Educators: Schools bear high costs for recruiting specialists
Parents of students of determination: Higher tuition fees, lower services
The services provided by schools to students of determination are commensurate with their disabilities.
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Students of people of determination, in the departments of special education, called on the concerned authorities to reduce the tuition fees for their children, stressing that they are 50% more than the fees paid for their counterparts in the same school.
They suggested that the fees for this category of students be free, when the guardian provides an uninterrupted academic period for the student.
Officials in private schools clarified that the school has the right to collect an additional amount not exceeding 50% of the value of the fees approved in its regulations, for a student of special education, given his need for a special education teacher and psychological and educational assessment, which are additional burdens borne by the school.
In detail, Suhad Abdel Sattar, the mother of a student of determination in the fifth grade of primary school, confirmed that her daughter's school fees are very expensive, noting that the cost of a student of determination is nearly double the cost of a student without disabilities, in addition to the responsibility of the students' families to provide a "teacher". Shadow.” His salary is about 3000 dirhams.
She said, “The prices are not commensurate with the services provided, as they are expensive, and the services are simple and routine, and it can only be follow-up.
There are also special education centers that do not provide vocational education for children of determination, as the child is not fully rehabilitated to facilitate his integration into society, thus reducing the burden of his parents. The centers can be just a place for the motivated child to go, either because the mother and father are workers, or to spend His time is in a center, so that the father and mother feel that they are achieving something for their son, and in fact, all the services that are provided to him are mixed classes for various types of disabilities that cannot be separated.”
And she continued, "When private schools accept the integration of a student, his education fees are close to twice the fees of a normal child, without providing any special education services. In both cases, the fees are high, and the child is not provided with services that help reduce his disability, and the burden of these matters falls on the parents. ».
She pointed out that "the Ministry of Education provided the integration system, and the schools were obligated to it, and in order to integrate the student into the school, he must join a professional center to strengthen his skills, so that he accepts himself after that, and here his family bears the burden of paying school fees and center fees."
She explained that "private schools oblige the student to purchase textbooks, although he will not use them, as it is limited to a simplified curriculum, developed by the class teacher for special education."
Umm Hossam explained that “schools were not previously obligated to appoint a special education teacher, but in order to obtain a permit from the responsible authorities to become inclusive, they pay high fees.
Therefore, when I register my son, I pay an additional fee of 50% of the total fee.”
"The fees are a huge burden on us, because we pay fees that are different from what other parents pay," she said.
She added that "schools inform the student's parents that he has difficulty in learning, and demand that he be transferred to the Special Education Department," stressing that "the presence of a special education teacher is important in schools, but the most important thing is to provide training courses for them, to qualify them in how to deal with the integration child." Expenses for parents.
She suggested giving schools that accept and support people of determination a free license, or additional advantages from the ministry or concerned authorities, to distinguish them from any other school, and thus encourage schools to accept and support people of determination.
He emphasized, "A.
C» His son suffers from learning difficulties, and when the school informed him of this, it asked him to transfer him to the Special Education Department, and imposed on him fees 50% more than what the students pay.
In turn, a public relations coordinator at a private school, Mona Hamad, said, "The state has obligated schools to integrate people of determination into them, which constituted a new challenge, because there are special conditions for integrating this category, as it needs a specialized cadre to deal with it, and it may not be available."
She stated that «there are advantages to integrating people of determination in schools, the most important of which is giving them the opportunity to learn from their healthy peers.
At the same time, there are challenges that lie in their sense of inferiority and loss of confidence, due to their lack of potential compared to their colleagues, but we remain insistent on achieving the slogan (school for all).
She pointed out that tuition fees are determined by the school's capabilities, and the provision of educational capabilities and special learning resources for this category, which requires higher fees compared to the rest of the students.
She suggested that the fees for students of determination be free, when the guardian provides a continuous study period for the student without interruption, as well as giving privileges to schools that have the largest number of students of determination.
A special education instructor at a private school (Khaled A.) said that "the school seeks to provide all the needs of the special education student, to help him integrate more with his healthy colleagues, to learn from them faster."
The UAE government has specified the services and facilities provided by schools to students of determination, which are represented in creating the school environment, such as providing ramps and elevators for the physically disabled category, toilets for people of determination, and providing buses, cars and parking spaces for them.
It also included creating the classroom environment for all categories of disabilities, with the provision of appropriate tools and techniques for them, by preparing special education classes, special education resource rooms, sensory and comprehensive rooms, and providing specialized human cadres to provide all services to students within the school environment by qualified (special education teacher). Teacher assistant, escort, sign language interpreter, Braille educator, visual impairment/visual impairment specialist, psychologist, speech and language specialist, special education specialist).
The schools also provide a service of assessment and diagnosis of students of determination by a multidisciplinary team, providing support services, individual and group treatment and rehabilitation sessions for students of determination, each according to their needs, and providing advisory, awareness and guidance sessions for parents of students of determination.
Schools provide devices and assistive technologies for students of determination, according to the categories of disabilities, on an annual basis, and provide workshops and courses for human cadres working with students of determination from school administrations, teacher guides, specialists and parents of students, in addition to supporting students of determination by participating in activities at the state level. and outside.
8 categories
Ministerial Decision No. 647 of 2020 regarding the policy of inclusive education defines eight categories of eligible working jobs with students of determination in schools, namely: a special education specialist, a special education teacher, a sign language interpreter (for the deaf), a visual disability specialist (Braille), and a specialist Speech and language specialist, psychologist, escort, and assistant teacher for special groups.
Schools provide assessment and diagnosis service for students of determination by a multidisciplinary team.
Students with:
“The prices are not commensurate with the services provided, as they are exorbitant, and the services are simple and routine.”
“Private schools oblige students to buy textbooks even though they will not use them.”
“It is important to provide training courses to qualify students to deal with the integration child.”
School administrations:
“Study fees are determined by the school’s capabilities, and the provision of educational capabilities and special learning resources for this category.”
“The school seeks to provide the needs of the special education student to help him integrate faster.”
“Educating a student of determination depends on several categories that receive salaries from the school.”
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