Increase in switch to special schools

INCREASING numbers of young people with special education needs are switching from mainstream to special schools, but research has found that unsuitable curriculum or teaching methods may be more of a factor in the trend than inadequate supports.

The body representing special schools said the proposed introduction of a new award as an alternative to the Junior Certificate for people with mild to moderate learning disabilities could be helpful to those for whom the mainstream system is not suitable.

Research for the National Association of Boards of Management in Special Education found the proportion of new entrants to special schools aged 12 or older who had come from mainstream schools rose from half to three-quarters between 2005 and 2009. The study was carried out by Dr Aine Kelly and Catherine Devitt of Saint John of God Hospitaller Service with teachers, parents and students at 54 of the country’s 119 special schools, which had more than 6,600 pupils in 2009, around 40% of them aged 12 or older.