Free Custom «Students with Disabilities» Essay Paper

Students with disabilities include those with visual challenges (sight impairment), hearing impairments, difficult in mobility, chronic illnesses (AIDS, lupus, diabetes and tuberculosis), seizure impairments or disorders, head injuries, speech impairments, temporary disabilities such as broken limbs or arms, back injuries causing pain, bipolar disorders, anxiety, depression, learning disabilities and attention deficit disorders. Students with disabilities must have access to education facilities and opportunities like other students without disabilities. They need to interact and participate actively and freely in all school activities (Weishaar, 2001).There should be no discrimination between the student with body impairments and those without. Isolating students with disabilities will amount to unfairness, injustice, prejudice, wrong judgment and inequality. Students with disabilities should therefore be allowed to be in the same classrooms with those without disabilities so longs they are provided with special facilities to cater for their disabilities (Weishaar, 2001). Students with disabilities which may not affect or disrupt their learning process should study in the same classroom with those without disabilities. For example, students with short sidedness (sight impairment) can be allowed to sit near the blackboard so that they can see clearly what the teacher or the tutor is writing. Those who cannot hear well (hearing impairment) can sit in front near the board where the teacher is so as to hear what he or she is being thought like other students without hearing impairments.Disabled Student Programs (DSP) should be established with the education system. DSP will have the responsibility and authority to ascertain or to determine whether the student's disability can allow him or her to access the normal classroom learning or to have their own special designed classes (Weishaar, 2001). The specialists will conduct a conclusive and comprehensive evaluation, testing and assessment to determine the disability level of the student. This will include continuous but consistent interviews with the student as well as reviewing clinical psychologists, optometrists and audiologist's experts medical documentations. This is to determine whether the student's disabilities can impend or prevent him or her accessing from education. The DSP Specialists will advise appropriately on what should be done to the students with disabilities.

 

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Some students may require a specially modified education program and curriculum to suit their disability or impairment status (Weishaar, 2001). For instance, the specialists may recommend a reduced course or workload to some disable students in accordance to their assessment and evaluation. Others may require auxiliary or support services such as laboratory assistants, note takers, special chairs and tables depending on their disability as recommended by a qualified physician. These are not supposed to give the disabled students unfair advantage or favors over those without disabilities. This is meant to eliminate barriers or hindrances that prevent students with disabilities from excelling under normal classrooms designed without consideration of students with disabilities. Such designed accommodations for disable students should only cater for disability related academic needs only; and must be tailored to suit their varied impairment needs because accommodations vary from students with different disabilities who have varied educational or academic challenges (Weishaar, 2001). This is because; two students with same disability may be affected in diverse ways depending on their needs.Because student's disabilities are not the same, those who use the normal classroom with other students without disabilities should be encouraged to access education in those classes. This in my view will ensure all students get the same education without treating others as very special. Only those recommended by qualified physicians should be allowed to use special facilities designed for them depending on their disabilities (Weishaar, 2001). On the same note, the curriculum must be uniform for both students with or without disabilities. This will reduce conflicts arising others claiming that the disabled students are favored and vice versa. The disable students should spent some time in the normal classes apart from their special classes so that they can share ideas and discuss what they have learnt with their colleagues.

The idea of educating students with disabilities and those without in the same classroom is appropriate; this is because, by separating students with disabilities may make them feel they are not loved, valued or recognized as having the same potential as other students without disabilities (Weishaar, 2001). Others students without disabilities may think that, their colleagues with disabilities are being favored and vice versa, hence creating unnecessary anxiety and hatred among students. However, this system may not be appropriate in that some disable students who need special facilities may not access them given that the levels of disability vary. Other disable students may learn and understand what is being taught in the same classroom with those without disabilities while others cannot. Therefore, the idea is appropriate but only those students with special needs should be provided with special facilities or equipment so that they don't feel they are discriminated or isolated from others (Weishaar, 2001).Individual Education Program (IEP) is meant to cater for the unique needs for an individual student who disable and needs special education attention. This program will help students with disability to achieve their educational needs like other students who are not disabled. It should liaise with the education department so as to be guided on the legal matters and what the student should be taught. They should consider the ability and capability of accessing the curriculum befitting the student with disability (Weishaar, 2001). It should also consider the disable student's level of functional and academic performance, a program tailor made or modified in accordance to the students needs and the least restrictive environment information including the period of time the student will spent in regular or normal classroom setting and the time he or she will spent in the special class for meant for disable students.