Responding to children’s individual needs
Sita Rawal’s story stands as a testimony to how training and support for educators is key in creating an inclusive learning environment for all children of all abilities
Achham, Nepal: “I realized that it’s all about our attitude and the approach we adopt,” says Sita Rawal, a dedicated Early Childhood Development (ECD) teacher at Shree Kalika Secondary School in Achham District in Nepal’s west. For nearly ten years, Sita had little knowledge of disability inclusion and how to facilitate children with disabilities.
"Earlier, I was unaware that they could be taught alongside other children," she recalls.
Sita's perspective began to change when she participated in a training programme organized by UNICEF, Handicap Inclusion, and Seto Gurans National Child Development Services – as part of partnership with the Government of Finland – focusing on disability inclusion.
"I learned to prioritize the safety of the children and engage all of them in activities together,” she says.
“I discovered new ways to manage the classroom and give instructions. Repetition and using short phrases have positively impacted the children's learning."
The training also taught Sita the importance of early identification of the challenges children face. "Only when I manage to identify the challenges a child has, am I able to plan according to their individual needs," she explains.
Developing individualized learning plans, meanwhile, allows her to pay careful attention to each child's unique needs. Though it might take time initially, these plans ultimately save time and support the learning of all children in the classroom.
"I now understand that creating and implementing learning plans for children with learning difficulties is possible," she says with newfound confidence.
Sita also has a better grasp of the value of using play-based methods tailored to children's interests to facilitate their learning. Activities involving touching, tasting, smelling and seeing various objects have proven effective in making learning more accessible. The training emphasized using locally available educational materials to capture children's attention.
Indeed, Sita’s biggest realization in all this has been that the teaching methods supporting children with different needs ultimately benefit all children.
"Inclusive education is as simple as realizing the individual needs that all children have and responding to those in the best possible manner," she concludes.
