Assistance in teaching is the right of every child with a disability if the assessment determines that they need it, and as such it must be provided to every child.
This was announced by the Association of Disabled Youth of Montenegro.
They said that the Association of Youth with Handicap of Montenegro (UMHCG), the Association of Parents, the Association of the Blind of Montenegro and the "Ognjen Rakočević" Foundation express concern over the decision of the Ministry of Education not to give consent for the continuation of teaching assistants to children with disabilities, i.e. children with disabilities in development in the middle of the 2022/2023 school year. regardless of the Ministry's allegations that the schools did not fulfill the previous conditions, that is, they did not systematize a sufficient number of workplaces.
"On this occasion, today we sent a letter to the Ministry in which we ask that it provide a sufficient number of assistants to children with disabilities, that is, children with developmental disabilities, and that it review the stated situation as soon as possible and prevent further consequences, so that the quality of children's education does not collapse further." it is stated in the announcement of the Association of Youth with Handicap of Montenegro.
As they state, this would mean that many children with disabilities, i.e. children with developmental disabilities, will not have a person who will help them follow the lessons and be included in the educational process as intended by inclusion.
"The number of teaching assistants has never corresponded to the needs of the children and what is written in their guidance decisions, which we have been pointing out for years, as evidenced by numerous media and media reports," they said.
They say that assistance for the result, if the other conditions for children are met, cannot and will not lead to isolation and segregation, but on the contrary to inclusion.
"We pointed out that it seems to us that the responsibility is now being transferred to school administrations, which hired assistants in accordance with the needs of the students, based on the contradictory instructions they received from the Ministry of Education in the previous months," the announcement states.
They point out that they are not surprised by the Ministry's explanation "that the Law clearly indicates that teaching assistants have the role of technical support in terms of providing access to education and educational achievement for children with severe physical disabilities, moderate intellectual disabilities, no residual vision, complete hearing loss and on the autism spectrum." .
This, as they state, does not mean that they agree with the interpretation of the Ministry regarding the role of assistants and their responsibility, which persistently indicates that they should not interfere with the work of professional associates and teachers, but assistants are precisely support for teachers, and then indirectly for children.
Therefore, as they say, the assistant helps the child because the teacher cannot provide an individualized approach.
They stated that according to the views of the Ministry, it would be possible to conclude that the assistant should only bring the child to the desk and let him follow the lessons during the lesson.
This, as they say, can only be done if there is "technical support" and that for a larger number of children in the institution.
"We consider it extremely problematic that in some schools one assistant provides assistance to a large number of children, which if one assistant simultaneously spends time with several students with disabilities in the classroom, is completely contrary to the principle of individualization guaranteed by the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, especially in we see that it is a service that involves providing support to a child with disabilities when performing school duties (help with writing, taking notes in class, making control and homework assignments, going to the toilet, spending time together during school breaks, etc.), which certainly requires more hours of required assistance or during all classes, not just a few hours, or a shorter period of time, as happens in practice, bearing in mind that the assistant spends the rest of his working hours providing assistance to another student," said the Association.
They also reminded the Ministry that in General Comment XNUMX on the right to inclusive education, the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities emphasizes the need to provide individualized education plans, which can recognize the necessary reasonable adaptations and specific support that the individual student needs, including and provision of aids, specific teaching materials in alternative/accessible formats, ways and means of communication, and communication aids and assistive and information technologies.
They said that support can also be represented by a qualified teaching assistant, either jointly or on a one-to-one basis, depending on the needs of the students.
"Therefore, assistance in teaching is the right of every child with a disability if the assessment determines that they need it, and as such it must be provided to every child", they conclude in the statement.
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