THE Department of Education (DepEd) said that at least 64 selected teachers from public schools in Central Luzon participated in the Regional Training on Sign Language and Braille Reading and Writing in a bid to make teachers ready in handling pupils with special needs.
The event was held on November 12 to 16 at the Otel Pampanga.
The said training aims to discuss the sign language of the different learning areas, familiarize the Filipino Sign Language or natural sign language of the different learning areas, share best practices in teaching using sign language, and demonstrate the use of sign language in the conduct of training of teachers.
At the same time, it also seeks to discuss the different sections of the Unified English Braille (UEB), familiarize the new type of indicators, capitalization, punctuations, miscellaneous symbols and new modes, share best practices in teaching using Braille, and demonstrate the use of UEB in the conduct of training of teachers.
“As teachers of hearing and visually impaired learners, we can find significance and meaning to our existence when we become parts of the lives of those who are living in silence and in the darkness,” said Rosalinda Ibarra, Regional Education Program Supervisor in-charge of Special Education.
According the DepEd Enhanced Basic Education Information System (EBEIS), a total of 9,218 elementary SPED students and 1,517 secondary SPED students in Region III were enrolled during the School Year 2017-2018 in the 177 SPED centers in the region.
“Aside from the technical factors imparted in the training, it also touched the hearts of the receiving teachers to pursue their passion in teaching students with special needs and not to give up on them,” said Charmaine Leonille Rivera, Teacher I of Sapang Palay National High School in San Jose del Monte City.
DepEd Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones highlights the inclusion of children with special needs as among the primary projects and programs of the Department. The creation of the Special Curricular Programs and Student Inclusion allows the development of an Inclusive Education Framework (IEF), which will determine the basic education requirements and improve the planning and monitoring of related programs to better serve children with special needs, especially learners with hearing impairment.
Furthermore, in keeping with the Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE) policy, DepEd implements the Mother Tongue Curriculum Guide which highlights Filipino Sign Language (FSL) as the mother tongue of learners with special needs. To aid educators in effective teaching-learning process, teachers are provided with relevant training. Bolstering this measure, the Department implements a classroom-level language mapping, through DepEd Order No. 55, series 2016, which includes sign language for deaf learners. The results of which will be used across governance levels, from planning and policy development to capacity building of teachers.