Belgium (Flemish)
Country
Topic:
(a) full-time special education;
(b) integrated special education;
(c) special education at home.
Full-time special education is organised at three levels, just as for mainstream education: pre-primary, primary and secondary. All pupils in full-time special schools can benefit from free transport between home and school, which is organised at a regional level.
Types of special education
To ensure an education in accordance with the educational needs of each child eight TYPES OF PEDAGOGICAL ORGANISATION have been created. Each of the eight types is intended to meet the specific educational need of pupils manifesting a particular disability.
Type 1 Mild mental retardation
Type 2 Moderate or Severe mental retardation
Type 3 Severe emotionally disturbed and/or behaviour problems
Type 4 Motor disability (e.g. cerebral palsy)
Type 5 Disease resulting in a long stay in hospital or in a residential nursing home
Type 6 Visual Disability
Type 7 Auditory Disability
Type 8 Specific Learning Disabilities (e.g. language delay, dyslexia)
In order to promote integration in mainstream schools, type 1 is not organised at pre-primary level and type 8 is not organised at either pre-primary or secondary level.
Training forms at secondary level
The eight-type structure is further elaborated at SECONDARY LEVEL where the main emphasis is upon the development of social and vocational competence. At this level four forms of teaching are defined, based on the estimated social and/or vocational competencies of the adolescent:
Form 1, known as "social adaptation", is designed for pupils with severe deficiencies who are able to acquire a certain amount of social autonomy, but will be unable to be involved in an active work life, even in a sheltered context.
Form 2, known as "social and vocational adaptation" is designed for adolescents with moderate deficiencies who will progress to sheltered employment at a later date.
Form 3, known as "vocational training" is designed for adolescents who are capable of living independently in an open environment and of a final certification and open employment.
Form 4, known as "transition or qualification training" provides a curriculum similar to the general technical or artistic curriculum in mainstream school, but adapted to the particular needs of the disabled adolescent concerned.
Access and duration of special education
Special education can be followed from age 2.5 to 21 years and in some cases even longer.
The standard duration at pre-primary school is 3 years; at primary schools 7 years and at secondary schools 5 years. However, the structure is very flexible with regards to the transition from one level to another. In general, parents can decide on transition within an age span of two (6-8) or three (12-15) years. For this they can rely upon information and consultation with the school and the support service.
For access to a special school a statement of special needs is always necessary. For more details, please refer to the section on Identification of children with special educational needs. However return to mainstream schools is always possible based upon decision of parents without any other formality.
Qualification within special education
At the end of a study level, students in special schools generally obtain a particular certificate of special education. However, schools may deliver a qualification of mainstream basic education if the study aims and the programme, specified in the individual educational plan (IEP) of the pupil, is designated by the school inspection as being equivalent to the basic aims of the mainstream primary school.
An IEP is set up by the school for one or more pupils and contains a range of educational goals which are developed for each type and level of special education. A certificate of basic education, although obtained through a special school, has the same legal value as a certificate from a mainstream school.
Integrated special education
Integrated education is a form of co-operation between mainstream and special schools. Pupils with a statement that allows for special education, can follow mainstream schooling, full-time or part-time, with additional support from a special school. Access to integrated education is based on the certificate of special needs education and an integration plan, which outlines the particular form of integration and the additional special support required. This plan is the result of negotiation and agreement among the two co-operating schools and the parents, assisted by the support service(s).
The integration plan has to be evaluated each school year and eventually renewed for another year.
The nature and amount of support depends on the type of special needs and the degree of disability.
Support can be permanent or temporary. Blind and deaf pupils may have permanent personal support of 4 hours a week. Other pupils may have only 2 hours per week, which may be limited in time: one or two years. Pupils with moderate or severe intellectual retardation, considered as not able to reach the aims of the mainstream school, have no access to extra personal support. They may only benefit from occasional assistance from the mainstream school staff.
Pupils with a disability in mainstream schools have access to special learning aids: e.g. technical tools or translation of study books (braille) and other materials. The headteacher of the mainstream school must apply for these materials. A ministerial commission decides upon the application.
Pupils with disabilities who are not able to follow particular parts of the mainstream curriculum can benefit from a permission to replace this curriculum content by other equivalent activities.
Education at home
Apart from type 5 special education which is for pupils who stay for a long term in a hospital or a residential care institution, all pupils who cannot go to school for more than 28 days, caused by illness or accident, can benefit from temporary education at home for 2 hours per week.
Disabled pupils who, because of their disability are permanently unable to attend a school, have the right to permanent education at home, consiting of 4 hours a week, after a positive decision by a regional commission. In this case, home education has to be provided by a special school from the local area of the pupil's home.