Pandemic Erodes Special Education
The joint commitment of government and relevant ministries is needed to create a better world for special needs children.
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Fitriani, 45 (right) helps her son Arief Fadillah, 16, a student of the SLB Tunas Bangsa school for children with disabilities, study at home in Gunung Bahagia village, South Balikpapan, Balikpapan city, East Kalimantan, on Monday (20/7/2020). Arief, who has a physical disability, needs to be accompanied by his mother while studying from home during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Special education in Indonesia has been pioneered by private institutions from the beginning. Before Indonesian independence, the Dutch East Indies government acknowledged the absence of focused attention to children with special educational needs.
At the time, the provision of education for special needs children (ABK in Indonesian) was left to a Dutch social foundation that had opened a branch in Indonesia. Apart from that, special needs education was undertaken by public initiatives.