Mainstream school staff do not have the specialist equipment or training needed to cater for the needs of disabled children. How are we supposed to educate them?
It might be worth clarifying what it means to educate children and young people. Some see the principal aim of education as generating the workforce of tomorrow while others see it as preparing all young people for adult life. CSIE considers this a false dichotomy and suggests the two are not mutually exclusive; indeed, the former is part of the latter. It seems self-evident that preparing young people for adult life is one of the fundamental aims of education. If we want to prepare todays pupils for tomorrows inclusive society, it seems pointless to work with some children in one type of setting and with others in separate institutions. All children and young people benefit from growing up, learning and developing with each other. As for resources and training, of course they help. Accessing resources and training often requires funds, time and will. (And we all know what happens when there is a will.) Principles underpinning special education, however, are not all that different from
