Traditional school inclusion models generally mean a majority group of typically-developing kids with a few children with special needs added into the mix, those kids who can make it in a more competitive school environment. Even if this method works for a few years, studies show that it can be socially limiting for the child with special needs who may never truly fit in with the rest of the crowd. Parents struggle to keep their children in inclusion environments because of the social stigma of ending up in a special education environment but what about the self-esteem of the child with special needs who feels isolated from his typical peers?
Informal-education programs such as Shutaf offer rare opportunities for kids and teens of all sorts to get to know each other, freed from the constraints of homework and the social and peer pressures of school. A well-planned, inclusive program facilitated by a trained staff can help kids work past discomforts and differences and find their way to new friendships and new social values learned. Enjoying each other’s differences and having fun together – the Shutaf way.
