Overview of Special Education

‘Education for All: Making it Happen’

What is Special Education?

Special Education is the educational provision for children whose levels of functioning deviate from the norm such that special programmes are necessary to facilitate or foster optimum learning.

Objectives

• To secure teaching/learning opportunities for students with special needs throughout the education system.

• To plan, implement, monitor Special Education programmes.

• To secure access, equity and quality education for students with special needs.

Roles and functions

The Unit supervises Special Education schools, units and programmes islandwide. The schools are categorised as Government-owned and Government-aided. There are also private community-based facilities some of which are partially funded by the government. There is at least one Special Education facility in each parish. Over 3,400 students are enrolled in these schools with 300 teachers. The teacher pupil ratio varies from 1:5 to 1:16 depending on the type and severity of learning problems.

The Unit offers support, curriculum supervision, monitoring services and facilitates training, net-working, assessment and programme planning. It is a resource base for expertise, advice and hands-on information across all levels of the education system. This necessitates collaboration with all the other units within the Ministry, agencies offering services to persons with special needs and other stakeholders.

Activities

• Supervision and training of resource teachers in regular schools

• In service training for teachers in special and regular schools.

• The development of partnerships with schools for mainstreaming and resource help for children with special needs.

• Educational assessment of under-achievers.

• Sensitisation for parent groups, Administrators, Education Officers, Principals and Board Members.

• Promotion of Special Education Intervention across the curriculum.

• Staff development exercises in schools upon requests.

• Assistance in establishing Resource Room in regular schools – Primary and High.

Administrative Unit

This Unit was established in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Culture in January 1989 and is located at Caenwood Centre, 37 Arnold Road, Kingston 5. Prior to that, the registered Special Education schools were monitored by the Early Childhood Unit. Presently, there is a staff of seven officers, a secretary and a technician.

The Unit consists of a Braille and Large Print Programme that reproduces all national examinations and primary curriculum support materials for blind and visually impaired students and their teachers.

Who are served?

The programme encompasses education for students three to 20 years with all types of difficulties including:

• Hearing Impairment (H.I.)
• Visual Impairment (V.I.)
• Physical Impairment (P.I.)
• Mental Retardation (M.R.)
• Giftedness
• Learning Disabilities (L.D.)