? Please use this table
format for your response.
| Ministry
/ Department |
Type of
service provided to children and youth with
disabilities |
Type of
group targeted |
| Education |
|
|
| Welfare /Social
Affairs |
|
|
| Health |
|
|
| Others (specify) |
|
|
2. What is the main funding source for education
services for children and youth with disabilities
in your country / territory?
3. What type of
services are provided by non-governmental organizations
(NGOs) in support of the
education of children and youth with disabilities?
4. Of the total
education services provided by all parties for
children and youth with disabilities, what is
the proportion provided by NGOs at the following
levels for both these groups?
Formal:
(a) Primary:
(b) Secondary:
(c) Post-secondary:
Non-formal:
(d) Literacy
programmes:
(e) Vocational education:
5. What types of
services are funded by foreign donor agencies
in support of the education of children and
youth with disabilities?
6. In your education
system, which are the official and non-official
positions (please specify) that are best
placed to initiate the changes required for
more disabled children and youth to be educated
at both primary and secondary levels? Please
use this table format for your response.
Best
placed to initiate improvements
| Levels
of education system |
Official
position |
Non-official
position |
| National |
|
|
| State-
/provincial |
|
|
| District |
|
|
| Local |
|
|
C.
BASIC DEMOGRAPHIC DATA
By "children",
we refer to those aged 0 to 18 years; by "youth",
we refer to those aged 15 to 24. If the data
you provide refer to age groups that differ
from these, kindly specify.
1. What is the
total population of children (aged 0 to 18)
in your country / territory?
If you have data on the total number of children
aged 4 to 14, please indicate the number:
2. What is the
total population of youth aged 15 to 24 in your
country / territory?
3. What is the
percentage of children in school in your country
/ territory?
4. What is the
percentage of youth in educational institutions
in your country / territory?
5. In your country
/ territory, what is the:
(a) total number
of disabled children?
(b) percentage
of disabled children in schools (both mainstream
and special schools)?
(c) total number
of disabled youth?
(d) percentage
of disabled youth in educational institutions
(both mainstream and special institutions)?
6. In your country
/ territory, is schooling compulsory? YES/NO
If yes, please specify from what age
to what age and class level:
7. Are government
and government-aided schools providing compulsory
and free education for children and youth with
disabilities? YES/NO
If yes, please indicate from what age
to what age and class level:
8. What is the
total number of schools at the following levels?
(a) Primary:
(b) Secondary:
9. What is the
total number of the following types of schools?
(a) Special:
(b) Vocational:
10. Of the total
primary, secondary and vocational schools, what
percentage includes children and youth with
disabilities?
(a) Primary:
(b) Secondary:
(c) Vocational:
D.
TEACHER TRAINING
Pre-service training:
1. Duration of
training teachers for the following schools:
| Level
/ type of school |
Level
/ type of school |
| Nursery
/ kindergarten |
|
| Primary |
|
| Secondary |
|
| Vocational |
|
| Special |
|
2. Disability
concerns are a core component of the general
pre-service
training of teachers for:
| Level /
type of school |
Included
as core component |
Included
as course option (i.e., is not a compulsory
subject) |
Not included
at all |
| Nursery /
kindergarten |
|
|
|
| Primary |
|
|
|
| Secondary |
|
|
|
| Vocational |
|
|
|
3. Teacher training
in addressing the education needs of children
and youth with disabilities is provided for
through:
(a) Curriculum
elements addressing the specific needs of
diverse disability
groups (e.g., students who are blind,
deaf or learning
disabled): YES/NO
(b) Curriculum
elements on teaching methods which encourage
group work and mutual support among students
with diverse abilities, needs and learning
styles: YES/NO
Please list the
curriculum elements provided in 3(a) and (b):
4. In the formal
training of mainstream school teachers (nursery,
primary, secondary and vocational), the following
are standard components (circle applicable):
(a) Early childhood
development: YES / NO
(b) Orientation
and mobility: YES / NO
(c) Braille
reading and writing: YES / NO
(d) Sign
language: YES / NO
(e) Use of locally
available materials for making teaching materials:
YES / NO
(f) Accessible
school environments: YES / NO
(g) Information
technology (computer training, Internet):
YES / NO
(h) Other (specify):
YES / NO
5. In specialist/support
teacher training, there exists standard
components on the following (circle applicable)
:
(a) Early childhood
development: YES / NO
(b) Orientation
and mobility: YES / NO
(c) Braille reading
and writing: YES / NO
(d) Sign language:
YES / NO
(e) Use of locally
available materials for making teaching materials:
YES / NO
(f) Accessible
school environments: YES / NO
(g) Information
Technology: YES / NO
Using computers:
YES / NO
Using the Internet, Intranet: YES / NO
Adaptive technology options for making information
technology accessible to disabled students
YES / NO
(h) Other (specify):
YES / NO
6. How can pre-service
training be strengthened to support the
education of disabled children and youth?
In-service training
7.
Is there a regular and active programme of continuing
teacher skills upgrading? YES / NO
8. Are disability
concerns included as part of the above mentioned
in-service training?
YES / NO
Please give information:
9. What are the
main challenges concerning in-service training
on disability-related concerns?
10. What are your
views on how these could be addressed?
General teacher
training
11. What is
the feedback concerning the relevance of training
(specify pre- or in-service) which has included
disability
concerns?
12. The UNESCO
Teacher Education Resource Pack is used
in teacher training: YES / NO
Has the UNESCO
Teacher Education Resource Pack been translated
into national and local language(s)? YES / NO
What action has
been taken to promote the use of the UNESCO
Resource Pack?
13. Are persons
with disabilities and parents of children with
disabilities involved in the teaching of disability-related
matters?
Persons with
disabilities YES / NO
Parents of children with disabilities YES
/ NO
If such involvement exists, please give details:
14. Specific measures
exist to train the following as teachers:
(a) Deaf persons:
YES / NO
(b) Blind persons:
YES / NO
(c) Persons with
mobility impairments:
YES / NO
(d) Persons with
other impairments: YES / NO
15. What are these
measures?
E.
DISTANCE EDUCATION
National-level
open universities may be consulted for the information
sought in Section E.
1. Are there distance
education programmes in your country/territory?
NO / YES
2. Do those distance
education programmes in your country/territory
support the needs of the following groups?
(a) Teachers
who are in mainstream schools which have enrolled
children and youth with disabilities
NO / YES
(b) Teachers
who are in special schools NO / YES
(c) Children
and youth with disabilities pursuing an education:
NO / YES
(d) Teachers
whose main interest is in obtaining certificates
in education: NO / YES
Please attach
brief details on type and level of education
offered.
Please explain how distance education
supports the needs of the above groups:
4. Are Internet
services and satellite-based
communication used to support directly the
education of children and youth with disabilities?
Internet services:
YES / NO
Satellite-based communication: YES / NO
Please give
details of status
3. Please give
information on the main distance education contact(s)
in a position to make decisions in favour of
using distance education to address the needs
of those groups cited in # 2 (a) through (d)
above:
Distance Education
Contact Person:
Family name:
Mr. / Ms:
First name:
Title / Position:
Full name of institution or government agency:
Contact address:
City:
Country:
Tel no.: (country code ) - (city code ) -
(tel. no. )
Fax no.: (country code ) - (city code ) -
(tel. no. )
E-mail:
F.
EDUCATION
OF DISABLED CHILDREN AND YOUTH
1. Are there
measures aimed at enabling children and youth
in the following disability
groups to be educated?
(a) Low
vision: YES / NO
(b) Blindness:
YES / NO
(c) Hard
of hearing: YES / NO
(d) Deafness:
YES / NO
(e) Mobility
disability: YES / NO
(f) Cerebral
palsy: YES / NO
(g) Deaf-blind:
YES / NO
(h) Speech
and language disorders: YES / NO
(i) Learning
disabilities YES / NO
(including mental
retardation and dyslexia),
please specify which:
(j) Emotional
problems: YES / NO
(k) Behavioural
problems: YES / NO
(l) Autism:
YES / NO
2. In which of
the following settings are disabled children
and youth educated?
Please tick as applicable and give details
for examples that exist.
Special home-based
programmes: ___
Institutional
setting (rehabilitation centre / hospital):
__
Separate special
schools: ___
Special classrooms
in mainstream schools: ___
Included as part
of regular classes for non-disabled children:
___
Non-formal education
programmes for all children and youth: ___
Other (please
specify): ___
| Type
of setting |
Most
educated in this setting |
Many
educated in this setting |
Few
educated in this setting |
None |
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
3. In the education
of deaf children and
youth, what is the dominant communication
mode used?
(Please tick as applicable)
Sign
language interpretation: ___
Total communication:
___
Oral-aural method:
___
4. Sign
language is taught and encouraged
as a communication
mode: YES / NO
Please give information on the status of sign
language as a communication
mode:
5. There are examples
of non-disabled children and youth being
encouraged to learn the following:
(a) Sign
language: YES / NO
(b) Braille reading and
writing: YES / NO
(c) Orientation
and mobility: YES / NO
If examples do exist, please give details.
G.
SUPPORT MEASURES
1. What support
measures are available to facilitate the mainstream
education of disabled children and youth? (Please
tick if applicable)
- Cost-free availability
of assistive devices (e.g., hearing aids,
corrective lenses, Braille kits): ___
- Learning - teaching
aids (e.g., additional instructional material,
tape recorders, writing or reading stands,
special writing devices for children with
locomotion disabilities, computer technology):
___
- Awareness-raising
measures (among education authorities, teachers,
parents and non-disabled children [underline
the appropriate group(s)]): ___
- Child-to-child
activities/support (e.g., peer tutoring, learning
in small groups, cooperative learning): ___
- Joint recreational
activities for all children and youth, with
emphasis on the inclusion
of disabled children and youth: ___
- Parent support
(e.g., training and mobilization): ___
- Mobilization
and support from volunteers: ___
- Teacher education
(pre- and in-service training): ___
- Adaptation of
curriculum and examination (e.g., increased
flexibility, relevant and accessible to all
children): ___
- Cooperative
learning strategies: ___
- Promoting a
school climate of acceptance of each child
and youth (e.g. through change in attitudes,
individual needs are respected): ___
- Community-based
rehabilitation (supporting and promoting the
goal of developing inclusive schools):__
- Early childhood
education (early identification, assessment
and stimulation of the young child 'at risk'
to promote physical, intellectual and social
development and school readiness): ___
- Non-formal education
programmes for out-of-school children and
youth: ___
- Additional resource
funding: ___
- Transport facilities
(to and from educational programmes): ___
- Other: ___ Please
specify:
2. What is the
situation concerning access by disabled children
and youth to computer skills training?
3. Please give
examples of innovations, if any, in supporting
access to computers and computer-based learning
among disabled children and youth. Indicate
the nature of rural/urban and gender differences
in this group’s access, focusing on the
situation of those from poor families.
H.
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
1. Are disabled
persons’ organizations and groups of parents
of disabled children and youth consulted by
the Ministry / Department primarily responsible
for education? Please use the following table
format for your response.
| Level
at which consultation occurs |
Disabled
persons’ organizations / parent groups
consulted |
Ministry
/ Department which consults |
No
consultation
(please X if no consultation occurs) |
| School-level |
|
|
|
| District-level |
|
|
|
| State- / provincial
level |
|
|
|
| National-level |
|
|
|
2. Concerning the
education of children and youth with disabilities,
please specify the institutional mechanisms
for government consultations with disabled persons’
organizations and groups of parents of children
and youth with disabilities. Please use the
following table format for your response.
| Level
at which consultation occurs |
Type
of consultation mechanism |
| School-level |
|
| District-level |
|
| State-
/ provincial level |
|
| National-level |
|
3. What is the
role of disabled persons’ organizations
and groups of parents of children and youth
with disabilities in the education of children
and youth with disabilities?
I.
BEST PRACTICE
We would like to
give international publicity to best practices
on the education of children and youth with
disabilities in Asia and the Pacific. Kindly
select one best practice example either from
the government or non-government sector. Preferably,
the case-study of the best practice selected
may be written by the principal person directly
responsible for its design and implementation.
The case-study
may be within 10,000 words and contain the following
structure:
Description
of problem addressed:
Main features
of programme or project:
Key lessons
learned from implementation and process (including
feedback from those involved):
Suggestions
for (a) sustainability; (b) replicability.
In addition,
please attach:
(a) Two or three captioned photos of publishable
quality to illustrate the case-study.
(b) Name and contact details of responsible
person for further information:
Ms. / Mr. (Circle one)
Family name:
First name:
Title / position:
Full name of Ministry / Department / Non-governmental
organization:
Contact address:
City:
Country:
E-mail:
Tel no.: (country code: ) - (city code: )
- (tel. no.: )
Fax no.:(country code: ) - (city code: ) -
(tel. no.: )
J.
FORUM
AGENDA
1.
From the perspective of your country / territory,
please suggest topics that would be important
for inter-country exchange in the regional forum
on the education of children and youth with
disabilities, to be held in Bangkok in from
15 to 19 November 1999.
2.
Furthermore, please indicate those topics on
which your national coordination committee on
disability requires more information in order
to strengthen its work on promoting the education
of children and youth with disabilities.
K.
ATTACHMENTS REQUESTED
(English versions)
1. Specific articles
of the Constitution which support the right
to education of disabled children and youth
(with reference to section A).
2. Education legislation
and policy (with reference to question 4 and
5, section A)
3. If there is
involvement of more than one agency or NGO
in the programme development decisions for the
education of children and youth with disabilities,
please attach a brief explanation of the situation,
as well as the division of responsibility among
various agencies. (with reference to question
B - 1)
4. Brief details
on type and level of distance
education programmes offered (with reference
to question E - 2)
5. Captioned photos
of publishable quality (with reference to question
I - 5)
ANNEX 1
GLOSSARY
Agenda
for Action for the Asian and Pacific Decade
of Disabled Persons: is a blueprint
for action to improve the quality of life of
citizens with disabilities. The Agenda
consist of 12 inter-related policy areas: national
coordination; legislation; information; public
awareness; accessibility and communication;
education;
training and employment; prevention of causes
of disabilities; rehabilitation services; assistive
devices; self-help organizations and regional
cooperation.
Autism:
a condition occurring in young children before
the age of three years, characterized by unresponsiveness
to human contact, deficits in language development
and idiosyncratic responses to environmental
stimuli.
Blindness:
is the total loss of visual perception and low
vision: is diminished visual activity, and/or
limited fields of vision.
Braille
reading and writing: Braille is a system of
representing letters by raised dots, which blind
people read by touch.
Cerebral
palsy: a group of disorders characterized
by the loss of movement or loss of other nerve
functions. The disorders are caused by injuries
to the brain that occur during fetal development
or around the time of birth.
Communication
mode: method used for communicating,
e.g., sign language, oral-aural, computer technology,
spoken and written language.
Cooperative
learning strategies: a learning
process in which students work in small teams
of mixed membership on activities requiring
the exercise of collaborative social skills
and tasks demanding the combined efforts of
students to achieve both individual and group
learning goals. [Waterworth and Shepherdson
1993, 44]
Deaf-blind:
profound or total loss of auditory sensitivity
perception, combined with profound or total
loss of visual perception.
Deafness
and hearing impairments (hard of hearing):
deafness is a profound or total loss of auditory
sensitivity perception. Hearing impairment,
with or without a hearing aid, is the inability
to successfully process linguistic information
through audition.
Disabled
people’s organizations: (also
known as self-help organizations of people with
disabilities): is an organization run by self-motivated
disabled people to enable disabled peers in
their communities to become similarly self-motivated
and self-reliant.
Distance
education programmes: education
programmes provided outside regular school or
university settings. This can be done through
a variety of methods such as correspondence,
television, radio, computer and telecommunications
systems.
Dyslexia:
is a neurologically-based disorder which interferes
with the acquisition and processing of language.
Varying in degrees of severity, it is manifested
by difficulties in receptive and expressive
language, including phonological processing
in reading, writing, spelling, handwriting and
sometimes in arithmetic.
Impairment,
Disability and Handicap: according
to the World Health Organization (1980) classification
system, an "impairment" may be a consequence
of disease or injury. Impairment occurs at the
level of an organ of the body including the
brain. A "disability" may or may not
be a consequence of impairment. A disability
refers to the function relevant to the performance
of a normal social role, which has either remained
undeveloped or has been lost. A "handicap"is
the result of social factors outside the person
which react with an impairment or a disability.
Inclusion:
being part of a whole, see integrated education
and inclusive education.
In-service
training: training provided while
in service.
Integrated
education and inclusive education:
integrated education is the term used to describe
the process of bringing children with disabilities
into mainstream schools. Inclusive education
is a wider process of integration, incorporating
the idea of access for all (other disadvantaged
groups with special needs as well as those with
disabilities) and the accommodation of the mainstream
school to the diverse needs of all children.
Both terms are commonly used to describe the
process of providing access to mainstream education
for children with disabilities. Internationally,
"integrated education" as a term to
describe the process has been succeeded by "inclusive
education". In inclusive schools, all children
learn together, the school recognizes and responds
to the diverse needs of their students, accommodating
both different styles and rates of learning
and ensuring quality education to all through
appropriate curricula, organizational arrangements,
teaching strategies, resource use and partnership
with their communities.
Internet
services: services such as networking,
e-mailing, downloading information, distance
education programmes that can be conducted by
using the Internet, which is a global network
of cables and computers.
Learning
disabled: a broad category of students
who have the common problem of having difficulty
in school learning especially in reading and/or
maths. Some educators view learning disability
as distinctly different from mental retardation
and others do not.
Mental
retardation/learning difficulties:
a developmental disability characterized by
significantly sub-average general intellectual
functioning existing concurrently with deficits
in adaptive behaviour and manifested during
the developmental period (American Association
on Mental Deficiency 1984). Intellectual disability
may or may not be a consequence of an organic
impairment. There are mild, moderate and severe
to profound levels of learning difficulties.
Mobility
disability: physical impairment
limiting movement.
NGO:
Non-Governmental Organization delivering services
at minimal or no cost to programme beneficiaries
(children and youth with disabilities and/or
their parents).
Oral-aural
method: also called oralism does
not use sign language. Instead it relies on
developing good use of residual hearing, speech
reading, and speech skills through which students
learn and communicate. Included in this method
is lip-reading; speech training and speech reading.
Orientation
and mobility: orientation and mobility
for persons with visual impairments can be provided
by verbal and tactile information regarding
specific areas/situations so that they can determine
the positions of objects, and become accustomed
and adapt to new situations and move about with
greater independence and ease.
Parent
groups: groups/organizations formed
by parents of children with (similar) disabilities.
These groups often provide a forum for discussion,
mutual support and action.
Pre-service
training: training provided prior
to initiating service
Salamanca
Statement and Framework for Action:
the Salamanca Statement is a statement on principles,
policy and practice concerning the education
of all disabled children. It recognizes the
necessity and urgency of providing education
for all children, young people and adults within
the regular education system. The Framework
of Action outlines guidelines for action at
national, regional and international levels
on how regular ordinary schools should accommodate
all children, regardless of their physical,
intellectual, social, emotional, linguistic
or other conditions. These two documents are
important tools for efforts to make sure schools
work better and to fulfil the principle of Education
for All.
Satellite-based
communication: communication of
information via satellites.
Sign
language: the language used by
the deaf community; it uses the precise movements
of the hands, face, eyes and body.
Sign
language interpretation: the translation
of oral information into sign language and vice
versa.
Special
class: class for students with
disabilities who are given instruction by special
educators who are trained for work in the area
of disability.
Specialist/support
teachers: specially trained teachers,
who work in the regular classroom and engage
in the regular teaching, providing support and
assistance for individuals or groups of children
having special educational needs.
Speech
and language disorders: (speech
impairment): any or several speech problems.
Dysathria is difficult, poorly articulated speech;
Aphasia is impaired expression or comprehension
of written or spoken language.
Total
communication: requires the use
of appropriate aural, manual, and oral modes
of communication to maximize communication in
all situations with both hearing and deaf people.
Although it does not require simultaneous speech
and signing in all or most situations, speech
and some form of sign language is usually used
simultaneously. This method includes signed
language; visual-gestural communication; speech
training and lip-reading.
UNESCO
Teacher Education Resource Pack:
resource materials developed by UNESCO to help
schools and teachers respond to pupils with
special needs. The pack stimulates and supports
progress towards forms of schooling that can
facilitate the learning of all children in the
community.
