Wednesday, August 12, 2015

Design invention to meet needs of Teen with Cerebral Palsy at Nike to help many

Design changes by Nike to make persons with Cerebral Palsy wear their shoes independently on request of Mr. Matthew is just another example how companies can use universal design to meet the needs of people. So this request from a user helps Nike do some invention & bring in a shoe they call the Flyese that is designed especially for people who have trouble with their hands and the company is bringing it to market in the Fall. Surely, it will many people & not just those with Disabilities of upper limbs!

Read more at :

Teen With Cerebral Palsy Asked Nike For A Pair Of Sneakers And Got An Amazing Response

Teenager Matthew Walzer has Cerebral Palsy, and just like any of us, he wanted the freedom to take care of himself. He decided to send a letter to Nike asking them for help. Because of his condition, he has trouble with shoelaces. In his letter, Matt explained that he is soon going to college and wants a shoe he can put on himself. He also quoted an early mantra of Nike’s, “If you have a body, you are an athlete.”

What the company did in response? Simply wonderful! Not only did they do something amazing for Matthew, they took it a step further and now have a shoe they call the Flyese that is designed especially for people who have trouble with their hands and the company is bringing it to market in the Fall. It’s awesome how this young boy’s request sparked off an invention that’s sure to help many people!

Source: Reshareworthy.com 

Wednesday, July 8, 2015

Special Educator must in all Schools affiliated to CBSE

CBSE makes special educators must in all schools
Abhishek Choudhari | Jul 8, 2015, 03.28 AM IST

Nagpur: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has now made it mandatory for all affiliated schools to appoint a special educator so that children with learning disabilities could be assimilated with other students. Apart from the central board's philosophy of "inclusive practices" in schools, this directive has also been necessitated due to strict guidelines of the Right to Education Act (RTE).

DTS Rao, board's joint secretary, wrote in the letter to schools containing above directions, "Board will appreciate cooperation of the schools in implementation of the above."

Laying down broad guidelines, CBSE said a special educator was specifically required in schools to work with children and young adults who required additional support in order to complete their learning successfully. Rao wrote, "Special educators (SE) will focus on children with physical disabilities, sensory impairments, developmental disabilities such as autism, mental retardation, cerebral palsy and specific learning disabilities as they are emotionally vulnerable and have behavioral difficulties". The scope of work has been widened for SEs as CBSE says they could also work with "gifted and talented children".

But finding qualified SEs is a big challenge for schools. Annapoorni Shastri, senior principal of Bhavan's BP Vidya Mandir (Shrikrishna Nagar), said, "In Nagpur it is difficult to get SEs with proper qualifications. Part of the problem is that in teacher training colleges, special education course is focused on kids with hearing and speaking disability rather than autism etc."

Schools where such children are enrolled said teaching approach has to be tailor-made. Shastri said, "For an autistic child there has to be one-on-one teaching and they cannot be burdened with all subjects at once, hence the open schooling system is for them. For others, CBSE does offer choices of subjects like music, e-typing etc which are relatively easy to handle."

Apart from subject choices, the other aspect that makes inclusive education possible is the students' support system on campus. Sumathi Venugopalan, principal of Centre Point School (Wardhaman Nagar), said, "Every student moves up from our pre-primary section school, Mothers Pet, so they all are anyway close to each other. It is only at a later age that learning disabilities become apparent and we all adapt accordingly. We have a 'buddy system' in which a student volunteers to help another and builds a great ecosystem. Some of our students have cerebral palsy and autism but they are doing well with help of SEs, counselors and their classmates."

Not every school has students with special needs, something that maybe incidental or deliberate. With CBSE making it mandatory for every school to have a SE, one might expect to more such admissions taking place.


Special children, no special educators?

PROBLEMS FACED BY SCHOOLS WHEN HIRING

* Finding qualified special educators in Nagpur is a challenge

* Schools say 'teacher colleges' focus only on teaching physically challenged kids

* Theory and practical skills required for kids with learning disabilities are lacking in teachers

* Considering that children with special needs form a very small percentage of total strength, dedicating enough manpower is financially tough


EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED

Pre School/ nursery play school

* Std X passed and certificate program in early childhood and special education.

* Std XII passed and diploma program in early childhood special Education DECSE-MR DECSE-VI.

* Std XII passed and diploma in teaching children (Deaf and hard of Hearing)

* Std X passed and diploma certificate care giving program.

* Any other equivalent qualification approved by Rehabilitation Council of India.

Elementary (primary and upper primary)

* Std XII passed and two year DEd Special education in any of the category of disability

* Std XII passed and one year diploma in special education (DSE) in any of the category disability

* Diploma in community based rehabilitation (DCRB) with six months certificate course in education of children with special needs.

* Post graduate diploma in community based rehabilitation with six months certificate course in education of children with special needs.

* Diploma in Multi rehabilitation worker with six months certificate course in education of children with special needs

* Junior diploma in teaching the deaf

* Primary level teacher teaching course in visual impairment

* Diploma in vocational rehabilitation mental retardation (DVR-MR)/ diploma in vocational training and employment mental retardation (DVTE-MR) with six months certificate course in education of children with special needs

* Diploma in hearing language and speech with six months certificate course in education of children with special needs

* Std XII passed with RCI recognized qualification for minimum one year duration and six months with special needs.

* Any other equivalent qualification approved by RCI

Secondary and senior Secondary 

* Graduate with B.Ed. (special education).

* BEd general with one year diploma in special education

* BEd general with two-year diploma in special education

* BEd general with post graduate professional diploma in special education

* BEd special education and post graduate professional certificate in special education

* PG diploma in special education (mental retardation)

* PG diploma in special education (multiple disabilities: physical and neurological)

* PG diploma in special education (locornotor impairment and cerebral palsy)

* Secondary level teacher training course in visual impairment

* Senior diploma in teaching the deaf

* BA/BEd in visual impairment

* Any other equivalent qualification approved by RCI

Source: Times of India 

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

Scheme of Railway Photo Identity Card for online concessional ticket booking for Persons with Disabilities

Dear friends,

As you all are aware, the Indian Railways is implementing  a scheme of Photo Identity Cards to persons with disabilities to enable them to avail concessions in train tickets in a hassle-free manner. Earlier it was being tested as a pilot project only in Northern Region, however, now the Railways has decided to replicate it throughout nation.

Here is the notification by Indian Railways : Concession based ticketing for PH based on Photo I-Card

The photo I-card can be used to book concessional tickets through both ticket counters as well as through the Internet. The card with a unique ID number will have to be carried during journey and produced for onboard verification.

Till now, a person with disabilities used to fill the concession form and produce all relevant documents at the ticket reservation counter to avail the concession in train tickets and there were several complaints from stakeholders who were demanding a hassle-free system.

In the new system, persons with disabilities will have to approach the nearest Divisional Railway Manager office along with all the relevant documents in original claiming concession and passport size photograph for issuing photo identity card. The persons with disabilities will also be required to provide a mobile number for communication while applying for the card, said a senior official.

After due verification by the concerned zonal railways, a photo identity card will be printed containing a unique ID. An automated SMS will be sent to the passenger on given mobile number to collect the card showing the original concession certificate.

After getting the card, the person is not required to fill any concessional form to avail the facility at the counter. Tickets can also be booked on the internet using the ID number printed on the card. The validity of the card will be for five years or the last date up to which concession certificate is valid.

For obtaining the Rail Identify Card for persons with disabilities for online reservation on IRCTC website, following documents are required to be submitted to the nearest DRM Office :-

(a) Written application requesting the ID card for online ticket booking through IRCTC  (Click here for a copy of the application )
(b) Copies of medical board certificate,
(c) Latest concession certificate,
(d) Mark list of Class 10 showing date of birth or other valid proof for date of birth
(e) Aadhar card or election ID for Proof of Address
(f) 3 Passport size photographs