The Department of Education has issued a series of memoranda mandating basic education schools to implement inclusion.
This inclusive education policy of DepEd has its ground on Article 14, Section 1 of the Philippine Constitution which states that the Philippines “ shall protect and promote the rights of all citizens to quality education at all levels, and shall take appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all”.
Inclusive education is defined as the process of addressing and responding to the diversity of needs of all learners by increasing participation in learning, cultures and communities, and reducing exclusion within and from education. It involves changes and modifications in content, approaches, structures and strategies, with a common vision which covers all children of the appropriate age range and a conviction that it is the responsibility of the state to educate all children. (Senate Bill No.1414 of 2017, otherwise known as Inclusive Education for Children and Youth with Special Needs Act).
This means that all learners, regardless of any challenges and difficulties they want may have or suffer from, are placed in age-appropriate general education classes to receive high-quality instruction, interventions, and supports that enable them to be successful in the core curriculum.
The big questions: How ready are the learning institutions? How ready are the teachers who are responsible of the delivery of the learning instructions?
This is such a herculean task for most teachers and administrators at the basic education because both have neither the professional specifications nor the experience in inclusive education. This is the sad reality. Teachers understand that learners learn differently. But how to manage an inclusive classroom with 40 to 45 learners, all with different learning styles, and all coming from different family backgrounds and cultures? I think that is the stumbling block of the program.
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Teachers in the basic education lack the knowhow in handling children and youth with special needs. They do not have special trainings in dealing with autism, with visually-impaired learners, with those who have difficulty in remembering, those who have difficulty in calculating, etc.
Our teachers are used with the one-size-fits-all way of teaching. All teachers must undergo trainings, more trainings, and re-trainings because there is always a difference between theory and practice.
Moreover, teachers should be provided by government sufficient resources to nurture, encourage, and respond to the needs of all learners. Finally, the parents’ participation in the educational process of their child should be their top priority. They must realize that teachers are human beings not superheroes. Parents are partners with the teachers in educating their children, and not to leave everything to the teachers, or worse, blame the teachers in the end.
When government, the school, and the community work together for genuine inclusion in education, goals will be achieved, learning and teaching process become enjoyable and not a burden, and more importantly, every child is able to reach his potential, regardless of the challenges he is faced with.
Dr. Luisito Divinagracia
Principal, Negros Oriental High School-Senior High School
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