'Mainstreaming' Indonesia's education system worth a try<\/p>\n
By Lucia Esti Elihami<\/p>\n
YOGYAKARTA (JP): Our country's disabled do not yet enjoy the
\nsame rights as other citizens who regard themselves as \"normal\".
\nDiscrimination in many aspects of life is evidently prevalent in
\nour society's treatment of the disabled. In the workplace, for
\nexample, many job advertisements call for \"applicants with no
\nhandicaps only\". Discriminatory treatment is also experienced by
\nthe disabled in the justice system, where the testimony of a
\ndisabled person is sometimes ignored; in the social security
\nsystem, where insurance usually does not cover the disabled, and
\nin many other aspects of life.<\/p>\n
In a situation where many of the basic needs of the majority
\nhave not been satisfactorily fulfilled yet, it sounds
\n\"justifiable\" to pay insufficient attention to the welfare of the
\ndisabled. Moreover, the disabled are not adequately represented
\nin the government, which should actually serve as the guarantor
\nof their rights.<\/p>\n
In the field of education, discrimination exists in the form
\nof segregated schools for the disabled. The school system is
\ndesigned from the viewpoint of and for the benefit of nondisabled
\npeople. In this system, there are only limited openings for
\ndisabled students at regular schools. Instead, they are
\nencouraged, if not compelled, to enroll in special education
\nschools. Whether or not this system will benefit disabled
\nchildren or whether they really need special education schools
\nare not among the concerns of the \"normal\" decisionmakers.<\/p>\n
Seen from the point of view of the disabled, the special
\neducation system is more disadvantageous than advantageous. It is
\ntrue this system can provide disabled children with special
\nskills to cope with their disabilities. Nevertheless, by studying
\nin special education classes, children are deprived of the most
\nvaluable experience: the opportunity to share in the common
\nexperiences of other nondisabled children, the children who, in
\nthe future, will be their peers in society.<\/p>\n
Besides excluding disabled children from the common
\nexperiences of ordinary children, special education classes also
\ntend to label the children as \"disabled\". This may lead to
\nrejection on the part of the nondisabled children. For disabled
\nchildren, this label will usually lead to low self-esteem and
\nwill further develop into a destructive self-fulfilling prophecy.
\nThe ultimate result is that disabled children will become more
\nand more isolated from society.<\/p>\n
The disabled actually prefer to be treated as ordinary human
\nbeings. They want to be independent and live normally with other
\npeople in the society. On the contrary, the nondisabled usually
\nregard them as perpetually in need of help and assistance. Since
\nmost disabled children expect to ultimately function as
\nindependent adults in society, placing them in a segregated
\nclassroom does little to prepare them for their adult lives. It
\nwould be more beneficial for disabled children to enroll in
\nregular schools rather than in special education schools.<\/p>\n
Certainly not all disabled children will benefit from the
\npractice of educating them together with the nondisabled
\nstudents, or \"mainstreaming\". Some children, because of their
\nextreme disabilities, would be unable to study in regular
\nclassrooms. However, mainstreaming is considered to be a
\ndesirable and workable system for educating disabled children. In
\nthe United States, mainstreaming has become a common practice
\nwhich has been in use since the 1960s.<\/p>\n
In Indonesia, it is not clear whether mainstreaming has ever
\nbeen practiced systematically, but there have already been some
\nvisually impaired students who have finished their graduate or
\npost-graduate studies. Many hearing impaired persons have also
\nachieved similar success in education. Possibly these persons
\nachieved such a high level of education from their own
\ninitiative.<\/p>\n
Some obstacles continue to prevent mainstreaming from gaining
\nin popularity in Indonesia. The first relates to the
\nunavailability of teachers who can make mainstreaming work. To
\nmainstream disabled students successfully, we need teachers who
\ncan really understand the psychology of the disabled, who can
\ndeal effectively with them and who are resourceful enough to
\nfacilitate them to learn, in spite of their disabilities.
\nFurthermore, the teachers must be competent enough to ensure a
\nsmooth integration of the disabled with the entire class. For
\nthis purpose, the teachers need to have special skills which can
\nonly be achieved through intensive and continuous training.<\/p>\n
Adjustments in school facilities can present another obstacle
\nin Indonesia. To make mainstreaming successful, schools must be
\nequipped with additional facilities such as audio-visual
\nequipment, Braille books, special restrooms for the mentally
\ndisabled, and many other facilities. The school building in
\ngeneral must also be designed so as not to create difficulties
\nfor disabled students. This certainly is a costly adjustment for
\nthe average Indonesian school.<\/p>\n
Establishing successful mainstreaming requires a lot of money.
\nYet the benefit that will be achieved by this endeavor is in
\nproportion with the money spent. For disabled students, in
\naddition to making them more prepared to integrate with the
\nsociety in their adult lives, their learning progress can be
\nbetter than the progress of those in segregated classrooms.<\/p>\n
For nondisabled students, mainstreamed classes may help to
\ncultivate sympathy for the less-privileged members of the
\nsociety, and foster other beneficial attitudes.<\/p>\n
In Indonesia, mainstreaming has never been systematically
\nattempted on a large scale, involving disabilities such as mental
\nretardation, emotional disturbances and cerebral palsy. Lack of
\nfinancial and human resources may be the reason for such a
\nfailure. However, if we remember that from their own initiative,
\nsome visually impaired and hearing impaired Indonesians can
\nachieve such a high level of education, and if we do believe that
\ndisabled children will benefit more from mainstreamed education,
\nit is worth a try to socialize mainstreaming in order to help
\ndisabled children to pursue their ideals.<\/p>\n
The writer is a staff member at the Dinamika Edukasi Dasar
\nFoundation, Yogyakarta.<\/p>",
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