Education is the basic necessity in life for every individual and every child deserves education as epitomised by the slogan ‘No child left behind.’ But despite such sentiments, special needs children are often amongst the ones left behind.
Disabled children are not defined by their disabilities. It is a mistake for people to focus on only the disabled part of the child’s development. If you, as a caregiver, learn only about the things disabled children cannot do, you miss learning about all the things disabled children can do. Remember, first and foremost is the child, not the disability.
It can be scary to raise a child with physical disability when you don’t know what to do. But with the right support system and proper infrastructure in place, these children can be raised to be independent and contributing citizens of society whereas they are wrongly perceived as burdens.
Every child, no matter what their handicap, deserves to get the best in life and so every child should be treated in the same way. For this, there are special strategies and interventions that are made not just by the government but by the other agencies and organisations as well.
ANAM HAYAT
Islamabad
