Improve identification of special kids, bring them to school: Centre to Goa

PANAJI: During the last academic year 2021-22, there were over 3 lakh children enrolled in Goa’s schools, of which just over 2,000 were children with special needs, a central committee found during its annual review of implementation of the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) programme in Goa. The review team said that Goa needs to improve its interventions to identify and bring into the school system children with special needs.
“Out of a total number of 3.02 lakh students, the number of children with disability is 2,099, that is, less than 1%. The state is requested to take concerted efforts to ensure timely identification for wider coverage and requisite interventions and support,” the review states.
The officials also noted that the transition rate for children with special needs in Goa from upper primary to secondary school level was 62% at present. It has set a target for Goa to improve this transition rate to 75% in 2022-23 and up to 90% by 2025-26.
“The state has shown improvement with increase in the gross enrolment ratio of children with special needs and percentage of entitled children with special needs receiving aids and appliances. However, the percentage of schools having functional special children-friendly toilets is an area of concern,” reads the review.
Goa has been sanctioned funds of over Rs 1 crore for the current academic year, for activities including identification of children with special needs.
“The activities under this intervention would provide access and increased retention of children with special needs by providing them a conducive learning environment,” states the review.
An outlay of Rs 61.1 lakh has been approved at the elementary level and Rs 48.3 lakh at the secondary and senior secondary school level. This aid will cover student-oriented activities for children with special needs such as ‘identification and assessment camps, including in pre-primary sections, distribution of aids and appliances, Braille stationary material, assistive devices, provision of transportation and escort allowances, stipend for girls’.
At the secondary school level, the aid will also cover reader allowance, assistive devices and home-based education.
Goa has also been asked to prepare a comprehensive action plan or a calendar of activities for the identification of children with special needs, training of teachers, availability of special educators, making infrastructure and ICT inclusive and for awareness programmes.