Govt Committed To Special Education – Rev. Thwaites

Education Minister, Hon. Rev. Ronald Thwaites, says the Government is committed to ensuring greater inclusion and access to education by children with special needs.

“The goals of the Ministry of Education’s draft policy on special education are to promote equity, access and educational opportunities to children and youth with special needs at all levels of the education system,” he noted.

He was addressing a Special Education Awareness Symposium organised by the Special Education Unit on December 2 at the Caenwood Auditorium on Arnold Road, Kingston.

Meanwhile, Senior Director for Children’s Affairs in the Ministry of Youth and Culture, Grace-Ann Stewart-McFarlane, said the Ministry continues to provide opportunities for disabled young people.

“The Ministry and its agencies continue to do more to reach, accommodate and include people with disabilities, particularly children and youth in our programmes offered by the National Youth Service (NYS). We have reserved 10 per cent training, employment, and internship to ensure that our children and youth with disabilities have access,” she noted.

The symposium was part of activities for  Disability Awareness Week 2015 from November 29 to December 4 under the theme: ‘Inclusion Matters: Access and Empowerment of People of All Abilities.’

It facilitated discussions among representatives from the children’s services and disability sector on strategies to protect children with disabilities from abuse.

The symposium featured presentations from the Ministry of Youth and Culture, the Centre for Investigation of Sexual Offences and Child Abuse (CISOCA), Office of the Children’s Advocate (OCA), Ministry of Health’s Adolescent Mental Health Unit and the Norman Manley Law School.

Meanwhile, the Jamaica Council for Persons with Disabilities will continue the week of activities with a public forum at Emancipation Park, and the Early Stimulation Programme (ESP) will stage its Staff Awards on December 3.

Activities will wind down with a dance workshop for coaches of deaf students hosted by the Jamaica Association for the Deaf (JAD), a children’s treat put on by the ESP, and a rap session and concert staged by the Combined Disabilities Association on December 4.