Students with special needs tend to show significantly lower achievement in science due to severe difficulties with academic skills including reading, writing, behaviour problems and limited prior understanding of core concepts. In education, finding ways to meet the learning needs of students with special needs can be challenging. Empowering these students in Inclusive Education, which fully engages all students with disabilities or other learning challenges in quality education has proven particularly effective in helping all the students learn different facets of education. Over the years, special education for these children in the form of various creative methods has been developed that can motivate students with special needs.
To take this forward & to sensitise Specially-abled children about scientific issues & create scientific temper among them, an outreach & sensitisation programme for Specially-abled children was organised by Outreach, Jigyasa, Training and HR Division of CSIR-National Institute of Science Communication & Policy Research (CSIR-NIScPR) on 29 March 2022 at the Child Development Centre, Jamia Milia Islamia University, New Delhi.
The outreach programme conducted by the CSIR-NIScPR team was a great opportunity for these special students to identify their interests and gauge their learning capacity. Such programmes can help in the behavioural development of children with special needs, an important step to minimise their social isolation and improve their communication skills and boost their minds and other skills needed by them to understand things in a better way.
Opening the event, Dr Nishat Naqvi, Director, Child Development Centre thanked Prof. Ranjana Aggarwal, Director, CSIR-NIScPR & Outreach, Jigyasa, Training and HR Division of CSIR-NIScPR for organising this wonderful event. She highlighted the facilities provided to these students by the Child Development Centre and also described various ways to connect with these children.
Mr C.B. Singh, Head, Outreach, Jigyasa, Training and HR Division of CSIR-NIScPR gave an overview of the mandate of CSIR-NIScPR and its outreach department. He emphasised that CSIR-NIScPR has always focused on motivating School students for the past many years, however, this initiative for the specially-abled children was not taken earlier. This event was the first of its kind. The focus was to connect such children with education and motivate them.
Prof. Ranjana Aggarwal, Director, CSIR-NIScPR congratulated the Child Development Centre, Jamia Milia Islamia University for doing great work for these children. She motivated children to remain focused on their goals. Prof. Ranjana highlighted that parents can help improve the motivation of students in many ways i.e. nurturing and being supportive in the home environment. She said that we should find out every possible way to motivate them every day by maximising their strengths. Prof. Ranjana Aggarwal said that CSIR-NIScPR will always be eager to help in future for the betterment of these children.
To further motivate the students, interactive activities such as on the spot Quiz & Painting were organised. The children were very responsive and eager to show their best talents in all aspects. The children participated in all the activities wholeheartedly.
Ms Farhat Azad, Principal Scientist, CSIR-NIScPR, acknowledged the need for these kinds of events. She thanked Child Development Centre, Jamia Milia Islamia University for the support & making this event successful. She also thanked the members of the CSIR-NIScPR Outreach team who made this event a great success & all the special children for participating in this event.
As a token of appreciation specialised kits were distributed to all the children. The children went back with smiles and confidence and to do something great in the future.
