Challenges of the Challenged..

Every educated and rational individual will opine that a physically and mentally challenged child should be offered all opportunities that a so termed “normal “one gets. But how far does this concept relate in real life. And of all the chances that we are talking about, perhaps the most important one is that of learning. It is a very unfortunate fact our society does not treat these “Special Children” equally. Even today when we boast of living in an advanced world discrimination and negligence involving education of such kids are rampant. It is time to not only applaud initiatives like “Taare Zameen Par” but actually incorporate its essence of innovative techniques and methods of teaching and attitude of equality at a mass level.

However, in recent times there is a shift of attitude towards the education of challenged children and it is accepted by experts that each child should be allowed to learn in his own way rather than being forced to follow rigid pre set standards. The concept of Inclusive learning is also making waves. It connotes that all children should be allowed without restriction to participate equally in all education programmes. Such a system of education defines these children as ones with special needs rather than using terms such as “handicapped” or” impaired” which lays down a positive attitude and a sense of acceptance of these children.

Technology and special teaching methods has come a long way in aiding “Challenged Children”. Various technological aids are being used to help such children teach and communicate. In many cases the special children are so challenged that they cannot even emote or communicate at the basic level. Hence , the need of technical support is vital. These specialized technologies are often called assistive technology because they consist of equipments or software that is used to maintain or enhance functional capabilities of a challenged child. Assistive technology includes hardware such as scanners, adapted keyboards, hearing aids, and software such as speech recognition and thought organization. At the base level, assistive technology generally consists of the following devices facilitating access:

• To a standard PC

• To and of manipulation of the written word.

• To and of manipulation of the spoken word.

• To devices that compensate cognitive deficits.

Electronic reading aids are also employed which can scan and translate printed text into a computer readable file that can be read with Braille display or magnification software. Even Electronic libraries are set up to further assist the teaching aids.

Different teaching methods are employed keeping in mind the type of challenge a child is facing. This makes the process of teaching more individual friendly guaranteeing personal attention to the need of each child. The most widely used teaching techniques are Braille and Sign language.

Braille system is mostly used to teach visually impaired children. It is writing system which enables blind and partially sighted people to read and write through touch. Braille has been adapted to write many different languages and is also used for musical and mathematical notation.

Sign language is a mode which uses manual communication, body language, and lip patterns to convey meaning instead of sound. It often involves simultaneous combination of hand shapes, orientation, body movements and facial expressions to express the speaker’s thoughts in a smooth and fluid manner. The use of Sign language is developed mostly in Deaf communities. There are hundreds of sign languages that are being used across the world.

Bal Kalyan Sanstha Pune, founded in 1979, is a Recreational and Cultural Centre for disabled children in the state of Maharashtra, India. It began its journey during a time when educating disabled children was important, but the recreational needs were not being met due to lack of funds and space. Government officials, social workers, and teachers worked together in order to get the Sanstha up and running. Today 1200 to 1500 children attend the center weekly from areas in and around Pune.

To sum up it will be apt to say that there is ample availability of technology to support the education of Special children. But the major factor is a change in mentality towards their education requirements. The services of Non Government Organizations and Government policies do exist. It is the use and implementation of these policies and services that are of vital importance.