ISSUES RELATED TO SPECIAL EDUCATION: PART ONE

Source: Nkachukwu Okeke (Ph.D)
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Principal Officer to the Imo State Governor on Special Education


There are various issues related to Special Education, but three of those issues are very essential for parents and teachers to be conscious of. These issues are as follows:

· Identification of Various Disabilities

· Developmental Delays

· Early Intervention on Children etc

These issues are very vital in the developmental milestones or during the process of growth on our children.

WHAT IS SPECIAL EDUCATION?

Special Education is defined under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) as “Specially designed instruction, at no cost of parents to meet the unique needs of a child with disability”, (IDEA, 1977).

IDENTIFICATION OF VARIOUS DISABILITIES:
According to the Individuals with Disability Education Act, the following lists are considered for Special Education. They are:

· Autism

· Deaf-blindness

· Developmental Delay

· Emotional Disturbance

· Hearing Impairment

· Visual Impairment-including Blindness

· Orthopedic Impairment

· Down Syndrome

· Intellectual Disability

· Multiple Disability



DEVELOPMENTAL DELAY AND EARLY INTERVENTION ON CHILDREN:


Developmental Delay is the process in which children go through changes in skill development during predictable time periods, called developmental milestones.

Early identification is the best prevention when it comes to developmental delay on children. Parents and guardians can help the kids grow normally; however, they have limited ability of infant tests. Hence, it is helpful to have a screening process which can be achieved through screening instruments.

ESSENTIAL COMPONENTS OF SCREENING DEVELOPMENT ARE AS FOLLOWS:


· Sensitive awareness to parental affairs

· Thoughtful inquiry about parental observations

· Examination of specific developmental attainments

· Use of all encounters for observing and recording all developmental status

· Screening of vision and hearing to rule out sensory impairment as a cause of the delay

· Observation of parent-child interaction

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PARENTS:

If you are concerned that your child may have a developmental delay, it is best to consult Medical Doctor, mostly, a pediatrician. The Doctor can talk to you, examine your child and refer you to agencies that can help to screen or evaluate children's developmental delay.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR TEACHERS

If you observe that a child that you teach has a developmental delay, you should tell the parents and give your observation. You can also encourage the parents to go to the child Doctor for screening.

The goal and objective for this published article is to promote Special Education awareness to our local communities, as well as schools. Let's work collaboratively to support our Governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha to make Imo Schools better!

Thanks for reading this artifact.

Nkachukwu Okeke (Ph.D)

Principal Officer to the Imo State Governor on Special Education

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