Daily Times

Parliamentary Secretary for Federal Education and Professional Training Zeb Jaffar on Wednesday applauded that newly-approved law by the parliament children suffering from dyslexia or associated disorders would be benefited by the international and national legal standards of education.

She expressed these views at a meeting which was also attended by senior officials of the ministry and other stakeholders. Previously, she stated, the children suffering from dyslexia or associated disorders are unable to fully benefit from the international and national legal standards of education, the senator said, while terming dyslexia the most common learning disorder in children.

The new law called by Dyslexia Special Measures Bill 2022 recently passed by parliament in its joint sitting. The President Dr Arif Alvi also signed the bill subsequently.

While explaining the advantages of the bill, the Parliamentary secretary recalled that yet it will be implemented only in the federal capital but hopefully it will be expanded countrywide on the next stage. Initially moved by PML-N Senator Nuzhat Sadiq the bill reads “due to lack of awareness about dyslexia in Pakistan, we have to rely on international statistics according to which 15 percent to 20 percent of children in each class have some form of learning difficulty”.

In her note of purpose senator Sadiq said “It is not a disease and therefore has no cure, and with support: proper instruction, and hard work, many people with dyslexia are able to succeed academically and in their later lives.” But most of the parents of dyslexic children, she added, are in denial and educational institutes are not dyslexia friendly”.

“Many in Pakistan still think that a learning disability comes under the mental illness category and this adds to the shame and stigma. The schools in Pakistan do not have programmes to help children with such learning disabilities, and teachers are not generally trained to deal with the issue, if not completely ignorant of it. The few private schools that offer special education often charge extortionate prices which aren’t accessible to the general public,” she further said.

The law pledges measures for the education of dyslexic children, stating that all children with dyslexic or associated disorders have a right to education to enable the full development of their human potential.

“No child with dyslexia or associated disorder shall be excluded from the education system on the basis of it, and the government shall ensure that all persons with dyslexia or associated disorder, especially girls, have access to education, without discrimination and on an equal basis with others, at all levels.” Under this law, the government shall prescribe procedures for identifying children having dyslexia or associated disorder.

“It shall also ensure dyslexia and associated disorder screening test of all the children at the time of their admission in schools,” it said, adding that every school shall have a staff of special educators who have the requisite qualifications and training to cater to the needs of students with dyslexia or associated disorder. “Once a child has been identified with dyslexia or associated disorder, the child or parent shall be entitled to ask for specific instructions for that child’s specific needs,” the law added.

Meanwhile, education minister Rana Tanveer Hussain urged the NAVTTC and NSU to perform at its full capacity. He emphasized the need to work diligently and complete the ongoing projects at maximum speed.