Special Education in Russia in comparison with the British system of Special Education


ФГБОУВПО “Воронежский государственный университет” факультет романо-германской филологии
МКОУ лицей №11 г. Россоши Россошанского муниципального района Воронежской области
Реферат
Special Education in Russia in comparison with the British System of Special Education
Исполнитель:
Усачева Алина Олеговна
Ученица 11 “Б” класс
МКОУ лицей №11 г. Россоши
Научный руководитель:
Савченко Алла Владимировна,
учитель английского языка ВКК,
сертификат ТКТ Кембриджского Университета
Россошь
2015
Table of Contents:
Introduction………………………………………………………………3
Chapter I. Special Education in Present Day Britain………………….6
Meeting Special Education Needs…………………………………7
1.2. Statement of Education Needs………………………………………8
1.3. Conflict Resolution…………………………………………………..9
Chapter II. Russia’s System of Special Education…………………....10
2.1. Growth and Development of Special Education in Russia……...10
2.2. Special Education in Russia: Present Day………………………..11
2.3. Results of the Comparison between the Systems of Special Education in Russia and Great Britain………………………………..13
Chapter III. Promoting Inclusive Education. Perspectives of Inclusive Education………………………………………………………………..15
3.1. Research: Methods and Findings…………………………………15
Conclusion and Recommendations Section…………………………...20
Reference List…………………………………………………………...22
Appendices………………………………………………………………24

Introduction
''Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it.'' Helen Keller ( an American author, who was the first deaf-blind person to earn a bachelor of Arts degree)
Education in Russia has come a long way from the traditional concepts and their teachings to the introduction of new technologies to adjust, to the great changes brought about by a globalized world. However, one area that is still far from keeping pace with rapid world changes is the area of special education. Furthermore, little research has been done about special education services in Russia.
According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization 10% of Russia's population have disabilities. About 25% of these citizens with disabilities are children of school age. For decades, the society tried to hide disabled children and adults, confining them to correctional institutions and boarding schools. According to some figures, only one-third of the disabled children are enrolled in schools for students with disabilities, while most go to regular schools meaning that over 70% of school aged students with disabilities are either at home or in regular schools with little or no specialized assistance. However, 340 000 children with disabilities are deprived of education and, therefore, of the chance to live better.
In 2008, Russia signed The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which guarantees the education of children with disabilities and provides an inclusive education. This means that our schools need to be equipped accordingly and have specialists around to assist children. The mother of a five-year-old girl Nastya, who has a mild form of Cerebral Palsy and autism, says that access is not only a problem with schools but also with kindergartens.
In fact, very few children with mental retardation receive services .In most cases, it is difficult to identify mental retardation, since IQ tests are not given in school, but instead entrance examinations are given to determine if the student can move to the next class or remain in the same class. Children with mild retardation are hard to identify, and also it is not clearly defined, what IQ is termed intelligent or gifted and what is termed as a mental disability. Those with severe disabilities are put in special schools, residential homes or institutions for children with mental retardations also known as children's homes. In these special schools, education is not an essential issue; most of the students are not taught self help skills with the result that these children are dependent most, if not all, of their lives.
Nevertheless, public awareness of disability issues and political commitment to addressing them have slowly increased in Russia over the past decades. There has been a marked expansion of measures to identify, support and 'treat' disabled people, in particular, children, occurring against a background of prolonged general economic and budgetary crisis.
Thus, this issue seems to be very acute and needs much consideration.
The purpose of the study
My inspiration to do this type of research came after I joined Rossosh Volunteer Youth club “Prometei” which deals with the social activities for the local disabled children and teenagers. What is more, this issue appeals to me because I have made up mind to become a teacher of a foreign language and help children broaden their knowledge about the world. I am fully aware of the difficulties of my future work. But I hope I will be suited to the profession I have chosen. The purpose of the investigation into the problem is to consider the importance of the special education system and how to improve special education services in the public school system in Russia in comparison with the British system of special education. The reason for this comparison was in order for me to get best practice in the British system of special education that could be adapted to the Russian system, to improve the quality of education for children with disabilities in Russia.
The objectives of the work
to develop skills of research work and their application to the solution of actual practical tasks;
to compare the systems of special education in Russia and Great Britain and reveal similarities and differences of the two systems;
to study the literature on the issue that is available on the Internet and in the libraries and summarise the valuable information;
to conduct a survey and discuss the results of our research paper at the school conference;
to share opinions with the teachers about the recommendations on how to improve the learning process for children with special needs.
The object of the investigation is Special Education.
The subject of the investigation is the learning process in Russian and British schools.
The research paper consists of introduction, three chapters, conclusion and recommendations section, reference list and appendices.
Chapter I of this research paper deals with the current system of special education in Great Britain. Chapter II will set the context for the development of Russia’s special education standards by tracing the history of Soviet and Russian special education, post-Soviet education reform and contemporary system of education. Chapter III provides a practical perspective of Inclusive Education. In conclusion I will summarize the results of my analysis and offer recommendations on how to improve the System of Education for children with special needs in Russia.

Chapter I. Special Education in Present Day Britain
Special education in Great Britain is the responsibility of the Government of the United Kingdom and the term 'special educational needs ' is used to describe the needs of children who need additional provision in order to make progress. This includes children with moderate or severe learning difficulties and physical, neurological or sensory disabilities (such as hearing, motor and visual disabilities) as well as needs such as dyslexia, developmental coordination disorder, autism, Asperger syndrome and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder(ADHD).
Special education in Britain is protected under the Special Education Needs of practice. This code gives guidelines to all practitioners as the local authorities, government bodies in schools, and settings receiving government funding to provide early childhood education, and also provides nursery education to children with special needs (Teacher net,2008a).
The main aim of the code is that, through its policies and guidelines, children with special needs in education meet their full potential from childhood and later transitioning into adulthood.
Children with special educational needs have learning difficulties or disabilities that make it harder for them to learn than most children of the same age. These children may need extra or different help from that given to other children of the same age group.
The National Literacy and Numeracy strategies is an organization in Britain that provides assistance to children to enable them to learn to read and write and understand mathematics.
Schools and other organizations can help most children overcome the barriers, their difficulties present, quickly and easily. Special education in Britain is guided by the following principle .All children with special education needs should have their needs met, in mainstream early education settings and school settings. The views of the parent and the child should be taken into account, and the parent has a vital role in the development and progress of the child’s education (Tomilinson, 1982).Children with special education needs should have a broad, well-balanced education, to include the foundation-based curriculum offered to children aged three to five and the National Curriculum for children aged five to sixteen (Teacher net, 2008b).
In Britain, a lot of emphasis is placed on early childhood, as they believe it is at this stage that is easy to catch a disability in a child (Copeland, 2000).
1.1 Meeting Special Education Needs.
The British SEN Code of practice recommends that schools and early education settings follow a step-by- step graduated approach to provide services to children with special needs. The graduated approach requires that, schools and other early education settings take into account that since students learn at different levels, teachers with the help of specialist expertise, use step by step or task analysis to help with the difficult areas that a child could be facing. Parental participation and consent are required prior to use of the approach. The use of small groups or classroom modifications to fit the needs of the child may be used in a graduated approach. The teacher has the responsibility of finding different approaches to assist the child in attaining his or her education goals, and an individualized Education Plan( IEP) is written to show the plan that the teacher has for the child. The IEP shows what special help the child is receiving, how often the child will receive the help, who will provide the help, what targets have been set forth for the child, how and when the child’s progress will be checked ,and what help the parent can give the child at home. The teacher should discuss the IEP with the parent and the child if possible. In most cases, the IEP is linked to areas such as language, literacy, mathematics, behaviour and social skills. If in the process of graduated approach, the child makes progress, he or she joins the other students in regular education classroom. If the child does not make progress, the teacher or Special Education Needs Coordinator ( who is person in the school or preschool who coordinates help for children with special education needs), talks to the parent about alternative help from outside school. Outside assistance may include visiting a specialist teacher, an educational psychologist, a speech and language therapist, or other health professionals. The parent has the role of deciding what services their child will receive. If the child is found to have a disability, then special needs services will be recommended by the school. If the parent does not agree with the settings or the school, she or he has the authority to appeal this through the Local Authority or a local parent partnership service. The local parent partnership service provides support and advice to parents, whose children have special education needs. The Local Authority provides the parent with a local parent partnership service where they will be able to receive independent advice and support.
If the LA carries out the assessment, they will ask for extra services from other professionals like the child’s school and early education settings, school psychologist, doctor, social services and any persons concerned with the child’s needs. The parent has the right to be present at any interview. Once the assessment is done, the Local Authority develops a statement of education needs, also known as a statement.
1.2 Statement of Education Needs
The statement will describe all the child’s special education needs, and the help he or she should receive. The LA will also write a statement if they decide that the help the child needs cannot be provided in the school setting in which he or she is currently enrolled. This statement will include information on about monetary resources, staff and equipment. The statement has the child’s demographics (name, address, date of birth, religion and home language).
It also has all the advice the LA received as part of assessment. What is more, a draft of written statement is sent to the parents before a final statement is written. The parent has the right to state which state school they want their child to attend, either in a mainstream school or special school. The LA must agree with the parent’s preferences as long as the school is age appropriate, provides services suitable for the child’s ability, skills and special education needs, the presence of the child in school does not interfere with the learning of other students and there are enough funds and resources for the child.
The LA will make a final statement within some period of time and a copy of the statement is sent to the parents and the schools provided in part four of the final statement.
1.3 Conflict ResolutionIf the parent disagrees with the statement, the parent should seek advice from the named officer in the LA’s office for an explanation. Consultation with the local parent partnership is also recommended.
If the parents are moving, they should tell the previous child’s school and the LA. They should also talk to the present LA about the needs of the child and the best way to ensure that the student’s needs will continue to be met.
The new LA then makes sure that the child gets all the special education needs as set out in the statement .Education for children with special needs in Britain does not end at age of sixteen. Depending on child's interests, strengths and abilities, the child can continue on in the ordinary school or special school, or he can move on to a college or into vocational training. In Britain, the year nine annual review is the most important in the preparation for children with special needs to receive for transition to adulthood and college life. At this point, vocational rehabilitation services use reviews in the statement of special education needs to place the students in programs depending on their strengths. The review among other things places concerns on the child’s transition to adulthood. The transition plan must be completed by the head teacher after the review meeting. To sum up, in Britain children with disabilities are treated individually depending on their strengths and weaknesses, and an IEP system and system of services introduced in the country help to provide for their needs. What is more, the system of identification, assessment of strengths and weaknesses, teachers are important components in assisting the individual child with disabilities to achieve self-reliance and independence.
Chapter II. Russian’s System of Special Education
The state of post-Soviet special education has attracted only a modest amount of attention in English language literature. The Russian academic press has prioritized specialist aspects of pedagogical practice and innovation with children with special education needs, and the broad discussion of policy and practice directions. There is very little academic literature in Russian or English that takes a medium-range view, with examples of local structures and practice-level view points. The chapter begins with a brief overview of the systemic and theoretical legacy of the Russian special education system.
2.1 Growth and development of special Education in Russia
Soviet facilities for children with learning difficulties were highly praised by Western observers for two main reasons: their specialist knowledge base and perceived results. Development in the special school system and curriculum were explicitly research-driven with Moscow’s Institute of Defectology (now called the Institute for Correctional Pedagogy) deeply involved in research and practice through the journal Defectologia.
The most striking feature of the Soviet system of education and services for children with learning difficulties was the degree of segregation it involved. The Soviet practice was distinguished by the diversity of educational services, the principle of differentiation.
How has the «political commitment» to addressing disability issues in post-Soviet Russia manifested itself? Through the perestroika period in the late 1980s a disability movement raised public awareness of the existence of disabled people and their rights. A legislative framework for establishing the definition of disability, of disabled people’s rights and of special education emerged gradually from that period to the mid 1990s.The 1996 Russian Federation Law ” On the social protection of disabled people” brought policy on disability together under one rubric for the first time. It brought to disabled children and adults the concept of special rights to economic and social protection, education and health interventions, and the right to equal participation in society. Legal recognition and protection can also help to oppose oppression and discrimination. The presence of a Russian Federation Law relating specifically to disabled people and their rights and the intention at least to address special education specifically through the legislative process is significant.
2.2 Special Education in Russia: Present Day
My intention to analyze continuities and changes in Russian special education provision is focused on the concept of inclusive education, which should provide the basis for further development of this type of education. However, public awareness of disability issues and political commitment to addressing them have slowly increased in Russia over the past decades. Russian legislation does not prohibit education of disabled persons in mass educational institutions but the regulation of the process of inclusive education is mostly carried out on the regional which does not provide the adequate legal regulation of the concerned process. Integration is a natural stage of development of special education, but in modern Russian conditions inclusive education must be considered not as the only but as one of possible ways of education of children with special needs. The main type of educational institution for children with special needs must be a composite educational institution which provides an effective and accessible level of integration according to the level of psychological and verbal development of the child. In Russia today special education is a complex system of different types of school, vocational colleges and institutions. It includes kindergartens for children from three to six years old, special boarding schools with 10 years of study and vocational schools with three years of study. There are also nursing homes for children and adolescents with a diagnosis of severe mental impairment. According to many experts, disabled children and young adults face significant bureaucratic and social barriers to education. At the present time integrated education could be considered as the priority of state educational policy in Russia. The transition to inclusive education is predetermined by Russia’s ratification of UN conventions on children and disability rights:”Today, occasional wheelchair ramps can be seen in Russian cities, limited assistive devices are being produced locally ,employment programs for disabled people have been launched in several Russian cities, and a handful of integrated pre-school programs have been initiated in a few Russian cities. Finally, the Kremlin officials have publicly acknowledged the huge problem of inaccessibility and the lack of federal support provided to the disability community”. The past 15 to 20 years have been a period of lively debate about special education in Western Europe and North America. It is particularly interesting to examine the impact of those debates on a system which has been characterized by an apparently distinctive, scientific approach. Although the continuing influence of Defectology was dominant in systemic characteristics and professionals’ accounts, there were indications of changing values. It also needs to be recognized that very recent studies have underlined the fact that there is by no means a consensus among similar professional groups on practical integration / inclusion in the Russian Federation.
Frequently, teachers referred to integration when they meant, not administrative but social integration in a wide sense. Social integration means an aspect of education whereby disabled and non-disabled students share leisure time and space within the education system.
Used in this context , integration was reflected in practice not by ensuring that disabled school children shared time and space with their non-disabled peers, but «integrating» disabled children into society at large: «We try to look at the child as a whole with the aim to integrate him into society as a valued person. You could look at our children in the street or on public transport and not think there was anything wrong with them, they talk and behave like any other person.»(Petrova I.,1998)
In conclusion, the most important concern is that the education system remains unchangeable when it integrates a child with special needs who succeeds in graduating to a regular school only due to enormous energy spent by parents and teachers. This often leads to burnout effects and to withdrawal of the child from the regular school setting. Successful inclusion practices depend on restructured schools that allow for flexible curricula and instruction. Sufficient support staff, helping professionals should be employed to address the social, emotional and cognitive needs of all students. Many experts believe the greatest obstacle preventing disabled Russian children and young adults from fully integrating into society is discrimination in equal access to education. What is more, while planning policy measures for social integration, the wider context of inclusion has to be taken into account, with regards to family issues, employment opportunities, availability of natural supportive networks such as circles of relatives, friends and neighbours and networks of professional helpers. Mass media have a role to play also in regards to social inclusion, as the predominant image portrayed of disabled people is associated with weakness and misery.
2.3. Results of the Comparison between the Systems of Special Education in Russia and Great Britain
After reviewing both the Russian and the British systems of special education there were some similarities and differences that I found. This section reports those similarities and differences to provide a basis for the recommendations that would improve special education in Russia. Parental involvement. In the British system of special education, parents are greatly involved in the decision making related to the child’s special needs. In Russia, however, this is not the case. The child is sent to school and the responsibility for the child’s education is left to the teacher. Categories of Special education. The British system of special education provides services for all students with disabilities. In Russia, the system concentrates more on those students with physical disabilities. Government involvement. In both systems the government is greatly involved in setting up systems to meet the needs of the child with special needs. Individualized Education Plan. Regarding an individualized education plan, the difference between the two systems is the presence of an individualized education plan in the British system and the lack of one in Russia. The British system has realized that different children with disabilities have different needs and goals, one has to look at the strengths and work on the weaknesses. Problems Arising from the Russian System of Education. From the research, I identified some problems in the Russian system of special education. One of these is the lack of specially trained teachers and professionals. Lack of parental participation in the education of the child is another major problem facing Russia. Lack of funds and poor technology are other problems facing the educational system in Russia. Corruption is a major problem that is also affecting the field of education. In terms of relationship with peers many disabled children do not have good peer relationship and they are often teased and bullied.
Chapter III. Promoting Inclusive Education. Perspectives of Inclusive Education
The new law ‘On Education in RF’expands the State guarantees for free education. Moreover, the law is aimed at enabling children with disabilities to learn at common schools. The new law gives priority to inclusive education, which imagines education for children with disabilities as not in a specialized but common institution. Nevertheless, these children can choose to attend specialized institution as before.
[The Federal law of the Russian Federation from the 29th of December of 2012 №273-Ф3 “On Education in Russian Federation”] According to the law, inclusive education is a guarantee of equal access to education for all pupils and students considering their different educational demands and individual capabilities.
The main question is how to give the child with special development not only a rich social experience, but also develop his or her educational demands to the full extent in a way that the participation of such a child would not decrease the general level of education of other children. In this way, the question shifts from the ideological dimension to an organizational, scientific-methodical and investigational one.
According to the statistics provided by the government, the number of schools in which barrier-free environment for pupils with disabilities will be created, will grow in the next five years from 1.200 to 10.000
3.1. Research: Methods and Findings
The research on the issue ‘Perspectives of inclusive education in Russia’ was conducted in a small industrial town, Rossosh, located in the south of Voronezh region. The research design represents a multi-methodological model and includes three types of studies:
a case study of a disabled child in a regular school;
a series of interviews with school administrators and teachers;
a questionnaire survey of school students.
These were the different stages of the single research project with the aim to explore the current social and cultural context for the policy of special education and inclusion in order to outline some recommendations and prospects for inclusion.
Our school is a regular secondary one which hosts only three students with special educational needs.
We interviewed Olga Shapovalova, aged 17, and her father to explore practices of socialization for children with motor impairments at a regular school.
Olga suffers from a severe form of Cerebral Palsy and she has difficulty walking. Her twin sister was born deaf and dumb and she attends a special residential school in the town of Bobrov. The girls were brought up by their father as the mother died soon after the girls’ birth. Shapovalova Olga is involved in both home schooling and distant studies. She is attended by the teachers at home and as a result, she is deprived of communicating with peers. Although, Olga experiences some difficulties in school, such as difficulty with handwriting, carrying out school activities, communicating verbally and interacting socially, she understands how important education is and thinks about getting a university degree. She dreams of having a future profession. Her father says that the biggest challenge a disabled child faces when he or she gets into the building of a school is from other children’s reactions. He thinks that ‘We have to start early because if children get used to seeing the disabled right next to them, they will learn to be more kind, more tolerant and caring.’
We also explored the attitudes of contemporary mainstream school students towards the idea of inclusive education. This type of research design used multiple sources of evidences, such as observation, interviews, documentary sources. The second aspect of the study involved interviews, conducted at our school with the School Principal and her deputies and some teachers, to find out the opinion of experts about inclusive education. The third aspect, the survey, was focused on public attitudes towards inclusive education. The questionnaires were distributed among the senior students of our school. In total, 27 students took part in the survey. We managed to conduct interviews with several teachers of Rossosh Lyceum №11 and asked for their personal agreement about inclusion. Only 16% of teachers answered ‘Yes’ to the question, ’Would you personally like to see children with motor impairments in the groups you work with?’, while 31.8% said ‘No’ and 51.3% had difficulty answering this question. This may be explained through the fact that inclusionary policy would obviously have an impact on a teacher’s professional position ( Table 1). However, both teachers and school administrators answered similarly to the question ‘What prevents inclusion?’, ranking the obstacles from the unadjusted physical environment and inadequate financing of the schools, to the quality of teaching, lack of specially adjusted educational programs, social inequality in a society, and lack of a legislative base. It is necessary to notice that only a small number of students never mentioned children with disabilities in our society. Approximately 40% have seen them in the street, 20% have been acquainted without any communications, and 10% have been in touch with them. The analysis shows that the closest contacts are between the respondents and children with motor impairments (12.4%). Contacts between respondents and children with speech, hearing and vision impairments occur rarely(4%). The fact that only a small proportion of the school students could make acquaintance with disabled children shows the limitations imposed by institutional frames, especially by the structure of educational system.
The dilemma of segregated special education is two-sided: on the one hand, it helps to combine medical and teaching skills, on the other hand, it prevents social integration of disabled children and promotes their segregation and limitation in their life chances. Children and their parents are dissatisfied with this situation, which is not in accordance with the reformative intention s of the modern educational system in Russia .
But as a whole, one can see the importance of a new approach to social policy. Inclusive education provides the humanistic alternative and decreases the process of marginalization of disabled children.
Inclusive education during the process of introduction may run into the organizational difficulties of physical barriers( ramps, one-storied school buildings , availability of sign language interpreters, reconstructing of public places ), and with such social obstacles as stereotypes and prejudices, refusal to admit differing children into the group of peers.
The school students feel the most tolerance towards children with motor impairments and less to children with speech, hearing and vision impairments.
The lowest level of tolerance concerns children with mental impairment – almost half of the students wish them to study separately, at another school. It is evident that we are dealing with deeply rooted stereotypes. (Table 2) This is illustrated by the distribution of answers to the question about the possibility of communication with disabled children. (Table 3) There are groups with negative attitudes towards disability ( up to 5.9%) regarding children with motor activity, speech, hearing, vision impairment, but the deepest intolerance is mentioned toward children with mental delay. The research shows gender differences in attitudes towards disabled children. Girls notice children with disabilities more often, and they show a positive attitude , including towards studying together and communicating.
Different factors of tolerance include age, gender, social economic status of the family, type of impairment and experience.The essential differences in opinion are between those who haven`t seen disabled people in the street , and those who have got relatives or friends with disability. About 35% of children who have experience of contacts with disabled people are ready to study together in the same class.
Though intolerance to disability is demonstrated, the majority of respondents are certain about the necessity of undertaking special measures for equality (85%). Just as the answers point to the importance of experience of contacts with disabled people, more than a half of respondents consider that there is a need to assist in perceiving children with disabilities without prejudice, and approximately 40 % are sure that it is necessary to help disabled children to live and work without limitation in their movements – sound traffic lights, ramps for wheelchairs, facilities in public places and transport.( Table 4)
The administrators in the interviews supported integration in principle but exclude children with mental impairment for inclusion policies .They stress the necessity for special education to remain for children with severe disabilities and for orphans. The main difficulties of transition to inclusion, according to those interviewed, include lack of a legislative base for the implementation of inclusive education as well as an inadequate financial base for the education system, which prevents proper staffing and technical development. School administrators and teachers believe that children with motor impairments are to be integrated first – they can «normally» keep up with the curriculum, however, they think that those in wheelchairs will not be capable as they are limited in mobility. To introduce inclusion, according to the experts, the state budget for the overall educational system needs to increase and non - state funds need to be raised.


Conclusion
In the context of the social and economic transformation of the last 10 years in Russia, the system of education for children with motor impairments has experienced changes but at the same time it reproduces Soviet stereotypes and educational discources. The main goal of this system is to educate individuals who can cope with daily needs. However, the policies of special education for children with disabilities marginalize children and limit their social orientations and perspectives. The opinions of the key actors of the educational system - teachers, parents and children- are favourable towards the idea of inclusion as a project. At the same time ,when it comes to real life situations, very practical concerns arise, which hinder the true inclusion of children. The most important concern is that the education system remains unchangeable when it integrates a child with special needs who succeeds in graduating to a regular school only due to enormous energy spent by parents and teachers. Successful inclusion practices depend on restructured schools that allow for flexible learning environments, with flexible curricula and instruction.
Recommendations
Based on the information presented above, the Russian system of special education needs both long and short-term changes. From the research , the aim of special education in Britain is to enable children with special needs in education to meet their full potential from childhood to adulthood. Parents are greatly involved in their children’s education and participate in decision-making. It can be concluded that there is public awareness in terms of what has been put in place for children who have disabilities. After comparing the Russian system to the British system of education, I concluded that the following steps are highly recommended to improve the education of children with disabilities in Russia and prepare those children with disabilities to live independently. Public awareness should be an essential step in offering solutions to the problem. There should be a change in the public attitude towards people with disabilities from rejection to acceptance and understanding.
Teachers should be trained to cope with the needs of the child with special needs. Schools should be proactive in making changes or reforms to cater for disabled students’ needs. This can be achieved by formulating long-term plans and policy on the curricula and accommodation for such students.
In addition, teachers need the curriculum designed to address the individual needs of children with disabilities.To sum up, more research should be conducted in all areas of special education. These include areas like the psychological effects of each disability, medical needs of children with disabilities, the sociological adjustments in the community, vocational needs and employment in the community and independence strategies.

Reference List
Bart, D.S. (1984) `The differential diagnosis of special education: managing pathology as individual disability’, in Special Education and Social Interests, eds L. Barton L.S, Tomlinson, Croom Helm, London.
Bassey, M (1999) Case Study Research in Education setting,Open University Press, Buckingham, PA.
BBC News (2003)` Russia «abuses children`s rights». Human rights group Amnesty International has accused Russia of violanting the human rights of children with learning disabilities? BBC News, Thursday 2 Oct. 2003, Available at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/Connexious – direct (2009). Connexios direct information and advice for young people Retrieved March 13, 2009, from http://www.connexions-direct.com/index.cfmCopeland, I.C (2000). Special education needs in primary and secondary school brochures in England. European Journal of Special Needs Education, 15 (3), 241-254.
Directgov (2009a). Special education needs Retrived March 09,2009, from http:/www.direct.gov.uk/en/Parents/schoolslearninganddevelopment/specialEducationalNeeds/index.htm
Dyson, A (1995). Dilemmas, contradictions and democracy: Models in the governance of special needs education in England and Wales. Newcastle , UK: University of Newcastle upon Tyne.
Florian, L. (2008). Special or Inclusive education Future trends. British Journal of special Education, 35(4), 202-208
Kersher, R & Chaplain, R (2001) Understanding Special Education Needs, A Teacher`s Guide to Effective school – based Research, David Fulton Publishers, London.
Petrova,I. (1998)` Children and youth with special needs in Russia, and educational services to meet them `,Education and Treatment of Children, vol.21, no.3, pp. 412-423.
Salisbury,C.L.,Palombaro, M.M. & Hollowood,W.M. (1993) `On the nature and change of an inclusive elementary school`, The Journal of the Association for person with severe Handicaps,vol.18,pp. 77-84.
Shea, T.M.& Bauer, A.M/ (1997) An Intriduction to special Education. A Social Systems Perspective 2nd- edn, Brown & Benchmark,Madison,WI.
Stout,K.S.(2001) Special Education Inclusion, WEAC Education Issues Series Available at: http:// www.weac.org/resource/june96/speced.htm,updated 5 Nov.2001
Verhbow,A.(2004) Toward Greater Educational Access for the Disabled, Inclusive Education: Problems and Perspectives , Conference, Moscow, 24 June 2004. Available at:http://moscow.usembassy.gov/bilateral/statement.php.record_id=100
Will,M.C.(1986) Educaticating children with learning problems : a shared responsibility, Exceptional Children ,vol.52,pp.411-415.
Национальная образовательная инициатива ‘Наша новая школа’ от 04 февраля 2010г. Пр-27[ Электронный ресурс]// Министерство образования и науки РФ:[сайт]. URL:http://mon.gov.ru/dok/akt/6591/
Отношение к детям –инвалидам [ электронный ресурс]//Сайт для людей с ограниченными возможностями здоровья 'Дверь в мир':[сайт]. URL:http:doorinworld.ru/stati/434-otnoshenie-k-detyam-invalidam
Appendices
Would require retraining 49.4%
Will experience no change 20.1%
Would easily adjust 14.5%
Would not adjust 6%
Hard to say 10%
Table 1. How would inclusion affect a teacher's professional position?
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Table 2. Are there persons with disabilities among your friends or relatives?
I have/had a good friend/relative 12.2%
Knew one person, but did not communicate closely 18.1%
Saw in the street 40.5%
No 29.1%
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Table 3. What do you think of integration with disabled children in the same school?
Agree to study together in the same class 65.3%
Agree to study together in the same school but not in the same class 19.4%
Let them study in a separate school 15.3%
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Table 4. What about your communication with disabled children?
I'd come up and do things together 63.8%
I prefer to stand aside, but if necessary I'll communicate 30%
I don't want to deal with 5.6%
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The interview with Shapovalova Olga, a disabled teenager
Full name: Shapovalova Olga
Date of birth: 14.11.1997
2700020145415Family: Father – Shapovalov Gennadi, 58, an engineer
Twin-sister-Ann (deaf and dumb), a student of a special school in Bobrov
Elder sister – Helen, (33), a shopkeeper, divorced
Niece – Kseniya (7) a pupil at primary school
Hobbies: cooking, reading, surfing the Net
Education: Home, schooling (Rossosh Lyceum №11) distant studies
Favorite subjects: the Russian Language (However, she has great difficulties learning Math and Physics
Friends: no friends among peers but has some pen pals
Wishes: would like to make some friends
Alina: Can you tell me about your background – where you grew up and how your disability impacted you?
Olga: Frankly speaking, I don’t like speaking about my personal experiences growing up with a disability, and how it has affected my life. But I should say that although I have cerebral Palsy, which affects muscle and skeletal developments and thus makes mobility difficult, I have learnt to adapt and enjoy life.
Alina: What is the impact of globalization on people with disabilities?
Olga: Well, I would be positive about it. First of all, it gives you a larger family, in sense that you belong to so many other people and the very fact that there are so many attempts to solve the problems of disabled people is a result of a globalized effort.

The social activities of Rossosh volunteer youth club “Prometei”
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