New resource centre to support disabled children

A new resource centre has been opened at Munege Primary School in Kibeho Sector, Nyaruguru District, to support children with disabilities at the community level. The centre, which opened last week, will help increase equitable access to education for children with special needs within mainstream schools. It will provide information to teachers, parents, caregivers, health practitioners and National Council for People with Disabilities representatives on how to improve teaching, care, support and attitudes towards children with special needs. The centre is one component of a special education programme “L3 Plus,” under the US Agency for International Development’s Literacy, Language, and Learning (L3) Initiative, implemented by Education Development Centre (EDC). Félicité Mukagahima, a teacher at Munege Primary School, said she has a child with a yet-to-be diagnosed mental disability who is struggling with learning. “The child is in Primary Six but cannot write an entire word unless someone guides him by spelling the characters making up the world, nor can he make some mathematical calculations on his own,” she said. Mukagahima said there is need for special classes for students with disabilities because a teacher cannot offer particular learning support to a child with disabilities in a class of, say, 50 students. “There is need for a particular teacher or school designed to cater for the education of special needs children,” she said. Antoine Niyitegeka, L3 Plus project manager, said there will be a skilled worker in charge of helping building capacities of special needs education teachers and providing a database about those children. He said the project will help change the mentality of people toward children with disabilities. “We plan to reach all families having children with disabilities in the area of our operations,” Niyitegeka said, adding that they will be working with volunteers and other partners. Nyaruguru vice mayor for economic development, Fabien Niyitegeka, said the centre will help change perception about children with disabilities. The centre will serve as a source of information about children with disabilities for Kibeho, Rusenge and Mata sectors. It will also provide educators with training and ongoing access to resources and teaching strategies aligned with the L3 programme. editorial@newtimes.co.rw

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New resource centre to support disabled children