ICT in Inclusive Education

ICT in Inclusive Education

• 1.
  Dr. K.Suresh, Post DoctoralFellow of ICSSR, Department of Education, Central University of Tamilnadu, Thiruvarur – 610 005.
• 2.
  “Students are notdiscriminated by any means but the education stream discriminated the students by means of providing education as regular and special schools; Inclusive education is a tool to reform the discrimination and to cultivate and maintain equality regardless of discrimination of any means” - Authors
• 3.
  We are livingin the technological enabled world and enormous information can be transmitted one place to any other place of this universe easily. ICT has enabled better and swifter communication, presentation of ideas more effective and relevant manners. Most of general educational institutions run for providing education to non disabled students.
• 4.
  Some of thespecial educational institutions are running for special children. Inclusive education is an education system for providing education to the students without any background of discriminations. The authors of the paper have presented the uses of ICT in inclusive education in the following passages.
• 5.
  Inclusive education meansthat all students are studying in same classroom regardless of their strength or weakness or any discrimination of any area. It is a teaching or learning strategy which allows the students learning like non disable and disabled student in a single classroom environment.
• 6.
  Kugelmass (2004) definedinclusive education as “It is an education which includes the children with disabilities in the regular classrooms that have been designed for children without disabilities”.
• 7.
   Braille Duplicatorand Writer,  Individual/Group Hearing/Device,  Multi-Sensory Systems,  Tactile Mathematical Device,  Tactile Geographic Device,  Tactile Science Device,  Screen Readers’ and Magnifiers,  Assessment and Evaluation Tool,  Models, and  Talking Calculator/Watch.
• 8.
  The Followings arethe measures to promote Inclusive Education: ◦ Information can be provided in dual communication mode. ◦ Assistive devices to be adapted for improving access of technology. ◦ Indigenous production of devices to be taken up to increase the affordability by persons with disabilities. ◦ The existing curriculum for persons with disability to be expanded to include information technology inputs.
• 9.
  ◦ Open learningsystem to be encouraged to offer information technology oriented courses for persons with disabilities. ◦ Some IT related jobs in public and private sectors to be earmarked for persons with disabilities. ◦ In order to promote information technology among persons with disabilities, the organizations working for them should also inculcate the IT culture in their activities.
• 10.
   Independent usageof computers by the students can improve the ability to access education.  ICT allows the students with special needs to accomplish their task in their own space.  ICT develops the communicate ability of multi-learning difficulty students.  It is useful to motivate the students in using interment and develop confidence against ICT.
• 11.
   It providesan opportunity to access information by the visually impaired students alongside their sited peers.  It is used to identify and bring the concise subject concepts to the students easily  It permits to select appropriate medium for teaching subject concept  ICT is simplifying the task of measuring learning performance.  It is used to the teacher who wants to modify their teaching or communicating methods
• 12.
  Meijer (2003) identifiesfactors in transforming classroom practice to support inclusion.  Co-operative teaching (support and cooperation of professional colleagues within and beyond the school);  Co-operative learning (peer mentoring and flexible pupil grouping);  Collaborative problem solving (focus on addressing behaviour issues);
• 13.
   Heterogeneous grouping(but more differentiated when required to meet diversity of need);  Effective teaching (high expectations and individualized learning plans, with systematic monitoring, assessment, planning and evaluation of learners work);  Home Area system (with fixed learning areas supported by a team of teachers);  Alternative ways of learning (learning to learn and problem solving).
• 14.
  Based on theearlier Passages, ICT plays a vital role in developing communication skill among students of inclusive classroom and having many merits that already discussed above. Finally, the authors of the paper have concluded that ICT plays a vital role in inclusive education.