BHUBANESWAR: The alleged inaction on part of the State government to appoint special educators in schools for differently-abled children has cast a cloud on the employment of thousands of qualified students holding degrees and diplomas in special education.
Around 6,000 aspirants who have taken special training and registered themselves under the Rehabilitation Council of India to teach differently-abled children in the State are sitting idle for years as there have been no appointments of any special educator in schools for nearly a decade.
As per the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016, state governments should appoint special educators in schools at primary and upper primary levels to improve the standard of education for differently-abled children. They are required to post at least one special educator in each primary and upper primary school. However, the State School and Mass Education (S&ME) department is yet to take measures in this regard.
Sources said the Secretary of Social Security and Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (SSEPD) has communicated a number of times to the S&ME department to implement the provision. However, the S&ME department is yet to initiate the process for appointment of these teachers.
The government had appointed 632 special educators for children at the block-level way back in 2012. However, there has been no such appointment at the school level to date in spite of the fact that around 82,000 differently-abled students have enrolled in 64,000 primary, upper primary and secondary schools, alleged members of Odisha Special Educator Federation for Divyang (OSEFD).
The Federation members said the students with special education degree and diploma also used to get appointed as junior teachers during Sikshya Sahayak recruitment. However, non-recruitment to these posts since 2017 has also restricted job opportunities for them.
“The delay in appointment of such teachers is not only hampering the education of the differently-abled children but also limiting the employment opportunity for the students who have pursued diploma, BEd and MEd in special education from 62 Special Training Centres across the State,” said a member of the Federation.
The Federation said the Supreme Court in July 2022 has ordered to appoint one special teacher for 10 differently-abled students in primary schools and one teacher for 15 students in upper primary schools in States.S&ME officials couldn’t be reached for their reaction in this matter.