Schools need more special-needs officers

I AM glad the Ministry of Education (MOE) is doing its best to help children with special needs study in mainstream schools. As a therapist and a mother of a special-needs boy who is studying in a mainstream school (he is in Primary 3), I would like to share my experiences.

Special-needs officers (SNOs) have an important role in helping these children in school, but often there is only one SNO in schools with many children with special needs. One SNO cannot help many children with special needs, so some will not get full help.

When these children are in Primary 1, SNOs help them get to know school routines, introduce them to a new and very different environment and help them cope with lessons. They also help teachers by showing them how to handle these children in class.

However, in most cases, problems start to arise when these children are in Primary 3 or 4, where they face a heavier workload, additional subjects, bigger classes, more examinations and, in some cases, bullying. With no teacher assistant, only one SNO and too many children with special needs, it is very difficult to ensure adequate support for these children. As a result, they become stressed and cause teachers more problems. These children cannot express themselves well and often throw tantrums, refuse to study or go to school and even refuse to take their exams.

Many have to be withdrawn from school because of these problems. It is such a pity that these children are not given a chance to prove they can do as well as 'normal' children. They do not want to be 'special', but they have to deal with their condition and work harder than 'normal' children because everything is a challenge to them. If they leave school half-way, we are sending a message that they are not good enough, which will affect their confidence and self-esteem.

I am sure MOE will do its best to help these children do well in school. I hope the ministry can assign more SNOs to schools that accept many children with special needs, as well as teacher assistants in upper primary, as this will help these children and their teachers.

Silvia Buniardi (Mdm)