This right is upheld by our Constitution. There are, however, millions of children all over the world who do not have access to quality education. This is especially true for children with disabilities and those who are marginalized.
For some, "inclusive education" has come to mean "the integration of children with disabilities in regular schools."
Indeed, it is concerned about children with disabilities: visual, hearing or physical disability. But in the first place, it means to increase the capacity of the school and the teachers to deal with differences in order to ensure quality education even for the most marginalized or the weakest of all children, thereby including the "excluded."
Our society needs to engage the potentials of every Filipino. They may belong to a different religion, ethnic group, economic status, or do not speak the language of the classroom. They may be at risk of dropping because of sickness, hunger, poverty or even poor achievement level. Everybody has a right to education and society has a duty to take care of all its citizens.
But even if all children are enrolled in school, quite a number are excluded from participating and learning in the classroom and many do not succeed.
Sometimes because teachers are not prepared to enhance to different potentials of children, sometimes they cannot see the textbook or the blackboard or can hardly hear the teacher, sometimes they are not asked to contribute; or no attempt is made to help those who are lagging behind.
Inclusive education means society creates environments where ALL children can learn, all children are developed and all teachers can deal even with the weakest.
Children with disabilities are the most prone to marginalization and exclusion.
Thus, the Institute provides special attention to children with disabilities within the framework of the "Education for All" concept and the need to develop the competence of all teachers.
At present, the Institute focuses on learners with visual and hearing impairment and their teachers. There are two areas of concern: the learner and the teacher.
The Institute is attending to 264 children and youth with visual impairment, of which 229 are in 170 elementary and secondary schools in Northern Luzon. The textbooks of these students are put into Braille, audio or large print.
At least 20 children are under the early intervention program and 15 out-of-school youth are being monitored. A total of 246 families are involved. Summer workshops on computers, Braille and mathematics at varying levels are conducted for students with visual impairment.
There are 28 children with hearing impairment being monitored in 20 elementary and high schools in Northern Luzon. Four children are under the early intervention program and one out-of school youth.
The main barrier to inclusion of persons with disability in our schools is the negative attitude of parents, teachers, and society-at-large. Part of the advocacy of the Institute is to convince parents to send their children to school, and for the schools and teachers to accept them.
For this purpose, seminars and workshops are conducted for teachers and administrators. These include the teaching of mathematics, the subject that teachers find most challenging when teaching the visually-impaired.
Not surprisingly, what helps the learners with visual impairment also helps all other students. The aim, then, in all these seminars is to empower teachers to teach all their students so that learning becomes meaningful.
Therefore, the preparation of teachers at the pre-service level becomes very important.
The Institute works closely with the SLU College of Education (COE), which is implementing a teacher education curriculum that emphasizes the principles of inclusive education. This preparation should empower teachers to meet the needs of a diversity of learners including children with disabilities in the regular classroom.
There are now eight satellite centers in Northern Luzon implementing a teacher education curriculum focused on inclusive education. They are: Saint Louis College and Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University in La Union; Pangasinan State University in Bayambang, Pangasinan; Divine Word College, Abra; Mountain Province State Polytechnic College; Benguet State University; Saint Mary's University in Nueva Vizcaya; and, University of Saint Louis in Tuguegarao City.
Selected teachers from these satellite centers are provided scholarships by the Institute to study inclusive education at the SLU COE graduate level.
* Dr. Roque Bernardez was the former dean of SLU's College of Education. For inquiries about the Institute of Inclusive Education, you may visit, call or e-mail Mr. Naas Demyttenaere, Executive Director, at the ground floor of the Gonzaga building along Gen. Luna street, tel. 300-3779 or e-mail naasdem@gmail.com.
