Jan 23, 2025, Newsroom: Special school being designed amid rising diagnoses of autism, intellectual disabilities
The Ministry of Education is currently designing an autism school as a rise in diagnoses for children with autism and intellectual disorders was recorded in the last four years.
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This was revealed by Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand as she highlighted a renewed focus on addressing Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) in Guyana.
“This is special to us, to pay attention in a way this has never had attention before,” Manickchand said while addressing the launch of four new programmes at the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE) on Wednesday.
As it relates to the Austim School, Minister Manickchand said expert advice is being sought.
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“These cannot just be buildings, they have peculiar features that we have to get expert advice for,” she stated. Just last week the sod was turned for Guyana’s first school for the deaf.
RISE IN DIAGNOSES FOR AUTISM AND INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES
Meanwhile, Assistant Chief Education Officer with responsibility for SEND, Dr. Keon Cheong, provided further insights into the prevalence and types of disabilities being addressed.
He shared that intellectual disabilities have been the most commonly diagnosed condition over the past four years, followed by autism spectrum disorder and learning disabilities.
“You can see that the Ministry of Education has been championing that [special education needs] because of the amount of kids being referred, the number of parents saying something is a bit off with my kid, I just want them to be screened so we can find out if it is a disability so we can know what treatment to put in place,” Dr. Cheong told the News Room.
Assistant Chief Education Officer with responsibility for SEND, Dr. Keon Cheong
Dr. Cheong also believes that awareness of disabilities have greatly increased and that has led to a rise in diagnoses.
Dr. Cheong explained that the Special Education Needs Diagnostic and Treatment Centre assesses students and provides diagnoses that informs support. Once a diagnosis is made, students receive an Individual Education Plan (IEP), outlining specific goals to address learning gaps. For students without an IEP, a learner profile is created, guiding teachers on how to best support the child’s needs.
ESTABLISHMENT OF SEND CLASSROOMS
Manickchand further underscored the importance of reintegration, explaining that children with special education needs, unless under extreme circumstances, should not be isolated.
“They should be separated for particular periods but reintegrated into the classrooms,” the minister said.
To meet the needs of special education needs children, SEND classrooms have been established in certain schools with plans to make the programme countrywide.
“I don’t just want a classroom that we call a Special Education Needs classroom, I want it to be fully equipped with everything that is needed.
“For us, nobody must be left behind,” Manickchand said.
So far, the ministry has established SEND classrooms or units in various public schools, including St. Gabriel’s Primary, Stella Maris and Albouystown Nursery in Georgetown, No. 8 Primary School and Blairmont Primary in Berbice.
According to Dr. Cheong these units serve multiple purposes.
“The SEND units are what we call them they serve a number of purposes. One, they will house resident students and that means a facility is now more accessible to them, so no longer a student have to leave Kuru Kururu to come to the Diamond, East Bank space when they can access a space right there in Kuru Kururu.”
Meanwhile, further efforts are underway to address the shortage of special education professionals as discussions are ongoing with the University of Guyana (UG) to introduce Bachelor’s and Master’s programmes in special education.
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