A Study of Awareness of Pupil-Teachers in Inclusive Education

Abstract

With the growing importance of equal opportunities for education for all. one of the important aims of schools has become to include students with special needs in the regular classrooms. The Government of India has enacted the legisiation Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities and Full Participation) Act, 1995 (PWD Act-95) to achieve amongst other things, the goal of providing access to free education in an appropriate environment to all learners with disabilities till she or he attains the age of eighteen years. The Act endeavors to promote the integration of learners with disabilities in mainstream schools. UNICEF's (2000) Report on the Status of Disability in India states that there are around 30 million children in India suffering from some form of disability. The Sixth All-India Educational Survey (NCERT, 2000) reports that of India's 200 million school-aged children (6-14 years). 20 million require special needs education. While the national average for gross enrolment in school is over 90 percent. less than five percent of children with disabilities are in school.