Definition of the target group(s)

The term used in the Romanian legislation and practice with reference to children needing special care is handicap.

On the second place, as frequency and area of use, is the term deficiency.

Both terms are defined within the legal framework and circulate in all relevant areas: child protection, education and health.

The concept child with special (educational) needs is used without a cert legal definition and refers to more limited areas, depending on the case – child protection or education. Recent legislative acts have started to use the concept disability. The new concept is meant to cover for both concepts handicap and deficiency.

Specific support measures

Children with special educational needs constitute one of the target-groups of the strategic priority Ensuring access to and improving quality of education for everyone.

A number of measures were taken in order to support the integration process – including training, teaching aids, and specific legislation. However, following various assessments and studies performed by the Ministry of National Education and other bodies, it is considered that the integration support measures need to be further developed and to address, among other issues, the following: training of the human resources in order to better prepare mainstream schools to integrates pupils with special educational needs.

Training and, in a more general meaning, preparation should be provided for:

• The management to enable building of an inclusive educational environment.

• The teachers to develop specific professional competences to work with pupils with special educational needs.

• The pupils for developing tolerance, understanding, supportive feelings.

• The parents of all pupils to support their children towards the development of an inclusive educational environment.

• Development of specific infrastructure for pupils with deficiencies (access pathways, special rest-rooms and toilets, recovery facilities, etc.).

• Development of school based curricula and activities specifically designed to support school progress of pupils with special education needs – e.g. for remedial education, afternoon programmes, inclusive education, etc..

• Ensuring an increased number of support teachers and auxiliary support staff.

• Diversification and further development of specific teaching aids, as well as reference works on the inclusive education.

According to the provisions of the Education Law, school integration of the children with special educational needs is accomplished through the following forms of education:

• Within distinct educational institutions, entirely dedicated to education and training of children with special educational needs (separated special education).

• Groups and classes for children with special educational needs organised within mainstream education institutions (partially integrated special education).

• Within groups and classes organised in mainstream education institutions (full integrated special education).

A number of measures were taken in order to support the integration process:

• Specific training for primary school inspectors, teachers and support personnel, teachers for primary education and psycho-pedagogues working for the commissions for child protection subordinated to the County Councils.

• Elaboration of teaching aids and inclusive education support materials, in cooperation with UNICEF.

• Transformation of certain special schools in resource centers for integrated education.

• Elaboration and implementation of the national programme A school for everyone regarding information, awareness and preparation of the schools and communities for integration of the pupils with special educational needs.

• Elaboration of specific legal framework in order to support the integration process.

To date, in most of the counties exist at least 2 mainstream schools enrolling pupils with special educational needs. Nevertheless, further actions are needed in order to ensure the development of an inclusive educational environment – focusing both on human resources and infrastructure.

Partially or fully integrated special education ensures both the social and school integration of the children with special educational needs, and the development of an inclusive educational environment in mainstream schools. More specifically, the integration process aims to:

• Offer equal opportunity to education to each and every child, regardless their learning, participation and development possibilities.

• Preparation of the schools and of the communities (management, teaching staff, parents, community at large) to accept children with special educational needs and thus to develop towards an inclusive educational environment.

• Accomplishment of the optimal conditions for the intellectual, physical, behavioral, and attitudinal development of the children with special educational needs in the community through:

  • specialised psycho-pedagogical assistance in school

  • specialised assistance in the family

  • social specialised services provided to the child and the family from the part of the legal authorities.

The general objectives of partially or fully integrated special education are as follows:

• To ensure total and active participation in the community life of the youngsters and adults with deficiencies upon completing their formal education.

• To ensure permanent and continuous assistance of the children with special educational needs in order to lead them towards an independent life, according to their own wills, aspirations and capacities.

• To remove the causes of the deficiencies, to prevent their aggravation and to diminish their consequences on the child.

• To avoid/eradicate any type of discrimination towards handicapped/deficient persons.

The specific teaching objectives depend on the education level and are adapted from the ones established for mainstream education to the actual potential of the children.

The co-operation between special educational institutions and mainstream education institutions became a way for ensuring equal opportunities to disabled children. Subsequently, integrated special educational structures have been established in the form of special classes and integration programmes.

Children with special needs are gradually integrated into mainstream schools, with the assistance of psycho-pedagogic specialists.

Children temporarily attend special classes until they are integrated into a mainstream school. They may also alternatively attend both special and mainstream classes.

Integration programmes are organised in order to support individual integration for 8-12 children into various classes in mainstream schools (for 2 or 3 units located in the same area).