Special Education: College partners Royal School Abuja to run Advance Certificate
The Federal College of Education (Special), Oyo, on Tuesday partnered with the Royal School of Educational Therapy Foundation, Abuja to run Advanced Certificate in Special Education and Certificate in Special Education.
Provost of the college, Prof. Kamoru Usman, made the disclosure at the inauguration of the partnership, held at the Royal School of education therapy foundation, Gwarimpa, in Abuja.
The provost was represented by Mr Joseph Araoye, the registrar of the college.
Usman explained that the partnership was meant to provide training for interested stakeholders in special needs education including teachers, parents, caregivers, law enforcement agents and healthcare providers.
He also said that the partnership would promote the attainment of equal educational opportunities for all learners, including individuals with special needs as entrenched in the Nigeria National Policy on Education.
The provost noted that the programme became another platform for creating awareness that every child no matter the disability should have access to the same educational experience as others and every barrier to it should be removed.
“There are as of today so many barriers and challenges to educating children with disabilities including awareness, cost and trained special educators.
“As of 2018, Prof. Tijjani Bande, Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the UN affirmed that Nigeria had an estimate of 1.3 million children who are critically disabled out of estimated 25 million people with disability.
“This was at a UN Panel on Special Education: A model for Sustainable and Inclusive Education in Developing Countries,” he said.
Usman stated that the partnership was a timely intervention to provide awareness and training for all stakeholders in special needs education.
He expressed the belief that the partnership would grow by the day and provide other opportunities for the college to, with the school, reach a wider public in diverse areas of special education intervention programmes.
Responding, Dr Badewa Williams, the Proprietress of the royal school, explained that what prompted her to enter into the partnership was to offer a certificate for special needs education.
“I am expecting in a real realistic manner that anyone who has the desire to work with children either as a teacher, as a therapist, as an interventionist or whatever, you owe it to yourself to be confidential certified.
“So, that you can show that you have the competency to do the job in the best way possible with standard base curriculum, a best practice that is global.
“And by the time you get our certificate you will be able to work anywhere in the world because this programme is not only certified by the Federal college of education (special) Oyo, but also by the International Board of Credentialing and continuing Education,” he said.
