RECENT TRENDS AND ISSUES IN INCLUSIVE EDUCATION IN PHILIPPINES

RECENT TRENDS AND ISSUES IN INCLUSIVE EDUCATION IN PHILIPPINES

Population in the Philippines

Population: 90,457,000 (90.46 million) population with 2% annual growth rate;

      - (2008 ESCAP Population Data Sheet)

 No. of disabled people

 The 2000 census registered 992,000 persons with disabilities (1.2% of the population). Only 580,000, however, were registered with the Department of Health. Most disability organisations and NGOs in the country note that government figures show significant underreporting.

 Situation on Education in East Asia and the Pacific

 It is estimated that more than 40 per cent of people with disabilities in the region live in poverty and are denied basic entitlements available to others such as health, education and employment. In the area of education, even when primary and secondary education in most countries is free, enrolment rates among children with disabilities are significantly lower. In China, for instance, enrolment rate is 90% but for children with disabilities the rate is lower at 77%. Evidence also shows that children with disabilities are less likely to attend school. In the Philippines, 20% of children with disabilities have never attended school while the rate for children without disabilities is 6%. Inaccessibility of school facilities is a major barrier.

 Piloting Education Initiative in Philippines

 Leonard Cheshire Disability works with families, schools, communities and governments to promote access to good quality education for children with disabilities. Education is one of the main areas of our work. To support the process of inclusion in schools, we collaborate with other organisations working in disability, education and development.

 This partnership approach, combined with our emphasis on evidence based practice and research, helps us influence national educational policies.

 Leonard Cheshire Disability supports the pilot programme of the Philippine Council of Cheshire Homes for the Disabled (PhilCOCHED) which aims to promote the rights of children with disabilities to access education and to combat physical and attitudinal barriers that prevent them from receiving education.

 The programme endeavours to address the needs of children with disabilities in a holistic manner, employing research, awareness- raising and capacity-building and advocacy strategies. Inclusive education in the Philippines aims to enable 1300 children with disabilities to attend local mainstream schools. The pilot project, over the next three years, will cover 15 schools in the metropolitan Manila area and the province of Tarlac in the central Luzon Island.

 During the Program implementation, PhilCOCHED was honored to have the support and expertise of the Department of Education (Ministry of Education) teachers, administrators, and the National Council for Disability Affairs (NCDA), thus making the program more responsive and localized for the 15 target pilot sites. 

 Project Goal: 

·         To promote rights of education for children with disabilities;

·         To demonstrate a holistic approach of meaningful education (e.g. inclusive education) and enable greater access to both preparatory and elementary education for children with disabilities;

 Project Objectives:

·         Creating Awareness and participation Among Stakeholders of LCD-PHILCOCHED Inclusive Education initiatives;

·         Improving Access to Inclusive Education;

·         Adopt a holistic approach to the rights of education for children with disabilities;

·         Improving Economic Opportunities for the parents and families with children with disabilities;  

Key Elements of Project Activities:

·         Training for project holders on social skills & responsibility for children with disabilities;

·         Individual support for children with disabilities in schools;

·         Develop the individual plan for people with disabilities from one stage (prior to the mainstreaming schools) transit to next stage (in the mainstreaming school classes); 

·         UNCRPD training workshop or dialogue on increasing rights of education for children with disabilities;

·         Working with Parents & communities to support children in mainstreaming schools, such as forming parents groups;

·         Training teachers and peers of children against discrimination;

·         Renovation of classes and schools to have better access for children with disabilities, specially for the children with wheelchair ;

·         Seminars and conferences of UNCRPD awareness for public, policy makers, teachers, communities and families to promote rights of people with disabilities including the rights of education for children with disabilities;

Major  Program Events

·         Dialogue and partnership with 17 NGOs, disabled peoples organizations, national government agencies and the business sector;

·         Forging of Memorandum of Agreement with the Department of Education (DepEd) and Department of Health (DOH) as lead partners from the government in the I.E. implementation;

·         Dialogue and strengthening the participation of the 19 local community organizations, community volunteers, teachers and school officials;

·         Media Mileage. Interviews and publications to different national radio stations (DZAS F.M. frequency) and several magazines regarding the issue of Inclusive Education;

·         Established partnership and coordination with 5 business corporations;

·         Encouraged the support and participation of more than 130 local church leaders and parishioners;

·         Submitted a Proposed Program and Policy Agenda for the Education and Rehabilitation of Children with Disabilities to the National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC) for endorsement to the different local government units in the country for adoption and implementation;

·         Recognition of the Inclusive Education Program by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (Region 3);

·         Conduct of the 1st inter-school discussion on the UN-CRPD for club leaders of elementary schools in the national capital region, February 15, 2008;

·         Established partnership with the Employers’ Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP), and the Department of Labor (DOLE) for the employment and earning opportunities of CWD parents;

 Indicators of Project Achievements

No. of schools in the IE project (15 schools and centres)

There are 15 schools and centres in communities involved in the IE programmes activities. Details locations as following:

 A. Schools and Centres in CENTRAL LUZON 

·         City of San Fernando Elem. School, Pampanga;

·         Iba Central School, Zambales;

·         Capas Elem. School and Camiling Central School, Tarlac;

·         Talavera Central School, Nueva Ecija;

·         Pandi Elem. School and Paombong Elem. School, Bulacan

·         Limay Elem. School, Bataan;

2 Centres:

·         Dong-In Tulay Center-Mariveles Bataan;

·         Antonio G. Llamas E.S., Bataan;

B. Schools and Centres in NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION (METRO MANILA) 

      4 Sites in Quezon City (1 school, 3 centres)

·         Payatas A Elem. School;

·         Payatas Early Learning and Rehabilitation-Kalamyong

·         Kalantiyaw E.S.,

·         Guanella Center.

 3 Sites in Caloocan (3 centres)

·         Early Learning and Rehabilitation Centers in Malaria;

·         Early Learning and Rehabilitation Centers Bagong Silang,

·         Early Learning and Rehabilitation Centers Bagong Silang E.S.

3 Sites in following cities:

·         Makati City;

·         Mandaluyong City;

·         Manila City;

No. of children reached (1,300 children with disabilities)

·         300 new children with disabilities to attend preparatory and elementary school;

·         1, 000 existing children with disabilities in special education class for supplementary support such as therapy, medical check-up and medicines through referrals;

·         Pre-assessment of more than 300 children with disabilities

 No. of teachers trained

·         More than 173 regular teachers and SPED teachers trained on Inclusive Education ;

·         No. of schools made accessible (15 schools and centres have the support of accessibility for children with disabilities)

·         Construction of ramps, hand rails, modification of I.E. resource rooms, provision of accessibility fixtures/infrastructures;

·         Conduct of accessibility inventory in public schools of Central Luzon and Metro Manila, including community based learning and rehabilitation centers;

·         Preparation of a general accessibility work plan as endorsed by the DPWH Regional Office for all Region 3 public elementary schools;

 No. of parents groups formed

·         300 parents of new children with disabilities (CWD) pupils for socio-economic support (skills training, provision of loan capital for collective capital and organization of Cooperative Association);

·         1, 000 parents of existing CWD pupils for parental guidance workshop and orientation workshop on the significance of Inclusive Education;

 Aside from the national government agencies and non-governmental organizations which have been tapped for the implementation of the said Program, PhilCOCHED was also indebted with the support of different embassies in the country. To note, the Embassy of United Kingdom, through the stewardship of His Excellency Hon. Peter Beckingham, has even inspired PhilCOCHED to make the program more responsive to the needs of children with disabilities, and eventually, pursue for the second phase of program implementation in the near future.

Of the more than 50 school divisions in the country, only Manila is recognized as having the most organized delivery system for special education.

A LEAP FORWARD: AN EDUCATION OPPORTUNITY FOR DISABLED CHILDREN

Former Secretary Jesli Lapuz of the Department of Education revealed that the Special Education Program of the Philippines has only catered 2% of the targeted 2.2 million children with disabilities especially those living under vulnerable conditions. This, among others, sets out an alarming deficit of the supposed number of children with disabilities who should have been enrolled in our elementary and secondary schools, lest the disillusion to meet the target of the Medium Term Development Goals on Education. Unless, we could have an existing framework of education that could cater to ALL children, delimiting the possibilities of systematic denial to education.

Inclusive Education aims to demonstrate the positive impact on the approaches to education at a setting where both the disabled and non-disabled children learn and socialize with and among each other, discounting the fears of having an environment of stigma, exclusion, and various forms of negligence.

Creating Awareness Among Stakeholders of Inclusive Education

PhilCOCHED has been consistently active in establishing partnerships with education authorities, even forging a memorandum of agreement with the Department of Education, the Saint Joseph College, the Trinity University of Asia and other tertiary and secondary schools, with our basic goal of raising the awareness of education stakeholders with regards to inclusive education.

Improve access to INCLUSIVE education

Access to education does not necessarily mean providing buildings and teachers. Providing Access to education is a complex endeavor of making a student learn and move decently within the premises of his/her school, its immediate community and even at his home place. This would also include capacitating the teachers inside the school through various trainings on inclusive education and basic pre-assessment skills. PhilCOCHED in the meantime has provided free training for more than 500 elementary teachers in a span of four years. however, the training's impact should translate to our end game, the increase in enrollment of children with disabilities.

Adopt a holistic approach to the needs of cwds

1. Health and management of disability for the children involved in the Project.

2. Parents' Rehabilitation and Life-Skills training. 

3. Provision of rehabilitation and medical services for the CWDs and their families.

 

 

 

 

School Principals, to Participate in the Inclusive Education Program Directioning (March 17, 2011; Commonwealth Elementary School, Q.C.)

Posted on March 2, 2011 by marlon.fulo

 The Leonard Cheshire Disability Philippines Foundation-Inclusive Education Program (LCDPF-IE) will present its State of the Program Address (SOPA) for Schools Administrators at Commonwealth Elementary School, Commonwealth Quezon City, on March 17, 2011.
The immediate goal of the SOPA is to convene all participating school principals and focal teachers to discuss and be leveled off on the current implementation of the Inclusive Education in the Philippines, particularly with the newly-assigned principals. The activity is likewise aimed to discuss and share their experiences with regards to the grading system for children with disabilities (CWDs) who are included in regular classes, and the importance of SPED centers as resource centers for nearby regular schools. By the end of the activity, it is expected that the participants could likewise be able to include the components of the Inclusive Education program in their respective School Improvement Plan (SIPs).
The SOPA would give an update on what the program has gone through, thus far achieved in promoting the rights of children with disabilities (CWDs) to Inclusive Education. The IE Program Team, for its part, expects to review and monitor the previous commitment made by the participants to support Inclusive Education in the Philippines, which they made during the joint planning in Bataan and Quezon City.
Currently, the Inclusive Education Program has now enrolled more than 800 out of school children with disabilities from 30 participating schools in NCR, Region 3, and the CALABARZON Region, in coordination with local stakeholders, including the teachers and school administrators.
By the end of 2012, the program and the schools are geared towards enrolling another 800 out of school children with disabilities. The conduct of the IE-SOPA will be one of the spring boards in achieving and localizing the above target.
Currently, The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) 1994 Salamanca Statement which calls for the accommodation of CWDs in regular schools along with their non-disabled counterparts.

A GRADUATE OF PHILIPPINE SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF SPEAKS UP… “MY TEACHERS AT PSD BROUGHT OUT THE BEST IN ME"

Ariscel P. Lobo was your typical baby. He seldom threw tantrums. But when he was older, his parents noticed that he hardly responded when they called his name. No one realized that Ariscel had a disability. He was different. He was severely and profoundly deaf on both ears.

PAINFUL SHOCK

The medical findings came as a painful shock to Ariscel’s father, a tricycle driver and his mother, a fish vendor. It has been said time and again that no parent is ever prepared to become the parent of a child with handicap. But no one ever questioned Ariscel’s parents’ determination to send him to school. He was exposed early on to a talking environment and was enrolled in a regular school in Pampanga where his classmates treated him as a normal child. Ariscel talked, lip read and joined in school activities. He even reaped honors while in the elementary grades.

NORMAL KID

          Without a hearing aid to depend on and sign language to hold on to, Ariscel grew up talking while lip reading. He watched “Sesame Street” on television where he practiced his verbal skills. He also played with normal kids.

DENIAL

          In high school, Ariscel was transferred to the Philippine School for the Deaf (PSD) in Manila. For a while, he was in a period of denial. He gave his classmates a cold shoulder whenever they communicated with him through sign language, and disliked drinking from their glass because of his impression that hearing impairedness was communicable.

ACCEPTANCE

          Years passed, the atmosphere of congeniality at PSD had developed spontaneity and naturalness in the young Ariscel.

          He talks fondly of Teacher Erna Tovillo who taught him to embrace his disability, build his self-esteem and entrusted him with responsibilities.  With the support of all his other teachers, Ariscel was accelerated from first year to fourth year and graduated salutatorian at PSD.

 MOVING ON

          Now, thirty-year-old Ariscel is a Bachelor’ Degree holder in applied Deaf Studies at the De La Salle University’s College of Saint Benilde (2001). He is a now a teacher at PSD and is on his way toward a master’s degree in Special Education at the Philippine Normal University.

          Excited and all fired up, "Sir" Ariscel talked of his travel to Korea during the Second Asia Pacific Bowling Championship for the Deaf recently. He did not reap awards but according to him, the experience was great! A sports buff, Ariscel is also into volleyball, taekwondo and tennis. He also dreams of having a family of his own and a supportive and fun-loving wife in the future.

         “My teachers at PSD brought out the best in me. Without the good education and the special communication skills I acquired from PSD, I would never have made it,” Ariscel says with a smile.

CHILDREN WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES GET ATTENTION

The Special Education Division-Bureau of Elementary Education (SPED-BEE) is conducting a training program for teachers handling children with learning disabilities to better equip them in dealing with children with special needs.The project aims to provide the 1,536 public elementary education teachers in special education with quality training to better assist children with special needs. 

 “Teachers in Special Needs Education have not been given so much attention in terms of training, programs and services to address their needs as well as their performance,” SPED chief Mirla Olores said.

 “This training program also addresses the educational needs of these special learners to be implemented in low performing schools nationwide,” Olores added.

SPED data revealed that there are about 39,000 children with learning disabilities for school year 2005 to 2006.  This particular group of children have problems in reading, writing and in mathematics.The program involves the training of trainers and regional training of SPED and regular teachers, and administrators. A workshop on the development of the training curriculum on teaching children with learning difficulties was conducted in October. (LCV) 

SPED TEACHERS TRAIN IN HANDLING AUTISM

          The Special Education Division-Bureau of Elementary Education (SPED-BEE), conducted training-workshops that respond to the needs of SPED teachers, administrators and supervisors in handling children with autism.

          The workshops provided the participants with basic knowledge on the education of children with autism.  The activity also provided training on varied teaching strategies and approaches appropriate to children with autism.  It also developed the skills and expertise of SPED teachers and administrators in preparing the Individualized Educational Plan (IEP) for autistic learners.

          “Children with autism are among the special children who have limited access to basic educational opportunities. These workshops aim to address the scarcity of our trained SPED teachers and provide more special learners with appropriate educational services,” SPED chief Mirla Olores said.

          The activities included a workshop on the development of training design for programs on autism held at Marikina Hotel, Marikina City on October 4 to 6 and a seminar-workshop for administrators, supervisors and teachers handling children with autism to be held at the Regional Educational Learning Center (RELC), Iloilo City on November 5 to 9.

DEPED INCREASES BUDGET FOR SPED CENTERS

APRIL 6, 2012

PRESS RELEASE 

The Department of Education has increased the budget allocation for Special Education (SPED) centers in the elementary level all over the country by more than fifty percent to enable public schools to properly respond to the needs of gifted children and those with learning disabilities. 

Education Secretary Br. Armin A. Luistro FSC said from P115 million last year, the government has increased the budget subsidy to P180 million, up by 56%. The number of SPED centers operated by DepEd also increased from 276 in School Year 2011-2012 to 345 in School Year 2012-2013. 

“We believe that special learners deserve special attention and specialized learning tools thus the increase in funding support,” Luistro explained. 

The financial subsidy amounting to P500,000 per SPED center  will sustain the implementation of SPED programs, projects, and activities. DepEd has also allocated P42,000 per division and P40,000 per region to monitor the implementation of programs for children with special needs as well as keep track of the efficient utilization of SPED funds. 

The grant subsidy is intended for pupil development activities such as training, educational visits, camp activities, sports and pupil participation in SPED related events. It is also allotted to procure instructional and reference material, psychological and other assessment tools, early intervention materials, supplies for the transition program, manipulative materials for the gifted/talented and those with disabilities. 

Certain amount is also earmarked for the professional upgrading of teachers, school heads, and supervisors including travel expenses relative to their participation and attendance in activities relevant to the implementation of the program. 

Luistro also said the instructional materials to be procured for gifted children should be over and above those already included in the regular program. 

The instructional materials should likewise be able to develop the gifted child’s intellectual abilities and talents in the arts and sciences, mathematics, social sciences, and communications. 

The instructional materials shall also be technology-based, requiring the use of electronic equipment which include but is not limited to software programs, video discs, optical discs, video and audio tapes. 

Luistro said that DepEd shall closely monitor the optimum utilization of funds at all levels. “I enjoin all concerned school officials to strictly comply with the fund utilization guidelines so we can deliver the best service to our special learners,” he said. Non-compliance therewith may result to the suspension of subsidy. 

DEPED SHARPENS SKILLS OF SPED TEACHERS 

March29,2012
PRESS RELEASE 

“Hone your skills further and closely attend to children who have special learning needs.” 

This is the marching order of Education Secretary Br. Armin A. Luistro FSC to some 546 Special Education (SPED) teachers and schools officials who will go on a 27-day intensive summer training to enable them to better attend to the educational needs of children who are gifted and those with learning disabilities. 

The training program is for new teacher-scholars for the gifted /talented and those who attend to learners with disability. Also attending are returning teacher-scholars who handle students with visual and hearing impairment, those with intellectual disability, as well as learners with multiple disability with visual impairment (MDVI). 

Luistro said it is the mandate of the State to make education accessible to learners with special needs under the inclusive education thrust of the department. “Our end-goal is to bring them to regular schools and guide them to live normal lives,” he added. 

The training seminar will be held in three separate venues across the country. The Luzon leg will be from April 16 to May 12 at the Philippine Normal University in Manila to be attended by participants from Regions 1, 2, 3, 4-A (CALABARZON), 4-B (MIMAROPA), National Capital Region (NCR), and the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR). 

In Mindanao which will happen on the same date as Luzon’s, the venue is the University of South Eastern Philippines in Davao City. This will be attended by teachers from Regions 9, 10, 11, 12, CARAGA, and the Autonomous Region Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). 

The Visayas leg will be at Cebu Normal University for attendees from Regions 6, 7, and 8. It will run from April 10 to May 5. The training for teachers who minister to children with MDVI is from May 7 to June 1. 

Meanwhile, there will also be training for school principals and supervisors to upgrade their competencies in establishing and maintaining viable SPED programs in their jurisdiction. 

The scholarship program aims to provide SPED teachers and school officials with knowledge and skills on various educational programs and interventions appropriate for children with special needs. 

TEACHERS HANDLING AUTISM GET SCHOLARSHIP 

MARCH13, 2012 

PRESS RELEASE

Some 30 special education teachers handling children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) from across the country will have the chance to complete their scholarship program and update their skills on current trends in ASD. 

The 2012 scholarship program for special education (SPED) teachers handling children with ASD will run from April 10 to May 5, 2012 at the Philippine Normal University in Manila. 

Education Secretary Armin Luistro said the scholarship program is in support of the department’s thrust to improve the quality of education for children with ASD.  

“We want to provide our teacher-scholars with knowledge and skills on various educational programs and keep them apace with advances in research and interventions for special learners,” added Luistro. 

Autism is a complex developmental disability that causes problems with social interaction and communication. The symptoms usually become evident before age three and can cause delays or problems in many different skills that develop from infancy to adulthood. 

DepEd is a signatory to the United Nations-initiated Education For All (EFA) campaign which aims to ensure quality basic education accessible to all learners. DepEd is currently implementing programs that embrace all kinds of learners under its inclusive education campaign. It has also strengthened its education-outreach programs for indigenous peoples, out-of-school children, youth and adults as well as learners in difficult circumstances by offering formal and alternative learning systems.    

These SPED teachers have been the recipients of the 2011 scholarship program where they have organized programs and classes for children with ASD in their respective areas. They are also expected to render services for the agency for a minimum of two years after the training.