BLIND EDUCATION IN NIGERIA

BLIND EDUCATION IN NIGERIA Education they say is “the bedrock of every nation”. This implies that it is the solid foundation upon which every nation stands without which a collapse is imminent. When you educate a child, you develop his thoughts which he in turns gives back to the society by way of innovations and service delivery. In Nigeria for instance, attention is paid more to children with no visual loss, whose education without doubt is obtained with less stress and at no extra cost. Thousands of schools exist across the nation where these sighted children can go on daily basis and be tutored by teachers using such materials like the blackboards, chalks, pencils, pens, exercise books and text books to mention but a few. In most cases, some of these materials are provided completely for free by government, with some states even going farther to provide equally for free such items as school uniforms, school sandals, school bags, and desks. Imo State government under the leadership of Owelle Rochas Okorocha is currently building 305 model primary schools in all the 305 political wards in the State with many nearing completion with no attention given to the education of the blind. A trip to some of the few existing centres where the blind can receive special education would reveal to you the sorry state in which these schools operate with little or no government attention. While some states in the nation can boast of having special education centres, Imo State cannot boast of any in sharp contrast to the ongoing project of building 305 model primary schools in all the 305 political wards in the State. To what can this be attributed? With only two years left for the realisation of the United Nations millennium goal on education for all, is it possible in the slightest imagination for Nigeria to attain this goal? There is not one special education centre for the blind that can be said to have been built by the Federal Government of Nigeria and even the existing ones do not receive any attention whatsoever from the Federal Government. It is a truism that blind education world over is highly capital intensive. In place of the pen, they use the Braille writing frame, Braille machine, and the typewriter; and in place of exercise books for note taking, they use tape recorders, batteries and empty cassettes. Transcription of text books into Braille remains a mirage. It therefore becomes imperative for our government to get more directly involved in providing the right environment for blind education to thrive in Nigeria. Government would be encouraging street begging by the blind if they neglect to send them to school. Let’s help build an all-inclusive educational system where everybody can be carried along without discrimination on grounds of race, sex, colour, religion, language, disability or social status.