The Singelijn school in Woluwe-Saint-Lambert has been providing education to around 40 students with special needs for 10 years. Out of these, 11 students have intellectual disabilities, most of them with Down’s syndrome. However, their future at the school is now uncertain due to the territorial poles, a new system that aims to integrate special needs students into mainstream education. The school’s director, Dominique Paquot, revealed that the new system won’t provide the same personalized support services to the incoming student with Down syndrome as it did for previous students. The student won’t be able to benefit from any educational assistance from specialized education, which is a cause of concern for the school’s administration. The school had previously received support from a specialized partner school to assist teachers in their daily tasks. Without personalized help, it is almost impossible to welcome children with intellectual disabilities over the long term and with an ambitious project. The school director described the decision as outrageous and unacceptable. It sends a harmful message that children with Down syndrome are not considered as full citizens and don’t have the same rights as others. It goes once morest everything we should strive for as an inclusive society, denounces the director.
For the past ten years, the Singelijn school (Woluwe-Saint-Lambert) has welcomed around forty pupils with special needs, including eleven with intellectual disabilities, most of whom have Down’s syndrome. But the reception of these children, which is at the heart of the school’s DNA, is threatened by the territorial poles, the new system aimed at including children with special needs in mainstream education.
”Next year, we will have the pleasure of welcoming a new student with Down syndrome aged 2 and a half. To welcome this new child, I called on the Territorial Poles which, without going into details, now replace the Integration Decree. This morning, like every morning, I opened my emails at 7:30 am and discovered, with a lot of anger and sadness, their response. This informed us that the new pupil with trisomy 21 would not be able to benefit from the same personalized support services as the previous pupils.explains Dominique Paquot, director of the establishment.
”We are told that if the student has not attended special education, he will not be able to benefit from integration, even if his needs are proven.”
Concretely, this means that this child will not be able to benefit from any educational assistance from specialized education, contrary to what was done before the reform.
”To help teachers in their daily tasks, we were lucky enough to benefit from the Integration Decree, which allowed us to receive support from a specialized partner school. Two teachers, almost full-time, were present every day to provide assistance, suggest arrangements and create a real synergy between the children and them. Without personalized help, it is almost impossible to welcome children with intellectual disabilities over the long term and with an ambitious project.”, he specifies. The director has never hidden his concern regarding this reform. However, he hoped that adjustments would be possible.
“This decision is simply outrageous and unacceptable. By refusing any individual aid to children with Down syndrome who do not come from a specialized school, the Wallonia-Brussels Federation and the Territorial Poles send a very harmful message: that these children are not considered as full citizens. and that they do not have the same rights as others. It goes once morest everything we should strive for as an inclusive society. Every child deserves an equal chance to learn, develop and thrive. If the FWB is unable to provide adequate support to these children, when it is able to do so for other children, it is denying them their fundamental right to a quality education in a mainstream school. .”, denounces the director.
The Singelijn school has been a haven for children with special needs for a decade, but now, their future is uncertain due to the territorial poles system. Despite the implementation of this new system aimed at including children with special needs in mainstream education, the school’s director, Dominique Paquot, received an email that informed him that a new pupil with Down syndrome would not be able to benefit from personalized support services. This decision is not only outrageous and unacceptable but also sends a harmful message that these children are not considered as full citizens. We should strive for an inclusive society where every child deserves an equal chance to learn, develop, and thrive. If the authorities can provide adequate support to other children, denying children with intellectual disabilities their fundamental right to quality education in a mainstream school is a severe infringement of their human rights. It’s time to act and ensure that no child is left behind!
