Learning and blindness
Sightsavers works to ensure children who are blind or have low vision get the chance to go to school. A lot of the time parents of blind children simply don’t realise school is an option, so specially trained teachers go out into the community to identify children who are not in school. The parents then receive all the support and counseling they need to be able to meet their child’s needs.
An inclusive approach to education
We support the principle of inclusive education. This is where children who have a disability such as blindness are included in the mainstream education system. This teaches them from an early age that they are equal and valued members of society.
Making inclusion work
In order for inclusive education to fully succeed, teachers need to be given the training and support they need to teach every child. Many teachers in poorer countries cope with little training, poor pay and conditions, and enormous class sizes, so it isn't surprising that they sometimes find it difficult to attend to every child's needs. It’s for these reasons that many teachers feel unable to accept children with disabilities into their classes, or are unsure of how to teach them.
Specialist teachers
We also support specialist teachers, trained specifically to work with visually impaired children, known as itinerant teachers. These itinerant teachers visit a number of schools in their local area teaching visually impaired children skills such as Braille, as well as supporting their classroom teachers.
The role of an itinerant teacher includes:
- Finding children with sight problems not in school, and working with the parents to make sure their child gets enrolled.
- Visiting the children and parents at home to help prepare them for school. This could include helping the child use a white cane, or starting to teach them Braille.
- Sometimes blind children are not ready to go straight into the classroom, so an itinerant teacher will help them learn in a special resource room. When they feel confident they will join the other children in a mainstream classroom.
- Giving one-to-one help to children in the classroom, in things such as Braille.
Sightsavers is also a member of the Global Campaign for Education which advocates for the right of every child everywhere to go to school.
Our education work also extends to campaigning for changes in the curriculum to make it meet the needs of all children, including those with disabilities.
Eyes on the future
Our projects demonstrate how effective it is for blind and sighted children, as well as children with other disabilities, to study alongside each other. Our ultimate aim is that governments take note of this, and ensure that all disabled children are given the chance to receive a quality education in the wider education system.
If you'd like to find out more about our education policy, you can read our policy paper here.
Sunit Bagree, our Policy Advisor in the area of education, is writing a blog which you can read here. If you have any questions or would like to leave a comment we'd love to hear from you!
What do you think?