Uncategorized – The Winford Centre for Children and Women

Special Education Needs and Inclusion Conference (SENICON) 2020

Posted on June 19, 2020 by Administrator

The Special Education Needs and Inclusion Conference was organised by The Winford Centre for Children and Women in partnership with UNESCO and Bridg-Networking Germany. The conference which was themed Increasing Access to Education: Innovative Solutions for Learning and Participation was held on Friday 12^th June 2020 virtually on Zoom from 10am to 3pm. The conference is a platform for policymakers, practitioners and beneficiaries to explore innovative and sustainable ways of supporting learners with special education needs going into the future.

In her welcome address, the founder of The Winford Centre for Children and Women, Mrs Basirat Razaq-Shuaib highlighted the crucial need to have conversations with all key stakeholders about the provision of inclusive education for children with disabilities and neurodiverse conditions in Nigeria.

Delivering the first keynote address, the Regional Director and Representative of UNESCO, Mr Yao Ydo, represented by Dr Samuel Onyekwelu gave a background of Special Needs Education. He stated that an estimated 15% of the world population has a disability, 1 in every 10 children is a child living with disability and out of an estimated 1 billion people living with disabilities, 80% of them are in developing countries which Nigeria is one of. He stated further that the global crisis of COVID-19 pandemic is deepening existing inequalities, exposing the extent of exclusion that work on disability inclusion has become imperative making the conference a very important one.

Delivering the second keynote address for the day, Mr Phil Dexter MBE, an Inclusive Education Consultant who was with the British Council for 30 years said we must recognise that every learner is different and they must be related with in different ways. He stressed the importance of going beyond labels such as dyslexia and others and getting through to the learner to support them.

There were four panel sessions at the conference to address various learning, access and participation issues with seasoned speakers such as Prof. Amanda Kirby, Dr Sigamoney Naicker, Mrs Dotun Akande and Dr Modupe Adefeso-Olateju.

The highlight of the day was the unveiling of four children’s books promoting inclusive education, disability and neurodiversity awareness, and social inclusion of children with disabilities in society. The first book Dragons can sing was unveiled by Dr Stephen Onyekwelu on behalf of UNESCO Regional Director, Mr Yao Ydo. In his words, UNESCO appreciates innovative actions, research work and ideas that are in line with their thinking which the book represents. He added that the book will address some of the issues that have been highlighted relating to disabilities inclusion.

Dr Hannia Bridg of Bridg- Networking, Germany unveiled the German, Spanish and Portuguese translations of the children’s book ‘I am not naughty – I really really mean it!’ which was originally released in English in 2019. The book which emerged as a finalist in the 2020 British Council ELTons Innovation Awards (in partnership with Cambridge Assessment) has been deemed an excellent resource for teachers.

The final keynote of the day was by the Honourable Commissioner of Education, Lagos State Mrs Folasade Adefisayo who was represented by Mrs Sola Somoye, DG Guidance & School Counselling, Special Education, Ministry of Education Lagos State. In her address, she said the Lagos State Government has been and remains committed to supporting the education of children with disabilities in the state. Mrs Somoye said the conference was an eye-opener for the government in terms of its provisions and services.

The founder of The Winford Centre for Children and Women, Mrs Basirat Razaq-Shuaib gave the closing remarks charging the government to treat the provision of inclusive education for children with disabilities as a priority problem rather than an add on after all other problems have been solved.

Read the full report of the conference here.

How to support language development in children (1/2)

Posted on June 19, 2017June 19, 2017 by Administrator

A lot of parents, carers and educators worry that children are not “talking” at a certain age. “Talking” in this particular context refers to the topmost part of the language pyramid called speech. Without understanding that speech and language develop in stages, parents, carers and educators may end up putting unnecessary pressure on themselves as well as the children in order to get them to “talk”. Whilst speech and language continues to be one of several indicators of other medical conditions, it is important to remember that speech and language difficulties can improve with the right support and children can catch up without an underlying medical condition being present. If we understand how speech and language develops, then we will be better positioned to know if there is something to worry about.

Attention and Listening: When babies are born, they first learn to listen before making sounds. This means they take in information using mainly their eyes and ears. Attention therefore involves being in a ready state to receive and absorb new information. Because this is such a critical step in the language development pyramid, if this skill is not properly developed in children, they are likely to struggle with other steps on the pyramid.

Play: You will often hear that children learn through play, this is true. Children learn lots about communication through playing with toys and people and so they need lots of opportunity to play. The play develops from exploratory play to functional play and then to imaginative play. More importantly, through play, children learn how to interact, take turns and share with other people.

Understanding: Further up the pyramid is understanding. This is where children learn to give meaning to new information that has been picked up. Particularly, this is the ability to understand what is being said or the instruction that is being given.

Talking: At this point, children start to use words. This will start from single words and then progress on to a combination of words. The words may not be absolutely clear but they can be deciphered.

Speech: This is the final stage where a child is able to make sentences which have meanings either to the child’s immediate family or to a wider audience.

How it all ties together: A child that has poorly developed attention and listening skills will struggle with taking in new information. If new information is not taken in fully, then full information cannot be processed. As a result, such child may struggle with fully understanding what things mean and be unable to act or provide an appropriate verbal response.

Remember, you are not required to give a diagnosis. Your focus should always be “how can I support this child better”.

Please look out for the next post (2 of 2) where I will be sharing strategies that can be used to improve each step on the pyramid.

Vulnerability in children/ children with special needs

Posted on February 3, 2017April 4, 2017 by Administrator

Vulnerability means to be susceptible to being harmed or hurt. All children are vulnerable but those with special needs or disabilities are considered even more vulnerable. This is because of the difficulty they experience in:
1. Expressing or voicing their concerns because they don’t have the right words or means to describe what is happening to them or how they feel about it.
2. Coping with adult reaction. The fear of what to expect from the adult they are telling or not even being believed.
3. Inability to physically stop what is happening to them which may be compounded by the presence of a disability.
4. Doing things independently. Whilst children are very much dependent on adults for a lot of things, those with special needs may have something called “learned helplessness”. This situation can arise where disability has caused dependence on others for a very long period of time. The effect is that these children may not have the skills, confidence and experience to stand up for themselves.
Everyone has a part to play in safeguarding children / children with special needs especially those charged with the duty of care.
Parents you are and will remain the first line of defence. You are responsible for the associations your children keep, the contents they consume and who you entrust with their care. Your number one function is ensuring that your children are safeguarded at all times.
Caregivers/ Educators your primary responsibility is to the child- always. When children are in your care, look out for them especially those with special needs. Encourage children to play in groups and create an atmosphere where there is openness as well as freedom of expression.
Everyone should make a conscious effort to look out for the other person. Offer assistance where possible and appropriate. Learn about disabilities, don’t be that person who will not care until they are affected. Lastly show empathy. It is another word for “putting yourself in someone else’s shoes”.