Inclusion of Differently Abled Students in Teacher Education Programmes

Abstract

Training differently abled persons (visually impaired, hard of hearing and persons with p hysical impairment) as teachers for mainstream schools is not only seen as difficult but impossible for some. The fact that differently abled persons are more likely to be excluded from primary and secondary education is a reason why the training of such persons t o teach in mainstream school would be seen as impossibility . In The Gambia, it is common to see differently abled persons sitting under the hot burning sun or in shopping areas asking for alms. The Gambia College in collaboration with the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education came up with an intervention to provide opportunities for differently abled person to train as teachers for the basic education sector. This conference paper intends to discuss, how Gambia C ollege, an institution with little resour ces , could include differently abled persons in its teacher education programmes. The paper will examine the following: the numbers of differently abled students graduating from Grade 12, h igh school, importance and benefits of training then, integrating t hem into mainstream schools, challenges faced by both differently abled students and tutors . Short videos and pictures will be included in the paper and during the presentation. // Paper ID 245