Project News

The project with 4 special schools and 10 regular schools is working to develop and implement new initiatives to ensure children with disabilities or learning difficulties can take full advantage of school life. On June 12, 2018 teachers from 14 schools hosted a debriefing session on activities to-date at their schools. The following summary introduces initiatives at two schools.

1. Learning Support through Child Development Centers

Four of the eight general education schools in Ulaanbaatar have improved student's learning environment and facilities by installing handrails, removing steps inside the classroom, enriching an assortment of teaching materials, among other measures. The remaining 4 schools established child development centers. These centers provide children with disabilities or learning difficulties enrolled in regular classes with supplementary lessons and instruction responsive to their disabilities before/after the regular classes.

One school in the Sukhbaatar District of Ulaanbaatar City established a child development center in November 2017. Four students attend the center and work on the subjects like reading, writing, arithmetic, etc. that they each found difficult in the classroom.

One first grader, "Student A," upon entering school in September struggled with writing the Cyrillic cursive alphabet used in Mongolia and with reading aloud from textbooks. Student A often did not understand lesson material in their language class and was conscious of these struggles. Upon consultation between the learning manager and their parents, Student A began attending the center 2-3 times a week.

At the center, an assigned primary school teacher works together with college students studying special education support at the Mongolian State University of Education to instruct the children. Following discussion with the learning manager, Student A practiced trace writing and listening comprehension for letters of the alphabet. Because students will eventually tire of just studying, the center also sets aside time for reading and playing with toys that encourage motor skills.

As a result, Student A's writing mistakes have decreased, and he is now able to read without stopping in the middle of sentences. His mother wants her child to continue learning at this school together with other children and develop his social skills.

2. Support through Equipment and Facilities

A school in the Bayangol District of Ulaanbaatar City has installed handrails in staircases and hallways to improve the experience of student with lower-body disability. In addition, although this student has generally been unable to participate in physical education classes up to this point. After school administrators and class teachers met with each other and received advice from instructors at a nearby special school. Then they started a program of individual physical education instruction.

Going forward, project members will work together with schools to implement programs that will allow disabled children to learn at regular schools in their community.

Photo Gallery of Activities

Instruction at a child development center

A school staircase with newly-installed handrails

Receiving individual instruction at a physical education class