Through education, three persons with disabilities in the Philippines have been in equal footing with non-PWDs.
Forty-one year-old Arvin Fidel Sarabia had his bachelor’s degree in Commerce at the University of Cebu. He is currently a senator of the Junior Chamber International (JCI) Philippines (formerly Philippine Jaycees), which is the first nationally organized leadership development organization established in Asia. He was awarded as its Most Outstanding Member (Area IV) in 2011 and Most Outstanding President in 2012. Sarabia is also a computer layout artist, event planner, and businessman.
Eleazar Danila has graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education major in English at the West Visayas State University (WVSU). He was recognized then as the WVSU Rotary Award for Most Outstanding Graduate, Most Outstanding University Service Award, CAMELEON Philippines Heroes Award, and Jose Rizal Model Student of the Philippines. The following year, Danila became hailed among the regional awardee for the Ten Outstanding Students of the Philippines (TOSP). He is presently a teacher of English and Research at the Saint Vincent Ferrer Seminary, believing that education is the “silver bullet to fight poverty” and that his profession provides an opportunity for continual learning and growth.
Also from WVSU is Hazel Villa, a Master of Journalism. She has started writing in June about the “Guimaras Waterlore: A Critical Folklore Approach” to analyze how the waterlore in Guimaras directly impact the general fishing industry in the province and the ways Guimarasnons try to preserve their aquatic resources. She has also researched about “Blog Defamation and jurisdiction issues,” citing what had happened with Gutnick vs. Dow Jones and Montano vs. Gorrell.
Educating PWDs alongside non-PWDs in developing countries such as the Philippines should be considered now. The greatest percentage of PWDs resides in developing countries, after all; some of them are among the countries those that ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD). Education will then cease to be an “unaffordable luxury,” enabling the former to fully assimilate into the culture of where they are.
“We have to educate our local governments, because the PWDs are the most vulnerable to poverty and lack of access to basic needs.” ~ Dr. Erwin Alampay
I believe special education (SPED) should be integrated in the basic and secondary curriculum in the country.
And while at it, study sign language as well.
In an order from the Department of Education (DepEd), special needs education should have been institutionalized in all schools. All divisions should organize at least one SPED Center and all districts should organize SPED programs in schools.
Local trainings should also be initiated at the regional, division, and district levels. They should be conducted by the identified Regional Trainors in Special Education.
The supervisors, administrators, and teachers implementing the SPED programs will be receiving incentives. The Special Education Division of the Bureau of Elementary Education will be providing technical assistance to all the regional offices that would implement the program from SY 1997-1998.
In practice, though, SPED is only taught in a special school.
There is also neither a SPED public school nor center for secondary education in Nueva Vizacaya, Tarlac, Batangas, Marinduque, Camarines Norte, Catanduanes, Masbate, Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Guimaras, Iloilo, Siquijor, Biliran, Northern Samar, Southern Leyte, Isabela City, Zamboanga del Norte, Bukidnon, Camiguin, Lanao del Norte, Misamis Oriental, Compostela Valley, Davao Oriental, Sarangani, Sultan Kudarat, Agusan del Norte, Dinagat Islands, Surigao del Norte, Surigao del Sur, Ifugao, Sulu, Tawi-tawi, Malabon, Marikina, Navotas, San Juan, and Taguig.
And in areas with a SPED public school or center, public schools are till high school only.
Of course, there could be the argument that the divisions and districts are also considering the population before putting up schools.
Institutionalizing schools for Filipinos without disabilities is also already a problem.
In a study released by the Philippine Statistics Authority last January 10, 2013, 1,443 thousand persons or 1.57 percent of the 92.1 million household population have disabilities in the country.
Low vision is the most common disability and Region IV-A has the highest number of PWDs.
There are more Filipino men with disabilities than Filipino women age 0 to 64 years old. But generally, the condition is at its highest among Filipinos age 5 to 19 years old.
As such, the inclusion of SPED in the basic and secondary curriculum in the country is necessary, beneficial, and practicable.
One doesn’t have to finish grade school and high school first before being given the option to study SPED.
This is important because, as they say, prevention is better than cure. The United Nations has found out that, on the average, 19% of the less educated people have disabilities.
Also, based on the study of the UN Development Programme, 80% of the PWDs live in developing countries.
Disability rates are significantly higher, too, among the member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) with lower educational attainment.
The Philippines is a developing country and among the member countries of the OECD.
On the other hand, sign language is necessary. In Article XIII, Section 1 of the 1987 Constitution, “the Congress shall give highest priority to the enactment of measures that protect and enhance the right of all people to human dignity, reduce social, economic, and political inequalities, and remove cultural inequities by equitably diffusing wealth and political power for the common good.” Learning sign language then could help promote social justice that the article calls for.
Sign language is beneficial as well. There are 36 PWD organizations registered with the National Council on Disability Affairs. Each of them aims to help PWDs in their living, providing seminars and workshops on one hand, and giving wheelchairs, crutches, and hearing aids on the other. Some would also conduct free medical and dental services, administer schools advocating PWD rights, and train deaf high school graduates in computer technology. Still, there are people unwilling to give PWDs a chance to prove their worth. Learning sign language then could instill awareness of the “social problem” physical disability has come to be.
Sign language is practicable. It could help facilitate the cognitive, social, emotional and linguistic growth of PWDs and non-PWDs alike. In a report, those in the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office and the Provincial Governor’s Office extension office in Cebu have taken sign language classes earlier this year “to improve service”; while in another, some 52 healthcare providers in government health facilities have trained in basic sign language, too, “to communicate better with hearing-impaired Pinoys.” Learning sign language then could lead to a PWD-friendly culture that could make the Philippines even more appealing to every local or foreign tourist.
“We have a responsibility to ensure that every individual has the opportunity to receive a high-quality education, from prekindergarten to elementary and secondary, to special education, to technical and higher education and beyond.” ~ Jim Jeffords
