SOUND MAKE CHANGE
No child is left behind but no one is taken aside, too.
We ring the bell (WRTB) campaign has been conducting in Vietnam for more than 5 years in 3 Central provinces (Quang Nam, Quang Tri, Thua Thien Hue) and Hanoi city. Thanks to the campaign, the sound from children with disabilities for their rights, especially right to schools have been transmitted successfully to the community. Inclusive education in Vietnam is step by step stronger promoted by the local Department of Education & Training (DoET – the agency in charge of education management at district level), schools and parents. The public education system focuses more on training for teachers, welcome the financial and technical investment from projects in inclusive education and closely coordinate with their stakeholders (i.e. local authorities, Public Health Care department, Labour – Invalids and Social Welfares department, Child Protection Association …) in providing equal opportunity for all children, including children with disabilities. Specifically, in the project districts, school is not only a place where provides inclusive education for a child with disability, but they also coordinate with other related partners in order to enable him/her to access a comprehensive support from education to health care and social welfares.
In recent years, RCI and its partner organizations (PO) has actively drawn the involvement of the local DoET and school leaders in WRTB campaign performance. They, from the role of participant, are acting as key actors in conducting the campaign. As such, at district and school level where WRTB were carried out, the right to school of children with disabilities are respected and addressed in their annual plan of activities. More and more schools in the districts where the Annual Plan (AP) and Inclusive Education (IE) projects have been performed develop their annual plan for inclusive education in which clearly stated that school’s leaders and teachers together with parents are responsible for providing positive, friendly and accessible environment for students with disabilities in their schools. Upon those plan, every disabled student receives proper, need- and capacity-based individual intervention plan with the contribution or/and consultation from his/her parents. Their head teachers are trained in knowledge and skills of working and teaching children with disabilities accordingly. Though currently the number of teachers trained is still inadequate, the teachers are more and more improving their teaching skill and quality for their students, especially students with disabilities. Significantly, awareness, participation and responsibility of parents including the ones of children with disabilities are actively changed. The stigma and neglect from other parents are hardly found. Many parents of children with disabilities are more proactive in working with the teachers and schools for better and more effective education for their children. They gradually understand and respect their child’s need, wish and capacity and together with the schools to create more friendly and accessible education environment for the children, at home and at school.