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By
Catherine M. Pruissen
Janet
Rosenthal gladly recounts the story about Maria Jackson,
a beautiful, witty little girl who suffers from multiple
sclerosis. "She'd arrive at school about the
same time my kids did, only she'd come by way of the
handicapped bus. It used to fascinate my kids,"
she says with a smile.
"Sometimes
my children would feel sorry for Maria, which was
okay," Janet notes, " I wanted them to learn
to appreciate the difficulties other people experience.
But it also gave me an opportunity to talk with them
about how Maria was just the same as they were, how
she liked to wheel around the school yard in her wheel
chair just like they liked to run, or how she'd always
be telling jokes, just like them. It also gave us
a chance to talk about what neat things Maria got
to do that they didn't, like ride on the bus everyday,
instead of walking. They came to love and appreciate
Maria for who she was, not for what made her different."
Janet
was discussing the positive impact integrating children
with special needs at had on her children. And she
is not alone. Mainstreaming challenged children into
regular child care settings, be it family daycare
or centre-based care, is paying off in huge dividends.
Non-challenged children are learning to appreciate
and respect their challenged peers, and in many cases,
gaining skills, like sign language, that allows them
to communicate better with challenged friends.
Their
challenged friends gain self-confidence. By interacting
with their peers, they learn to explore their limits,
to accomplish tasks that may not have been afforded
them in a specialized care. Through important social
interaction and the availability of the same resources
afforded non-challenged children, challenged children
are able to develop to their fullest potential.
Still,
there are parents and caregivers who are uncomfortable
with the whole idea of mainstreaming. "The integration
of handicapped children into "regular" programs
in education has been subject to many misconceptions,"
writes the National Institute on Mental Retardation,
Children With Special Needs In Daycare, A Guide To
Integration, 1990.
"The
general concept of integration includes a range of
situations from instances where there is only physical
proximity between groups of handicapped and non-handicapped
children, to instances where there is close interaction
between handicapped and non-handicapped individuals."
The
guide reports that legitimate concerns arise about
the amount of care given the handicapped child over
that of the non-handicapped child, the expense and
changes involved in alternations to the program, environment
and personnel to accommodate the special needs of
the handicapped. "If integration is to work,
... careful decisions must be made concerning such
factors as staffing requirements and alterations to
the environment. The adjustment of all the children
to the situation must be carefully guarded."
the guide says.
Parent
Involvement
Parent
involvement, both with the parents of the challenged
child and the parents of the non-challenged child
is paramount to the success to any integration program.
Sharing information about the child and his/her needs
encourages questions and dispels many of the misconceptions
parents of non-challenged children may have.
Fortunately,
there are many wonderful agencies, like SpeciaLink
in Sydney, Nova Scotia, who can assist those looking
to find a placement for their special needs child,
those who have questions about mainstreaming, and
those caregivers and centres who are interested in
opening their doors to challenged children. After
all when it comes to integration, everyone - parents,
children, and staff benefit.
For
more information on integration, contact SpeciaLink
at (902)562-1662, of you local Social Services office.
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