Many teenagers in America dread the thought of waking up early and having to go to school, but they are unaware of how great a privilege their education is. In South Africa, the handicapped children are not so lucky, as many are left uneducated. According to the Human Rights Watch, there are about 500,000 children with disabilities in South Africa that are not currently enrolled in school (Anderson). When a child is not enrolled in school at an early age, experts argue that they are put at a disadvantage in the future when it comes to getting hired for a job and earning a living. Although there has been progress towards inclusive education in South Africa, it is still very hard for handicapped children to be accepted into schools, and once they are accepted, they are not provided with the necessary resources.
Recently, South Africa has acknowledged this issue and has even made it a government policy since 2001 to end this exclusion. Additionally, in 2007, South Africa joined the UN Disability Rights treaty, promising to provide inclusive education for everyone (Theirworld). This means that the government is committed to providing their schools and students with more funding and opportunities.
Even with this recent progress, many handicapped children are not being educated because it is very hard for them to be accepted into schools. Among other rights, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights guarantees all adolescents the right to education. Despite this, teachers would rather teach the children without disabilities because they feel it is less of a burden (Anderson).
Although special schools are available for those with disabilities, these schools often have large waiting lists, and the high tuition rate forces many children to drop out (Anderson). For example, Qinisela, an eight-year-old boy with down syndrome, has never been to school (Theirworld). After being told he was not fit for a “mainstream” school, his mother expressed that she has been waiting a year for there to be space for him in a special school (Theirworld). Qinisela has missed some of the most fundamental years of education because he has not been accepted into a school. He is illiterate, and while there is still some time for him to learn how to read and write, he will be put at a huge disadvantage in the future.
Once overcoming preliminary obstacles such as acceptance and tuition, the school often does not have the proper funds and resources to adequately support and teach their young pupils. Many of the schools do not have access to textbooks that are written in braille or in larger print (Khumalo and Hodgson). With the government not providing substantial funds and resources for special education schools, children and families are forced to look for education elsewhere.
Even in cases when the proper educational tools are provided, many of the teachers lack the training and patience to properly utilize those resources (Khumalo and Hodgson). For example, children who are visually impaired require a teacher that is fluent in braille. Without teachers who are qualified, a child can not properly learn the curriculum and can be greatly disadvantaged in his future.
In summary, although there has been progress, South Africa has not achieved unrestricted access to education. With the implementation of new government policies towards inclusive education, experts predict that many of the 500,000 handicapped children that are not currently in school will be granted equal access to education.
Works Cited:
Anderson, Mark. "Many Disabled Children in Poorer Countries Left out of Primary Education."The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 18 Aug. 2015. Web. 04 Mar. 2017.
Khumalo, Silomo, and Tim Fish Hodgson. "The Right to Education for Children with Disabilities in South Africa: SECTION27's Action from National Research and Litigation Strategies to International Advocacy.” Right to Education Project. N.p., 14 Apr. 2015. Web. 04 Mar. 2017.
“South African Schools Exclude about 500,000 Children with Disabilities Says Report."Theirworld.
I found your article about how being disabled makes it difficult for children to have education very informative. The story about the boy with down syndrome also helped to prove your message, and the most interesting aspect for me. Are there any other ways people are trying to help disabled children?
ReplyDeleteMy favorite part of your article is the example you used about blind children needing a teacher who can read braille. I thought it was a really interesting perspective. When will the 500,000 kids without education be put in schools?
ReplyDeleteYour article seemed very personal and I could really see that this is an issue you care about. While I have heard about children being unable to get into schools, I have never heard of the greater difficulty disabled students face in South African schools, so I will definitely remember this issue in the future. Are both physical and mental disabilities causing hindering enrollment in South Africa?
ReplyDeleteMy favorite aspect of this piece is the original topic that you chose and the examples you used to support your article. My main take-away was how serious this problem is and the magnitude of it which was conveyed throughout your article. A follow up question I have is that you say there are rules put in place to fight this, so do we need better enforcement or just new rules to fix this problem?
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