A member of the faculty of the Research Institute for Special Needs Children emphasized that the programs of the organization should be reviewed.
“After the Islamic Revolution, good achievements have been made in the field of education of special needs children, but we have not progressed as much as we should, which goes back to two factors: the lack of experts and neglecting these children.”
Referring to the schools for special needs children during the COVID-19 lockdown, Abolfazl Saeidi noted that “the system was not properly organized” and updated to answer the needs of the society.
“The fact is that all special needs children do not receive educational services because some of them are not even identified including children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as we don't have the right tools.”
“These children are not identified and therefore, they are sent to the normal schools which causes problems;” he added. “In other countries, five to nine percent and sometimes up to 20 percent of the people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder are also identified among all students.
Asked whether the education of for special needs children during the COVID-19 lockdown was acceptable, Saeidi said: “ I don’t have the details as I am not an executive official but the news imply that the education during the COVID-19 lockdown was not acceptable.”
“Of course, even the public education was not satisfactory and we were not prepared for such a situation. For example, a mentally retarded child with hearing deficiency is more interested in playing and does not watch TV.”
He added that one of our problems is that we have not educated families. “If I were a director of the Special Education Organization, I would have taught families how to pass on the necessary skills to their children through education network programs.”
“If we had educated parents, they would have felt more secure and empowered.” Saeidi noted. “In some countries there is a council, were parents are present. we have asked cities to form such a council and discuss subjects with parents and receive their feedback.”
“one-by-on education for special need children should be reinforced. we are seriously behind developed countries. After the Islamic Revolution, good results have been achieved, but we have not gone as far as we should, which goes back to two factors: the lack of experts and neglecting these children.”
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