Pakistan Journal of Special Education (PJSE) Vol. 8, 2007
© Department of Special Education, University of Karachi
--------------------------------------------------------- Ismail Saad, Ph. D., Professor & Dean,
Faculty of Education and Learning Sciences, Iqra University, Karachi
Khadija Waheed, Cooperative Faculty Member, Department of Special Education, University of Karachi
ABSTRACT:
The decade of eighties in Pakistan marks, both the beginning of interest in disability and special education and the period of accelerated activity in the field. At the onset of the decade a commitment, first ever, was made to the cause of disability at the federal level. This was the period when a policy was formulated on a long-term basis and a plan of action together with fund allocation was worked out. An impressive institutional framework was designed to support and sustain to the policy commitments. The ball which was then rolled continues to roll to-date but not with the same speed. The end of the decade saw a slowing down of the tempo and at times creating the feeling it looked as though the feet were being dragged. More recently it seems that there is a resuscitation of interest, and the issue is picking up life again. This time propelled more by regional and international climate. The period, however, has been more conspicuous at the policy proclamation level than concrete accomplishment on the ground. High-sounding proclamations with an envisioned eventual goal of inclusion have been put forward, but it is not clear whether or not the needed effort, stamina and resources will be forthcoming. Disability issues in training, employment and social protection demand attention, effort and perhaps more so the allocation of adequate resources. Some progress, however, has been made in the area of special training but employment and social protection are still problematic areas. The legislative activity has been at a minimum level and no effective implementation strategies or measures are in sight.
INTRODUCTION:
Pakistan is a late starter in the field of disability and special education. The retardation gap is of two decades at the minimum. The interest in disability can be dated to the decade of eighties in Pakistan, whereas in the developed world, specially, in the US, the period of accelerated interest commenced from the decade of sixties. In Pakistan the surge of interest should be seen as the first government involvement in the issue. In the private sector some institutional work had already begun but these efforts were scattered and hardly had the look of a national endeavor. The initial drive came from two sources, one was an individual and the other was the propelling influence exerted by the United Nations and allied agencies. The real credit should, however, go to Zia-ul-Haq, who came to power in 1977. Apparently, his interest in disability had a personal angle, but the persona commitment which he felt for the national cause cannot be totally explained by affliction in the family. It was perhaps more reflective of the humane side of his personality as a whole, though like any other persons he was not free of contradictions. Howsoever it may be, he took up the cause as a national commitment and disability issues in the county became an important plank of his national policy.
For the first time in 1981, the government promulgated an ordinance titled: “Disabled Persons Employment and Rehabilitation Ordinance, 1981”. The legislative action stipulated a one percent quantum of employment for the disabled and caused to institute a National Council to perform the functions of policy formulation for the employment, rehabilitation and welfare of the disabled persons. Concurrently effort was also made to transform the government interest in a national commitment and give it an organizational and structural shape. A separate Ministry of Women Development, Social Welfare and Special Education was constituted and entrusted with the responsibilities of coordination with all relevant national and international organizations, in the areas of education, care, training and rehabilitation of persons with disabilities. Under this Ministry, the Directorate General of Special Education (DGSE) was established in 1985 as an attached Department and was assigned to undertake sundry responsibilities in the field.
A coordinated national policy for people with disabilities, and establishment of special education centers all over the country plus training manpower in the special education field are some of the noticeable functions among its numerous services. Four other functioning units working under DGSE are each responsible for different specialized services. An important organization among other is National Trust for the Disabled (NTD) which was established in 1987. The National Trust constituted under the charitable endowment act 1980 was created as an independent and autonomous body with a number of important objectives concerned with the care, education and rehabilitation of the disabled. Another important institution worth mentioning and related to the field was the National Institution for Handicapped which was established under the Ministry of Health. The NIH was instituted to provide medical services of a wide variety needed by the disabled persons. The comprehensive initiative supported by sizeable allocation of funds gave a momentum to disability services and the decade of eighties can be rightly called the period of accelerated interest in the context of Pakistan. Following the sudden exit of President Zia-ul-Haq from the scene the ongoing programs must have gotten a jolt. The momentum built in the initial period, combined with the international pressure still had enough force to keep the ball rolling. The pace of progress did register retardation, but never came to a grinding halt. Since then, the work has continued but the accomplishments in concrete terms are not a par with the initial pace and speed. We can say that the issue has been kept alive and at the policy level the showing is even impressive. The overall vision chalked out is to provide by 2025, an environment that would allow full realization of the potential of persons with disabilities. The visionary direction appears to have set the goal toward inclusion. This is an ambitious claim and would need focused government effort and allocation of resources to get a reasonable proximity to the envisioned target. At the policy level commitment has been reinforced by intermittent pronouncements and proclamations at the international level. Pakistan is a signatory to the proclamation on the Full Participation and Equality of People with Disability in the Asian and Pacific Region. The country has also participated at the seminar for South-to-South cooperation sponsored by Asia Pacific Development Center on Disability. The extension of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons to, 2003-2012 gave effect to Biwako Millennium Framework.
The framework endorsed by Pakistan seeks “Action towards an Inclusive Barrier Free and Rights Based Society for Persons with Disabilities. Meeting these commitments, not doubt, will be a challenge for the country”.
Let us turn briefly to the disability issues in training, employment and social protection, the principal theme of the seminar. In the context of our country, training requirements are essentially of two types; (1) training of teachers and professionals in the field and, (2) the vocational training and rehabilitation of disabled individuals. The training of teachers has expanded at a reasonable pace to an extent that it has now started, training the available opportunities of employment which were limited to begin with and have registered little expansion since. The diploma and degree programs of different varieties are being run at the University of Karachi, the University of the Punjab and Allama Iqbal Open University. A good number of students at the three places are being inducted and trained but the employment opportunities for the graduates are increasingly dwindling. This situation is not entirely without advantage. The occasional blessings in disguise are not entirely absent. In case of Karachi University graduates it can be seen that a good number of graduates who were not able to get a job used their own initiative and started private NGO type institutions in the city. This feature, however, relates to urban areas where there appears to be a felt need for private institutions. The university special education departments, however, face quality issues both with respect to curricular programs and effective teaching but, on the whole, the pace of progress is not disappointing. At all the three places a general program of special education is in the run and very little effort has been made to develop specialized program in disabilities. Similarly, the theory part dominates the curriculum leaving little room for practical training. Practically, all the teaching programs are being run without a demonstration school attached to the department. In fact, effective special education can only be a team venture with a network of professionals who can provide support services. the system of teaching in Pakistan has not reached the level where referral services can be made available in a systematic and integrated manner. There is no demand of such services and there are no funds to obtain these services. Some other fields, like medicine, clinical psychology or nursing, can supply such professional support, if there are funds and an integrated system is developed. However, that is to expect too much at present.
Thus far, some medical graduates and paraprofessionals like physiotherapists manage to get admission in the special education program and can be treated as resource persons in the relevant disability institutions. The two areas where special education institutions working with children, not only need the help of professionals, but also can employ them are speech therapy, physical and occupational therapy and vocational education where there is a definite shortage of teachers. There is considerable need for these paraprofessionals but their availability is much below the demand. The professionals hailing from the relevant fields may also pose an adjustment problem as they are generally without a special education orientation.
The critical need for training is related to special children and special persons, who along with their general education need vocational training. There are a number of special education institutions which provide vocational training independently or have introduced it as a part of their curriculum.
The National Council for the Rehabilitation of Disabled Persons established under the Ordinance 1981 claims to have vocationally trained over 6,000 people with disabilities. A survey conducted by a Karachi University doctoral investigator in 2002-2004 shows that in Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi and Islamabad there were 62 schools of the institutes which provided vocational training to disabled students. The number of institutions should be taken as minimum for these represent schools working only in cities. The number in other cities if added would give an even higher number of institutions. Though this in its own right is not a mean achievement, the same cannot be said about the quality of teaching carried out in these institutions. Most of these schools only provide pre-vocational training and only a few schools teach courses which can be called “vocational courses”. The reason for not upgrading these schools or of not maintaining an acceptable standard of vocational courses is the lack of funds necessary for running a well equipped vocational facility or industrial school.
At this point, a brief survey of the employment opportunities in the field of special education seems warranted. A reference has been made to the scope of employment of those who are being trained as special educational teachers. There is no lack of motivation for students willing to receive training, but the actual teaching positions available are much lower in number than the level of motivation for those who receive their training and graduate from special education institutions. In cities most of them either switch to different fields or are absorbed in the private sector. Most of the time they engage their services in the institutions/schools established or opened at their own initiative. For the vocationally trained disabled students a legislative provision exits to ensure their absorption. A one percent quota has been made mandatory in all organizations whether in the public sector or in private sector.
Referring to the Karachi University doctoral research again it can be said that the absorption of trained disabled persons is far from satisfactory. In the first place, there is no effective government mechanism which can ensure the proper implementation of the provision. The legislation has provided either the actual induction of disabled persons in the job or if this was not possible a contribution by industrial organizations in terms of money to be spent on the vocational rehabilitation of disabled person. The quota has now been increased to two percent, which is heartening, but simply the provision can be of little value if there is no mechanism to make it actually operative on the ground. Associated with the job is also the job performance of the disabled employees. It is obvious that a disabled recruit remains in need of training on the job as well as an enabling work environment. The concept of sheltered workshops is yet to develop in Pakistan.
Social protection is necessary for every person especially for those who are below poverty line. It is doubly necessary for disabled population because of their level of dependence which can be guessed safely at double the normal individual. There is still no institutional setup to deal with the problem at the level of federal ministry concerned with special education. However, as the problem relates generally to social welfare sector, there are a number of government agencies which within their own scope deal with the problem; these include Department of Social Security, EOBI and Bait-ul-Maal. The Ministry of Labor has introduced legislative provisions for protection of accidentally disabled and to ensure employment for the disabled. The one percent quota requirement, if implemented in its true sense, can also ensure a life long pension for those under employment. What is needed with these multi pronged support measures is a coordination effort by the concerned Ministry of Special Education as can ensure confidence that the implementation is in order.
The challenge in the way is the effective implementation of special education policies and strategies. The crux of the problem is to keep the onward progress at an even pace and steadily expand the scope of work. A difficulty for adequate planning must have been the non-availability of reliable statistics. The ministry has no proper statistics to cope with the issue. To a certain extent Population Census Organization has mitigated the difficulty. On the basis of 1998 census, the total percentage of the population of disabled has been shown at 2.8 percentages. Obviously, these figures are on the very low side and represent only the severe and profound disabled. The total population of disabled must match the international estimates between 10 – 15 percent. The need is of a more refined and properly defined enumeration. Census, however, can only indicate the gravity of the problem.
The provision of support services is principally the task of the ministries of special education, at the federal and provincial level together with the other social welfare sector organizations including the organizations working in the private sector. In provision of services we also see the divide between urban and rural populations. The level of awareness and activity is much higher in cities than in the districts and talukas. The private sector is more vibrant in cities and it appears that the urban population is gradually awakening to the need and reducing its level of dependence on the government. However, the situation is totally different in the villages where the level of poverty, literacy and absence of awareness are at a very high level. The situation is further complicated by the non-availability of logistics and transport. The government should be more proactive in its attention in rural areas, specially, the female population. Another area in which government initiative is essential is the legislative activity concerning the disabled; the work is needed in early detection plus medical and educational intervention. Pakistan is exerting some effort but the need is for building up a long-term tempo showing a gradual upward acceleration.
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