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{
    "id": 1029227,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1029227/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 240,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. (Prof.) Ongeri",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 124,
        "legal_name": "Samson Kegeo Ongeri",
        "slug": "samson-ongeri"
    },
    "content": "You cannot train such a child in the normal way by having them go to a normal classroom to listen to a teacher teaching using a blackboard with a chalk. Even if tablets are used, their attention span is much reduced in some of the cases. Their physical ability to handle certain gadgets may be limited to a certain extend. Their being in a learning environment helps them to be attended to, based on their health status. Some may have difficulties in articulation. Therefore, speech therapy may be an important addition to what they need within the centres. For some, their muscles may be moving in an awkward and uncoordinated manner. Therefore, they need a physiotherapy to bring order to the coordination and the way the muscles move, for those children to have a comfortable life and move without difficulties. Some may require hearing aids in the centres because if you do not hear, it is difficult to register anything in your mind. Therefore, it may be difficult for things to be absorbed in their minds. We need to enforce such services to them so that if one needs a hearing aid, they can get it so that they can hear correctly without any difficulty. Some of them may have speech problems and, therefore, they need speech therapy. I think I have already mentioned that. They need them so that they can pronounce certain vowels with ease without any problem or difficulty. I have already alluded to the fact that they may be interested in multiple things at the same time. Therefore, you need to bring order in their thought processes, so that they think in a particular direction. The only person who can bring that order is a teacher who is trained to handle special needs requirements. They may also require certain basic types of things that suite their conditions. They may not be in a position to chew very hard foods. However, they may be able to chew some soft foods to help them maintain their health statuses in a perfect condition. The needs of a special needs child are peculiar and different from a normal school going child. What we need to do is to create favourable climate even for parents to learn and accept the conditions so that they help those children to grow. It becomes a painful and distressful exercise for parents with children with special needs. They always give up. They need to be encouraged and brought on board. The only other people who can do that are teachers in the training centres. We appreciate that it is not all the time that those children are in the special centres because they must stay at home at some stage. Even simple things like how they wear or dress are important because that brings self-worth to an individual and make them to accept their condition. This is not an Act in vain. Section 46 of the Basic Education Act must be operationalized. The policy has been put in place and the centres have been located and sited as county government centres under the county governments‘ directors of education. What needs to be done is to come up with a Bill so that it gives direction and guidance on how this should be done and how certain groups of people must step in to help those people. This is because it is an army of workers ranging from health workers, social workers, physiotherapists, speech therapists, parents, the community, and all the other people who are involved who need to accept it as something that is very important. This"
}