Nigeria calls for inclusive education for blind students
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Punch
Illustrative image · Pavel Danilyuk · Pexels · Licence PexelsThe Resource Centre for the Blind is calling on Nigerian authorities to strengthen inclusive education, assistive tools and specialist teacher training for visually impaired students. Its executive director, Temitayo Ayinla, denounces the lack of accessible materials and barriers to scientific careers, according to Punch.
Temitayo Ayinla, executive director of the Resource Centre for the Blind (RCB), has called on Nigeria’s federal and state governments to invest more in inclusive education, assistive technologies and specialised teacher training for blind students, according to the Punch newspaper. She was speaking at an event held in Lagos to mark World Sight Day and International White Cane Day.
The shortage of teachers trained in special education and the lack of accessible teaching materials are limiting the educational and professional paths of visually impaired students, Temitayo Ayinla said. She said these obstacles were keeping them particularly away from science, technology, engineering and mathematics, and called on schools and private organisations also to fund adapted materials, assistive technologies and employment opportunities.
The RCB has launched a training-of-trainers workshop to help teachers teach mathematics to visually impaired students, its director said. The initiative follows recent calls for the training of Nigerian teachers, as authorities are urged to turn their commitments into concrete measures.
