UP Empowers 60,000 Teachers for Inclusive Education for Handling Children with Special Needs

 In a significant move to enhance the quality of education for children with disabilities, the Uttar Pradesh Education Department, in collaboration with Shakuntala Mishra National Rehabilitation University (SMNRU) and UNICEF, has launched a 90-day training module for nearly 60,000 head teachers in state-run schools.

The program, titled "Shining Lights: Empowering Teachers for Inclusive Classrooms," aims to sensitize head teachers to the concept of inclusive education and to equip them with the knowledge and skills to handle children with special needs (CWSN) more effectively.

The training, which consists of 80 days online and 10 days offline, will cover topics such as the concept of inclusive education, understanding different disabilities, working with children with special needs, parent counseling, screening of physical barriers, early identification, types, causes, prevention, and strategies for children with hand, limb, sight, and hearing disabilities.

Additionally, the program will also focus on autism spectrum disorder, specific learning disability, and individualized education plans.

Nand Kumar, who is heading the project in the education department, stated, "Through this, we will be able to instill confidence in teachers to reach out to special children."

The initiative comes as a response to the high number of children with disabilities enrolled in Uttar Pradesh schools, which stands at 3.40 lakh, with only 2,256 special educators available to support them.

Education specialist UNICEF UP, Ritwik Patra, said, "When a teacher sees a child with disabilities, they are clueless. They feel they cannot deal with them or that the child is not capable of doing anything, both of which are untrue."

The diagnostic teaching module of UNICEF will help teachers navigate the ways to support children with disabilities in the best possible ways.

Associate professor, department of visually impaired, SMNRU VS Mishra, said, "We are aiding the education department with our expertise so that special educators who are our master trainers will train general education teachers to impart education to all, including children with disabilities."

The training program is expected to benefit CWSN and their families, as well as to improve the overall quality of education in Uttar Pradesh schools.