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Special books for kids with disabilities
The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Wed, 05/21/2008 10:43 AM | National
A readers group is promoting special books for children with disabilities, citing the need to instill reading habits.
Director of the Society for the Advancement of Children's Literature (KPBA), Murti Bunanta, said many people, including teachers, had ignored the importance of the books for these children.
"Children with disabilities are just like ordinary kids who need to read many books. Unfortunately, there are few books that are readable for them," Murti Bunanta told a seminar recently.
The seminar was jointly held by KPBA, the National Education Ministry's Directorate of Special School and Directorate General of Primary and Secondary School.
A number of foreign experts joined the seminar to share their experience on how to select special books.
Murti said that each disability required a different kind of book. Blind children, for example, need Braille books or the ones that are tactile.
Murti displayed a special book for blind kids, which she obtained from Japan. Made of flannel cloths, its pages contained objects to resemble fruits like bananas, oranges and apples.
"Through such a book, blind children can touch the objects and recognize them," said Murti.
One of the Norwegian education experts participating in the seminar, Heidi Cortner Swensen, repeated the need for special books for children with disabilities.
"Children with disabilities need special books because their disability stops them from reading. Different disabilities demand different types of books and these books ought to be the same artistic qualities and multitude as general children's books," said Swensen, who is also a teacher of a special school in Norway.
"Special books can help stimulate language development, help identification and the process of socialization. The children can diminish loneliness and give artistic and cultural experiences and joy."
The United Nations has issued standard rules about equal opportunities and the UN Convention on the rights of people with disabilities, which requires individual countries to include people with disabilities in society and make sure they can take part in the same cultural activities.
Murti said many Indonesian did not realize the needs of disabled children.
"Their parents even have no idea about this. That's why we are here, to encourage people to raise the children's interest in reading," said Murti, who has published 16 series of picture books for children under five years old. (trw)
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