Special Schools: for or against?
Which arguments do you agree with? Add up your score for either side.
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Arguments in favour of special schools |
Arguments against sending children to Special Schools |
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It might be upsetting for ordinary children to see handicapped children. |
Children who aren’t handicapped should get to know handicapped children: it might get rid of prejudice . |
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There will always be some children who cannot take part in ordinary school. |
Many handicapped children can cope with most of ordinary school work most of the time. |
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Teachers in ordinary schools don’t have the time or the knowledge to deal with handicapped children. |
Not all handicapped children need specialised help all the time - only some of the time. |
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Handicapped Children in ordinary schools might be forgotten, but in special schools they can be given special attention. |
A good school will help all its pupils, whatever their needs. |
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Special schools can specialise in looking after handicapped children in a way that other schools can’t. |
Help can be found in most schools for children who have special needs, and some ‘ordinary’schools can specialise in helping handicapped children. |
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Handicapped children can’t get about in ordinary schools. |
If a pupil has difficulty getting round a school there is usually a way it can be made easier. |
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Handicapped children will develop better if they are with other disabled children. |
In the outside world handicapped and non-handicapped live together, so why not in school? |
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Handicapped children can’t do school work in ordinary schools. |
Only a few handicapped children can’t do any of the work in a school: many handicapped children are as intelligent as any other pupil. |
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Teachers in special schools can be expertly trained to deal with handicapped children. |
Specially trained teachers can help in the classrooms of any school. |
Special Schools
for or against?
Imagine
You can do one of the following:
Imagine that you are a handicapped person who has been turned down for admission to your local school. The reasons you have been given are that your wheelchair may not be able to get into all the classrooms and that the school cannot afford to put in ramps and lifts for you to get about easily. However, you have heard that the real reason is that the Headteacher is afraid that other pupils will make fun of you.
Write a letter to the Headteacher, asking him to think again.
or
A Headteacher has a meeting with a disabled pupil and parents. The pupil very much wants to come to the school, and the parents would like that too. However, the Headteacher is not so keen. Write a dialogue (in play form, if you like) of the conversation which they have.
Remember - people don’t always say what they really mean.
Signposts
is a Painsley