The Government of the Maldives has revealed it will be restructuring all schools to include children with disabilities.
The restructuring of schools is part of the policy implemented in October to allow all students to be educated in schools. The policy is being implemented in accordance with the guidelines set by the emergency response plan of the Ministry of Education.
The restructuring includes making the school premises more accessible for children with disabilities, including the bathrooms and athletic fields. The work also requires mainstream schools to change their specialised centres into inclusion resource centres.
Furthermore, schools are required to educate children with disabilities in accordance with plans formulated based on their individual disabilities. In this regard, the government has established four programmes for children with disabilities consisting of home-based learning, school readiness, early intervention, and mainstream education. Schools are also required to teach students with blindness or visual impairments using braille or the relevant digital assistive technology and teach students with hearing loss using sign language or the relevant digital assistive technology.
Additionally, the restructuring of schools includes making the school premises compliant with the universal accessibility guidelines. Schools are also required to have the school material for the curriculum available in digital format for students.
The policy also aims to allow students with disabilities to receive a full education using the latest technology and conduct internship programmes at various levels to prepare them for employment.