By Duncan Mlanjira
The Vice-President of the Republic of Malawi, the Right Honourable Everton Herbert Chimulirenji, has inaugurated the MACOHA flag week with an assurance that governrment will continue promoting access to education for all including persons with disabilities.
The Vice-President pointed out that government realizes that persons with disabilities face a lot of challenges, hence it has put in place legal instruments in order to protect the rights of persons with disabilities.
Chatting with one of the youths at the function
The Right Honourable Chimulirenji said government, under the leadership of Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika, shall recognize the rights of persons with disabilities to education on the basis of equal opportunity.
It shall ensure an inclusive education system and life long learning by providing that persons with disabilities are not excluded from from the general education system as well as taking into consideration the special requirements of persons with disabilities in the formulation of educational policies and programmes.
Being presented with a gift
This is also in line with the inclusive education, which Catholic Development Commission (CADECOM) initiated in Phalombe District as an academic programme aimed at integrating children with disabilities into public schools rather than getting them into their special institutions.
CADECOM’s initiative is taking deep root and has seen positive high of enrollment.
Phalombe has a high rate of people with disabilities that prompted CADECOM, one of the Catholic Church’s development arm in Malawi, to intervene after discovering that such children are discriminated against in terms of being enrolled in school’s.
So far, 21 schools in the districts in which two or three teachers from each is selected for special training at each enrollment every year since 2011 to be taught in sign language, others teaching vision impared kids and others with skills in teaching slow learners.
CADECOM’s inclusive education involves changes and modifications in content, approach, structure, teaching strategies, modified curriculum as well as school culture and attitudes.
Teachers practising sign language during
CADECOM’s training
“It is based on the notion that schools should without question, provide for the needs of all the children, whatever the levels of their abilities and disabilities by providing support that enhance participation and achievement, CADECOM’s project officer, Sailes Phiri had said during a visit to Migowi at Mambala Primary School on Friday to oversee the graduation of 30 participants from various schools.
“It means closing doors of exclusion and discrimination and accepting diversity and supporting one another. Its benefits are that learners with disabilities feel belonging to society, increases friendship and interaction and prepares them for social co-existence.
Sign language teacher trainer Andrew Changwera
“Learners without disabilities also benefit because they have rich access from the modified curriculum that is being created since they access a wide range of teaching styles and resources.
“And they appreciate realities of life, develop positive attitudes and promotes sensitivity, understanding and respect differences of peers,” he said.
The programme is being executed in partnership with South Africa-based Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA).