Special Education in Bhutan

Introduction

Special Education in Bhutan is an educational programme designed for students with special educational needs, which requires additional support services in the form of trained teachers, teaching approaches, equipment and care within or outside a regular classroom. These require creating appropriate learning and enabling environment that are accessible to all learners and supported by legislation.

Children or adults with special educational needs refer to those who need services in addition to, or otherwise different from the educational provision made generally available for children of their same age and grade in a regular school. It is said that a child has Special Educational Needs if he or she has any of the following features like, has a significant difficulty in performing any activity compared to the majority of children of the same age; has a barrier in which prevents or hinders her/him from making use of educational facilities of a kind generally provided for children of the same age in school.

Mitchell (2010) explains how these issues have moved national governments and education authorities away from special educational needs approaches towards inclusive education:

. The Royal Government of Bhutan strives to provide the opportunity for every individual citizen to develop their unique gifts to better their lives and contribute to the nation building. In order to provide equal opportunities to all citizens, Bhutan established its first specialized institute catering to the educational needs of the visually impaired in Khaling, Trashigang, in 1973 under the patronage of His Royal Highness Prince Namgyel Wangchuck.

Through this initiative, visually impaired Bhutanese were able to participate in education for the first time and today are contributing on an equal footing to the sociology-economic development of the country. Realizing the need of such enabling services for people with other forms of disabilities, the Royal Government expanded the special education programmes in 2001. A pilot programme establishing Changangkha Lower Secondary School as an integrated school providing special needs educational was initiated in 2001. In 2003, a Deaf Education Unit was established in Drukgyel Lower Secondary School.Today a full-fledged Division under the Department of School Education providing special education services exists. Efforts are underway to scale up special education services to reach all sections of Bhutanese Population by starting 3 additional integrated schools in Mongar, Samtse and Zhemgang. These efforts are aimed at realizing the vision of peace, prosperity well-being and happiness of all Bhutanese.

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It has been globally recognised that an inclusive education approach, which prioritises education of children within welcoming and supportive local schools, is the only feasible and effective way in which the educational needs of all children with disabilities can be met. Inclusive education has gradually replaced the idea of special educational needs services, as most appropriate for educating people with disabilities. In a SEN approach, conventionally children with in capacities have been educated in separate schools or units, often housing, deemed to have extra capacity to provide appropriate support. However, many disabled children and adults have spoken out against such methods, because they contribute to separation from the rest of society (Save the Children, 2008). Segregated residential education detracts from children’s right to family life, and puts them at greater risk of protection violations.

In addition to rights-based objections to a segregated SEN approach, SEN special schools are not economically viable once it is recognized that the vast majority of children with disabilities need to be educated to the same levels as the rest of the population, to support economic growth and development. Special schools are usually far more expensive per head than education of disabled children in mainstream schools, and have tended to offer far lower education outcomes than inclusive mainstream schools with appropriate SEN support. Extensive exploration of the research in this area is offered in Peters (2004). Traditionally, SEN special schools have used a different curriculum, and have not provided the qualifications needed for further education and employment, limiting disabled people’s ability to be productive and independent members of society (Mitchell,

2010). There are high costs to families and society of taking family members out of work to care for disabled people who have not been able to gain the skills they need to support themselves.

Inclusive education or Special Education Need brings all students together in one classroom and community, regardless of their strengths or weaknesses in any area, and seeks to maximize the potential of all students. Children with disabilities, different languages and cultures, different homes and family lives, different interests and ways of learning are exposed to teaching strategies that reach them as individual learners.

Karin Hulshof, Regional Director, UNICEF Regional Office for South Asia pointed out those Children with disabilities is among the most excluded from education. While availability of accurate data remains a challenge, various estimates indicate children with disabilities could easily make up a third of out-of-school children globally. Those who manage to enrol in school continue to face exclusion and marginalization. This is due to lack of appropriate facilities and learning materials, lack of trained teachers to meet special educational needs, inflexibility of the school system, stigma and a host of other factors

If the current form of school provision - in which model special schools are meant to support mainstream schools in the same local area to become more inclusive - is to be continued in

Bhutan, the relationship between special and inclusive schools needs to be looked at carefully. It is important that such relationships be mutually beneficial, drawing on the strengths of both the inclusive and special schools. The expertise of the special schools should be used in resource capacity to support emerging inclusive schools to include, not just integrate, children with disabilities.

Efforts to include disabled people in education have been affected by changing notions of what is expected from education and from disability. In the 20th century it was globally agreed that all people should receive a basic education (Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Convention on the Rights of the Child, Education for All initiative, Millennium Development Goals), with quality free primary education a right for all children of school age (starting from 5 or 6 years old in most countries of South Asia). However, it soon became apparent that children with disabilities were not being considered equally within efforts to meet these goals, with UNESCO estimating that one third of children out of school were disabled (UNESCO, 2009).

Since policy guidelines to guide program mes and projects to spearhead special education services did not exist, a need was felt to draft separate policy on special educational needs. These policy statements will form a part of National Education Policy. The special educational needs policy was drafted in line with the principles of Educating for GNH, an initiative supported and promoted by the Sherig Lyonpo, Thakur S. Powdyel to promote Green Schools for Green Bhutan, and the Child Friendly School concept. Sherig Lyonpo, in his address to the 36thsession of the UNESCO general conference in Paris, 2011 stated that:

The Constitution of the Kingdom of Bhutan (2007, p. 19-20) states: Article 9.15: The State shall endeavor to provide education for the purpose of improving and increasing knowledge, values and skills of the entire population with education being directed towards the full development of the human personality.

Article 9.16: The State shall provide free education to all children of school going age up to tenth standard and ensure that technical and professional education shall be made generally available and that higher education shall be equally accessible to all in our country.

Policy Statements

With line of policy statements of children with special education need of Bhutan, my school also tries to have all Children irrespective of abilities shall have equal access and opportunity to education from early childhood to school without   any discrimination. All the children who are with disabilities can come to school and have their share of education in school.

We have some kind of facilities and provide extra care for those who are having learning disabilities in our school. Our national SEN polices states there shall be specialized educational services with appropriate support services and facilities including teaching learning materials, assertive devices, access and sanitation infrastructure, etc. for children with severe disabilities in identified institutes. To be honest we does not have any unit or teaching learning resources kept personally for those disabled children, however we have young and energetic trained teachers who are really interested to teach. They had good numbers of days and hours attained with those intelligent and knowledgeable lecturers in colleges.

Our national SEN polices says that Children with mild to moderate disabilities shall be mainstreamed or integrated into schools with appropriate facilities and support services. We does not have more chronic and severe disabled person in our school, however we have some children who are having learning disabilities like not able to recognized ‘p’and ‘q’,’b and d’, those children are integrated and never segregate but given extra time and care by teacher concerned. All schools shall have support services and appropriate infrastructure to cater to the needs of children with mild to moderate learning difficulties. When it comes to appropriate infrastructure, since there is no severe and more serious disabled children in our school, there is no rail wall, wheel chair and others facilities as the situation does not demands.

There are some more SEN polices in our country like; there shall be adequate and appropriate teachers/support staff for schools and institutes catering to children with special educational needs. Teachers educating children with special educational needs shall be trained in relevant pedagogy and curriculum. Schools and institutions catering to children/students with special educational needs shall receive adequate budget support. All schools shall incorporate policy on special educational needs in their school policy document. As far as I know I am concerned, I am sure we have all the polices in placed and it is in full swing.

Recognizing that all human beings are born with unique gifts and abilities to contribute to the development of the nation and self, the Royal Government is committed to ensuring the healthy functioning of our society by providing equal opportunity to every citizen to develop each gift and ability.so indeed we Bhutanese are very proud to born in such a lovely country where all the children are taken care.

These policy statements will form a part of National Education Policy. The special educational needs policy was drafted in line with the principles of Educating for GNH, an initiative supported and promoted by the ex-Sherig Lyonpo, Thakur S. Powdyel to promote Green Schools for Green Bhutan, and the Child Friendly School concept. Ex- Sherig Lyonpo, in his address to the 36th session of the UNESCO general conference in Paris, 2011 stated that:

“The elements of Green School encompass the multiple dimensions of the learners’ lives - natural, intellectual, academic, social, cultural, spiritual, aesthetic and moral dimensions.”

The Royal Government’s commitment to pursue Education for All is also enshrined clearly in the Constitution of Bhutan and other national strategy documents as under:

A doctor in the pediatric department of the Jigme Dorji Wang chuck National Referral Hospital in Thimphu stated “Disabled children have different physical and mental needs. And while physical therapy may have somewhat come of age in Bhutan, other therapies are non-existent,” he said. “We do not have the adequate equipment and facilities and to make matters worse, there is a shortage of trained staff.”

“The elements of Green School encompass the multiple dimensions of the learners’ lives – natural, intellectual, academic, social, cultural, spiritual, aesthetic and moral dimensions,” the ex-education minister, Lyonpo Thakur S. Powdyel has said.so in our school also basically we tries to  cooperate those multiples dimensions keeping mind all those students of various abilities and giftedness.

Learner-centered teaching should be well established in teacher training and management

The basis of Special education is teachers who are able to consider each student in their class and identify ways to help them overcome any problems they are experiencing with presence participation and achievement in education. This applies to all learners, and is essentially the basis teachers themselves) reflects a view of local schooling as quite basic in scope’s good teaching, defined as learner-centered pedagogy (Ainscow, 2005)

As inclusive education approaches start to become established within national education systems, the role of existing SEN schools and experts often changes - from offering education directly, to supporting local mainstream schools with additional expertise, so that local schools can work with disabled learners. In several middle income countries, this transition has been marked by a preference to retain the direct provision of education by SEN schools or units for children considered moderately to severely disable. This can stem from a lack of confidence in ordinary school teachers to genuinely take on learner-centered pedagogy, i.e. to understand and respond to all children’s characteristics and needs. When examined, this lack of confidence (often shared by

However, we must never forget that this contemporary 21st century drivers of human capital development are increasingly requiring standards in primary education to be raised, with consequent increases in what is expected of primary school teachers. Large investments are being made in upgrading teacher training and professional development in many countries (Mitchell, 2010). This leaves many education policy makers in a difficult position: trying to rapidly upgrade the capacity of teachers in learner-centered teaching, while often believing that many teachers do not actually have the capacity or resources to deliver an individualized learning experience to children.

With recent left out of trained teachers in our country without taken away by RCSC, I personally felt that our young generation or youth needs to train as SEN specialist. The SEN expert should have knowledge of the types of support available for the specific challenges that all this information highlights (in this example, mobility aids; but it could equally be sources of funding, or entitlements to medical treatments such as physiotherapy

 On which there will be win -win situation where our Specials need children need more attention and our yout5h will be able to use their expertise and knowledge. It will also help our nation for solving unemployment problems.

Where children with disabilities are considered markedly different to other children, or far more difficult to understand, combined with the assumption that ordinary teachers are not able to be fully learner-centered, disability issues can be omitted from general teacher training, out of assumptions that only expert teachers can deal with such advanced issues. In fact, experience from many countries shows that as professional development and management of primary schoolteachers rise in quality, and learner-centered techniques are fully established in

  1. Child Friendly School

We make the classroom as well as school a child friendly where it ensures every child an environment that is physically safe, emotionally secure and psychologically enabling. We also develop a learning environment in which children are motivated and able to learn. Further this helps students develop and cultivate friendship within and among fellow mates.  Staff members are friendly and welcoming to children and attend to all their health and safety needs.

2.      Provide MORE cooperative and collaborative activity

In an inclusive classroom there are children with different abilities. We have already learn that children will learn through interaction with their friends. When children exchange their ideas with others more learning takes place and they will also learn cooperative skills. Therefore we need to provide more cooperative and collaborative activity.   

3.      Involvement of parents

Since parents are with their children for most of the time and parents know the ability of their child. Parents know how their children learn and perform at home. So if parents are involved in children’s learning in inclusive classroom, they will share the teachers about their child’s ability and also the parents will practically see how their child performs. In this way both teacher and parents will support children in their learning and children will learn effectively.       

4. Less use of pull-out special programs

In most of the inclusive schools pull-out classes are carried out for those who are severely disabled. In this situation we feel that there is no equal distribution of teaching in all the students because the concept learn by students in the pull-out classes will not by learn by students in the normal classroom. And also it hampers the coverage of syllabus. So in the inclusive classroom if all the students are taught the same content at the same time, they will be able to learn the same thing unless for few students those who cannot catch up in normal classroom.  Therefore, we would say that there should be less use of pull-out special programs.

5. Provide opportunity for success to build self esteem

Providing opportunity is must to enhance the child’s own learning. In the inclusive classroom special needs children will have low self-esteem. We know that children with low self-esteem cannot learn better as compared with the ones with high self-esteem. In order to boost children’s self-esteem we need to provide equal opportunities for all the students including the normal students and the special needs children. We can provide opportunities for all and especially to the special children by providing simple task for them to work on and avoiding the task which they cannot work on. Thus, special children will feel happy and cherished on their success, thereby boosting their self-esteem.   
 One of the researchers said the findings of the report states that young children can also exhibit developmental disabilities or acquires the onset of other conditions, which can affect functioning in various domains: gross motor, fine motor, vision, hearing, speech, cognition, behavior and seizures.so as parents and teachers we need to give extra care and help during young age, never to meant that we can neglect when they grow up again.

Since this module really influenced us and had a great impact on us, I think that this module should be offered to our teacher students in College of Education and also to those untrained teachers in the field. Before taking this module I never learn the way we grew as a learner and now that we are well aware of the knowing, learning and teaching we are sure we will not be judgmental on the perception of children.  Thus we will be characterized with extra professional ethic as a teacher which will make positive change to the students and generations ahead.  This module is as important as it provides us the guidance that we should always be fair, except the views of children, and teach according to the child’s abilities. We think this will really guide us when we go to the real field. If the student teachers will be provided with this module then he/she will be able to make their teaching interesting by encouraging children to interact with each other, giving them hands-on experiences, and letting children experiment for effective learning. After taking this module a teacher student will be able to know that the child learns through various ways like technology, electronic devices, reading, writing, and mass printing. Since this is the 21^st century and the world of technology, so the student teacher will provide the opportunities for children to learn through those technologies. Teacher will be able to understand the way children learn and teach accordingly.

This module is very important and it will really benefit us as well as the students. Therefore, we would like to say that this module should be offered to the teacher students of College of Education. So far this module was offered to only the primary B.Ed students so we suggest that it should be offered to secondary and other B.Ed students as well because it is really important for all the teachers.      

                                                     
 

References

Ainscow, M. (2005) Developing inclusive education systems: what are the levers for change?

Ministry of Education (2009).Draft national policy on early childhood care and development.

Thimphu.

Mitchell, D. (2010) Education that fits: Review of international trends in the education of students with special educational needs. UK: University of Canterbury for the Ministry of Education.

UNESCO (1994) The Salamanca statement and framework for action on special needs

Education: Access and quality.UNESCO Special Education, Division of Basic Education.

Save the Children (2009) Making Schools Inclusive: How Change Can Happen. London:

Save the Children UK