PUTRAJAYA: The Education Ministry (MOE) will increase the number of special education teachers in schools involved in fulfilling the implementation requirements of the “Zero Reject Policy” for special needs (OKU) students.
Director of the Education Ministry’s Special Education Division Datuk Dr Yasmin Hussain said the ministry would identify qualified teachers within three months to place them in the respective schools.
To date, she said a total of 15,218 special education teachers were serving at 8,579 primary and secondary schools which offer special education.
“Previously, most of the teachers with skills in special education were placed in the mainstream schools and we are now identifying them so that they can be placed in the appropriate stream,” she told reporters after conducting a visit on Zero Reject Policy Benchmark Implementation for 2019 OKU Students at SMK Putrajaya Presint 18 (1) yesterday.
The Zero Reject Policy is implemented to ensure that students with special needs receive education in line with their disabilities to go to primary schools through the Integrated Special Education Programme (PPKI) and the Inclusive Programme, or to Special Education Schools.
“We admit there are some states that do not have sufficient special education teachers and there are other issues that the ministry has resolved to implement the policy,” Yasmin said.
She said the ministry was also looking into other requirements including the additional facilities that were suitable for disabled students, to facilitate the teaching and learning sessions of the group.
Following the implementation of the Zero Reject Policy, the ministry, she said, had received an increase in student enrolment this year to more than 3,000, bringing the number to more than 87,000 students so far. – Bernama
