Importance of the Development of Special Educational Needs and Disabilities

SPECIAL EDUCATION
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Special Education
Education became a universal need under the collective appreciation of human rights. It was considered a requirement for development because it is a way that knowledge is passed to people. While numerous efforts have been made to ensure that school-going children receive the best outcomes there have been some challenges on the endeavor and over the past decade, countries have been trying to mitigate them. The role of education in lire cannot be downplayed because it has a direct relationship to personal and national development. Knowledge is a critical factor in how people associate and relate to the environment. Its importance cannot be tied to a specific jurisdiction and there is no learning system that can be said to be superior to the other. Each jurisdiction tailors its education system to ensure the target audience benefits from it. While the content of the taught subjects may differ, the role that education plays cannot be undermined. Education is a resource that must be shared equally among students, and there is the need to identify the ones with special needs and appropriate adequate resources. In this paper, we shall discuss the role of the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and explain how it is important to children with special needs. The Errol case study shall be used to build the hypothesis that SEND is beneficial to the education system because it creates equal opportunities for learners.
The role of each member in the education sector cannot be emphasized and though there are protocols on how issues are addressed, there must be collaborative efforts from each of the stakeholders to ensure that the entire system runs smoothly (Kalyva and Agaliotis 2009). In the hierarchy, the state departments of education lie on the top and it is tasked with ensuring that laws and policies pertaining to the sector are passed and implemented. However, in this paper w will explain how school stakeholders can help Errol in the learning process and ensure he benefits from the process. Parents and the teacher each have a role to play to ensure the child adjusts to the school environment and catches up with the rest of the students.
Such researches led to the recognition and development of the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). This is a program that ensures there is equality in the education sector by not alienating or secluding students with special needs. The efforts to include children with special needs in the education curriculum started in 1978 in the Warnock Report and there were specific requirements and recommendations outlined to ensure the endeavor was successful. They were not comprehensive enough but the 1981 education Act helped in refining it and ensuring that there were equal opportunities for students in both public and private settings. Some of the earliest recommendations were that students with special needs had the right to be educated in mainstream schools and not secluded as long as their presence did not negatively impact the learning outcomes of the rest of the students (Yeo and Teng 2015, p.1001). This proposal was a direct effort to ensure that there was equality in the sector and in the school that Errol learns, he is treated equally and has the same resources as the rest of the students. However it is clear that he has special needs and he needs specialized attention. In 2001 SEN was refined to categorize the level of difficulty and disabilities that children with special needs had and this was a direct effort to ensure they got the help required in learning. The teacher in this case has to determine the learning needs of Errol and liaise with the administration and student’s parents on the best help to offer.
Equality act 2010 stipulated the types and levels and disabilities in the population and they are in turn used to identify these challenges and conditions among special needs education students. The broad category touches on the mental and physical impairment among people that is long-term and impedes day-to-day functioning (Kalyva and Agaliotis 2009. While the definition seems shallow because it does not specify the longevity and types of activities categorized as fundamental, there are conditions and health issues mentioned. They include sensory impairment that relates to sight, hearing, and touch. Cancer, epilepsy, diabetes, and asthma are some of the long-term diseases that fall under this category, and students that have them are eligible for any help offered to people in this category. The mentioned conditions are further expanded to fit the four main needs and they include mental health emotional and social difficulties, Cognition and learning disabilities, Communication and interaction impairment, Sensory and/or physical needs (Kalyva and Agaliotis 2009). Each of the named conditions varies in intensity and this factor dictates the kind of education needed by the student and the best environment to get the most effective learning experience. A student may exhibit all or one of the named impairments but their treatment in the education system should be fair as stipulated in the SEND: Code of Practice 2015 that was formed by the Department for Education and Department of Health and Social Care (2015). Errol does not have any of the mentioned sensory impairments but he may have Cognition and learning disabilities. It is important for them to be recognized at this early stage for a comprehensive learning plan to be developed. The plan should customized to ensure the student is not disadvantaged in the generalized learning space.
Exclusion from the Mainstream Setting
There are three reasons why a SEND student may be excluded from the mainstream education setting. The mainstream setting may be too expensive for the parent and the government to afford. For example, the student may need too many devices to interact with the learning environment and their peers. The setting is inadequate in improving the learning outcomes of the student. For example, the education facility may not have properly trained teachers or the required teaching equipment (Segall 2008 p.5). Sometimes space and the learning time may be inadequate to give the student the best learning experience (Kalyva and Agaliotis 2009). The third reason is that the student may negatively impact the learning outcomes of the rest of the students and derail the education efforts. In this case, it would not be beneficial for one student to gain while the rest of the students suffer from the disturbance. When it has been proven that the student meets the named exclusion criteria then the parents are advised to take the students for personalized education procedures. When checked against these requirements, Errol does not cause disturbance in the learning environment. He is hence fit to learn with the rest of the students and excluding him will be disadvantage to his learning process.
Legislation Implementation
SEND has undergone a tremendous transformation over the years and this factor has caused refinement. Part of the solution was the collaboration of stakeholders and the state officials were tasked with ensuring schools and individuals complied. The role of the government was to ensure that equality is implemented across all spheres and this is part of the reason why the mandate lies with state education departments. This move was prudent because there needed to be a unified way in how the structure was implemented. Leaving the role to parents or educational institutions alone would have caused an imbalance and it would have been difficult for SEND students to adapt when they moved to other educational facilities. The states ensure that schools within their jurisdiction have the capacity and the resources to facilitate the learning process of all students in education facilities. For this mandate to be effected there must be data collected on the number of students and the challenges they face either socially, mentally, or physically (Yeo and Teng 2015, p.1001). After the special needs students are identified this activity is also conducted in homes to ensure that parents and guardians acknowledge and perform their mandates in the education system. The Mental Capacity Act Code of Practice: Protecting the vulnerable (2005) ensures that there is no form of discrimination in all environments and it supports the Equality Act 2010 and The Children Act 1989 Guidance and Regulations Volume 2. Another stipulation is that children with such challenges should be identified and helped at early ages to improve their chances of living meaningful youth and adult lives. This is the stage that Errol is in and the teachers should strive to point out the specific learning challenges the student has. After this process a comprehensive learning plan shall be drafted and the stakeholders; teachers and parents, collaborate to ensure it helps the student.
Case Analysis
Errol clearly has...