To further equip students with knowledge and skills in special education, The Hong Kong Institute of Education (HKIEd) has launched the Special Educational Needs Empowerment Project for Pre-service Teachers (the project), a two-year service-learning programme dedicated to nurturing pre-service students. The project is to be implemented in three phases, and is being organised by the Centre for Special Educational Needs and Inclusive Education (CSENIE) at HKIEd. The aim is to enrich pre-service students’ knowledge and strategies for supporting special education needs (SEN) students, with a view to fostering a culturally inclusive learning environment.
With generous support from the Lee Hysan Foundation and a government matching grant, the project was launched in September 2014. So far, 438 students have enrolled voluntarily, and around 1200 pre-service teachers are expected to benefit from the project altogether. Starting with the Basic Level, students attend seminars, workshops and guided visits. Among 100 outstanding participants will be selected to join the Intermediate Level, to attend courses or tutorials on managing learning disabilities, community service and experience sharing. Twenty of these will then join the Advanced Level training with attachment visits to local and regional institutions and internship under the guidance of mentors. A certificate will be issued after completing the corresponding activities in each level.
Over 1,000 HKIEd students have participated in the activities at the Basic and Intermediate levels, of whom 97 obtained attendance certificates, while approximately 45 students who completed the Intermediate Level activities will receive appreciation certificates. It is expected that students who complete these two levels of training will fulfil the requirements for the Certificate in Professional Development Programme (Catering for Diverse Learning Needs).
Professor Kenneth Sin Kuen-fung, Director of CSENIE, thanked the Lee Hysan Foundation for its generosity. “The Project is integrated into the teacher training programmes of the Department of Special Education and Counselling. With the resources provided for special education from the Education Bureau and support from various special schools and non-governmental organisations, the project runs as a service learning mode to enhance prospective teachers’ confidence and competence in teaching students with special educational needs, preparing them to be competent teachers with knowledge in special education needs in the future”, he said.
With the development of integrated education in Hong Kong, more than 30,000 SEN students are currently studying in mainstream primary and secondary schools. Apart from providing teacher training in inclusive education, CSENIE has devised many school-based support initiatives for helping pre-service students to put theories into practice in facing the challenges of learning diversity.
For more details, please visit the website:
http://www.ied.edu.hk/csenie/view.php?m=489&secid=5587
(Source: HKIEd)
