Institutions affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education have been asked to form a panel to promote school inclusion of students who require special care.
The board is prescribing various tenets for children with special needs. This will enable their active participation in schools. The step has been taken in accordance with Right to Education Act, 2009 and Person with Disability Act, 1995.
The CBSE updated the notification on its official website on May 22. The committee will act as a medium to promote inclusive education in schools, according to the CBSE guidelines. It would also be a referral agency for children from underprivileged and weaker sections of society.
The council has asked the respective school inclusion committees to ensure that all possible help is given to these children and their problems regarding admission, classroom placements, curriculum transaction and exemptions in examination are addressed. The committee will also address other issues related to safeguarding the interest of special children.
“It is often observed that these provisions do not reach the target population. In light of these facts, it is advisable to constitute a school inclusion committee, which will comprise the principal, school counsellor, teacher representative and special educators,” said D.T. Sudharsan Rao, joint secretary and in-charge of academics and training, CBSE.
?Shivajee Kumar, the nodal officer for disabilities in Bihar, said: “Forming the panel to promote the school inclusion committee seems unrealistic because there is hardly any institution in the city, which either has a special educator or admits children with special needs. There is not even a separate school for them.”?
Some city schools welcomed this notification. Shamsher Prasad Singh, the principal of Patna Central School, said: “It is a wise decision. We have a few such children, who need to be encouraged.”?
Seema Singh, the principal of St Karen’s High School, said these kids need more attention and the school needs to boost their morale and spirit from time to time. “They should not be discriminated against. A committee, which will address their problems, is the need of the hour. This year, children with special needs from our school have done very well in the Class X board exams,” she said.
