The Future of Special Education

There are many philosophies and methods regarding how best to approach special education, which is a complex issue that depends on the needs and abilities of each individual student, and is affected by external factors that range from school funding, to social taboo, to national policy and law regarding the educational rights of children with disabilities.

Educators around the world acknowledge that—regardless of barriers—all children deserve the right to be educated. Some of the more successful programs I’ve learned about are able to assess and intervene early in a child’s academic career, make use of assistive technologies, and create a school culture that incorporates and embraces special needs students into the classroom and learning community.

In 2013 UNESCO published a report examining the use of various technologies (ICT) to assist students with disabilities. The report looks at if and how ICT is being used in all of the continents, and what benefits or challenges special education students face in different countries. In some places, the law and societal values reflect the rights of each student to attend school and receive an equal education. However in many countries, especially in Africa and Asia, there is stigma against people with disabilities (and sometimes also females) which mean that those students do not ever attend school or are kept in separate facilities with limited access to the same tools offered to other students. 

Regarding the use of ICT, many countries struggle to implement useful tools due to frequent power outages, limited Internet connection, and the costliness of many ICTs. That being said, some countries are finding innovative ways to overcome those obstacles, sometimes with the assistance of charities and NGOs. In Nigeria, solar panels power computers that are available to 33,000 students(UNESCO Global Report, p. 65) and in India they have “upcycled” old smart phones for use in special education classrooms(61). 

One country that is successfully addressing the need for ICT in special education is Uruguay. There, they have adopted the One Laptop Per Child program, but have implemented the framework with students with disabilities in mind(51). Their specific laptops were programmed and equipped so that they would be useful to those students.Teachers receive training on how best to implement the software available to them.

Ultimately, the ICT that is available to schools should be used not to replace instruction (although in some cases it can connect students with trained teachers in another location), but as an empowering tool that provides students with individualized practice and tutoring. ICT is a powerful tool that removes barriers for special needs students, but can also help students without specific disabilities who have fallen behind and need extra support.

Ideally, schools in America and across the globe would move toward the example set by Finland. The school system there seems to throw out the notion that students with disabilities are the only ones who need individualized education plans. Instead, all children receive a specialized education based on early assessment of their individual needs. The holistic approach also includes collaboration among teachers, school psychologists and support staff to address students’ academic, emotional, and social needs. Special needs students also receive small-group tutoring and extra help from their special education teacher in the main classroom.

I see technology and teacher collaboration as the way forward with meeting the needs of special education students. Even simple tools provided by operating systems in Apple products, Android, and Windows can make the biggest of differences to students with disabilities. Professional development on how to take advantage of ICT, how to meet our students’ special needs, and how to challenge our biases and stereotypes against people with disabilities will be vital to the success of educators in this area. We have the tools and now need to find ways—as a society and as teachers—to use them to help all of our students achieve success.     

References

Edutopia. (2012, January 25.) Finland's Formula for School Success (Education Everywhere Series) [Video file]. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsdFi8zMrYI  

Social Butterfly LA. (2010, November 30.) School of One [Video file]. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSTrI6nj5xU

UNESCO. (2013). UNESCO Global Report: Opening New Avenues for Empowerment ICTs to Access Information and Knowledge for Persons with Disabilities. In UNESCO. Retrieved July 13, 2016, from http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0021/002197/219767e.pdf