Disability NGO Breaking Limits has urged the Ministry of Education to further develop the concept of inclusive education.

In a statement, the NGO said it would like to see more inclusion in terms of both curricular as well as extracurricular activities for disabled people.

Inclusive education, the NGO continued, could only be achieved through a system which is better equipped to address the needs of every individual student.

Classrooms therefore needed to be smaller in order for the teacher to be able to get to know the students better.

The NGO urged the ministry to address issues on the way prospective teachers were being trained – they needed to be able to cater for a wide range of needs, yet they were also under insurmountable pressure to achieve results, which consequently detracted away from the time needed to address their students’ needs.

“It is high time that inclusive education is no longer considered of secondary importance or swept under the rug, as has been done in the past.

“Disabled students and their parents are no longer happy with simply attending and having their children included in mainstream schools”.

Disabled students, the NGO concluded, deserved to have the opportunity to reach a level of education which allowed them to fulfil their full potential.