Introduction
Inclusion of all people in the social system plays a fundamental role in uniting people. Discrimination or segregation on the hand disunite people and create social barriers among member of society. In some communities people with different forms of disabilities such as mental and physical disabilities are considered as social outcast. They are denied privileges which are normally offered to normal people in the community. They lack quality education, better job opportunities and adequate medical care. Government and the entire community are charged with responsibility of taking care of people with disabilities however, this is not always the case. Inclusion concepts advocate for a society whereby everyone is treated with equal dignity and offered equal opportunity in the society regardless of their disabled nature. It also encourages people to build a state in which every person lives with a reason appreciating every single moment of their lives. When people with profound disabilities are segregate from the normal community life their self esteem is compromised. They feel rejected and worthless in life; exclusion also denies them an opportunity to develop. Inclusion of disabled people in all community programs motivates them to live positively with their disabilities and endeavor to achieve their goals in life in spite of their disabilities. Nations are encouraged to set policies that reduce disparities between the normal people and those with disabilities. If this is achieved nations would realize improvement in the living standard of the entire public and eventually positive development of the nations. Social inclusion concept addresses many issues pertaining to people living with disabilities for instance it checks whether they are able to meet their basic necessities, raise adequate income, get equal opportunities in learning institutions and the job market(Fredrickson,2009,p.98). The essay seeks to explore concept of inclusion by looking into its definition and barriers that eliminate disabled people from normal community life. It also addresses the roles played by personalization of care, personal budget, parent and families in encouraging inclusion of people with disabilities in community life.
Definition
Concept of inclusion refers to the element of incorporating people with disabilities into normal community life. It is a practice whereby disabled people are offered equal opportunities with normal people in the society. For instance incorporating disable children into general education system with provision of necessary aids in order to enhance their learning. Systems which allow children learn together through integration without labeling or stereotyping the disabled children but they share curriculum and other physical facilities with their counterparts if nature of their disability allows. Inclusion concepts require people with disabilities to be given equal opportunities in leisure activities and employment opportunities and creation of a situation whereby everyone in the society is equally valued. Cultural practices and policies should be modified in order to be able to respond to the diverse need of the community. Disable people may need special physical facilities such as ramps, hearing aids and special sanitary facilities. Government as well as individuals in the society should provide these necessities in order to allow disabled people to take part in all communal activities. This also promotes normal development process of people living with disabilities. Inclusion reduces the barrier that exists between normal people and those lining with disabilities. Equal distribution of resources, going through the same education system and appreciating of disabled people in the society motivates the society to view disabled people as being part of the rather than being a burden. The society should generously and frankly accommodate people lining with disabilities without pity or restrictions of any form. Inclusion concept put emphasis on universal design of all social amenities but with a bias to the needs of disabled people in the society. The concept argue that the entire society its real accessibility and social attitudes are supposed to exist in a universal design. Inclusion concept was established to make sure that children living with disabilities went to the same schools with normal children. in the contemporary times the concept address a range of activities with an aim of ensuring that people with different abilities fit in and are involved in aim and objectives of the entire society (Clement & Bidy,2009,p.118).
Inclusion concept in some countries has a different perspective whereby normal people tend to show pity to the people living with disabilities. Medical society express inclusion concept through medical therapy whereby the sickness is viewed as a form of disability. Medical model operate with an aim of stabilizing the health of the patient rather than the universal design of the inclusion concept. Social model disagrees with medical model, social model argue that inclusion is a wide scope that goes beyond the health of individuals. People with physical and mental impairments should be allowed to participate fully in all societal activities. The society should view them in the same way they view ordinary people they only have extra differences from the normal population (Shawn, 2005, p.29).
Barriers
People living with disabilities come across many barriers in their normal day to day lives that prevent their normal involvement in community life. Barrier can be classified into two groups’ inherent and environmental barriers. Inherent barriers are those barriers which are as a result of physical, emotional and intellectual limitations. Environmental barriers are external factors which limit individuals with disabilities from participating fully in all communal activities. For instance poverty which may lead to lack of adequate social amenities for people living with disabilities, negative attitude from the society or people living with disabilities may also hider inclusion. Most of these obstacles are as a result of environmental nature in which they reside and attitudes which the normal person have towards disabled persons. The society view disabled people as being of less value compare to normal people who do not require any special attention or extra resources in order to perform normally. Disabled people have limited access to services and facilities provided to the ordinary people, for instance use of stairs to access a storied building is impossible for disabled people unless a ramp is provided. Lack of adequate information on how to handle disabled people and to ensure that their needs are adequately met al all levels. Lack of services such as sign language interpreter notably for people with hearing disabilities in some regions exclude them fro normal community life. Technological innovations are on the rise however, technological services that address the needs of the disabled are not in place. For instance many job advisements are posted online people with disabilities that limit them from accessing technological services the blind and dyslexic individuals are disadvantaged. The society does not have diversity that accommodates the needs of the disabled (Farrel, 2003, p.56).
Disabled people are excluded from normal community life because the community undermines their abilities to perform normal community roles. Some community considers them as social outcast while other view them as a burden. Disabled people may need extra attention as opposed to a normal personal especially when it comes to promotion of their normal developmental process. Some societies consider this as waste of time; time spent in giving extra attention to disabled people can be used to develop different economic benefits. Extra attention may call for extra resources; poverty may act as barrier because the society can not meet all the necessary resources. For instance physically disabled persons may need wheel chairs to facilitate their movement; lack of money to purchase the wheel chair excludes the disabled persons from free movement. The disabled are not able to attend school with normal people. A poor society is not able to put up social amenities such as leisure facilities for the disabled since they also require extra modification. A lack of policies which promote integration of government and non-governmental systems of operation in order to meet needs of people living with disabilities are adequately met. For instance policy to govern learning institutions on how to balance their social amenities to meet the needs of normal students as well as those of disabled students. Some buildings do not have ramps which are meant to provide accessibility to people living with disabilities. Law makers are supposed to lay down minimum requirements to be met by these corporations to ensure that disabled people are not excluded from ordinary community life. Laws protecting people living with disabilities are faintly applied by most people and organizational bodies. Some disabilities limit people fro performing normal duties in life for instance physical disability that prevent people from walking may deny them opportunities to interact with others in a social gathering. In some occasion the society view disabled people as a burden; this compromises the self esteem of disabled people they may hide from the community life. Current systems of work have failed to integrate activities that give people living with disabilities opportunities to work in different organizations. Working conditions in industries and other commercial sector are only suitable for normal people, these working conditions excludes people living with disabilities. Disabled people suffer from lack of equal opportunities to accomplish their dreams; there are very few learning institutions which address education needs for the disabled. Most disabled persons attend normal school some of which lack suitable facilities that enhance their learning. Their performance is compromised hence poor results which deny them excellent job opportunities in the job market. Discrimination of disabled has been extended even in the job market. Companies and other organizations decline to recruit people with disabilities in their organization because they think that their output would be compromised by their disabilities (Gibson, 2005, p.148)
Role played by personalization of care and individual budget
Inclusion of persons with disability would help them build their self esteem and also reduce the disparity that exists between the disabled and normal people. Individuals who understand challenges which are faced by the disabled are expected to be at the fore front in order to enhance inclusion of disabled in community life. Personalization care is whereby individuals take challenges faced by the disable at a personal level and devote themselves to address the challenges. People living with disabilities should also take part in promoting their inclusion in community life. They understand their needs better than any one else hence their contributions are fundamental. Individuals dedicate themselves to take care of disabled in the community. They advocate for establishment of policies that favor people living with disabilities in the community (Frederickson 2009, p. 23). These individuals realize that disabled people can productive as it is with normal people. Personalization care plays a fundamental role in helping people with disability realize their full potential in life. They handle problems facing people living with disabilities at personal level, strive to understand the underling problem in order to be able to make informed decision that allow disabled persons to enjoy equal opportunities in the society. Individual budget provide resources required for the purpose of promoting inclusion concept. Special social amenities which may be needed are set up at community level to ensure social integration between the disabled and normal people. Individual budget is also in capacity building of the community for the purpose of understanding the importance of inclusion. In implementing individual budget opinions of the disabled communities may be consulted since they are at a better position to identify their needs. This avoids misplaced priorities in laying strategies that promote inclusion in the local community. Resources to advocate for ant – discrimination of people living with disabilities need to be developed and distributed to the public to increase their awareness (Knoublauch, 1999, p.102).
Role of parents and families in promoting inclusion criteria of children with disabilities
Parents and families are the immediate contact with children with disabilities; hence they play a major role in order to enhance inclusion of children with disabilities in community life. As the child grows they are able to identify any form of disability in them and take measures that ensure that the child is fully incorporated in the community regardless of their disabled nature. However, this is not always the case as some parents shy off and in turn hides their children from the community. The child is segregated; he/she does not get an opportunity to interact with other children. In some cases children are not even taken to school they remain at home for the rest of their lives hides and segregated from the public. These children are not given an opportunity to discover and to utilize their talents they are unthinkably excluded from the community. Parents and care givers of this kind deny children an opportunity to experience life under normal setting because they do not uphold inclusion concept. On the other hand parent who upholds inclusion concept integrate disabled children into the community life at early stages of life. These parents promote the wellbeing of disabled children by providing them with necessary support. They strive to learn rights of children with disabilities in order to be able to assist them in social inclusion system. Parents get schools which are suitable for their disabled children while they are in schools parent usually make follow ups to ensure that their children are getting the necessary support. Families members also play a fundamental role in promoting inclusion of disabled children, they support the children in the society so that they can feel appreciated as part of the society. Families create an optimal environment whereby children living with disabilities are given equal opportunity in the local community. They also offer support to the disabled children so that they are not excluded in the normal activities such as playing with peers, family members may provide support by supporting movement of disabled children who are not able to walk on their own. Families watch children with disabilities closely and protect them from exploitation by the society. However, in some cases families do not support inclusion concept, they segregate children living with disabilities from community life. In fact, some families discriminate these children from other members of the families; they may be viewed as a burden or social outcast (Tara & Jerry n.d., p.119).
Effects of inclusion on family life
When parents and families promote inclusion of children living with disabilities, they also promote unity in family life. Whereby every member of the family feel appreciated, this erodes disparities among family members. Children living with disabilities are given an opportunity to learn basic skills in life; this makes the work of parents and the entire family easy as they do not have to be always there in order to take care of the disabled children. This also bring joy to the family as the element of disability does not always stand out, disabled children are able to take equal part with other members of the society. Positive development of the family is also realized, parents and other family members are able to continue with their income generating activities hence adequate offering support to the family. Children with disabilities feel loved by their parents/ care givers and other member of the family. In return they shoe respect to their parents and family members which strengthen the family bond further. The joy experienced by these families is also extended to the entire community hence promoting a health and happy society. Parents and family member who opposes inclusion of children living with disabilities weaken the family bondage. High level of disparities is observed among the family members whereby disabled children are excluded from the normal community life. Mostly these families are always complaining and some may even blame the disabled children (Gibson, 2005, p.183).
Conclusion
Inclusion concept advocates from incorporation of all members of the community into the community life system regardless of their disabilities. People living with disabilities require equal opportunities as other members of the society. They deserve to attend schools of similar standards with other normal members of the community (Knoblauch 1999, para. 4). However, modification of social amenities such as sanitary facilities, pathways and furniture in order to meet their needs is important. Parents and other family members play a major role in inclusion since they are the immediate contact with the children as they are growing up. They give children living with disabilities opportunity to interact with the wider community and participate in community life activities. Intrinsic and external barriers that exclude people living with disabilities from normal community life exist. Intrinsic barrier are as a result of emotional, physical and intellectual limitations which hider people living with disabilities from participating in normal community life activities.
Environmental barriers also referred to as external factors limit individuals with disabilities from participating fully in all communal activities. For instance poverty which may lead to lack of adequate social amenities for people living with disabilities, negative attitude from the society or people living with disabilities may also hider inclusion. Inclusion allows people living with disabilities to have a chance of accessing normal life experiences, reduce disparity which exist between people living with disabilities and normal people. They feel loved, this boost their self-esteem and hence strengthen their family bonds.
Reference List
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