¨And neurodiversity is annoying¨ I read on Instagram, the same day that the suggestion came to me that perhaps special school could be a better possibility for my daughter. An idea that made my mind question how deep-rooted the belief is that a special school is the best option for a Person with a Disability. I immediately remembered another phrase released to the wind that maintained that integrated students could lower the educational level of a school, in a society that often looks more closely at the missing part to be one more in the current, instead of focusing on the strengths that make us unique far from any label.
It seems that diversity is uncomfortable, but is it correct? Or what is uncomfortable is the lack of information about what is presented to me and what it means to leave my comfort zone to understand and, above all, not to judge?
At the beginning of school, the families of People with Disabilities play the card of the year: will the school include them? The big question that runs through the minds of the caregivers while the dining room table is flooded with notebooks, manuals and a mixture of excitement and hope.
And as I review the list so that nothing is missing I feel that there are certain absences that cannot be easily remedied. It turns out to be very common to hear the phrase “inclusive education”, but the biggest barrier is in conscious practice reflected in facts; with knowledge put into action but above all with something that goes through the person and goes beyond any training: desire and will. Willingness to commit to the child and their pedagogical and social learning in their educational environment, and willingness to work as a team: family – therapeutic team – school.
According to article 24 of the international convention of people with disabilities No one can be excluded from a regular school with inclusion: “The States Parties recognize the right of people with disabilities to education. With a view to making this right effective without discrimination and on the basis of equal opportunities, the States Parties will ensure an inclusive education system at all levels as well as lifelong learning. However, there are many cases in which they state that they have not obtained a vacancy in certain private education entities. According to a study carried out by ACIJ (Civil Association for Equality and Justice), For Inclusive Education and Group Article 24 Based on data from the Ministry of Education, in 2020, 55.30% of students in the province of Buenos Aires attended an inclusive regular school while 44.70% attended a special school. However, in the province of La Pampa, 82.14% attended an inclusive common school and only 17.86% attended a special school. Faced with this panorama, in the province of La Pampa the number continues to grow, with a project that is committed to common and inclusive education arriving at the end of December 2022 with 98.5% of its students with disabilities in school at the level according to the ministry of education of said province.
With all these numbers, a path opens up for us, which implies that common and inclusive education is not only a possibility, it is something achievable as well as a right of People with Disabilities. May we all build a kinder society for the full exercise of this right.
Lic. Gabriela Fusco
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by Gabriela Fusco
