NEW DELHI: Believe it or not! Just 300 special educators are catering to more than 27,000 children with special needs (CwSN) enrolled in Delhi government schools — a ratio of one teacher for every 90 students.
The figures raise serious concerns about the quality of education offered to vulnerable children.
In the amendment to the Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009, the Supreme Court in 2023 had directed the Centre to notify the norms and standards of Pupil Teacher Ratio (PTR) for special and general schools.
The amendment focused on appointing a special education teacher to teach children with special needs in schools.
As per the amendment, schools were asked to appoint one special education teacher for every 10 children with disabilities studying in classes I-V and 15 children with disabilities studying in classes VI-VIII, which will help in their inclusion in the mainstream educational ecosystem.
As per data shared by an education department official, over 400 posts are still vacant in the government schools for the special educators and that’s why trained graduate teachers are roped in to take care of the special kids in the schools.
The principal of a government senior secondary school in Shalimar Bagh said, “The children with special needs should be accommodated in separate dedicated schools so that special attention can be given. At times, other children tease special kids leaving them embarrassed. It’s a critical situation because we don’t even give separate classrooms to the CwSN due to inadequate infrastructure. Special educators are burdened with regular work in schools.”
When the Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) was functional till 2023, it had issued notices to over 150 schools for not appointing special educators.
The list of schools included private ones too. The schools were asked to submit a report within 15 days, but there has been no change in the situation in the past two years.
Director of Education Veditha Reddy was not available for comments.