INCLUSIVE EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS IN UZBEKISTAN

(The presentation by the Chairman of the Parents’ Club at the final conference in Tashkent)

«… The family is the place where unique conditions for the formation of value orientations, attitudes, emotional relationships to other people are created which is the basis for the development of the child as a whole»

Dear colleagues, guests. I am Muyassar Ibragimova Kurbanova – the Head of the Parents’ Club «Umid» from the city of Urgench. More than 35 years working in the school №10 as a math teacher, currently being retired I am engaged in raising my grandchildren.

The need for the formation of the Parents’ Club in the framework of the project «Inclusive Education for Children with Special Needs in Uzbekistan» - it is an axiom, not a theorem.

The Parents’ Club - is to help parents in acquiring sufficient knowledge about the peculiarities of the child's upbringing, in the provision of psychological support, in a friendly merger of all the participants of the educational process, parents, teachers and children.

Anyone who understands the goals and objectives of inclusive education and especially those who carried through their heart the need and necessity of this type of education for children with special needs, took the creation of the parents’ Club «Umid» in Urgench with great faith and hope for help and support. Because education for children with special needs - is, first of all, receiving career counseling and socialization skills in the society to which they belong.

The Parents’ Club - it is teamwork of all specialists involved in the educational process - namely, teachers, class teachers, a psychologist, a special education teacher, medical professionals, members of the MPPC and PMPC commissions, school administration and, of course, the parents!

The parent club began its work in September 2015. Its membership today consists of more than 90 people (families). There have been no decisions, orders about the establishment of the club, a big family was just born, which brings together parents and children with common problems and different achievements. The parents turned to the Resource Center of the project with their questions, stories, need for advice where they found the answers to the questions, which for years were in their heart.

The main goal of our club is to create optimal conditions for the harmonious development of the child with special educational needs in the family and educational institutions through increased psychopedagogical and educational competence of parents, with the active participation of teachers and care takers. One of the most effective ways to help families raising a child with special needs is the «parents’ club». The Parents’ Club «Umid» has set itself the following objectives:

   - Formation of an adequate perception of the parents of their child: it is important to move away from the concept of «disease» and move on to the concept of «special laws of development of the child»;

   - Formation of a favorable microclimate in the family for maximum disclosure of personal, creative, and social resources of the child;

   - Formation of partnerships among parents, kindergartens and schools for quality education,
enrichment and exchange of experiences;

   - Personal and social development of parents, the formation of skills of social activity and constructive behavior.

Until today the club «Umid» spent a lot of work, literacy has increased, horizons parents have broaden, they received a wealth of knowledge on inclusive education, its legal basis, the organization, the problems of children, many parents have learned to keep a diary of observations, to identify the strengths and weaknesses of their child.

About 15 of the most active parents participated in training workshops on inclusive education. The level of knowledge of parents on education, care and diagnosis following a series of workshops conducted by psychologists of the Khoresm regional institute of retraining and improvement of qualification of the workers Salayeva Navbakhor, Bekchanov Husinbay and Sabirov Kamildjahon has improved.

The main functions of the club are:

   - create a positive perception of the child’s with special educational needs for the parents;

   - widen parents’ understanding of their upbringing functions in relation to their child with special needs;

   - acquaint parents with effective methods of the parent-child relationship, methods of upbringing to support the child;

   - form the motivation for parents to cooperate with specialists of the school, to participate in the meetings of the Club «Umid»;

   - facilitate the wider contacts with the society, to provide the opportunity of communication for parents of children who have similar problems.

Our social partners today are: College of Olympic Reserve, fund «Soglom avlod uchun», the Central Polyclinic of Urgench, the Democratic Party of Uzbekistan «Milly Tiklanish», Urgench department of trade unions, football boarding school, youth organization «Kamolot», Urgench State University. I would like to thank these people for their work caring for children and for their contribution to the development of inclusive education.

If we say that we taught parents something, probably, it will be wrong, rather we need to say that parents learned something. - They learned to devote more time to their child, which was a big problem in many families. Every Wednesday there are classes in the gym of the College of Olympic Reserve, which are carried out by volunteers Sabohat Bekchanova and Ilmira Sabirova. And after activities all parents stay to share experiences, to draw conclusions and to talk about the success of their children.

We are glad to hear and see when the parents understand and apply in practice such specific terms as large and fine motor skills, social adaptation, etc. Every Saturday there are classes in choreography, where parents and children learn to dance. Parents see their children having fun while dancing. These were children who covered their ears and who became capricious at the sound of music, and now they perform all the movements under the guidance of a volunteer, the first-year student of college Osuda Kabulova.

I think that at such a moment our children are born again and become confident in their actions. On Tuesdays and Thursdays we have a classes of the special education teacher and a chess school, which is conducted by Dinara Alibekova . Families of our kids have become more united, and according to one of the mothers who shared her secret with me - «our dad had not gone out for a walk with our son but now he says -» Come on, I'll take him to classes myself.» Isn’t it a victory?!

In many families parents organized corners of sand and fairy-tale therapy and sensory corners in their children's rooms. Another achievement of the Parents’ Club - is a constant communication with schools and kindergartens which our children attend. Cooperation with teachers, educators, psychologists, speech therapists of these institutions has been developed. In addition, parents are actively involved in the preparation of individual educational plans for children.

Most of the parents know each other by name and patronymic, they are familiar with the children, their problems, experiences. If they find somewhere a book or an article related to their overall activities they exchange information with each other. They are proud of the achievements and successes of the children, all have become as brothers and sisters, in a word - a family. Parents often take the initiative and submit proposals for new activities improving existing projects.

Our club has a goal - to open the NGO and to expand its activities, in particular, based on the past experience, to start working with parents in other areas of Khoresm region. Summing up I want to say that the teachers, no matter what age they are, cannot live without pupils. Perhaps that is why in spite of the fact that I am retired when I see children with special needs on the street  l think about how to approach the mother and to ask about her problems, to support and help her.

This is how it happened, for example, with Azizbek, who lives not far from my house. There were three days of thought and finally I decided to go to their home and talk to his mother. Now the mother is very happy, because Azizbek is able to realize his dream - to go in for sports, he is preparing for the championship in swimming with his coach of the Paralympics Sharafiddinov Kalandarov, and he is also engaged in choreography and chess classes.

Today, speaking in front of such a large and serious audience, having worked for one and a half years in the project and the Parents’ Club, having certain skills and experience, I can confidently express our and teachers’ shared believes:

   - all children can and will learn;

   - cooperation and social partnerships promote mutual understanding;

   - our success depends on our efforts;

   - change is a new opportunity;

   - good relationships are a great force!

In my opinion, the whole world is a fabulous land called «Childhood» and all the inhabitants of this land are parents and children. Whatever events we are engaged in or whatever projects are organized, there should always be the main goal - to teach and educate children, to give them the quality education and training, to help them acquire social skills and profession which our children could manage, to help children find their place in life, to help parents develop self-control and confidence that the goal will be achieved.

We parents believe in the correctness of and the need for inclusive education, we felt it, and carried through the heart, we saw in practice the successes and achievements of our children that is why we must do everything in order that inclusive education in Uzbekistan will have the future so that it develops and strengthens as it is necessary to the whole society.