----- Original Message ----- From: Blind Persons' Association To: Undisclosed-Recipient:; Sent: Monday, August 21, 2006 6:23 AM Subject: A Report on the Seminar.
A Report on the Seminar Organised by Blind Persons' Association on "the Role of Integrated and Special Education for Sightless children At the Primary Level" at H.L. Roy Memorial Hall, Indian Institute of Chemical Engineering, Jadabpur University, Kolkata on August 19, 2006 Blind Persons' Association organised this seminar as a part of the year-long celebration of its diamond jubilee during 2006. Mr. Saikat Kar, the General Secretary of the Association, said that the objective of the seminar was to initiate a discussion on the burning question whether integrated education or special education is the right path for the education of the sightless children at the primary level. Special education means the training of the sightless children at a special school whether they receive instruction for the most part in braille and other tactile methods. Integrated education on the other hand implies the education of all types of handicapped children along with other normal children in a normal school. The school should have a resource room furnished with necessary aids and appliances for the handicapped children and there should be a resource teacher especially trained for the handicapped. Dr. Pranab Kumar Chakraborty, Professor, Department of Education, University of Calcutta, criticised the hasty adoption of the scheme of integration without adequate preparation. He laid emphasis on proper training of the primary teachers. Shri Narayan Ganguli, former President of the host organisation, supported the idea of integrated education from high school onwards, but he demanded the continuation of special schools for primary level and also as a support system to integrated education. He questioned if the scheme of integrated education was an attempt to shake off the responsibility of setting up special school. Shri Sadhan Chandra Das, former Principal of Coochbehar Government Blind School, expressed his annoyance over the little attention paid to the identification of the handicapped children and their specific needs. Dr. Pratap Chandra Chandra, renowned educationist and former Union Education and Social Welfare Minister, inaugurated the seminar. He also formally published the Braille version of Mahashweta Debi's "Birsha Munda" on this occasion. Nearly three hundred participants including mostly students of different B.Ed. colleges and teachers took active participation in the seminar. The seminar papers presented by the speakers will be available in a few days on our new web site at www.bpa.org.in Blind Persons' Association 10/2 Samsul Huda Road Kolkata--700017, India. Phone: +9133-22903379, +9133-24377206 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web : http://www.bpa.org.in -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.405 / Virus Database: 268.11.3/423 - Release Date: 8/18/2006 To unsubscribe send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in
